In recent weeks, FolkIaw’s keeper, Lawyers Weekly, was distributed to a wider audience than usual, going to the best part of 1,500 law students across NSW to coincide with that state’s law careers fair. Folklaw is happy to report that as a result we have taken on a new role: careers counsellor.

Aside from the phone calls received two weeks after the grad fair was completed from readers wondering when and where it would be, we received the following nugget from a student who shall remain nameless. As far as could be determined, we think we’re doing the right thing by referring their pleadings on to a wider audience. Please send any comments to Shaun Drummond (This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.), who will pass them on to our under-employed undergraduate.

Ladies and gentlemen, we give you the Letter of the Week, unedited (except for typos), for your wise analysis and counsel:

Hi there, I’m first year undergraduate law student, currently studying commerce/law. I would like to ask you what your thoughts are concerning the other side of my law degree (i.e. the degree to combine with the law degree) and the advantages of having one over the other.

This is actually my second year of Uni, as last year I studied part-time whilst doing an accounting traineeship. I only completed 3 subjects (all commerce) and have since left it, due to my frustration of the ‘idea’ of a traineeship. during last year I worked at 2 firms, and had horrible/dreadful experiences at both (due to being the trainee, and being assigned the jobs no-one wants, being treated poorly and not learning anything in the trade-off).

Now that I have worked in a business/accounting firm, my views have changed drastically, and I will be no-longer studying commerce, but changing to another...which is my question...what should I change to? I know it has to do with your interests, but I’m not sure if a Bachelor of Arts of Bachelor of Communi-cations will get me anywhere, careerwise, in the future.

Also, I’m not sure what the view is from Law Firms (which is where you come in) concerning this. Do they favour certain degrees over others?

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Another question, do other industries favour combined Law degrees over single degrees? i.e. A firm would choose someone with an economics/law degree over a person with a straight economics degree? I’m actually quite lost at the moment, and cannot decide what to do.

My experience in the ‘business world’ was terrible, and I don’t wish to work in a ‘high-pressure’ firm again, constantly pushing you to get work done, even though you are working hard as it is. This is my main deterrent from choosing to study either Finance or Economics (Commerce is out of the question). Although, I think that Accounting was terrible due to a) the sheer boredom associated with it b) the nature of the work i.e. repetitive processing work (VERY similar to administration work). Hopefully other positions like economists or merchant bankers are different?

So in the end, my choices are as following:

•Economics/Law

•Finance/Law

•Arts/Law

•Communications/Law

•Science/Law

I’m interested in the above degrees, but cannot pin-point what one to do.

Part of the factor relates to other jobs I could get with the degrees i.e. I know Economics = economist, Finance = merchant banker/foreign exchange . . . but the others . . . not sure, I mean, communications could allow you to be a journalist, but it’s tough to get a job doing that, and as for the others . . .?

But from your point of view, I’d also like to know what the firms are after, is there a shortage of a particular degree? In a projected 5 year forecast of course ;)

Please let me know what you think, and if you aren’t sure, could you lead me to a person who would? thanks a lot for your time, much appreciated.