Learn about what life is like at the University of Virginia School of Law, the second-oldest continuously operating law school in the nation.
Transcript
LAURA-LOUISE RICE: UVA Law really is a place for anyone that cares about everyone. Their reason for coming here was to continue that culture and to be in a space where they're able to meet different kinds of people. They're able to participate in whatever they want to participate in. And still, no matter what their own personal beliefs or ideologies might be, they still are just making friends in those experiences.
ANDREW BENDER: You might be working hard, studying in class. You're all, I would say, competing for the same common goal. But at the same time, no one takes themselves too seriously.
MADDIE HEIMSTEAD-MERCIL: That's one of the most interesting parts about being a law student here, is that everyone is different. You're going to get to meet people of all different political persuasions, backgrounds, academic interests. And I think that that's something that's really encouraged and celebrated. And so, that's part of why I like being here.
LAURA-LOUISE RICE: When I walk into Scott Commons and I'm just grabbing coffee, like, the chances I see five to six people I know is way higher than I think it would be in any other setting. And I think, for that to be the case in a law school, that's pretty cool.
ANDREW BENDER: There is something different about the culture and about the community here at the school. I really feel like students here just, like, embody that happiness and that joy of the university, not only within the student body. But I think all the professors embody that as well.
MADDIE HEIMSTEAD-MERCIL: So many of them are preeminent in their fields. You can go talk to someone who's a leading toxic torts expert, who you're also taking class with, and learn from people who are actually litigating some of the most important issues in the country right now.
LAURA-LOUISE RICE: They know the importance of community that all of us as students and that the school as a whole hold. And they try and implement that, like, into their classroom, into their office hours.
ANDREW BENDER: They are very invested. And they really care about the future and the next generation of lawyers.
ANDREW HAYASHI: I think there's no question, you come to a place like UVA Law, one of the top law schools in the country, that the academic experience is going to be very rigorous. As my colleague Leslie Kendrick says, it's a place where we're hard on ideas and easy on people. Some of that has to do with faculty who will test ideas in the classroom and force them to defend their arguments. But if you're willing to ask questions and you're willing to put the work in, you can do it.
LAURA-LOUISE RICE: Student life is really big at UVA. I think people seek to balance their academic experience with the social experience. There are more than 75 different organizations here on ground. So there's really just a lot of opportunities for people to get involved at UVA.
MADDIE HEIMSTEAD-MERCIL: Student organizations are a major part of the social fabric of UVA Law. People invite you to barbecues. They invite you to find people who you share common interests with and start to get to know the people who are already here and build that community with them.
ANDREW BENDER: While we work hard, we also like to play hard. And going out to the softball field after class is a great way to blow off some steam and build camaraderie.
LAURA-LOUISE RICE: Softball is just a really good way to get to know people and to just get engaged. It just makes for a more well-rounded student life experience.
ANDREW BENDER: You can do so much with a law degree. A degree in law just allows you to have a key that can unlock so many doors.
ANDREW HAYASHI: Fundamentally, we're trying to train lawyers who are not just excellent advocates, but pillars of the legal system, ethical, excellent lawyers.