If there are people in your life who are studying for the LSAT or in law school, you almost certainly haven’t seen them in quite some time. They’ve been totally occupied by conditional language or promissory estoppel, and haven’t been able to make much time for you. So you can be forgiven if you’re just remembering now that you need to buy them a gift.
If you’re having trouble thinking about what to get the absentee pre-lawyer in your life, we got you. We’ve helped thousands of people get through the LSAT and law school process, and have even been through that process ourselves. We know these people well. They are our people. So we think we can help you find a gift for them. Without further ado, here’s the official Blueprint LSAT’s Last-Minute Holiday Gift Guide … with all the gifts you can give that budding lawyer in your life.
An LSAT Prep Course
We’re just going to put it out there. All future lawyers will eventually have to take the LSAT, so why not give them the gift that keeps on giving? Whether they’re busy independent learners that will benefit from the flexible Self-Paced Course, a more hands-on student that likes being guided by a live teacher in a Live Course class, or a high achiever looking for a top LSAT score with a private LSAT tutor, we’ve got a gift that will likely land you a shoutout in their law school graduation speech.
A sanctuary of peace and quiet
Image from poppinpod.poppin.com
Presumably you have a spare $14,000 laying around — I mean, who doesn’t, right? If so, one thing that anyone studying for the LSAT or law school desperately needs is a quiet place to focus. So gift them the White PoppinPod Kolo 2, a 89″ x 48″ sanctum of solitude. Even if your pre-lawyer has to share space with roommates, the hermetically sealed pod will provide them a quiet, personal space to study complete with power outlets, motion-activated lights, and a fan.
Or, maybe don’t get them a small chamber to study in … OK, onto our real holiday gift guide.
A backpack
Image from osprey.com
I am of the (perhaps controversial) opinion that adults shouldn’t wear backpacks. However, LSAT takers and law students are definitely not normal adults, so we can make an exception for them. They’ll upgrade to fetching briefcases and handbags once they hit the job market, but for now, it’s still backpack time. When gifting a backpack for these types, think function over form. You’re not fitting laptops, notebooks, giant booklets full of practice exams, and tomes about torts and contracts in a Fjallraven. Make it big, make sure it has many compartments, get those straps extra padded — hell, put wheels on it if you have to. If it looks good, that’s the icing, but the appearance is definitely not the cake itself.
Tools to inject caffeine into their veins
Image from amazon.com
No one needs to be reminded that studying for the LSAT is a huge time commitment, or that the reading in law school practically amounts to a full-time job. Nothing will help those students get through those long hours and late nights — well, nothing that isn’t federally classified as a Schedule I or II narcotic — like a healthy dose of caffeine. Gift cards to national coffee chains are nice, but you can give something a little more lasting. If you want to ball out for this student there are a number of very fancy, third-wave coffee house-approved coffee and espresso machines on the market. But if you’re looking for something a little more reasonably priced, there are fun gadgets like the Aeropress or Clever brewer. Speaking from personal experience, my most intimate relationship in law school was with my Clever. I used it multiple times, every day. It took just long enough to make coffee to provide a much-needed break from studying, but not so long as to feel like a chore. The coffee was delicious, and — unlike the fussy pour-overs preferred by snobby baristas — basically impossible to mess up. Alternatively, if your loved one’s tastes run more towards tea, there are plenty of places to turn for handsome teaware or elaborate tea sets or fancy tea collections.
A suit
Image from shutterstock.com
Eventually, that pre-law or law student is going to have to don a suit for some job interviews. Odds are they could use a little help in that department. Personally, I believe few things can instill more confidence than wearing a totally bespoke, made-to-measure suit. Those things can get pretty expensive, so you may want to team up with a few friends or relatives, or just give them a gift card that gets the legal neophyte part of the way there. Or, you can get a suit off the rack — a little bit of tailoring can make it feel like customized suit. Either way, make it understated — greys and navys are the preferred colors of the still-conservative legal field. And don’t get crazy with the patterns — those power-stripes are for partners only.
A cookbook
Image from barnesandnoble.com
Law students gotta eat, but most lack the time or money to cook elaborate, delicious meals. They may be over-relying on the Trader Joe’s frozen section or cheap takeout, so a cookbook with simple recipes featuring affordable ingredients — that happen to produce meals that are healthy and delicious — like Ottolenghi Simple or Power Vegetables can help them level up, meal-wise.
A houseplant
Some people need to study outside their home; others get their best work done within the homestead. Those in the latter group will spend a lot of time at home while studying for the LSAT or law school, so try enlivening that legal padawan’s living space with a bit of greenery. Just don’t get a plant that’s too demanding. A low-maintenance plant like a succulent or ZZ plant can add a lot of life to the homebody’s house, without giving that stressed-out student a whole other thing to worry about.
A bit of stress-relief
Image from euromedspa.com
Let the pre-lawyer in your life take a little “me” time, with a gift card to a spa or massage or just some other form of stress relief that might take their mind off of logic games and proximate causes. Or maybe let them bring the calming ~vibes~ home with some essential oils or candles.
Alcohol. Just alcohol
Image from quora.com
Provided they don’t abstain, no pre-lawyer is going to reject the gift of fermentation this holiday season. Studying is stressful, so they might want something to make their extracurricular activity a little less so. Honestly, just a bottle of something nice and strong would be warmly received. However, if you want to class it up a bit, you can get them started on a wine or beer of the month club. I went to law school during the Four Loko Era, so class was not a priority for me. But who knows … with a wine of the month club, perhaps that law student will eventually impress a partner with their knowledge of the Loire Valley at a holiday party.
Cash
Image from wsj.com
Let’s be honest. You know the pre-lawyer in your life better than we do. What are they like? A little bit picky? Highly opinionated? Thinks they know best? Yeah, most pursuing this legal life truly be like that. These sorts can be tough to please, but the gift of cash will let them buy whatever their persnickety selves could possibly want or need.
