Study abroad fair presents law students with international opportunities

Elon Law’s Study Abroad/International Fair, held February 1, included representatives from five law schools who spoke with students about opportunities for international study.

Elon Law students with leadership roles in organizing the 2013 Study Abroad/International Fair, from left, Brenna Ragghianti, Ashley Poling and Jenifer McCrea.

The fair was sponsored by the offices of academic and student affairs at Elon Law, and was organized largely through the work of student co-coordinators Ashley Poling L’13, Brenna Ragghianti L’14, and Jenifer McCrea L’13. All three of the student coordinators were involved in Elon Law’s fall Study Abroad/International Panel, where student panelists shared their study abroad or international work experiences with Elon Law students.

Law school representatives from Catholic University of America—Columbus School of Law (Washington, D.C.), Duke Law School (Durham, NC), Santa Clara University School of Law (Santa Clara, CA), Wake Forest University School of Law (Winston-Salem, NC), and William & Mary Law School (Williamsburg, VA) all attended the inaugural Fair. 

Poling reflected upon the importance of this past fall’s Study Abroad/International Panel, as well as the Study Abroad/International Fair this spring.

“It is amazing to see how these two events have truly come full circle for our students at Elon,” Poling said. “I am so excited that more students at Elon will have a chance to discover their passions through study abroad programs, and truly let these experiences shape their legal education.”

Elon Law students at the 2013 Study Abroad/International Fair.

Poling is spending her final semester of law school in a placement through The Washington Center- Elon University School of Law Externship Program in Washington, D.C., working at an international human rights nonprofit law firm.

Ragghianti said she hoped the fall panel and spring fair would inspire more Elon Law students to consider study abroad opportunities.

“Traveling is one of my passions,” Ragghianti said. “Being able to share the opportunity with fellow law students and encouraging them to take their own journeys was exciting and rewarding. I look forward to not only hosting another Study Abroad/International Fair, but also finding students to share their study and work abroad experiences at a Study Abroad/International Panel next fall.”

A report on Elon Law’s 2013 International Business course, offered in collaboration with the Martha and Spencer Love School of Business at Elon University and including travel to Vietnam and Singapore, is available here.

Elon Law students interested in studying abroad through programs unaffiliated with Elon are encouraged to contact the Office of Student Affairs to discuss requirements and procedures for such study. Students interested in international law careers and work opportunities are encouraged to discuss academic planning with faculty advisers to maximize exposure to the study of international and comparative law and to discuss career and professional development opportunities in this area with the Center for Professional Development.

Reporting for this article contributed by Ashley Poling L’13.