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Van Ann Bui

I never cried when Pac died / But I probably will when Hov does / And if my tears hold value then I would drop one / For every single thing he showed us. Drake

Earlier this month, Sponsors for Educational Opportunity (SEO) Law wrapped up its two-week intensive academic and career development training program for 2017.

The SEO Law Fellowship is a paid legal internship program that provides guidance to pre-law students on corporate etiquette, law firm expectations of summer interns, legal research and writing, networking, and much more.

After completing the training program, and prior to enrolling in their first semester of law school, SEO Law Fellows will spend a summer with one of the nations leading law firms. The program has over 1,300 alumni, including more than 650 who graduated from law school within the last 7 years.

This week, I had the opportunity to catch up with Van Ann Bui, Director of the SEO Law Fellowship Program. Since being selected in 2009 as a 1L New York City Bar Diversity Fellow, she has been extremely passionate about and involved in promoting diversity and inclusion in the legal profession.

Former Biglaw attorneys like Van Ann Bui, who have made it their mission to improve our industry, are role models for the rest of us. Bui and I had a fantastic discussion regarding how pre-1Ls can succeed in their legal education and careers.

The following is a (lightly edited and condensed) write-up of our conversation:

RC: You were fortunate enough to participate in the New York City Bars Diversity Fellowship Program during your first summer of law school. Can you tell us more about this program and your experience?

VB: Absolutely! The New York City Bars Committee on Recruitment & Retention of Lawyers sponsors the City Bars Diversity Fellowship Program, which provides summer internships at top law firms, corporations and government law departments across the city to first-year law students from underrepresented backgrounds who attend law school in the New York area.

Students are required to submit an application package, which includes preparing a legal memo and personal statement, to their law schools.

The participating law schools interview and select a certain number of their students to move on to interview with a panel of attorneys and other school representatives who sit on the City Bars Committee. From there, students are placed by the Committee at one of the Fellowships partner organizations.

I am forever grateful that the Committee placed me at Proskauer that summer. I had an incredible experience at the firm I was placed directly into the firms Summer Associate program and had the opportunity to work on interesting projects.

I went on to spend my 2L summer at Proskauer and am fortunate to have started my career there, where I continued to receive invaluable training and developed great relationships with my official (and unofficial) mentors many of whom I still keep in touch with today. Without the City Bars Diversity Fellowship Program, I would not have had this opportunity.

RC: You were a Biglaw associate for nearly five years. What advice do you have for those who are thinking about law school and/or about to take the bar and follow the same path?

VB: Seek out as much formal and informal training as you can whether that be at your own law firm or with other organizations, such as bar associations. Ask your supervising attorneys for feedback. I learned so much about how to be an effective communicator and attorney from the attorneys with whom I worked.

And start developing (or strengthening) relationships with your classmates and future co-workers. These are people who can help guide you throughout your career they could one day be in a position to help you find your next job, get promoted, or send you referral clients.

Ive been fortunate to have developed some very strong relationships with attorneys and other recruiting and diversity professionals throughout my career at Proskauer, the NYC Bar Association, and otherwise. I would not be where I am without the guidance and mentorship of these individuals.

RC: Now you are the Director of the SEO Law Program. Can you share with us a little bit about SEOs mission?

VB: Sure! Sponsors for Educational Opportunity has many wonderful programs aimed at providing academic and professional opportunities to underserved and underrepresented students. The SEO Law Fellowship Program works specifically to identify and recruit talented Black, Hispanic, and Native American students who are about to enter their first year of law school, to provide them with an internship at one of the nations leading law firms.

In addition to an internship, we require that our Fellows attend a two-week intensive academic and career development training program to help them develop necessary skills to excel in law school and in their internships.

RC: You recently wrapped up the training program for pre-1Ls. How does one get selected to participate in this program, and what exactly does this program entail?

VB: To be selected for the program, students must submit an application form and provide us with a copy of their rsum, transcript, and personal statement. Students must apply to the program during the same cycle in which they are applying to law school.

Once a students application has been reviewed, s/he may be invited to an interview. Interviews are typically conducted in the spring. Once interviews have been completed, we require that students submit proof of enrollment in law school in order to be extended an offer to participate in the program.

Our training program focuses on providing opportunities for students to learn and develop certain skills that we think they should know in order to give them a running start in law school skills such as reading and briefing a legal opinion, synthesizing a rule from a statute or a case, preparing law school outlines, and writing law school exams and legal memoranda. We supplement our skills-based seminars with subject-matter lectures.

This year, we had Professor Rachel Barkow of NYU teach a Criminal Law class and Professor Daniel Kelly of Notre Dame teach a Property Law class. At the end of each week, we administer an exam designed to simulate the law school exam experience.

In addition to the academic components, we provide career development workshops on topics such as networking and relationship-building and corporate culture/etiquette.

We also provide Panel Discussions and Networking Receptions each evening to allow our students to hear from and speak with top attorneys from our partner law firms regarding their practice areas and career paths.

RC: What were some of your favorite events from this years training program?

VB: I really enjoyed it all! But my highlights would have to be the Panel Discussions and Networking Receptions with attorneys from our partner law firms. We had discussions regarding different practice areas, the hiring partners perspective, and pro bono.

Our Fellows and panelists were so engaged and enthusiastic, especially during the networking portion the venue had to kick us out each night! Another favorite moment was getting to hear Judge Raymond Joseph Lohier Jr., a judge who sits on the Second Circuit Court of Appeals, speak to our Fellows.

Lastly, I was truly motivated each day by our Fellows energy and excitement their hunger to learn motivates me to do the best job I can to help them succeed.

RC: It was great chatting with you. Is there anything else you would like to share with our audience?

VB:Never be afraid to ask for help very few people (if any?) make it to the top of the ladder on their own. There will be many people willing to help all you have to do is ask.

If youd like to know more about the SEO Law Fellowship Program, please visit http://www.seolaw.org or follow us on Twitter and Instagram @SEOLaw_USA, where we offer free giveaways from time to time.

On behalf of everyone here at Above the Law, I would like to thank Van Ann Bui for sharing her story with our audience. We wish her continued success in her career.

Renwei Chung is the Diversity Columnist at Above the Law. You can contact Renwei by email at projectrenwei@gmail.com, follow him on Twitter (@renweichung), or connect with him on LinkedIn.

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SEO Law Director And Former Biglaw Attorney Van Ann Bui's Advice For Pre-Law Students - Above the Law