Student Life
Ours is an active and engaged group of students, enhancing the cultural and intellectual life of the law school community. Washburn Law students lead and participate in more than 25 different organizations. The Washburn Student Bar Association is the coordinating body for special interest clubs and organizations. This student group formally participates in faculty committees and law school governance. Students are encouraged to share new ideas by creating new student organizations and activities.
From law practice-specific, political, and ethnic groups to sports, religious, and cultural organizations — Washburn Law students are involved.
Washburn Law has a long tradition of recruiting and educating a diverse student body. Classes over the years have been rich in students of different ages, ethnic backgrounds, educational and professional experiences, genders and life experiences. Washburn Law's student body is a melting pot of the best and brightest students from Kansas, scholars from nearly every state in the country, and international students from countries around the world. Half of the entering students are now from outside the state of Kansas.
Learning at Washburn Law takes place in a caring environment. Students interact with and receive support daily from peers, faculty, staff, and alumni. The law school's size makes it possible for every student to know every administrator, every other student, and every professor. To improve the quality of life for law students, nonacademic support services are provided, including:
- Counseling services for students and their families or partners;
- Free access to an on-campus, general medical service for students;
- Access to university employment resources for spouses or partners; and
- Small, short-term interest-free emergency loans.
Co-Curricular Activities
Learning at Washburn Law takes place in multiple settings. In addition to traditional course work and experiential learning opportunities, the school supports a range of co-curricular activities. Each year a number of students earn spots on the Washburn Law Journal, where they edit and publish the work of legal scholars as well as the students' own work. Other students edit the Family Law Quarterly, published by the American Bar Association. Some students become members of the Washburn Moot Court Council, where they organize and participate in intramural and interscholastic appellate moot court competitions. Most recently, the Washburn University School of Law Moot Court team captured first place at the Evan A. Evans Constitutional Law Moot Court Competition in the spring of 2006 at the University of Wisconsin in Madison. The team also received the award for top respondent's brief.
Students also take part in interscholastic trial advocacy, negotiation, and client counseling competitions. Each year, a number of students accept positions as research assistants for faculty members.
