Electives Brain Ache

Consolidation week has sadly come to an end. I say sadly, yet no rest was had by me and certainly not by any good LPC students. Gold stars all round. The reason that I am sad consolidation week has ended is that, for part-time students like myself, the deadline to select electives is looming. I have never been a particularly decisive person; I always feel I might be missing out on the options I didn't choose. This extends as far as choosing a restaurant to eat. I am, a terrible person.

“Someone once told me the definition of Hell: The last day you have on earth, the person you became will meet the person you could have become.”

- anonymous

So you can understand how agonisingly difficult choosing my electives have been. In the end I think the decision really comes down to what type of firm you want to work in and that is why the decision is so hard. At uni, you can be confident that the optional modules you choose will have little or no bearing on your ultimate career path. But the LPC is different. 

There are distinctly "corporate", "high street" and "legal aid" modules. To be honest I have always been set on qualifying with a high street firm as the city lifestyle has not appealed to me. This is until Eversheds shortlisted me for a vacation scheme. Now I know that (a) it is only a shortlisting and not an offer; and (b) this is no guarantee of a training contract offer; but I began to wonder if I have been selling myself short. Maybe I can succeed in the city? Maybe I might even enjoy it? I have, after all, been surprised by how much I enjoy BLP. 

I am torn. I have said all along that the only elective I am sure about is employment and I think this could be a little bit more transferable in the corporate world than some other 'high street' electives. Criminal has never been an interest, housing even less so! I have spoken with my tutor who advised that the second year electives are only provisional and can be changed...

Anyway, the long and short of it is that I have chosen Employment for my first year elective and International Acquisitions and Mergers and International Commercial Law for my second year. I guess you know which route I decided on. For now.