- Hey legal eagles.
Law school starts in August, so you know what that means.
Time to get a new backpack!
Every law student needs a backpack, it's unavoidable,
but there are lots of options out there,
and law school has a really particular requirement
for what makes for a good or bad backpack.
So today we're gonna discuss
what I think the best options are
for a backpack or bag in law school.
By the end of this video,
you'll know exactly what law school backpack to buy.
So stick around.
(bright music)
Law school is probably the last time in your life
that a backpack is a mandatory requirement.
It's also probably the last time that wearing a backpack
at all times is socially acceptable.
I don't really know why, they're really functional.
So here are a few reasons why you should get
a good, sturdy backpack or messenger bag in law school.
Number one, you're most likely going to be carrying
your casebooks to and from class.
Even if you don't use them in class,
which most people don't, you might wanna read them
in the library before or after class for homework purposes.
This is a casebook, they are big and heavy,
and they're really bulky, so you need a heavy-duty backpack
that is capable of carrying multiple casebooks
without crushing your back.
Now, number two, you're gonna be taking your laptop with you
24/7, laptops are for law students what water is to a fish.
You would die without it, so you're going to
use your laptop to take notes in class,
to write your outlines, and most importantly when you go
on social media when you need a break from law school.
Now, you won't go anywhere without your laptop,
so your backpack needs to have a dedicated space
to hold and protect your laptop.
Now number three, you're probably going to have all manner
of electronic doodads like chargers and mice and cords,
and writing implements like pens and pencils
and highlighters, and additionally you're probably going to
have a few snacks and caffeinated liquids in your backpack.
So you need to have a way
to organize all of that stuff together.
So without further ado, here are my main requirements
for a law school backpack or bag.
Number one: it must be big, it has to be big enough
to carry at least two casebooks.
Number two: it has to be able to carry your laptop
and protect it so you don't destroy it.
Number three: your backpack must be durable so it holds up
for at least one year and preferably,
all three years in law school.
So generally there are three types of backpacks or bags
that law students use in law school.
Number one: there is the regular old backpack.
It's got two straps, it's got a flap at the top.
It might have some zippers, but this is the backpack
that you think of when you think of a backpack.
Number two is the messenger bag
or something that looks like a really big purse.
These are the ones that generally have one shoulder strap.
You sling it over, and it's generally one big pocket
with a flap over it and then number three is the rollie bag.
It's sort of a hybrid between a backpack
and the rolling suitcases that you see at an airport.
Those are the three main types of backpacks
that you see on a law school campus.
Let's talk about the first category of options.
This is the traditional backpack
On law school campuses, you'll see a couple of brands
more often than not.
The first brand is Swiss Gear.
Here are a couple examples of a Swiss Gear backpack.
They've got the red square with the white
or silver plus sign in the middle of it,
not unlike what you see on a Swiss army knife.
I had a Swiss Gear backpack
throughout my enter career in college in undergrad.
I loved it, that thing was a tank,
and it held up beautifully.
These things are generally cheap, they're pretty durable.
They're not the most fashion-forward option,
but I can personally vouch that my personal Swiss Gear
backpack lasted for years, possibly even though high school,
now that I think about it.
But for me, when I got to law school, a chest strap
that went across my chest was a must.
I find that it does a really good job of helping
shoulder the burden, take some of the weight
off of my shoulders and put it on to my chest.
You'll see these a lot on hiking backpacks.
So I upgraded to an OGIO backpack.
This is my OGIO backpack, this is an OGIO Gambit.
It's big enough to hold a 17-inch laptop.
It's got a separate pocket for a laptop.
It's got pockets all over the place.
It easily holds multiple electronic devices,
and it seems to be as well built
as the Swiss Gear option that I had throughout undergrad.
And most importantly, it has a chest strap,
so that it can help shoulder the weight
of all the casebooks that I had.
The OGIO is a little bit more expensive,
but I found it to be invaluable in law school
and even after, I still have it.
Another option is the Herschel backpack.
These are very popular right now.
They are the more fashionable
of the traditional backpack options.
This a Herschel backpack that I borrowed from a friend.
You can see it's got a traditional top flap.
It's got little leather straps in the front,
but it mainly consists of one large pocket
with a laptop holder and then a smaller pocket up front.
So you are paying for some of that fashionableness
with less of the organizational features,
but my friend bought one, it held up great
until one of the front straps broke,
but Herschel had a great replacement policy,
and they sent a new bag within a week,
so I can say that the warranty is good,
and the second one has held up beautifully.
By the way, you can find links to all
of the backpacks and bags that I'm discussing today
down in the description below that will take you directly
to the Amazon link for the product.
So finally in the traditional backpack category,
you have brands like REI and Burton.
I've never earned one of those myself,
but they are very popular on law school campuses right now.
And based on the reviews that I've read,
they also sound like they make really good options
for law school backpacks as well.
So I'll leave some links
to those particular backpacks in the description below.
Okay, so that takes me to the second category
of backpack or bag that you see in law school,
and that is the messenger bag.
Some people just cannot bring themselves
to use a traditional backpack, frankly, I get it.
Backpacks form is really not as good as its function,
and they are not the most fashionable things to wear around.
So for my friends that went the non-backpack route,
most of them went with a messenger bag,
and particularly, a messenger bag
from a company called Timbuk2.
Here's a couple of examples of those messenger bags.
I can tell you from personal experience
that my friends who used these messenger bags
were able to use them for multiple years.
They held up beautifully,
and they fit a surprising amount of weight.
The only downside is that generally
you're using these as a one-strap messenger bag,
and so all of the weight of your casebooks
is gonna be shouldered on one shoulder.
So from what I saw, my friends who had these messenger bags
were very happy with them.
They seem to be spacious enough for casebooks and laptops,
and most of them had dedicated pockets for laptops,
and they appeared to be very durable.
And most importantly, these messenger bags
were very, very high-quality polyester.
Unfortunately, I can't recommend any messenger bag
that's made of leather or any purse that's made of leather.
There's no doubt that leather messenger bags
and attache cases and purses look amazing,
but I have never seen a leather bag
that was durable enough to survive law school.
So I can recommend the bags from Timbuk2,
but I can't recommend, unfortunately,
any leather messenger bags.
So that brings me to the third category
of bags and backpacks, and that is the infamous rollie bag.
So, if the messenger bag is the really fashionable option,
the traditional backpack is the sort of middle option,
well, then, rollie bags are gonna be on the other end
of the spectrum and those are for people
who just don't care what they look like,
and want the absolute most comfortable option.
That's what rollie bags do.
These are bags that are sort of a hybrid
between rolling luggage that you see at airports
where you just kinda roll it along on its wheels,
but as sort of an afterthought, they have some straps
like a traditional backpack.
Rollie bags are pervasive in law school,
so don't be afraid of looking like a dork
if you decide to choose a rollie bag.
There's nothing wrong with it,
no one's gonna look down on you.
People understand that casebooks are really heavy,
laptops are heavy, all of the junk
that you're gonna have in your backpack is really heavy,
so it's perfectly acceptable to use a rollie bag
when you get to law school.
There will be lots of people
who likewise value function over form,
and buy a rollie bag for their stuff.
There's sort of two options
when you're talking about rollie bags.
First is what I would say that most lawyers use
when they actually go to court.
These are generally referred to as document bags.
They have one large central area
where you can hold reams and reams of paper,
or in the case of a law student,
their casebooks and their laptop.
It's got lots of space but there's sort of no frills,
and they are meant to get lots of paper
from one area to the other.
If you are dead set on saving money
and want to buy the thing that you're going
to use most likely in practice,
the document bag like this one is probably your best bet.
That is what lawyers bring into court
when they graduate from law school.
Alternatively, you can get a hybrid backpack with wheels.
For example, this one from High Sierra has wheels
on the bottom but also straps like a traditional backpack.
This is probably what you'll see more of in law school.
Something that is so sort of like a real backpack,
but has some wheels built into it so that you can
carry it like a backpack when you're walking
over dirt or grass, but you can use the wheels
when you are walking over concrete.
So those are the main options when you're talking
about backpacks, bags, and rollie bags.
There is no one right answer,
you have to choose for yourself.
You'll see that law students are split
roughly a third for each category.
So whatever route you choose,
there will be other students like you
who made similar decisions, and frankly,
you really can't go wrong, so get the backpack
or bag that works for you
so that's one less thing you have to worry about
for when you start law school in the fall.
For even more strategies and tactics
on how to hit the ground running when you get to law school,
please download our free Ultimate Pre-law Checklist.
The link is below, it will give you a headstart
when you get to law school,
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on how to crush law school.
So did I miss a great backpack?
What's your favorite backpack?
Let me know in the comments below, and until next time
at Legal Eagle, think like a lawyer and ace the exam.
Law school starts in August, so you know what that means.
A new backpack, I'm gonna try that again.
(laughs) Alright.
Ahhh, one more time.
(speaking gibberish)
Another option is a Herschel backpack, these are a little.