The MBA portion of the JD/MBA constantly makes reference to the idea of “integrative thinking.” While nobody is sure what exactly that means, we know it’s something we’re supposed to attempt every time we complete an assignment. Looking at the pages of UV this month, it’s clear that this vague concept might actually be something we should try to apply. There are articles about mental health, about job prospects, about tuition, and about admissions. Some of the articles consider how these important issues impact one another, but the combined effect is hard to articulate. We have hypotheses about how the student experience is changing as a result of these factors, but with only the Faculty to rely on for evidence it is difficult for students to make a case that speaks to the real impact of these factors on students in law school now.
In the coming weeks, UV will be administering a number of surveys. As in the past, there will be the OCI survey, asking 2Ls and 4-year combined degree 3Ls to comment on their experiences and outcomes in the LSUC recruitment process. While this is interesting in its own right, it’s an incomplete picture of our prospects as we prepare to leave law school. Debt impacts mental health and career choice, and mental health impacts our performance in job interviews, and tuition impacts debt, and the permutations are endless…
In an effort to provide a more holistic set of information, this year UV will also distribute a school-wide survey on student debt, led by Jeff Ma (3L), and a poll to 3Ls asking how their student debt has impacted their choice of post-graduation jobs. We expect to publish the results in the January issue of UV. Our hope is that this information will prove useful both to students in making their case to Faculty, and to Faculty in understanding how students perceive our circumstances and how the school’s choices are impacting our lives.
To make these surveys as useful as possible, we have two requests. First, please take the time to fill out the surveys accurately and thoughtfully. Our results are only as good as the information you share with us, and they are only meaningful if our response rate is as close to 100% as possible. Second, if you’d like to get involved in drafting the student debt survey, please let us know! We have a working draft and welcome feedback. Please get in touch with me, or email [email protected], if you’d like to contribute.
