If you’re looking at a nearly empty document thinking, “I don’t have enough to fill a CV,” I want to reframe that before you write a single line. A law student CV isn’t a trophy cabinet. It’s a piece of evidence that says, ‘Here’s the useful legal work I can already do.’ And you almost certainly have more of that than you think. Let’s build it properly, one page, no fluff, every line earning its place.
Quick answer: what a good law student CV looks like
A strong law student CV is one page, cleanly formatted, and organised into clear sections: contact details, education, experience (internships), and then the relevant extras, publications, moots, positions, and skills. Every entry uses specific, evidence-based bullets (“researched X for Y”) rather than vague adjectives (“hard-working, excellent research skills”). The goal is that a recruiter can scan it in thirty seconds and see exactly what you can do.
The golden rule: evidence, not adjectives
This is the single thing that separates a strong student CV from a weak one, so let me make it concrete.
Weak: “Conducted legal research. Good drafting skills. Hard-working and dedicated.”
Strong: “Researched the maintainability of a writ petition on the ground of alternate remedy and summarised five authorities for the drafting associate.”
The second one tells the recruiter something real, and it gives them something to ask you about in an interview. Adjectives like “hard-working” prove nothing; anyone can type them. Show what you did, and let the recruiter conclude you’re capable.
The structure, section by section
- Header: Include your name, one phone number, one professional email address (such as firstname.lastname@…), and, if relevant, your LinkedIn profile. Skip the photo, date of birth, full postal address, and the title “Curriculum Vitae.”
- Education: List your law programme, college, expected year of graduation, and your CGPA if it is reasonably strong. If you’re in the early years of law school and have limited experience, you can briefly include your Class 10 and 12 details. As your experience grows, these can be removed.
- Experience / Internships: This is the most important section of your CV. For each role, include the organisation, your designation, the dates, and two or three evidence-based bullets describing the work you actually did. List your experiences in reverse chronological order, with the most recent first.
- Publications and Moots (if any): Include the title, where it was published or the name of the competition, and your role. Only include work that is genuine and relevant.
- Positions of Responsibility / Activities: Mention committee roles, student society positions, or relevant volunteering experience. Keep this section brief and include only activities that add value to your application.
- Skills: Focus on skills that are genuinely useful, such as languages, legal research databases you can confidently use, and drafting. Avoid generic entries like MS Word or team player.
A simple template layout
[FULL NAME]
Phone · Email · LinkedIn
EDUCATION
[Degree], [College] – expected [Year] · CGPA (if strong)
EXPERIENCE
[Organisation], [Role] – [Dates]
• [What you did, specific, with the legal substance]
• [Another concrete task and its purpose]
[Organisation], [Role] – [Dates]
• […]
MOOTS & PUBLICATIONS (if applicable)
• [Title / competition – your role]
POSITIONS & ACTIVITIES
• [Role – one line]
SKILLS: Languages · Legal research tools · Drafting
YLCC ACTION STEP: Open your CV and go bullet by bullet. For each one, ask: “Does this tell the reader something specific I actually did?” Rewrite every bullet that just says “researched”, “assisted” or “worked on” into one concrete sentence. That single pass will do more for your CV than any template.
“But I have almost no experience”
Then you build with what you already have, honestly. A first- or second-year law student’s CV can draw on relevant coursework, a moot, a research paper, legal aid or clinic work, a debate, or a strong academic project. Anything that demonstrates legal thinking has value. The goal isn’t to invent experience but to present your real experience clearly and credibly. At the same time, work on filling the gap by securing an internship this cycle. That’s exactly what the internship guides on the blog are designed to help you do. A concise, honest, well-written CV will always leave a stronger impression than one that’s padded with vague claims.
PLEASE DON’T DO THIS: Please don’t pad your CV to two pages with your Class 8 achievements, every workshop certificate you’ve collected, and a “Declaration” at the bottom. And please don’t list “excellent communication skills” as a skill, show it through how the CV is written instead.
Formatting that keeps it readable
One page. A clean, standard font. Consistent dates and spacing. Clear section headings. Enough white space that it’s easy to scan. Save and send as a PDF named Firstname_Lastname_CV.pdf. Simple beats fancy; a recruiter wants to find your information fast, not admire your design.
FAQs
- Should a law student CV be one page or two? One page. You almost never need two as a student, and a tight one-page read is more focused.
- Does CGPA belong on the CV? Include it if it’s reasonable and may help you clear a filter. If it’s low, let your experience lead and don’t highlight it.
- Should I add a photo or date of birth? No, they add nothing and take up space. Keep the header for contact details.
- How do I write bullets if my internship gave me little work? Describe honestly what you did observe or assist with, specifically. Even “reviewed and summarised X for the team” beats “worked at a law firm”.
- Do I need a different CV for different applications? Keep one strong base CV, and lightly reorder or emphasise to match a role (e.g., lead with disputes experience for a disputes team).
Thank you for reading!
If you found this article helpful, explore more resources from YLCC and continue your legal learning journey.
