Olayemi Olurin
Editor’s Note: The Happy Beginnings series features recent College of Arts & Sciences graduates who are getting started in careers, graduate school and service.
Olayemi Olurin ’15 is in her last semester of law school at St. John’s University School of Law in Queens, NY, on a full tuition scholarship.
During her time at St. John’s, she has interned with the Kings County District Attorney’s Office, Associate Justice Robert J. Miller of the New York Supreme Court, a criminal defense clinic, and others.
Olurin earned a B.A. in Political Science Pre-Law, a minor in African American Studies, and a certificate in Law, Justice & Culture from the College of Arts & Sciences at Ohio University.
A native of The Bahamas, she was an active and distinguished student at Ohio University, participating in the Ohio University Women’s Association, Sigma Lambda Gamma and Phi Alpha Delta and receiving a variety of honors.
Where do you currently live?
Brooklyn, New York
Why did you choose to attend Ohio University?
Honestly, Ohio University was the only school my dad and I could agree on. I wanted to go to George Mason University, and he wanted me to go to Temple University. Ohio University was the compromise.
What made you decide to major in the liberal arts?
I majored in Political Science specifically because I always planned to be a lawyer and that seemed related. I was very lucky that as a liberal arts school, OHIO required me to take tons of classes in different disciplines. It made me a more well-rounded student and person.
What were your best Ohio University experiences?
I always liked OHIO a lot more for my academic experience than anything because I was so lucky to truly have really amazing mentors, professors, and advisers that I not only still have close relationships with, but who have been instrumental in my success as a student both then and now.
How did you become interested in pursuing law?
I planned on being a lawyer since I was old enough to argue, and my grammy told me I was going to be.
How did your Ohio University experience prepare you for law school and shape your career path?
I started law school on the Pre-Law path, and OHIO gave me endless opportunities to pursue law with an amazing political science program, classes and programs geared toward law school, the Law, Justice & Culture Certificate program, and organizations like Phi Alpha Delta. OHIO really carved out a strong pre-law track that made it easy for me to know that law was what I wanted to do.
I never miss an opportunity to give CLJC Pre-Law Specialist & Advisor Larry Hayman all the credit in the world for being an amazing pre-law adviser. Larry helped me with every aspect of my application process to law school as well as my preparing to take the LSAT. I consulted him every step of the way, and he read every personal statement, answered every question I ever had, absolutely anything. He is fantastic to say the least.
What do you think were the most important things you did as an undergrad to prepare you for law school?
Take law-related classes. I took a lot of constitutional law classes in undergrad, and I loved them. And when I took constitutional law in law school, I loved it again, and I was already familiar with a lot of the cases.
Do you have any advice for students interested in law?
Relax more and panic less. If you want to get into law school, you will, it will be fine. Don’t waste your energy panicking too much. You’ll wish you’d saved it once you’re actually in law school.
What are your future plans?
I’m graduating from St. John’s Law in June and sitting for the bar examination in July.
What is your favorite Ohio University memory?
Court street graduation weekend, easily.
Comments