Pre-law advising often focuses on external factors, including grades, the LSAT test, the cost of law school, the types of legal careers, the ability to get a job, and the like, that students should consider in deciding whether to attend law school.  While all of these issues are critically important to an aspiring law student’s ability to make an informed decision about whether to pursue law school and a legal career, advisors can also guide students to take time to purposefully reflect on their personal values and how to make decisions that align personal values and career goals.   This presentation explains the purpose of a “Vocation of Law” class and how pre-law advisors can adapt ideas from such a class to their own advising practices and introduces the use of the Jesuit Examen (a meditative prayer developed by the founder of the Jesuits) in a secular, non-religious context to guide students in answering a fundamental question: does the study and practice of law align with my authentic vocation?

PRESENTER

Meaghan Shaughnessy, J.D., Assistant Professor and Director Pre-Law Program

Regis University, Department of History, Politics, and Political Economy