Major: Political Science
Minor: Philosophy
Why did you choose your major?
I chose my major because in high school I became captivated by the 2016 election. I was especially interested in the Supreme Court and the effect the 2016 election would have on who would be nominated to fill the open Supreme Court seat. I wanted to major in Political Science because I wanted to get involved while equipping myself to be able to defend my beliefs.
Would you recommend it to a future student? Why?
I would definitely recommend a political science degree to future students. The outcomes of graduates with a political science degree from Cal Lutheran are great. Professor Marichal has me as the department assistant look up our graduates on linked in and the results speak for themselves. Above 70% of our departmental graduates go to grad school and above 90% of our graduates get jobs that require/ prefer a degree. As long as you are motivated and willing to do hard work, getting a Political Science degree from CLU really does give you an opportunity to advance your career.
What are your future plans?
I plan on attending law school in the fall of 2023. I have been accepted to the law schools at Georgetown, UCLA, USC, and Notre Dame. Right now, I am just figuring out which law school I will go to. I would like to get a judicial clerkship following graduating from law school and then eventually work my way up to become a federal judge.
Are there any particular experiences — in or out of the classroom — that have helped you identify that path?
Yeah. The entire political science department has really helped me get to where I am today. From the faculty and fellow students who were in the law school application process, to recent poli sci grads who are currently in law school, all of whom really gave great advice and set me up to succeed. Professor Hoang, the department chair, helped me by telling me about summer research fellowships that I should apply for.
I certainly would not have had the opportunity to do research at the Security and Political Economy Lab at USC this past summer if Dr. Hoang had not told me about it and written a letter of recommendation for me. Also, the students who were in the law school application process and who were attending law school all gave very honest advice. At the start of my junior year, I had some pretty high goals for which law schools I wanted to go to.