First Person Accounts (FPA’s) are meant to provide a first-hand account of Indian graduates who have pursued, or are pursuing, a post-graduate course (LL.M. or otherwise) from different universities across the world.
In 2017, Pallavi Chandrasekhar graduated with an LL.M. from the School of Law at New York University. A graduate of the Campus Law Centre, Delhi University, Pallavi worked for a year before embarking on the LL.M.
Not quite connected to the LLM, but what made you opt for a judicial clerkship right after your law degree? Looking back, what were some of the learnings you made during the clerkship?
My marks in law school were good, not excellent. So I needed something to boast my resume. Clerk ships are very prestigious in the US. So I clerked for a year before applying.
When it came to the LLM, when did you decide that you wanted to enrol for a master’s, and how did you go about selecting just where to apply?
I decided I wanted to study LLM abroad, when Mr. Ajay Sondhi, partner at Luthra & Luthra came to my college and told us it was worth to do an LLM abroad to make global connections.
I chose the top ten law schools in the world and applied.
Am sure you get asked this a fair bit, but do you have any advice on the application process? NYU has a pretty tight word limit for the personal statement – how did you tackle this?
I just trimmed the edges and edited my previous two page statement into one.
Did you apply for/receive financial aid?
I received scholarship at UCLA but chose to study at NYU.
How was the LLM experience itself? Looking back, what were the aspects of the LLM that have helped you in your professional growth?
Passing the bar exam helped me in my professional growth. Rest is yet to be demonstrated.
Lastly, any advice for the Indian law graduate who is considering a master’s abroad?
Do your homework well. It is not worth to study abroad if you are not studying in the top ten/twenty law schools, because brand value and quality matters in our profession.