Checked Out: Off to Law School - Dean

Employee Name: Dean Se 

Job Title: Substitute Library Assistant 

Law School you will be attending: Western State College of Law 

1. Tell us a little about yourself and what brought you to work at the library.

My name is Dean, but I’m sure you already know that from reading the top of the page. I did my undergraduate degree at La Sierra University, double majoring in marketing and management. Some hobbies I enjoy are hiking, mountain biking, rock climbing, some competitive card games, and cars (both motorsport and modifying/car culture). After graduating, I checked through my network and was informed through social media about an opening at the law library. With some time passing and interviews, I found myself starting here about a year ago. 

2. What inspired you to pursue law school, and when did you know it was the right path for you?  

In college I aspired to be in the copywriting or marketing field, with later understanding that I didn’t enjoy the work, rather only the concepts of theory behind it. Then, throughout my junior year of my undergraduate degree, my friend that is an attorney, slowly fed me the idea of working in the legal field. He gave me situations, cases, and problems he solved, sometimes applying it to news or events that interested me. Along with the business law class I was currently taking at the time, I then recognized how the path of law could allow me to have bigger impact on my local community while being more engaging than my current path at the time.  

3. How has working at the law library influenced your decision to become a lawyer or shaped your perspective on the legal profession?  

As someone who is aspiring to become their family’s first-generation lawyer, the resources around me were sparse compared to those I knew who had more advantaged starts. While at the library, I found myself talking and networking with even more people in the local legal community of Riverside. All the people I talked to have inspired and wished me well on my legal journey, often giving important perspectives and advice I could use before, during, and after law school. All these important viewpoints were not possible without working at the law library, a necessary catalyst for my career. 

4. What area of law interests you the most, and what draws you to it?  

At the time of writing this, lemon law, has piqued my interest as the field I want to venture into. Naturally, as a car guy, I gravitate towards cars. It also helps that the attorney that introduced me into law is also a lemon lawyer. So, the idea of combining a hobby/topic I love with my career, to then use the knowledge as leverage for cases appears to be advantageous. There are several other areas of law I have some interest in, but I won’t know for sure that I’ll like them until I start taking classes or working in that area.  

5. What was the biggest challenge you faced while preparing for law school or the LSAT, and how did you overcome it?  

There were several challenges during my preparation for law school. Towards the start of my interest in law, my dad had a stroke and a heart attack at the same time. A week before my first official LSAT, I got dumped by my partner at the time. Hardships like these were at first scary but were ultimately fuel to my motivation to move forward. I had two main takeaways. Realization of self-worth, thinking about how I would value myself and how I can improve that. And the realization of positive thinking and reflection of the past. A lot of self-reflection and clarity came from going outdoors and exercising. Sitting around and doing nothing didn’t help me. It was keeping myself on my feet and not stopping the momentum of productivity that helped keep me stay afloat. 

6. What tools or resources did you use to study for the LSAT?

Studying for the LSAT, I found myself trying out several resources throughout my journey. My first couple of practice tests were with logic games, to only find out that they were removing the section in future tests. So, the sites that were good at helping me with logic games but were less in the two other sections, suddenly were not worth as much. The two main companies I used were Demon and Blueprint. Other resources I used were 7Sage, Khan Academy, and the official LSAT study materials from LSAC/Law Hub. Blueprint helped get my foundations down of how to navigate the LSAT. Demon helped me get through with analyzing problems or gaps in the passages. Khan Academy had useful videos with some examples, as of now, they’re now the official partner with LSAC/Law Hub for video explanations. However, Khan Academy lacked practice problems, so it isn’t a comprehensive study site. I recommend trying out different companies and finding out which one fits your learning and studying style the best.  

7. What advice would you give to someone who is considering law school or just beginning the application process?  

Forwarding advice from the attorneys I know, worry less about comparing yourself to others. Do NOT look at reddit or any other social media about other peoples’ scores, resume, or grades. Comparing yourself will only drag your mental down. It is good to keep your spirits high and mind in check. Like a lot of things in life, it is more about what you do with what you are given, not what you could have had.   

8. What is one skill or experience from your time at the library that you'll carry with you into law school and your future career?  

The research and navigation of both in-person and online legal resources such as Westlaw and Lexis Nexus will most likely be useful to me once I start my classes. Many of the law students I interviewed while touring schools have expressed their difficulties in the first year. One of which being the learning curve of how to properly research and navigate these resources, even though they are taking a course that will help guide them, the pressure of the other classes’ workloads can slow that learning process down.  

9. Looking ahead, what are you most excited about as you begin this next chapter?  

The new opportunities and perspectives in law school are what I am looking forward to. From meeting new people, learning new and old laws, applying them and figuring out what field of law I would be most interested in. It will be a scary, yet exciting leap forward into the unknown. But who doesn’t love a good thriller. 

10.  What is your favorite legal resource or database? 

For research, I would say LexisNexis. Overall, a solid search engine for many legal materials with a lot of primary and secondary sources. As for the one I personally use the most now, Wolters Kluwer is the answer. Wolters Kluwer has kept me up to date with many legal news in the country, sometimes introducing me to new relevant legal topics in the world. As I progress my time in school, I’ll be most likely to be using Westlaw, LexisNexis, and Trellis for my research.

Lightning Round 

• Coffee or tea?  

I love both local coffee shops, boba spots, and traditional hot tea. 

• Favorite study snack?  

Water, since I usually don’t snack during studying. 

• Favorite place to study?  

For sure going café hopping, good drinks and ambiance, the noise helps desensitize me from distractions I could have while testing. 

• Dream job after law school?  

Ideally, a well-paying job at a firm that allows me to study for the BAR at the same time. 

• One word that describes how you're feeling about starting law school.