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ML program cultivates legal knowledge across disciplines

June 13, 2016

The Law School’s Master in Law degree enables students studying and working in related fields to expand their knowledge of the law and legal principles. In this video, students and teachers from the program talk about how the ML connects professionals and enriches their work through the study of the legal system.

The Law School’s Master in Law degree enables students studying and working in related fields to expand their knowledge of the law and legal principles. In this video, students and teachers from the program talk about how the ML connects professionals and enriches their work through the study of the legal system.

 

Transcript:

Emily McCully, MSW: So in thinking about the Master in Law program, Penn is such an interdisciplinary university that if you come here, or you’re a student here, why would you not avail yourself of the opportunities to take classes in other schools? And I think that these courses highlight that perfectly, and they present such a wonderful opportunity for students and staff and employees.

Lee A. Rosengard L’76: The Master’s program [is] introducing a legal concept, and a set of legal concepts, to people who are going to use this outside the practice of law. It’s got a practical side to it and an academic side to it.

Sibel Ozcelik ML’16, MS’15: Every student was able to bring in their insights and their arguments, where you were able to hear the voice of a physician arguing against the voice of a business student so that we were able to learn from each other.

Andrew Thum ML’18, MSN’18: It’s been interesting to note that while each topic may be legal-focused, there are so many other disciplines that can add an opinion. Just looking at current events, there’s been so many times when we’ve been learning about something in class, then the next day we see it related to the news.

Charles Howland: The Flint River situation is a really excellent example. That really burst into the news right at the beginning of this class. Procedurally and substantively from a regulatory law point of view it’s been fascinating, and from an emotional gut point of view about how real lives are affected. So, to have this on the fly, live, to be able to show has been pretty terrific.

Gurinder Sangha L’03: What you’ll notice is students not being afraid to ask questions because they may worry what others may think. So it’s a very curious environment where people ask any questions. It’s not judgmental, and there’s no pressure.

Jenn Kistama ML’17, MSN’17: I think that no matter what your background, it is valuable to have a working knowledge of the U.S. legal system because it does play such a large role in our lives. Whether or not you want to pursue a career in law or government, or something similar, I think that no matter your background, you can take that information back to your career and your profession and be able to look at your work through a different lens.