MEANINGFULLY FOCUSED WORK

“I really love that I get to work with amazing clients and get to be a part of their journey,” says RACHAEL CHOY.

“Where I work, at a community law centre, we provide free legal advice for those parts of the community that might not otherwise have that legal help. That is really special and it is a real privilege to do this kind of work.”

Rachael is a Senior Lawyer with knowmore Legal Service, which is based in Melbourne. Her role is varied and interesting and one that gives her loads of personal satisfaction.

“A Senior Lawyer supplies more support to their team and is involved with supervising junior lawyers and more practice management. It has a slightly different focus, in addition to bringing about good results for your clients.”

The 29-year-old took Biology, Geography, Physics, English and Calculus in Year 13 at Onehunga High School in Auckland. She went to the University of Auckland and applied for different degrees as she was not really sure what she wanted to do.

“I started doing the BA/LLB conjoint but spent most of my time unsure where I wanted to go and what career I wanted. Getting into stage two law is harder than getting into stage one. I transferred my law degree over to Auckland University of Technology (AUT) where I was accepted into stage two.

“That was awesome for me as AUT was a smaller law school and there were lots more opportunities. I ended up doing honours and was able to get more involved in law student competitions and events.

“Doing my law degree at AUT better suited my learning style and I got to know lecturers and more people because we were a smaller group compared to other universities.”

Rachael has had an interesting mix of roles so far in her career before heading to her current position in Melbourne a year ago.

“I had a few different roles trying to figure out what I wanted to practice in as a lawyer. Initially, I went to commercial law because I thought that would be a safe thing to do and ended up finding my way to the New Zealand Royal Commission of Inquiry into Abuse in Care, which was a lot more [of a] meaningful focus for me.

“Now I am in Australia working in a similar space.” Moving to Melbourne was both a career choice and a chance to explore a new city full of arts and culture. Rachael says a law degree opens up a world of opportunities and not just in the standard career options that you would expect.

“I have many friends who have studied law and then decided to not practice law.

■ RACHAEL CHOY HAS A BACHELOR OF LAWS (HONOURS) FROM AUT

■ SHE WORKS AS A SENIOR LAWYER AT KNOWMORE LEGAL SERVICE, A COMMUNITY LAW CENTRE IN MELBOURNE, AUSTRALIA

■ RACHAEL STUDIED BIOLOGY, GEOGRAPHY, PHYSICS, ENGLISH AND CALCULUS IN YEAR 13 AT ONEHUNGA HIGH SCHOOL IN AUCKLAND

“The fact they have a law degree has really helped them to go on to lots of different career paths, including working within businesses and doing product management or marketing or policy, and some have dabbled in politics as well.”

Her advice to school leavers is to say yes to any opportunities that present themselves, even if you think you might not be good enough.