The road less traveled

Christian Schmidt studied law at FAU. Here, he talks about his rather unusual path towards the State Examination.

Christian Schmidt tells us how he managed to study law at FAU without actually going to a German grammar school, or Gymnasium, like the vast majority of his fellow students. Lots of different paths lead to the same destination. One option could be: Obtaining a school leaving certificate from the Realschule, training to become a Justizfachwirt (or court clerk), taking up employment at Coburg district court, then at Bamberg Higher Regional Court. Cutting working hours to start studying law at FAU, beginning to study full-time, then obtaining the best grade of the class of 2021/22 in the State Examination in Law.

Advantage of professional experience

The above details the path chosen by Christian Schmidt. He has been a research associate at the Chair of Private Law, Commercial, Company and Business Law since April. However, before he discovered his passion of studying, he had already gained practical experience in the legal profession. After undertaking two years of legal training to qualify as a Justizfachwirt, or court clerk, and completing several years work experience, Christian Schmidt heard about the option of going to university without having taken the university entrance qualifications usually required in order to study in Germany (Abitur). “I never thought about going into law when I was at school,” he explains. “I thought I needed an Abitur to become a judge or a lawyer.”

But completing the Abitur at a German Gymnasium is not the only road that leads to university. Another option is to provide proof of three years work experience. This is the route Christian Schmidt took. In his case, a selection interview and a trial study period leading to the intermediate examination in law replaced the requirement for the Abitur.

“When I started out at university, I had the major advantage of already being acquainted with the world of work and I knew that I enjoyed working in the legal field. I was really motivated when I started to study,” explains Christian Schmidt. During the first two semesters, his employer was flexible enough to allow him to continue to work at the Higher Regional Court in Bamberg. In the morning he worked, and in the afternoon he attended classes and seminars, or vice versa. “It was all quite stressful, especially at the beginning, when I was still working part time but studying full time. After two semesters I realized how much I enjoyed studying and I made it a priority.

Top marks: Very good

Studying law finally led Christian Schmidt to complete his State Examination. After an intense preparation phase lasting several semesters, he completed the written part of the State Examination last autumn. He remembers, “It was very stressful, as none of the achievements obtained during the degree program actually count towards the final grade. Potential employers only see the results from the State Examination. Preparing for the examination is more a marathon than a sprint. You still need to have the odd day where you just do the absolute minimum, though, to clear your mind and relax a bit.” All the effort paid off in the end: Christian Schmidt shone in his State Examination in Law. With 16.38 points he achieved the rare best grade “very good” and was top of his class.

Christian Schmidt already knows where he’s heading now: The first State Examination completes the part of his training held at university. It is followed by the practice-oriented vocational legal training, or Referendariat, and the second State Examination, both of which are required to become a notary, judge, lawyer or state attorney.

First of all, however, he will remain at FAU as a research associate and start working on a doctoral degree. “I would like to raise awareness that there is more than one path you can take to go to university. I would like to recommend everyone who would like to stay in their profession and start to study to find out about their options,” says Christian Schmidt. For him, it was the best decision, although he was also satisfied with his job beforehand. “What motivated me was that I didn’t want to keep doing the same job for forty years, and at one point I wanted to have more responsibility. It takes courage to start something new. But even if it doesn’t work out, you can always return to work.”

By Deborah Pirchner

In the current issue of alexander, you will find fascinating articles on yield losses in energy markets for renewable energies and why this is happening, on artificial tissue made of spider silk, on theater culture in the 17th century, on alternative ways of entering university, on the university hacking group FAUST and the Squirrels, an eSports group, as well as interviews with the new Vice President People Prof. Andreas Hirsch and the new FAU Ambassador Günther Weiss.