Beyond Books: How a Schar School Senior Turned an Internship into a Legal Education

Andrew J Schappert — Mon, 11 Aug 2025 17:08:27 +0000

Beyond Books: How a Schar School Senior Turned an Internship into a Legal Education Andrew J Schappert Mon, 08/11/2025 - 13:08

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Phillip Mink

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The first time Erika Burkard was in a courtroom as an intern for a law firm, the presiding judge asked her to introduce herself before the session began.

Erika Burkard’s advice for finding internships: Try everything that’s interesting. ‘You have time to investigate it. Don’t rush into it.’ Photo provided

“I stood up and said, ‘Good morning, ma’am.’ And she said, ‘It’s “Your Honor.” And I was like, ‘Oh, dang it!’”

Whoops! But that teachable moment is just one example of the myriad details the government and international politics senior in the Schar School of Policy and Government absorbed during an internship that not only supplemented her college education but confirmed that the practice of law was indeed her calling.

“I learned a lot of these really rigid things that you wouldn’t ordinarily recognize that I’ve been exposed to from interning,” the �鶹��Ƶ Honors College student said. “It’s been a really valuable experience. I’ve seen a lot of interesting litigation, and the fact that I’m allowed into these closed courtrooms has been an invaluable advantage.”

Finding an internship at a law firm “is really tricky,” she said. “A lot of the time you need certain qualifications, or you need to know someone who knows someone. And they’re normally looking for law students.”

With the encouragement of Assistant Professor Phillip Mink, who directs the Schar School’s Patriot Pre-Law program, Burkard did what she calls “the most old-fashioned version of finding experience you possibly can”: the cold call. She didn’t call just one or two law firms in the Richmond, Virginia, area where she lives but “roughly 30 to 40. I don’t mind endurance.”

Finally, she called Cravens & Noll, a well-established personal injury and family law firm with offices convenient to her home. After an interview, she landed a paid summer internship.

That was last summer, 2024. She returned to the firm during the winter break and again this summer, with plans to return in December during the 2025 winter break.

“Her internship with a superb law firm is a crucial component of her education as it combines hands-on experience with a law practice and the challenging intellectual work she has done as an undergraduate,” said Mink. “With backgrounds in both sectors, she is well-positioned for success in law school and the practice of law. I look forward to following her progress in both.”

She has many strengths, Mink added, “but I will never forget her core philosophy of improving her work, constantly experimenting with new ways to approach a problem.”

Burkard’s internship contributes to her legal studies minor in countless ways. During her time at Craven & Noll, she has assisted attorneys, paralegals, and clients by drafting court communications, estate documents, divorce filings, and even assisting in a memorable wrongful death suit involving a nursing home.

She has sat in on litigation, trials, and hearings and provided real-time assistance to counsel. And she’s travelled to nearly every court in Virginia, speaking with judges, clerks, incarcerated clients, the Commonwealth Attorney, and others.

“I fell in love with even the mundane procedural things that need to be done at law firms, because all of it contributes to a much larger picture,” she said. “Even if it’s just taking a client’s phone call.”

In addition to her studies and internship, Burkard is executive administrator of the campus Alpha Phi chapter, which raises funds for the study of women’s heart health. Among other duties, she writes memos at meetings, something she knows a bit about.

“It’s funny how my job at a law firm goes straight into my sorority stuff,” she said.

While the process of landing an internship required dogged persistence, Burkard knows her efforts paid off. She advises incoming students, her advice is to “go on �鶹��Ƶ360 and take advantage of the activities, meetings, speakers, because that’s how I narrowed down what I was most interested in. I had thrown around the idea of pre-law, but it wasn’t until I had gone to a pre-law meeting at the Schar School that I realized this is something I want to do. And you have time to investigate it. Don’t rush into it.”

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Schar School Professors Impact Alum’s Path to Law School

Andrew J Schappert — Tue, 03 Dec 2024 20:48:31 +0000

Schar School Professors Impact Alum’s Path to Law School Andrew J Schappert Tue, 12/03/2024 - 15:48

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Phillip Mink

Jennifer N. Victor

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Ethan Thomas, BA Government and International Politics ’24, presented his research at the 2024 Midwest Political Science Association Conference.

Ethan Thomas’ success story is one that many Schar School students hope to replicate. Since graduating in May 2024 with a BA in government and international politics, he took a position as a law clerk at Whitestone Young, a criminal defense firm located in the Fairfax, Virginia, area.

Thomas earned the Distinguished Student Leader Award at the Virginia Association of College and University Housing Officers Conference.

He also continues to stay connected to the Schar School and the �鶹��Ƶ community, working part time as an admissions representative in George �鶹��Ƶ's Admissions Office.

Hailing from Elmhurst, Illinois, Thomas first developed his passion for government and law around the contentious 2016 election. He set his sights on the East Coast, and consequently George �鶹��Ƶ as a hub for government and legal experiences. He immediately dove in, taking advantage of the Washington, D.C., metro area’s resources, culminating in an internship at the district office of U.S. Representative Sean Casten (D-IL), and another in the office of Senator Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) on Capitol Hill.

Thomas credits Schar School professors, including Assistant Professor Phillip Mink and Associate Professor Jennifer N. Victor, for having a profound impact on his journey while at George �鶹��Ƶ.

“One of the great things about a lot of classes taught at the Schar School is that the professors were really knowledgeable in their fields,” he said.

One of his favorite classes was the legal writing course taught by Mink, the faculty advisor for the Schar School's Patriot Pre-Law Program. In the class, Thomas was able to fine-tune his personal statement for law school, getting feedback from both Mink and his peers.

“We really honed those legal writing skills that often a lot of students don’t learn until they’re in law school,” he said.

The legal writing skills are uniquely developed through assignments designed to analyze real world examples and the principles they use to improve students’ writing.

Another valuable experience took place in Associate Professor Victor’s lab as part of the Undergraduate Research Assistant Program (URAP) where students work alongside their professor on valuable research projects. Thomas worked with Victor on congressional caucus research in the second semester of his freshman year, showing his enthusiasm for immersing himself in Schar School opportunities. He proceeded to engage in the lab for the rest of his time at George �鶹��Ƶ, forming a strong professional relationship with Victor, who then advised him on the data regression portion of his senior project, “The Impact of Court Rulings on Legislative Activity.”

Having graduated, Thomas is preparing for the LSAT as well as applying to law schools. In the process, he has found that the community he built with professors and other legal professionals at the Schar School helps support him in his future endeavors.

“Having professors and others who have been in law school provide that reaffirming support and tells me that ‘hey you’re going to be an amazing lawyer’ can really help get you over that struggle sometimes,” he said.

Topics

Patriot Pre-Law Program

Schar School BA in Government and International Politics

Schar School of Policy and Government

Schar School Featured Stories

Schar School News for December 2024

Schar School Student Spotlight

Alumni