GW Law Alumnus Adam Manning, JD '22, says that his experience as a Dean's Fellow gave him the skills to excel as a lawyer. Watch the video below or read the full Q&A to learn more about Adam's experience in the Dean's Fellows program.
Why did you become a Dean's Fellow?
There were two main reasons I wanted to be a Dean's Fellow in law school. The first was to carry on the legacy of my fantastic Dean's Fellows that I had when I was a 1L, Maggie and Alexis. They were really informative in my 1L education and I wanted to make sure that I passed that along. And the second is that I really appreciate the opportunity to pass on knowledge that I learned as a 1L to future 1Ls to make sure that they could find the same success I did at GW Law.
How would you describe the day-to-day work of a Dean's Fellow?
It's really interesting to use the word day-to-day or the phrase day-to-day because the Dean's Fellow work can be a little bit erratic. There definitely are weeks where you're a little bit busier and weeks where you're a little bit slower. But overall, I think the word that I would use is enjoyable. It's great to see the impact that you can make on 1L students and the difference that you can help them achieve in their work.
Do you use any of your skills from being a Dean's Fellow in your current role?
As a more senior associate now or mid-level associate, I've had the opportunity to delegate work to junior associates, and that translates greatly from the work that I did as a Dean's Fellow where I was overseeing and monitoring my 1L students. Now I'm able to take the feedback mechanisms that I learned as a Dean's Fellow and apply that to how I give feedback to the junior associates that I mentor in my day job.
How did your work as a Dean's Fellow help prepare you for your career?
So as a junior associate, I work mostly in corporate law, and it's a little bit interesting because a lot of the fundamentals of lawyering curriculum is focused on litigation work, but I was actually able to take a lot of the skills and transfer them over to corporate law. One of the ones that I'll actually pick on here is the focus on attention to detail. Spending time reviewing citations, spending time picking out little nits in people's papers has really made a big difference as I've transitioned to corporate work and started thinking about those little details for my clients.
What's one piece of advice you would give to future law students?
My biggest advice for law students is to make sure that you keep track of who you are throughout law school. If you're a person who enjoys yoga, make sure you keep doing yoga. If you're a person who enjoys reading for pleasure, continue doing that. If you enjoy binging your favorite TV shows, keep up to date with your favorite episodes. It's really easy to lose yourself in the day to day, but if you can stay true to who you are, it'll make you a better lawyer in the long run.
