Building the Whole Lawyer: Preparing Students for Entry-Level Success

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Session Type: Lightning Sessions

Session Capacity: N/A

Hotel: N/A

Room: Franciscan C

Floor: Ballroom Level

The Foundations for Practice (FFP) data gathered by the Institute for the Advancement of the American Legal System (IAALS) opens many doors to enhance how we teach in all clinical settings including externships and how we can increase student success. Educating Tomorrow’s Lawyers, an IAALS initiative that compiled survey feedback from more than 24,000 hiring professionals, offers guidance as to what competencies best assure entry-level success for new legal professionals. The survey results show “characteristics (such as integrity and trustworthiness, conscientiousness, and common sense) as well as professional competencies (such as listening attentively, speaking and writing, and arriving on time), were far more important in brand new lawyers than legal skills.” So how are law schools teaching and assessing these skills? In this Lightening Session, the University of New Hampshire School of Law and Vermont Law School will share a few ways they are incorporating FFP’s lessons into their experiential courses. The FFP data is used to increase initial student buy-in, for skill building workshops on supervision and feedback, and in competency self-assessments. The presenters will make handouts available including sample assessments that can be easily adapted for use in externships or in-house clinics. Join us to hear more about FFP and how two schools are using the data to improve their courses and support the development of student character and professional identity.