A Law Degree with an Edge

While stage fright gripped many of Markeisha Miner's fellow students at University of Michigan law school during their first mock trial, Miner sailed through the exercise. As a first-year student at Mount Holyoke, she had done a January Term internship at the Detroit County prosecutor's office. This hands-on experience gave her an advantage: "I had seen people do it before, when I went into court with lawyers every day."

Miner's Mount Holyoke education—in and beyond the classroom—made her feel "immensely prepared" to succeed at University of Chicago Law School, one of the country's finest. "Mount Holyoke taught me critical analysis, the importance of listening to others’ ideas and respecting them while articulating your own position strongly and clearly."

Senior year, Miner worked as a mentor in the Speaking, Arguing, and Writing Program, helping students hone their arguments and write and edit their work. "It made my own writing better. As you critique their work, it gives you a sharper eye for your own."

After earning her law degree, Miner had a prestigious two-year clerkship with Judge Anna Diggs Taylor in the U.S. District Court in Michigan. Clerking let Miner put her research and writing skills to the test, and also gave her a chambers-eye view of the legal system that few lawyers ever have the privilege to experience.

Miner recently joined the Detroit firm of Dickinson Wright, where she does commercial litigation and represents pro bono clients.

- From 10 Brilliant Reasons , Mount Holyoke College.