We all know that law school isn’t just about learning doctrine and passing exams. It’s about becoming a lawyer. Yet for many students, professional identity formation feels abstract and disconnected from the day-to-day work of reading cases, outlining, and preparing for exams.

Academic support can help bridge that gap. Academic support professionals work closely with students on how they learn, think, and perform. As such, they can also shape how students see themselves as emerging professionals. When done intentionally, academic support helps students develop not just competence, but clarity, confidence, and purpose as they move into the professional world.

One hurdle academic support professionals face is that students often view academic support as separate from their future careers (it is called academic support, after all). Yet the skills we teach in academic support directly tie to professional identity. For instance, time management practices perfected in law school translate to reliability in the workplace. Issue spotting becomes analytical judgment. Seeking feedback becomes professional growth. If academic support professionals name these connections early in the JD program, students will better understand that what they’re doing now isn’t just about grades; it’s about becoming effective lawyers.

Another hurdle to professional identity formation is that it does not happen overnight. It requires continual reflection and growth. Because academic support professionals are so integrated into the student experience, we have an opportunity to engage students in reflective practices. For example, after practice exams, in workshops, and during individual meetings, invite students to consider how they are approaching their work. What kind of thinker are they? How do they approach a complex problem? What habits are helping or hindering their growth? Even brief reflection prompts can help students connect their academic work to a broader sense of self as they move toward a legal career.

There are other practices academic success professionals can integrate into their programming to help with professional identity formation. For example, academic support programs can reinforce agency and ownership in student development. Students need to see themselves as active participants in their development, meaning they should be involved in goal setting and encouraged to self-assess. When students feel agency, they engage more deeply and develop confidence in their evolving identity.

Additionally, academic success professionals can model their own professional identity. By demonstrating respectful communication, thoughtful feedback, and accountability, students will start to also internalize those behaviors. Further, students want to hear about diverse professional pathways. If they only see one model of success, they may struggle to find their own place, meaning academic success professionals should highlight different career paths and encourage exploration. Finally, academic success programs should place an emphasis on values rather than just outcomes. Obviously, grades, rankings, and bar success play a large role in joining the profession, but we all know they don’t define professional identity. Encouraging students to consider how they define success and what type of lawyer they want to be will help students anchor their identity in something more stable than academic performance metrics.

Ultimately, embedding professional identity formation into academic support does not require a separate curriculum. In fact, I wouldn’t be surprised if everything I’ve mentioned was already embedded into academic support programs across the country. But, with small, intentional shifts, academic support professionals can further bolster student success in the professional world.

(Dayna Smith)