Suitable Role Models? A Look at the Careers Held by this Summer's Leading Ladies of the Silver Screen

Whether you're spending your summer tapping away in a cubicle or running around with eager (and slightly sugar-high) campers, there's no doubt about it: June, July and August are the months to get a peek inside the real-life work world. But, of course, there's another slightly less personal but much more relaxing glance at life after college — through the silver screen's leading ladies of summer. And believe me, these women mean business, whether they’re working in the courthouse or going undercover for the CIA. The only question is: could you actually live like them? It's time to take a closer look (sans popcorn).
 
Rachel White, Something Borrowed

Shake Shack? Absolutely. The Hamptons, a NYC loft, and an impromptu overseas flight? Maybe not.

With a healthy dose of insecurity and a secret yearning to date her friend Dex (Colin Egglesfield), it’s clear that Rachel (Ginnifer Goodwin), an attorney at a New York City law firm, is intended to represent the every woman. It’s also evident that she’s worked hard to get where she is in her career. The film flashes back to her anxiety-ridden first day of law school and shows her spending late nights (aided by a combo of caffeine and conversation with Dex) studying for the bar exam. So, yes, with determination, a law school degree and a passing grade on the written test, it’s possible to pursue a similar career. A little less realistic is the lifestyle that Rachel leads outside of work. When in NYC she lives in a spacious loft without any roommates. On summer weekends she sets off for a private beach house in the Hamptons with pals, and, when in need of a friend who can listen attentively to her romantic woes, she can afford to hop on a last minute flight to London. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the median wage for a lawyer in 2008 was $110,590. Even if Rachel is making near this figure (less than five to ten years out of law school, mind you), it’s hard to believe that her bank account could handle quite that much strain. Here’s to hoping she’s got money saved up or has friends and family willing to bail her out!