Law Alumni Benefits & Resources:
Alumni Relations:
The School of Law Alumni Office is dedicated to your personal and professional development. If you have questions about any alumni resources or benefits, please contact the Office of Alumni Relations at the Law School.
Director of Alumni Relations, School of Law
Nicole Fredricks Jackson
E-mail: nfjackson@stthomas.edu
Phone: (651) 962-4863.
Director of Alumni Relations, School of Law
Nicole Fredricks Jackson
E-mail: nfjackson@stthomas.edu
Phone: (651) 962-4863.
In addition to the School of Law Alumni Relations Office, the St. Thomas Office of Alumni and Constituent Relations works to build community for all UST alumni, regardless of graduate program or degree. The University understands that while degrees may identify different groups of people, we are all members of a broader community, uniquely positioned to help and support each other. Contact Nadine Friederichs, Manager of Alumni Relations for the University, by email or by telephone at (651) 962-6482.
Lawyer Search
UST School of Law “Lawyer Search” is a networking and business development tool, launched in 2009, for the benefit of all UST Law alumni. Here are a few highlights about the utility of Lawyer Search:
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Lawyer Search provides alums with an opportunity to market his/her services to one another and members of the public looking to hire a UST School of Law graduate.
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Faculty, current students and prospective students want to know where alumni are working and what practice areas are represented among the alumni. One of the most important things alumni can do to help current students is to provide timely and accurate information to the School of Law about what they are doing and where they are working.
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Lawyer Search allows people looking to hire or connect with School of Law alumni to search in several ways, including by practice area, state, and class.
Only UST Law Alumni can register to be featured on Lawyer Search, but anyone may search Lawyer Search to find and hire a UST Law Alumni.
Online Alumni Networks
The School of Law Alumni Program is committed to providing opportunities for alumni to both connect with one another and to connect with current law students. Alumni Relations has created the following on-line networks to keep alumni connected and informed about events, programs, and opportunities:.
Career and Professional Development
UST Law graduates represent the many ways in which lawyers can use a law degree, and serve different communities and populations. Some graduates serve under-represented populations as public defenders or public interest lawyers, while others further the School of Law mission in private sector work. Some graduates work as clerks in the federal and state courts, and an impressive number have hung out a shingle and have opened their own law firms.
Career Services for Alumni
The Office of Career and Professional Development remains committed to providing professional development services to all graduates. You can meet with a counselor to review your resume, formulate a job search strategy, participate in a mock interview or evaluate a change in your career path. We invite you to use our on-line job center, The Career Center powered by Simplicity, to upload resumes, submit application materials to employers, update your employment status under the graduate employment survey, review judicial clerkship opportunities and read job postings.Career Services for Employers
Looking to support the UST Law community and graduates? Create an account on Simplicity to participate in on-campus interviewing, receive resume books of UST Law students and post job opportunities. For more information about these services, click here.
Alumni Employment Information
Accurate and complete employment information for all law alumni is critical to the success of the School of Law. UST is required to report employment information to a number of external groups and organizations. The American Bar Association requests the information in updated accreditation reports, the National Association of Legal Professionals publishes the information in a national report available to the public, and US News and World Report uses the information as part of its ranking process. Internally, reports are provided to President Dennis Dease and the School of Law Board of Governors. You can update your employment information through The Career Center or by sending an e-mail to Alumni Relations.
Come Back to Campus
There are many reasons to come back to the School of Law campus. Alumni are always welcome to visit with professors, mentors and future St. Thomas School of Law alumni. Other ways to get involved include:
- Mass is celebrated in the St. Thomas More Chapel in the School of Law at Noon. Monday through Friday.
- Alumni are welcome to participate in the Law School Choir that meets on Mondays at 12:30 p.m. in the St. Thomas More Chapel in the School of Law.
Communications and Publications:
The Office of Communications for the School of Law plays an important role in keeping alumni connected. Chato Hazelbaker, Director of Communications, provides excellent service, through print and electronic communications to law alumni. Contact Chato Hazelbaker by e-mail or by telephone at (651)962-4888.
As alumni you are eligible to receive publications that keep you in touch with the profession, your fellow alumni, and events at the University of St. Thomas.
Alumni e-Newsletter
All School of Law alumni receive a monthly electronic newsletter designed to keep graduates updated on School of Law events and recent developments. To receive these newsletters, please send an e-mail to Law Alumni Relations with your current e-mail address. To view past alumni newsletters, visit the School of Law Alumni Website.
School of Law Magazine: St. Thomas Lawyer
In 2008, the School of Law published the first issue of its magazine, the St. Thomas Lawyer. The publications’ mission is to engage alumni and other constituents about people and programs of the School of Law, emphasizing the vitality of our mission, the excellence of our students, faculty and staff, the breadth and depth of our intellectual activity and the school’s enduring ties to the legal profession and judiciary.
Alumni are encouraged to submit ideas for stories, general information, write articles and provide suggestions and feedback for the St. Thomas Lawyer. Contact Chato Hazelbaker by e-mail or by telephone at (651) 962-4888.Each issue of the St. Thomas Lawyer contains notes from our alumni for each class. To provide personal updates, email your Class Notes Editor:
Class of 2004: Liz Odette and Susan Beltz Class of 2005: Jennifer (Beech) Lohse Class of 2006: Ian Dobson Class of 2007: Chuck Berendes Class of 2008: Kelly Binford Class of 2009: Erin Lord
St. Thomas Magazine
As members of a broader UST alumni family, all School of Law graduates receive the award-winning St. Thomas magazine. This magazine, published three times a year, gives you insight to the entire St. Thomas community.
Connections
Twice a year you will also receive Connections, the University's Alumni Association’s events and programs newsletter.
Life-Long Learning Opportunities
As members of an intellectually challenging and demanding profession, your journey of life-long learning and intellectual growth is critical to long-term success. The School of Law can assist you as you expand your knowledge base and explore new avenues of practical and scholarly development.
Bar Examination Assistance
The School of Law is committed to a 100 percent bar exam pass rate for all its graduates. Both before and after graduation, the Office of Academic Achievement will provide one-to-one support for bar preparation. Bar preparation assistance is available to each graduate at any time during his or her professional career, and for any bar examination in the United States. For more information, please contact Scott Swanson, Director of Academic Achievement by e-mail or by telephone at (651) 962-4857.
Law School Classes for Audit
Are there electives you wish you had taken that never fit into your class schedule? Now you can. UST Law alumni can audit any law school course on a space available basis with faculty permission. The cost of auditing is one credit hour per course, regardless of the course credit offered. For more information, please contact Scott Swanson, Director of Academic Achievement by e-mail or by telephone at (651) 962-4857.
Continuing Legal Education
Each year, the School of Law hosts forums at which national and local scholars, teachers, practitioners and judges present on wide variety of topics including the practice of law, the administration of justice, an exploration of our mission, and the professions. Many of these presentations qualify for continuing legal education credits, and many are offered at a significantly reduced rate or at no cost. Alumni are always invited and are always welcome to attend. Information about CLEs, as well as other events, is located on the Events page, as well as Alumni e-Newsletters.
Faculty Connections
Both new and veteran lawyers often seek the assistance and counsel of lawyers who excel in a specific legal niche. Each School of Law faculty member is committed to sharing knowledge related to his or her specialty with law school graduates. If you have a question or inquiry related to a specific area of the law, consider calling on an expert within the St. Thomas law community. For a complete list of faculty and specialty areas, visit the Faculty Directory.
Lifetime Email Address
The University of St. Thomas School of Law provides graduates with a free, permanent and easy to remember email address. Alumni email allows law graduates to stay connected to each other and to the School of Law community. UST email will be the primary way the School of Law will communicate with alumni. You can use your alumni email as your primary email account, or you can forward it to any other email address you own.
Facilities
Since the completion of the School of Law building in 2003, the facilities have been used to build community, offer services and host events for both the School of Law and the bench and bar.
Law Library
The School of Law Library offers many benefits to UST Law alumni, including:
- Access to the library during normal business hours when the circulation desk is open
- Checkout of up to six circulating St. Thomas-owned books at a time, for a loan period of six weeks plus a four-week renewal, if needed
- • Reference help, subject to staff time and availability
Due to the library’s educational contracts and consortium agreements, the School of Law is not able to offer alumni interlibrary loan privileges or access to licensed electronic databases, including Lexis and Westlaw.
For more information contact Professor Ann Bateson, Director of Law Library, or Margaret Axtmann, Associate Director - Information Resources.
Atrium, Classroom and Conference Space
The School of Law encourages alumni to consider its facilities when planning meetings, conferences and other professional gatherings. The building offers state-of-the-art technology, and catering services are available. Open classrooms and conference rooms are available at no cost to alumni. For Schulze Grand Atrium use, alumni pay only for set-up, clean-up and basic technology.
For information regarding the use of facilities contact Angela Dzik, Special Events Coordinator, by e-mail or by telephone at (651) 962-4873.
Financial Planning
Loan Repayment Assistance Program
The School of Law’s Loan Repayment Assistance Program (LRAP) provides up to $6,000 in annual assistance for up to 10 years for qualifying applicants. In general, graduates who provide legal services to the poor and under-served will be eligible to receive loan assistance for loans taken out to pay for law school tuition. The State of Minnesota offers a second LRAP program for which you may qualify as well.For more information visit UST LRAP or contact Nora Fitzpatrick, Assistant Dean for Administration.
Student Loan Consolidation
Student loan consolidation has the potential to provide significant savings for students. You can consider this possibility after you graduate or are no longer enrolled. As of July 2006, students can no longer consolidate while they are in school. You should work directly with your lender(s) to take advantage of the program.
For basic information, please visit Loan Information. Specific questions should be referred directly to your lender(s).
Registrar
Transcripts
For information on ordering official university transcripts by please visit Official Transcript Order Form.Replacement Diplomas
Replacement diplomas are available for all alumni. For more information please visit Replacement Diplomas.Name Changes
To update and change your name, please fax a copy of your marriage certificate or court order changing your name to the UST Registrar’s Office at 651-962-6710. You may also send the information by mail to the Registrar’s Office, AQU 106, 2116 Summit Avenue, St. Paul, MN 55105.
