Ready or Just Curious: Framing Your Academic and Bar Support Experience for What's Next
Whether you are actively seeking a new opportunity within the profession or simply feeling the tug of "what if," now might be the time to explore your options. Academic and bar support professionals often wear many hats—educator, coach, curriculum designer, data analyst, student advocate—and these diverse experiences are incredibly valuable both within and beyond legal education. However, it can be challenging to know how to frame this unique work in a way that translates effectively on paper and resonates with potential employers.
Updating your professional materials can be a strategic and empowering act of professional reflection. We should all approach resumes, cover letters, and assessments of transferable skills with this mindset. Whether you are exploring new possibilities (you may have noticed several opportunities posted here throughout the summer), applying for leadership roles, or simply polishing your materials for when the timing feels right, this is the blog post for you. I want to emphasize that I am sharing these insights not as an expert, but as someone who recognizes the value in collective professional growth and preparation.
Updating Materials is a Healthy Habit, Even If You're Not Leaving
Regular maintenance of your professional materials, annually or even semi-annually, provides numerous benefits that extend far beyond job searching. This practice gives you the opportunity to:
- Recognize your growth: Documenting your evolving responsibilities and achievements helps you see how far you have come professionally
- Track your accomplishments: Maintaining a current record ensures you do not forget significant contributions, successful projects, or positive outcomes
- Identify patterns in your interests: Regular reflection can reveal themes in the work that energizes you most, helping guide future career decisions
- Spot gaps or set new goals: Honest assessment of your experience can highlight areas for professional development or skills you would like to acquire
- Stay prepared for unexpected opportunities: Having current materials means you can respond quickly when interesting positions emerge
You do not need to be actively seeking a transition to benefit from thinking with that mindset. Career reflection is fundamentally an act of professional self-care. It keeps you focused, proactive, and empowered to guide your own path, regardless of where it ultimately leads. Moreover, in this era of institutional uncertainty, where many organizations face budget constraints, staffing reductions, and questions about long-term stability, preparation becomes essential for making quick pivots when necessary. This proactive approach also helps combat the common tendency to undervalue our own work.
Developing Skills That Broaden Your Future Pathways
Professional growth does not necessarily require an immediate job change. Instead, it can mean strategically expanding your expertise in areas that align with your interests and long-term career goals. Consider exploring skills and knowledge areas that could strengthen your professional toolkit:
- Technology and Data Analysis: Many academic support roles now require familiarity with learning management systems, assessment platforms, and data visualization tools. Developing stronger technical skills can make you more valuable in your current role while opening doors to positions in educational technology, institutional research, or program evaluation.
- Project Management: The complex, multi-stakeholder nature of academic support work often involves informal project management. Formalizing these skills through training or certification can help you articulate your organizational abilities more effectively and qualify you for administrative or operations roles.
- Professional Development and Training: Your experience supporting student learning translates naturally to adult learning and professional development contexts. Consider how your skills might apply in corporate training, continuing legal education, or professional association work.
- Policy and Compliance: Understanding academic standards, bar requirements, and institutional policies positions you well for roles in regulatory compliance, accreditation, or educational policy development.
- Research and Assessment: The evaluation and improvement work that's central to academic support roles builds research skills that are valuable in think tanks, policy organizations, or consulting firms focused on legal education.
- Communication and Content Creation: Whether you're developing study materials, creating presentations, or writing reports, you are building communication skills that translate to roles in marketing, content strategy, or organizational communications.
Stay Open, Stay Ready
Whether you're actively dreaming about a new direction or simply engaging in routine professional maintenance, give yourself permission to reflect thoughtfully on your complex and impactful work. Your professional story matters, and it deserves to be told with clarity and confidence.
When framing your experience, remember that your skills are both needed and transferable. The legal profession is evolving rapidly, creating new opportunities for professionals who understand both traditional legal education and innovative approaches to learning and development. Similarly, other sectors increasingly recognize the value of professionals who can bridge academic rigor with practical application. Remember that career development is rarely linear. The path forward may involve lateral moves that build new skills, temporary projects that expand your network, or gradual transitions that allow you to test new waters while maintaining financial stability. Stay curious about possibilities, but also be patient with the process of discovery and growth.
Your experience supporting others through challenging transitions has prepared you well for navigating your own professional evolution. Trust in the skills you have developed, the relationships you have built, and the unique perspective you bring to whatever comes next.
(Goldie Pritchard)
