In Immigration Law Field Placements, Students Get a Crash Course in Practical and People Skills
As an undergraduate at Whitman College in Washington, Meg Keiser ’25 minored in Spanish and then interned at an immigration law firm her senior year. From that moment on, she knew she wanted to work in the field. While looking at options for law school, the Minnesota native was drawn to Minnesota Law due primarily to the James H. Binger Center for New Americans.
Keiser graduated this spring after taking full advantage of all that the law school has to offer aspiring immigration lawyers. That included four semesters working — for pay and class credit — at Karam Law, an immigration firm in Bloomington. Keiser credits her Binger Center field placement for preparing her so well to be a full-time lawyer. In the fall, she’ll start a new job at the small private immigration firm Nwokocha and Operana Law Offices in Minneapolis.
“I took the two main immigration law classes at Minnesota Law, and that’s a great foundation,” Keiser says. “But until you get in front of a client and you’re talking about their story and everything they’ve gone through and what their immigration goals are, it’s difficult to know how to apply that classroom knowledge. In immigration law, people skills are essential, and that’s just something you don’t get in a classroom setting.”
