Students aspiring to careers in law learned more about the pathways and options this fall during a trip to Boston and a visit with the attorneys at a Buffalo-area law firm.
In November, 21 students in Niagara’s pre-law program, accompanied by professors Kevin Hinkley and Dr. Christopher Lee, spent four days in Boston, where they visited law schools, firms, and Niagara alumni.
The students took admissions tours of Harvard Law and Northeastern Law School; attended the Law School Admission Council Forum, where they connected with representatives from some of the top schools in the country; and visited the law firm of Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP.
The students also connected with several alumni, including Chris Selak, ’18, mergers and acquisitions senior associate at PwC, who offered insights on the corporate side of law; Cora Wright, ’21, a social worker at Cambridge and Somerville Programs for Addiction Recovery; and Kevin Barry, ’18, assistant district attorney in the Suffolk County District Attorney’s Office.
“Visiting Harvard and top law firms gave every student who attended a sense of encouragement and shed light on what is achievable,” said Benjamin Vannote.
Closer to home, members of NU’s Phi Alpha Delta Pre-Law Fraternity visited Lippes Mathias LLP in Buffalo, N.Y., where they learned about the firm’s broad range of legal services, including corporate law, litigation, healthcare law, immigration law, and estate planning, and participated in a question and answer session with attorneys from the different practice areas to learn more about the numerous options available in the field.
The students also learned about the many nonlegal career opportunities available at Lippes Mathias, such as those in finance, accounting, marketing, IT, administration, and human resources. This broader understanding of how a law firm operates was a valuable takeaway for students, many of whom had not considered these other professional avenues.
“The trip provided encouragement and reassurance to me that the journey to becoming an attorney, while challenging, is a fulfilling one,” said Jennifer Zheng. “The insights gained, from exploring diverse legal practice areas to learning about the importance of persistence, made the trip an invaluable part of our professional development. This experience has reinforced my commitment to pursuing a legal career and reminded me that, despite the obstacles, the journey is worth it.”
