Assessments

• Self Assessment Tools
• Practice Areas

Self-assessment isn't essential to a job search. If your goal is to find a law job, any law job, you can do that without much self-reflection. However, if you want to find your passion, a life-long career that keeps you engaged and interested, knowing who you are is key.

To get started, complete some of the exercises listed below, then, come talk to an OCS counselor. We can help you identify career options based on your interests, values, and personality, and develop a strategy to get you from here to there.

Self Assessment Tools

Personality Type

• Myers-Briggs Type Indicator
  Rooted in Carl Jung's theory of psychological type, the MBTI measures personality preferences. Contact OCS for the login and password.
• Keirsey Temperament Sorter
  A quick personality assessment with basic information about the 4 different temperaments.

Values

• Employee Motivation Values Exercise
  Basic sorting exercise to determine your core values.
• Peak Experiences Exercise
• Living More Values List
  If the shorter list in the values exercise didn't cover everything that's important to you, take a look at this more extensive list.

Interests

• Ten Questions to Ask Yourself Before Choosing a Practice Area
• Strong Interest Inventory
  An assessment that categorizes your interests in work and leisure settings. Contact OCS for the login and password.
• Career Leader
  For those interested in business careers, this assessment is used by top business schools and corporations. Includes rich and deep information about a wide range of business careers.

Skills

• Skills Identifier
  Geared towards college grads, but good for creating a basic skills list.
• Transferable Skills List
  List of the most common skills developed in law school and legal practice.
• Skill Skan
  Advanced Pack: A skills assessment tool designed for college and graduate school graduates. Contact OCS to schedule this assessment.

Practice Areas

Once you have a sense of who you are, these resources can help you identify the best practice areas for you.

• SLSNavigator
  General descriptions of practice areas with course recommendations for each area.
• BCG's Quick Reference Guide to Legal Practice Areas
• Major, Lindsey & Africa Bay Area Law Firm Practices
• Major, Lindsey & Africa Practice Areas Summary
• Majory, Lindsey & Africa Ten Questions You Should Ask Yourself Before Choosing a Practice Area
• Vault Practice Area Guides
  Though covering limited practice areas, these guides provide fairly thorough explanations of what lawyers do in these specialties and potential career paths.
• Chambers Associates Practice Area Summaries
  Has a limited number of practice areas, but good overview of those they do cover.