For many aspiring lawyers, the journey through law school and into the profession is already daunting. But for first-generation law students, the path is even more complex – marked by uncertainty, financial strain, and the absence of established connections.
Speaking on a recent episode of The Protégé Podcast, Aloizio Ferreira Compart, a law student at Western Sydney University and a law clerk from Frank + Law Advisory, opened up about the unique challenges that come with being a first-generation law student.
While the journey through university is demanding for many law students, Compart reflected that his experience has been particularly marked by uncertainty, self-doubt, and the constant pressure of questioning his ability to succeed.
“At times, you felt like you couldn’t make it. You felt like you were so disadvantaged and we were so far behind our peers and colleagues, where it’s like, how can we fit in and make the most and like put ourselves out there,” he said.
Unlike students from families with legal backgrounds, Compart explained that first-generation law students often feel at a disadvantage, with a limited understanding of the nuances of the legal profession in Australia.
“The challenges that we faced as first-generation law students were completely oblivious, like what it meant to be a lawyer in Australia and what it was like in law school,” he said.
“Only at my third [year of] university I understood what a clerkship was, what the big six was, what the magic circle law firm and like that, in the whole industry and sector you learn a little about watching like Suits.”
While his peers were focused on launching their legal careers and securing clerkships, Compart said he often felt a step behind, juggling part-time work with his studies and lacking the luxury to pause and reflect on career plans.
“Some of our peers would mention, Oh, are you applying for any clerkships? Are you looking to any firms you like, what area of law you want to go into?” he said.
“For us, it was like we never really had a chance to sit back and think about some of these moments because we’ve been working during university, we have tried [to] maintain our studies as well, and we felt so far behind, but in a way, it’s like let’s try our best and see what we can get.”
For Compart, the biggest challenge of being a first-generation law student was navigating the difficulties of breaking into the legal profession – a struggle that often involved personally handing out CVs and making cold calls to law firms.
“One of the biggest things we faced was trying to break into the industry … We really didn’t understand how we could apply and put ourselves out there,” he said.
“There was one time where my brother and I printed off our CVS and we just went across Parramatta, handing them out to law firms, trying to put ourselves out there.”
Though the process was exhausting and more challenging than for his peers, Compart reflected on how taking these steps and putting himself “out there” was crucial, noting, “at the end of the day, if you don’t put yourself out there, no one else will”.
