Mr. Pascrell is a 1989 graduate of Seton Hall Law School.
Q: What did you envision doing with your degree in law school?
A: I had planned on going into public service with my law degree. I flirted with doing a stint in the prosecutor's office. I ended up being fortunate enough to be asked by Governor Florio to become one of his counsels when he became governor. I had just graduated law school. He had just won, and I worked on his transition team, and the rest is history.
Q: It sounds like you had settled on a career path early. For other law students, their original ambitions evolve or change drastically.
Q: What's your advice for students who are trying to find their niche?
A: If everybody can be fortunate enough to have a mentor, I think that's very important. It's important to talk to a diversity of people, to have some goals in mind—a 5-year, 10-year, 20-year goal—and pursue them. Talk to people who are a little more senior, who have been through the fits and starts of a career and can give advice. If it's not a parent, maybe it's a law professor, a partner in a law firm, or a next-door neighbor.
Q: How does your law degree help you with campaigns, considering you were already so well versed in them?
Q: What's one thing law schools should do more of?
A: I think law schools need to encourage students more to get out and experience a diversity of positions. It's very important to see what's out there and what's available.
Q: You obviously have a strong passion for your work. But how can one cope with burnout or disillusionment?
A: I don't want to get too melodramatic, but I've been through many dark days. In 1993, Governor Florio was not reelected. I did not know what I was going to be doing. I spent two months soul-searching. Then I went to work for a congressman back home in my district, and he lost a year later. So back-to-back years I was looking for a job; and I had a wife, kids, a family, and a mortgage; and that's disconcerting. We tend to get so stressed out and perfectionist in our career track. Life isn't perfect. Thankfully, I had a good support group. I had a really strong set of family and friends who helped me keep my chin up through the tough times. I remember my second year of law school, coming home and feeling like I was going to pack it in. Thankfully, I didn't quit. You just have to keep plodding on.
Q: How do you do that?
A: Sometimes you just have to shut the door; and when you're done doing a little soul-searching, you've got to open the book up or pick up the phone and do whatever is the next step necessary.
When I first entered law school, I put an old black-and-white picture of my grandfather (in my room). He worked for Erie Lackawanna, sweeping out rail cars as a 16-year-old boy and worked his way up until he retired at 70 years old as vice president of traffic for the Northeast region. It was kind of like an inspiration. I put [the picture] above my head level, so I had to look up to see him. It's the little things. Finding an inspiration, either spiritually or emotionally, is critical. Nobody can do it alone.
