HLS in Focus

1L and Co-Chair of the Public Interest Auction Sarah Jelsema recently sat down for a Q & A with us after this yearly highlight of the HLS calendar.

What is the public interest auction?
The public interest auction is a fundraiser run entirely by the 1L class that raises money to support students who do public interest work over the summer. We solicit donations from faculty, staff, alumni, parents, students, firms, and local businesses. Some donate money and some donate things to auction off. We receive all sorts of donations – things like Red Sox tickets, gift certificates to restaurants and salons, lunches and fishing trips with professors, cookies and brownies made by the librarians, and a tour of the Northwest Corner Construction project. The auction is one of the biggest social events of the year. Every year the auction has a theme, and we decorate Austin Hall accordingly. This year the theme was “Bright Lights: Bid City” and so the different rooms were decorated as different big cities – London, Paris, and New York.

What has gone into preparing for this event and what have you gotten out of the experience as a co-chair?
Almost all of the 1L class helps out with the auction. We divide the students up by committees and committees mostly help out either by asking for donations, calling alumni and asking them to donate, emailing firms, going door to door in Cambridge, or by helping process the donations and get them ready to sell, or by helping out on the night of the auction. As one of the auction co-chairs, I had the opportunity to work with a group of amazing people to try to plan and coordinate this huge event – it was definitely a  challenging experience for all of us. From coordinating hundreds of student volunteers to keeping track of hundreds of donations, to making sure everything comes together on the night of the auction, being a co-chair was a lot of work, but it was extremely rewarding. It was also a good opportunity to meet new students.

The event is always a lot of fun for students, faculty and staff. What was your favorite part of the evening? Did anything surprise you?
The event was a huge success. My favorite part of the evening was the live auction. Our auctioneers – this year Professors Elizabeth Warren and Jonathan Zittrain – were auctioning off the “right to be – or not be – in the 2010 parody.” The first bidder was the Dean of Students because they gave her a hard time this year in the parody, but then Professor Mann, who bought this item last year, got in a bidding war with Professor Warren and everyone was laughing so hard!

Why should admitted and prospective students seeking a strong public interest community choose Harvard? Why did you?
I think that students looking for a strong public interest community should choose Harvard because they can go anywhere and do anything with a degree from Harvard Law. We are a bigger law school, but as a result, we have so many more options to pick from than other law schools. Good public interest law jobs are really competitive – and since I want one, I’m glad I chose Harvard. I know that the connections and friends that I will make here, with professors and fellow students, will be of benefit for the rest of my life.

Starting April 15, HLS will begin accepting transfer applications for the fall. Over the last couple of years, there have been increased opportunities for Harvard Law students to study off-campus through joint degree and foreign study programs which make it possible for us to admit more transfer students than ever before.

The question of whether to apply as a transfer student is the right move is up to you, but we think that a little research will show you the vast benefits of transferring to HLS. With 102 full-time professors and more than 300 courses, HLS is home to the most intellectually stimulating legal community in the world. Outside the classroom, there are 14 journals, over100 student organizations, clinical placements in approximately 30 areas of the law, and more than enough opportunities for you to experience the incredible diversity of the HLS community during your second- and third- year. For example, the Harvard Law Review encourages transfer applicants to apply for membership and several past transfer students have been successful in that endeavor.

Bottom line? Whether you are interested in constitutional law or environmental law or human rights advocacy or any number of other areas, the breadth and depth of our offerings is incredible. Whether you want to clerk at the circuit court level, follow the path to academia, or pursue a career in public service, the opportunities presented to our graduates are unsurpassed.

For more details on the transfer application process including eligibility guidelines, deadlines, and application requirements, please visit: http://www.law.harvard.edu/prospective/j…

Also, stay tuned in the coming days and weeks for blog entries of a few students talking about their experience transferring into Harvard Law School!

Were you one of those people who turned in your MCAT books for LSAT ones? Toying with the thought of doing a JD/MPH? Does studying the medical models of mental illness in Alan Stone’s Psychiatry and the Law course or working on a community-based right to health project in Lucie White’s course Making Human Right Real: the Ghana Project sound interesting? If so, you may be interested in a recent panel on campus that explored the several opportunities available in the arena of health law at HLS.

One of Harvard’s achievements over the last five years has been the creation of the Petrie-Flom Center for Health Law Policy, Biotechnology, and Bioethics, a premier institution committed to producing scholarship that addresses the legal, social and ethical challenges at the intersection of health and law. A former bioethics PhD and current Academic fellow Chris Robertson ’07 enjoys the scholastic flexibility. “We’re very much experimenting with how best to promote health law. There seems to be unlimited potential for students because the programs are so open-ended.”

In addition to the resources of the Petrie-Flom Center, there are several clinical programs you might consider, including The Wilmer Hale Legal Services Center Health Law Clinic. “The clinic is really a great opportunity to work with people living with chronic or disabling medical conditions,” said 2L Carmel Shachar. “And if you’re interested in health law policy, it gives you a great opportunity to learn about issues firsthand.”

Or why not consider a JD/MPH with the Harvard School of Public Health? “This is a terrific opportunity for students who are especially interested in this field to develop the tools they will need to make a real contribution to formulating public policy,” said Shachar. “Plus, depending on what you ultimately want to do with the degree, you have a real chance to distinguish yourself during OCI (on-campus recruiting)… when you say you’re interested in working in health law for a firm that has a health law practice, they see that you’re committed.”

Adding to the wealth of resources already available to health law enthusiasts, extracurriculars like the Journal of Law, Medicine & Ethics, the Law & Health Care Society, the Society for Law, Ethics, and Biotechnology all push students to think critically about the legal and ethical questions at the heart of healthcare debates today.

“Honestly, the best thing about health law resources here at HLS is personal attention you get from advisors at Petrie-Flom and around the university,” said Shachar in response to a question about why pursue the JD/MPH. “The research opportunities you might be given pursuing law and health policy at a place like the CDC in Washington, DC are huge. The field continues to grow.”

We did a bunch more interviews of students and faculty members to add to the HLS Speaks page off the JD Admissions home page.  New categories of interview clips include: (1) Clinical & Pro Bono Programs; (2) Criminal Law & Justice; (3) Law, Business & Economics; (4) Negotiation & Conflict Resolution; (5) Constitutional Law & Policy; (6) Why Law School; (7) Law, Science & Technology; (8) Reading Groups & Small Seminars; (9) National Security & Terrorism; (10) Social & Gender Justice, Civil Rights; (11) Career Plans; and (12) Joint Degrees.

Please visit the link to HLS Speaks off the JD Admissions home page if you’re interested in these subjects.

As a follow up to my blog on joint-degrees last semester, admissions staffer Julia Foresman sat in on an event organized by the HLS/HKS Association for Law and Policy (HALP) to discuss the option of pursuing a joint degree in Law and Government with the Harvard Kennedy School. The degree is geared toward students seeking an interdisciplinary study of government, policy, and law to prepare them for public sector careers. To complement their JD education, students may apply for either a Masters in Public Policy (MPP) or a Masters in Public Administration in International Development (MPA/ID).

Faculty committee member, Professor Philip Heymann began the informal discussion by insisting that the education of HKS could be invaluable to law students. “A good legal education instructs you in matters of policy… politics and economics are very relevant to lawyers today, yet they remain somewhat absent from the HLS curriculum,” he said. However, Heymann reminded students that the joint degree will cost them an extra year, and, further, he believes that the extra credential, in and of itself, will not necessarily add much to a student’s resume. Especially now, Heymann indicated, lawyers have an immense practical advantage in government, and the thought processes taught at both HLS and HKS, though salient alone, complement one another nicely. “I’m always amazed by how much students enjoy the program,” he said, “It really is an enjoyable and enriching social experience that will expose you to a group of professors who think very differently from lawyers.”

When asked specifically how HKS prepares law students for working on Capitol Hill, Heymann endorsed the value-add of the public policy degree. “The HLS degree itself will probably carry you as far as two degrees might, but there’s no question in my mind that the HKS degree will enable you to enjoy the job more and open you up to more diverse opportunities, especially in jobs where a working knowledge of statistics and economics are necessary. ” he said. “Further, students at HKS and HLS are exposed to fantastic analytical training which really comes to bear down the road.”

Among the joint HLS-HKS students who were there to pitch the value of the degree, 3^rd-year student, Brendan St. Amant called the MPP an MBA for do-gooders. “As friendly as everyone at HLS is, there is a greater focus at HKS on networking and interacting.” The students also alluded to possible shortcomings in HKS career service and loan forgiveness. “HLS is definitely much better in the area of serving students who want to work in the public sector,” said St. Amant.

…is getting easier. See this article.

In her State of the School Address, Dean Elena Kagan encouraged students to pursue cross-disciplinary work with other schools at Harvard University. Maybe that’s why the joint degree panel was packed to the brim with 1Ls thinking of branching out…

The most immediate question posed by the audience was “Why a joint-degree? Why not just cross-register or finish law school before applying to another graduate program?” As most of the panelists agreed, simply cross-registering limits one’s experience at a school whereas the joint-degree ensures a richer education. They also save those interested in pursuing multiple degrees time and tuition.

3^rd-year JD/MPP student Jeff Little said, “Because you won’t be able to take basic skill-building classes, you’re limited to very specialized courses that you think are pertinent to the area of law you’re interested in.” For Amit Doshi, who had worked for a few years in investment banking before returning to school, the ability to obtain both a JD and an MBA is a huge bonus for returning to finance. “Especially if you’re interested in corporate law,” he said, “The joint JD/MBA makes you more than a legal technician. In the business world, you become a strategic advisor.”

For Little, though having changed his mind about which area to pursue within Public Policy, he believed his degree made him immediately more specialized and thus, appealing to employers. “Depending on the type of law you want to pursue, a joint-degree signals to employers that you have an interest and that you’re serious about it.” Nee agreed and added, “Plus you make great connections with other schools… your network expands rapidly.”

Among the topics covered by the panelists, many students expressed particular interest in the purposefulness of the LLM and PhD programs. “If you’re serious about working in Europe and specifically Great Britain, it is worth your while to get the joint degree. You will be attractive to the Magic Circle Firms… I think few employers would consider it a disadvantage.”

On the topic of PhD programs, Melanie Penny and Candace Player (both JD-PhD joint degree candidates) stressed that while the advanced study would expose students to different skill sets than required in the JD program, there is little sense in pursuing a PhD if one’s intent is not to teach. “I just don’t see the point,” said Penny, “You should do it purposefully, as it is a huge time commitment.”

For more information, please visit the joint-degrees website.

One of the great advantages of Harvard Law School is that we are surrounded by terrific graduate schools…like the School of Public Health. I recently interviewed Professor Michelle Mello who is on the faculty there, but is teaching a course this semester at the Law School called Law & Public Health. I asked her about this course, her courses and research at the School of Public Health (hint: she does take on HLS students from time to time as research assistants), and the joint JD/MPH program that she helped put together.

Have a listen:

Podcast: Michelle Mello

As I read files, I like to imagine what the talented students I admit will one day accomplish. Odds are that I’m looking at applications from future senators and cabinet members, Supreme Court advocates (or maybe even a Justice), public defenders, business leaders, U.S. Attorneys, deal-makers, and more.

I also know that I am reading about the experiences and interests of dozens and dozens of future law professors. It wouldn’t surprise me if 60 or 70 members of the class of 2010 end up teaching the law all over the country (or world). And we work pretty hard here to prepare students to go down that path.

Many of these students take advantage of the other great schools and colleges at Harvard, by cross-registering or pursuing joint degrees. It is often helpful for entry-level legal academics to bring multiple disciplines to the table and many such potential faculty have masters degrees or PhDs in other fields, such as history, economics, philosophy, or government.

Now, with the help of some funds and support from a University interested in promoting interdisciplinary studies at Harvard, we are able to do a little more to assist students with broader interests. We’re going to be able to offer several students admitted this year to both HLS and a PhD program at the Harvard Graduate School of Arts & Sciences with partial or total funding for their JD tuition (through a kind of loan forgiveness program).

The exact number of grantees and level of funding will depend on the number of admitted students who fit the requirements. We’ll inform the grantees in April of their awards. Feel free to contact the admissions office with questions.

One of the most common questions I get while traveling to talk to groups of pre-law students is “What are the joint degree offerings at Harvard?” Perhaps as common is the question, “Should I do a joint degree?”

A great advantage of coming to Harvard Law School is Harvard University: the opportunity to take classes, attend events, or participate in activities at the many great graduate programs and schools in the community. Still, pursuing a joint degree is a much bigger commitment than just taking a few classes. There are quite a few to choose from (click here for more details), but how do you know if it’s a good idea for you to make that choice?

Maybe you should think in terms of the three Cs of joint degrees: career, community, and classroom learning. The first “c” is Career. What are the potential career paths of interest to you that could come out of that second degree? If you’re not sure, you should probably do some research. Get on the website for the Kennedy School or Graduate School of Design. What do their graduates do? Where do they go? Can you get those same jobs with just a JD? Many times you can, but not always.

Second, look at the Community. By just cross-registering for classes and participating in student groups, you may not be able to immerse yourself in the community at the other school. Maybe this is okay with you. But maybe you want to BE a Business School student as well as a Law School student. Maybe you want to be a part of that community of alumni throughout your career. If so, the joint degree makes more sense.

The third “c” is Classroom Learning. The ABA limits the number of credits a law student can take outside of law school, so cross-registration has its limits. If you are interested in quite a few classes offered at another institution, pursuing a joint degree may be the only way you can satisfy your broad interests.

In the end, a joint degree is a personal decision. Keep in mind that you apply to HLS and other Harvard schools separately. You can also apply after starting your 1L year. If you get into HLS and want to chat with students who are pursuing such options, I’ll be happy to put you in touch.