Very good advice.

I’d add “Be persistent” as a general attribute in doing all of these activities. Networking really takes a lot of time and it is easy to be “lazy” and not follow through, which I have done many times.

I would also echo the point that both Travis and Will mentioned–be in China when you can (if you want to do China-related work. Otherwise, go to the target country of your interest). If there were something I wished I had done earlier, it would be going for a China clerkship/internship during my first or second year (I’m in a four year evening program). But family obligations kept me from going alone. Fortunately, I’ll be going this summer.

Thanks for dropping by. I will add that SCU program to the update of this post.

Tom

You cover networking real well, here.

As for blogging, I started reading CLB over the summer. I got some confidence and started commenting. I then started to feel a little guilty how often I was commenting, so I decided to give this blogging thing a try. It is a lot of fun and really time consuming. But you’re totally right, we could spend a couple of hours watching ESPN or a couple of hours putting together a post. Plus, I second everything Travis wrote about blogging, especially the part about learning.

Last summer I did the SCU summer abroad in Shanghai. Anna Han runs the program and it is excellent. The program is split into two parts, 4 weeks in the class room and 4 weeks in an internship in Shanghai, Beijing or Hong Kong. Last summer the 4 weeks in the classroom was further split into two parts. The first 2 weeks were spent at Jiao Tong’s suburban campus learning Chinese law from Chinese law professors (in English). The second 2 weeks were spent at Jiao Tong’s Puxi campus, and Professor Han brought in practitioners each day to teach us about how law is practiced in China. These first four weeks also included a weekend day trip to Suzhou, and an afternoon at a prominent multinational company for an in-depth presentation by one of the in-house counsels and a VP.

I don’t know who you are since you did not have the courtesy to add a url-link, but Dan Harris and Steve Dickinson are some of the best practitioners in their field. More importantly, it is not the job of the blogger to be impartial– perhaps you’re confusing blogging with journalism– the blogger’s job is to assess situations and give their opinion. You should give Dan Harris some credit for openly admitting when he is being impartial, which he does regularly. I’ve been a dedicated reader of China Law Blog since its inception and the only form of bias I’ve seen exhibited by Dan Harris is his optimistic view that China will continue to grow, it’s judicial system will continue to improve, corruption is subsiding, and he likes Paris Hilton. Frankly, I appreciate his bullishness when it comes to China rising. It’s a nice change from the opinions I get from other professionals in the field who tell me not to trust China’s legal system, to bribe anyone and everyone, and to never expect any improvement. If we don’t have any hope for China’s future, then what are we doing there? Why are we telling our clients that this is a good investment? Other people might say it and not mean it, but Dan Harris and Steve Dickinson believe in China and their genuine belief in China’s future is reflected in their work. Anyone who has ever worked with them knows this to be true.

And I encourage law students to contact Dan Harris and Steve Dickinson. They are a valuable resource that you should use! Besides being good at their jobs, they’re also really nice guys who like talking about China and helping law students.

–Travis

Thanks for the compliment. I will add the Duquesne program to my post because that’s precisely the sort of program that I think benefits law students.

I also concur that there is nothing like blogging, which forces you to read a lot and research before posting. You can learn China business or other very specialized fields (at a very basic level) in a condensed amount of time. I know I have learned a lot from the process.

Keep up the good work on your blog!

Tom

And I am always looking for guest bloggers! If you’re a law student and you’re interested in transnational law issues and you feel like trying your hand at some blogging, then drop me an email! The potential for networking through blogging is infinite, and blogging is very educational. Honestly, I’ve learned an unbelievable amount through blogging– reading, analyzing, and writing about current events– it can’t be beat!

Good luck everyone!