Master Of Legal Studies: Personal Statement

To begin, my motivation for applying to the Master of Legal Studies (MLS) degree program is multifaceted. I am an older student, returning to learning after a fifteen-year career in the corporate realm at one of the largest technical companies in the world. At twenty-two years old I obtained employment with the expectation that through hard work and dedication, I could achieve a respectable level of economic and professional success until retirement. However, changes in the employment climate with the new millennium had adverse consequences on my occupational goals. As technology progressed, the labor market evolved – leaving people like myself unable to compete for meaningful employment due to a lack of higher education. Indeed, by 2011

Moreover, I am fascinated by our United States legal system and how it correlates with politics. Thus, I look forward to supplementing my Political Science, Justice Studies, Sociology, and Interdisciplinary Studies education through gaining knowledge about legal principles, which will enable me to intelligently articulate the differences between law, justice, and politics. Indeed, I am grateful for the opportunity to gain exposure to the teaching environment as this spring I am participating in an internship with my former Sociology professor where I will assist her with implementing the Social Justice A.A. degree program, which will be available to students in the 2019/2020 academic school year. With this learning opportunity I will be focusing on creating an Interdisciplinary Studies module for faculty to integrate within their existing curriculum. Eventually, I will apply my MLS and interdisciplinary skillset through teaching concepts which span across the multiple disciplines I will have studied in my undergraduate and graduate degree

Additionally, I will be graduating Summa Cum Laude as I currently have a 4.18 GPA. I have also been recognized on the Dean’s List for fall 2016, spring 2017, and fall 2017, and I am a member of the Alpha Iota Sigma, Phi Kappa Phi, and Golden Key Honor Societies. In January I was nominated for membership to the Omicron Delta Kappa Honor Society by the faculty of the College of Integrative Sciences and Arts. In addition to my honor society memberships, I am the humble recipient of the William D. Kavan Political Science Scholarship ($575 – March, 2017), ASU Retirees Association Scholarship ($5,000 - April, 2017), and the American Indian Graduate Center Wells Fargo Foundation Undergraduate Scholarship ($5,000 – August, 2017). With this in mind, I owe a debt of gratitude for the incredible generosity of these donors, and I intend to become a donor for future ASU students upon graduating and settling into my teaching career. I intend to do everything in my power to encourage students to continue with their post-secondary education, and I endeavor to help students achieve their dreams, just as these donors have helped me achieve