The Marshall-Wythe School of Law at the College of William & Mary is one of the leading US law schools with nationally and internationally recognised experts in most fields of law and a reputation for producing lawyers who are not only highly skilled and successful attorneys, but dedicated public servants. The campus is situated surrounding woodland and based in downtown Williamsburg, Virginia and has a remarkable history. Thomas Jefferson helped found it 230 years ago and it was the first university in the United States to offer professional education in law.
The scholarship covers return air fare, all tuition fees, the cost of accommodation and food, and a stipend equivalent to the British postgraduate students' grant. The scholarship student will be able to enrol on a wide variety of law courses as part of the LLM offered by the Marshall-Wythe Law School.
Recipients of this scholarship have gone on to successful careers in:
Rachel Coyle tells us about her experience of the LLM at William & Mary:
I applied for the scholarship because I was keen to know and understand more about the legal system in America. I knew it would be an opportunity to test myself. I wanted to know how quickly I could adapt to the American life, and how flexible I was with my current skills when utilising them during my LLM. Queen Mary armed me with the tenacity and adeptness to deal with any type of academic problem. The challenging essays and assessments provided me with a suitable foundation on which to build at William & Mary.
The whole experience was an eye opener and was academically fruitful. It has been an ice breaker in many job interviews, dinner parties and networking events. Being on the east coast in the heart of an academic town steeped in history so closely connected to the UK was the best thing about the experience.
It was refreshing to study in a relatively quiet area which still had its pockets of vibrancy and nightlife. Williamsburg is a tourist hotspot and I found cycling along the woodland paths was great fun. It was also great to travel up and down the east coast, the weather was amazing and the people were truly lovely.
The tourist groups do ghost tours down Duke of Gloucester Street where the colonial buildings and taverns are. One day, I was making my way to the ball in my gown. It was dusk but from a distance, it was understandable why the tourist group in front of me thought I was a ghost. They screamed and some even ran off!
Since completing the LLM at W&M I went on to complete the Bar Course in the UK. I now have numerous pupilage interviews lined up and will soon start work as a Legal Adviser on Mergers, Acquisitions and Swaps for Banks through a National Private Equity and Investment Firm. I have also been working as a legal researcher at a housing association primarily dealing with tendering contracts and tackling procurement law regulations.
Rachel Coyle, LLM William and Mary
