Employability 101 - Extracurricular

Hello there, how are you? It has been 9 months since I last wrote to you. Oh, I have been busy with Law School things. Gruesome things. *Shudder* I might tell you all about it later.

Yaay! Vaccines are here! But school has changed forever, hasn’t it? You are probably reading this from your house. You have probably lost a year of education to COVID-19. Can the world reach a consensus, to cancel 2020 from history? You have probably had to attend online classes. The job market too, has changed. Many have lost their roles, more have had to work from home. One thing stays the same however - the competitiveness. The Nigerian job market, especially that for lawyers, still sets you against thousands of others. 

Before I disappeared, I began a series on employability. I wrote about grades and skills. In Employability 101 - Grades, I said that grades were important, for mostly one reason - recruitment. They do not matter after employment. Work ethic, teamwork, etc. decide how far people go in business organizations. But they can only go far if they are in. And they cannot get in if they do not meet the criteria. And the very first criterion is often what? Grades. 

The second however is often achievements, in the form of extracurricular activities.

Our good grades tell only one part of the story - that we are good at academic work. This is sometimes inadequate. Having extracurricular activities in our resume shows not just what we know, but what we can do. They also makes our grades more impressive. We seem like the total package. And who doesn’t want that? 

Today, I am writing about the extracurricular activities that make us employable. I am a graduate of law. I have done a shortlist that is largely based on my own experience. Some of the things I will say may be impracticable for now. Be ready to go once offline school returns.

Pay attention. And welcome back! 

• Organizations

Oh it is important to join organizations, both academic and non-academic. For law students, the debate and moot committees can be quite useful. Chambers and clubs too. I advise that everyone joins at least one of these. Being a member of an organization can evidence teamwork, one of the most important skills in today’s workplace. Joining working, skill-oriented organizations will impact you with knowledge and skills you might never acquire on your own.

Do not restrict yourself to organizations within your faculty since there are general organizations during amazing work. AISEC, for instance. AISEC’s exchange program offers impact and international experience. Do well to join organizations that are remotely relevant to your career goals. This is so that you seem intentional in your resume. Sadly, student fellowships do not count for much. Please, be careful with student fellowships. 

I am a product of great organizations. At university, I joined the debate committee in my first year. I was fortunate to have joined at the best time. I had the greatest debaters the faculty had ever seen, to listen to and learn from. They improved my speaking, research and writing. In my second year, I joined Victus Chambers. In my third year, I joined the Moot and Mock Committee. In the same year, we formed The Tax Club. In my fourth year, I joined IPLC (Intellectual Property Law Club) and the ADR (Alternative Dispute Resolution) Society. These organizations organized impactful and memorable events, tasks and trips. I also met useful, fascinating people.

• Leadership

You may take membership a notch higher by leading. Leadership roles are impressive, they do the best job at demonstrating capacity. Leadership and initiative are important, inherent skills. So are influence and collaboration. Because organizations revolve around their leaders, they gain the most experience. They encounter challenging situations and learn important lessons. They can retell scenarios to demonstrate cause, intervention and effect. On behalf of the organization, they meet new, important people who can be of help to their personal careers. They can also claim responsibility for the organization’s achievements.

Leadership can be difficult, however. Scandalous even. First, leadership can be time-consuming, tiring. You would need to be conscious, deliberate about your schedule. Second, responsibility and power reveal the very worst in people. You would need to seek honest feedback, introspect and improve.

I was President of The Tax Club OAU in my fourth and final years. We did some amazing things, together. It was probably the best part of my university experience. I had to learn things on the job, things that are incredibly relevant to the work I do today. I got to visit all my prospective employers, I made useful connections and I accessed opportunities. Importantly, I was able to do all of these for others. I tried to make all members as privileged as myself. It is beautiful memory.   

• Competitions

By all means, compete. Sign up for a debate, moot, mock trial, pitch, essay competition. Please, win something. Winning is impressive. Also, competing will teach you the subject matter of the competition and important life skills like resilience.

You might lose. But refusing to try because of the possibility of failure is actually foolishness. Failure is always a possibility. And when you lose competitions, you haven’t really lost if you win people. 

Inter-school competitions were incredibly fun, enlightening, memorable. I thoroughly enjoyed them. Do not be that local champion. You need to see how things are done in other schools! You must! I never listened to anyone who had never left OAU. Leave your school! First, concerning the job market, you are in competition with thousands, from different universities. You are not going to know the standards, until you have experienced something different. 

At university, I visited the University of Lagos (multiple times), University of Ibadan, University of Ilorin, Babcock University and the University of Legon, Accra. I met and networked with students from all Federal Universities, at least once. I knew what their faculties were up to, how their lecturers marked, what organizations they recognized. I made important friends and gradually became popular. At the University of Legon, Accra, I met students from numerous African countries. It was some experience. Although I did not have a ranking, I was David from Nigeria. 

International competitions are the best. They give you travel history, international experience, access to other nationalities, awareness of global standards. Oh, and they also look good on your resume. Especially if you apply for international opportunities later in life.

• Internships

When utilized properly, internships are often the most defining extracurricular activity. Perhaps it is because they double as work experience. Especially when you take on well defined roles, in specialized units, for extended periods. For instance, I worked in the Regulatory and Compliance Unit of the Tax Division at PwC, for 9 months! That is some achievement. I have worked every year, since 2016. KPMG, Ikeyi & Arifayan, Banwo & Ighodalo, Olaniwun Ajayi and PwC. 

Importantly, internships let you see what the industry looks like, ahead of time. Pay attention. This way, you know what is important and what is not. Too many of your classmates would be focused on nonsense, stuff they cannot sell to any employer. You will know what knowledge to gain, skills to acquire, experiences to have, organizations to join, achievements to chase, internships to seek next.

In addition, you will become commercially aware. For instance, you will begin to see the practice of law as a business. You will understand that your goal as a solicitor is to help your client make/save money, not whatever nonsense you are told in class. You will also develop some maturity, because internships will make you work with older, knowledgeable people. Finally, the firms/companies you intern at should ordinarily prioritize you when you eventually apply for a full role. 

I advise law students to intern outside the profession, at least once. It will afford you a broader perspective and introduce an important reality - no matter how brilliant or invested you are, you don’t have to practice law! There is better.

• Business

You are a student. You came to school to learn the law and bag a degree. Most likely, you want to be a lawyer. No one should shame you for not running a business or maintaining a side hustle. Ordinarily, that is nonsense. 

However, economic realities require us to do more. First, to fund your ambitions, you may need to make some money. The extent of our privilege differ. To school comfortably, you may need more resources. It is okay to work, as long as you balance it with academics. There are simple, compatible businesses to run. Some of my favorites are event hosting, writing, make-up artistry and photography. I know some incredible people who did these. I was called MC McCoy, I hosted events. Oh, and I did it because I wanted to. I did not have to. 

My speaking skills improved however, tremendously. And I opened a career option for myself. I can conveniently switch to event hosting or presenting at some point in the future. This is another benefit of having a side hustle - options. You are not guaranteed success in your first choice. Yet, you would need to eat and afford a lifestyle, family. Along the way, pick up as many skills as possible. 

Your side hustle will teach you important business skills - how to sell, budget, schedule, save, invest, organize and so on. It also counts as work experience. Work experience is especially important if you are an overaged student of a public university. Use your plenty free time to get your hands on something! Or not. Again, you’re only a student.

Anyway, this is all I have time for. Thank you for reading. Ultimately, remember that good grades should be your priority. You are a student, before you are anything else. Inculcate extra-curricular you can handle, according to a schedule that works. Good luck! Again, welcome back.