The program encompasses the TechLaw Fellowship for JD students, a dedicated law and technology curriculum, faculty scholarship, special events and speakers, and employment pathways for students.

 

Arizona Law is the only law school with a full-tuition scholarship program dedicated to JD students with strong science and technology backgrounds.

I grew up in Lithuania and so far have spent my adult life split equally between NJ and AZ.

 

As an undergrad I majored in biology with a minor in chemistry. I have a graduate degree in cell and development biology. I worked in the patent law field for about a decade before starting law school. I am also qualified to practice in front of the USPTO as a patent agent.

 

In short, it's a well-ranked program and suitable location for me. I was also happy to receive a good financial package and the potential for additional opportunities via the TechLaw Fellows program. Arizona Law was a great choice to further my educational career.

 

I intend to work in the field of intellectual property or tech law in a corporate environment, preferably in the biotech or bio-pharma space.

 

In my view, there is a palpable disconnect at the intersection of technology and law that, in today's environment, implicates issues from e-discovery to privacy to AI inventions. Entering the workforce as a TechLaw Fellow, I envision being uniquely positioned to bridge that gap and bring the paradigms of science, technology, and law together to help, for example, bring life-saving gene therapies to market.

 

One great aspect of the program is the opportunity to meet and be exposed to other accomplished TechLaw Fellows. It's also a huge plus to have exposure to job opportunities early. The TechLaw Fellowship program arranged for about a dozen employers who received our resumes in September. A handful of them then invited select TechLaw Fellow candidates to interview for 1L summer positions. I am happy to share that I interviewed with Roche (a Swiss multinational healthcare company), here in Oro Valley, in late September and have already accepted an offer from them for my 1L summer.

I grew up in rural Wisconsin, but moved away for college and lived in the Chicago area since then.

 

I received my Bachelor's of Science in Computer Engineering from Northwestern University. After graduating, I held a variety of information technology roles at Northwestern. Most recently, I worked for Northwestern's Feinberg School of Medicine in a cybersecurity role, focusing on safeguarding the school's research data.

 

The largest factor for me was the TechLaw initiative. I identified with the goals and believed I could find a way to fit and contribute in a meaningful way. In the end, I had narrowed my options down to either doing a part-time program in Chicago as I continued to work or to attend Arizona Law. I liked the idea of being able to focus all my effort on my education, so I chose the latter.

 

My original idea behind pursuing a law degree was to help me work towards an executive role in data privacy or cybersecurity. However, because I decided to put my career on hold and go back to school full-time, I do not wish to limit my options and may decide to do something different once I graduate.

 

Having a cohort of students with strong STEM backgrounds has been invaluable in navigating the first-year law school experience in general, and the dedicated faculty and programming provide us with broad exposure to issues at the intersection of law and technology.