Once, when I was in law school, I was talking on the phone to a woman in my class who was looking for a study partner in a particular class that I was in. It was nearing finals and she felt like she needed some help. “Sure!” I said, because I’m darned helpful. And then she said, “The only thing is, we can’t study at my house because it’s covered in dog sh*t because I haven’t had time to take my dog out I’ve been so busy studying and I haven’t slept for two days.” We did not end up studying together.
I tell this story for two reasons: 1) because it’s funny in a sad way, and 2) to illustrate a tendency that law students have toward mismanagement of basic living skills. Right now is a good time for you to vow to yourself never to end up in a situation where your house is covered in crap and you haven’t slept in two days. The former portion of the vow sort of speaks for itself, and as for the latter….
It wouldn’t surprise anybody if most law students come into their first year dreading the specter of a cold call in a contracts lecture. That imagery of the Socratic method is seared into the history of the legal profession and the schoolwork that prepares us for that profession. But times change. And as the world changes, so does the legal profession (albeit at a much slower pace). Your professor who has been teaching contracts for 1,000 years may be an expert in the development of the common law of the statute of frauds. But will she know whether a text message counts as a “signed writing” in small-claims court in the city where you live for the purpose of overcoming the statute of frauds? That’s not quite as likely.
I’m going to tell you this plainly: I know of a lot of people whose lives are substantially and negatively impacted by law school student loan debt. We aren’t talking here about people taking one fewer Mediterranean vacations per year. We are talking about serious, lifelong financial ramifications. I have known people whose student loan debt has contributed to the end of their marriages. I have talked with dozens and dozens of people who have delayed buying homes because of student loan debt. 
Once a niche area with only a handful of practitioners in Silicon Valley and Washington, D.C., technology law and policy are now fast-growing practice areas with thousands of lawyers and policy professionals across the country working on legal and policy issues related to the internet, connected devices, digital media, and emerging technologies. If this type of work interests you, a career in technology law might be a great fit for you. This blog posts outlines some of the steps you can take as a law student to set yourself up for a successful career in this exciting field.