The article deals with the problem of forming the professional identity of law students. Domestic and foreign approaches to the definition of the concept of "professional identity" are analyzed, the authors’ definition of professional identity is proposed. It is justified that an important condition for the formation of the professional identity of law students is their inclusion in real professional activities, interaction with representatives of various legal professions and persons interested in obtaining legal assistance. This organization of the educational process allows you to study the peculiarities of activity in the performance of duties in various legal specialties, which contributes to the formation of professional identity. The main stages of the development of professional identity fall on the period of study at the university, while practical training of students plays an important role, as a form of organizing educational process when mastering of the educational program happens in the invironment where students perform certain types of work related to future professional work and aimed at the formation, consolidation, development of practical skills and competencies in the profile of the corresponding educational program. Based on the analysis of normative legal acts, an option is proposed to implement practice-based training of students, which allows you to study the content of various legal specialties. It is noted that such development of the educational process will allow students to choose preferred options for legal work, which will ultimately contribute to successful professional growth. It was established that strengthening the practical-oriented part of the educational process in universities will eliminate the existing systemic gap between the level of qualifications of students during study and the degree of effectiveness of their subsequent professional identity as an important condition for the correct choice of the professional sphere.