After 25 years at Birmingham-Southern, Professor of Philosophy Dr. Bill Myers took a new position in 2020. He is now in his second year as the College’s pre-law advisor, a role that fits well with Myers’ own academic background, especially since he argues that philosophy is the best major for future law students.

“In the data out there on majors that score highest on the LSAT, philosophy is at the top of the list every time,” he says. “But you can major in anything and go to law school, and we have people major in everything and go to law school.”

Political science and business are often some of the most popular pre-law majors, but BSC’s pre-law advising program provides guidance for students of all majors to explore careers in law and gain the critical thinking and writing skills they need going into the LSAT and the application process.

Myers entered the position after Professor Emeritus of English Dr. Fred Ashe, who served as the pre-law program advisor from 2016 until his retirement in 2020. In 2019, Myers joined Ashe as a co-advisor to the program, which Ashe had grown over the last few years.

The pre-law program is focused on advising students rather than requiring a set curriculum, though Myers does help students choose what courses would be best for them to take. He also serves as a mentor as pre-law students look for internships, study for the LSAT, and apply to and decide on different law schools.

Myers first got involved in the program with the creation of the philosophy, history, and law major that he developed with Michael Atchison Professor of History Dr. Mark Lester. Students in the major can choose a philosophy track or a history track, creating a focus in those disciplines along with advanced writing, economics, accounting, and other relevant courses.

For the major, Myers developed a course on the philosophy of law that he has now taught three times. The process required him to dig into texts he had not taught in years, but the course has quickly become one of his favorites.

“The questions we ask are so diverse and varied,” he says. “We go through the various theories of what law is. We talk about justice and equality, great issues that involve all areas of philosophy. It’s a very expansive field – you can cover almost everything.”

The course overlaps with Myers’ own research expertise in American philosophy, pragmatism, and ethics, and it is based on the reading and writing skills necessary for law school and for law professions. In the same way Myers’ courses serve many different majors on the Hilltop, philosophy works well with all kinds of law-related professions.

In his advising, Myers reviews students’ personal statements and other parts of their law school applications and oversees pre-law internships during E-Term. All these experiences ensure that students’ education at BSC can flow directly into their law school education.

“It’s not directly training the way a LSAT course would be; it’s teaching you how to think that way.”

Law School Matriculations for Fall 2021

Ally Brinson ’21, Cumberland School of Law
James Crabbe ’21, Creighton University School of Law
McKenzie Driskell ’21, Cumberland School of Law
Leslie Dupre ’12, New York Law School
Samih Eloubeidi ’18, Emory University School of Law
Joshua Griffin ’20, Charleston School of Law
Atchison Hubbard ’21, Cumberland School of Law
Annabelle Kahalley ’21, Baylor University School of Law
Ethan Lay ’21, Cumberland School of Law
Chase Mays ’21, Vanderbilt Law School
Jay Maxa ’21, Emory University School of Law
Jeffrey McKinney ’10, Charleston School of Law
Mary Newman ’19, University of Mississippi School of Law
John C. Schultz ’19, Cumberland School of Law
Alexandria Seirafi ’21, University of Miami School of Law
Edmund T. White ’18, Yale Law School
Justin Wright ’21, Cumberland Law School

This story was included in a special law edition of From the Hilltop, Birmingham-Southern’s alumni email newsletter.

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