Putting Aggies on the path to law school
Utah State University doesn’t have a law school, but that doesn’t stop Aggies from pursuing a career in law.
The College of Humanities and Social Sciences gathered a group of speakers to inform USU students interested in going to law school about the resources and opportunities available to them and to show them what the process might look like.
Jacey Skinner is a lawyer at the Ballard Spahr law firm in Salt Lake City and serves on USU’s board of trustees. She majored in political science during her time as an Aggie and hopes to help students make an informed decision about going to law school.
“I felt like I wouldn’t be doing you much of a service today if I just tried to convince you to go to law school,” Skinner told students. “It’s important for folks considering law school to really understand what it requires, what it is, what you need to be prepared for and what it actually looks like to practice law.”
While a legal education can lead down many different paths, Skinner emphasized that it isn’t a commitment that should be taken lightly without clear intention.
“A law degree is a very specific kind of education,” Skinner said. “It provides a very specific set of skills that are broadly transferable but are also very unique.”
Interning in Washington D.C. as an undergraduate helped Skinner learn law was the path she wanted to take.
“I took the time to talk to anyone who had a job that I thought looked interesting,” Skinner said. “What I realized very quickly was that they all had law degrees.”
She encouraged students to do the same in order to figure out what path is right for them.
“If this is what you want to do, you can absolutely do it, and you should,” Skinner said. “There are so many great things that you can do but be deliberate about a decision.”
The legal profession has a need for people with all different backgrounds and experiences, which is the main focus of the Utah Center for Legal Inclusion.
“The Utah Center for Legal Inclusion’s goal is to make the legal profession here in Utah more equitable, diverse and representative of the populations that it serves,” said Kaitlyn Pieper, the executive director of UCLI.
The UCLI Pre-Law Symposium is an annual event put on by the organization at Brigham Young University. They also offer internships and a pre-law fellowship program that is designed to walk students through the steps of applying to law school.
“There’s lots of opportunities for engagement,” Pieper said. “We’re so grateful for the wonderful support system you have here.”
USU offers majors that set students up well for law school, such as law and constitutional studies, political science and criminal justice
James Eddington is a sophomore majoring in accounting and hopes to practice tax law or patent law. He serves as the vice president of the Pre-Law Society at USU, a club students can join to get support on their pre-law journey. He said events informing students about paths to law school are a good way to get the word out.
“I’m a Huntsman student, so there really aren’t a lot of folks thinking about going to law school that are doing business,” Eddington said. “I’ve never seen this large of a community engagement finding people that would be interested in participating in the Pre-Law Society — this is great. I’m glad that they could do something at a campus-wide level to let everybody know.”
Even at later stages of the pre-law process, getting more information and resources can still be helpful.
Brin Bement is a senior majoring in psychology and criminal justice. She is finishing her applications to in-state law schools and hopes to specialize in criminal law.
“I was having a lot of questions and doubts about law school because I know no one who has gone to law school, so things aren’t super clear for me,” Bement said. “And honestly, it’s made a lot of things a lot more clear.”
USU offers programs through the criminal justice program, such as moot court, where students prepare arguments in a mock case and compete against other universities.
A law-focused study abroad to England scheduled for the summer of 2025 will let students learn about the United States justice system through its historical origins in England.