Many law school graduates today are facing significantly reduced job opportunities compared to one year ago, as several prominent law firms have lowered the number of on-campus interviews because of the current economic slump.
Karen Sloan, a reporter for The National Law Journal, said while regional midsize firms have not seen too much change, large, corporate firms — which tend to offer the most comfortable salaries — have taken the biggest hit.
“The trend started last fall and it’s been getting tighter and tighter since,” she said.
University Law students currently seeking interviews, however, have not been hit as hard as other students across the country.
Kevin Donovan, senior assistant dean for Career Services at the Law School, said despite a decrease in overall interviews, the interview process for University law students has generally remained a positive one.
“Students had access to a lot of great employers and a fairly large number of callbacks,” Donovan stated. “The process is moving forward.”
Law School Dean Paul Mahoney also has remained optimistic for the University’s students, noting that the University’s program has a distinct advantage because it is does not rely on law firms in specific areas.
“We are not geographically tied to a particular market,” Mahoney said, “Our students are more adaptable to various markets.”
University Law students themselves, meanwhile, claimed to have had mixed experiences during this year’s interview process. Though second-year Law student C. Benjamin Cooper has not had any firms cancel his interviews, third-year Law Student Aaron Armstrong, who went through the interview process last year, said his peers received less callback interviews than previous classes.
“It wasn’t really until people got callbacks that we started noticing a lot less firms were offering callbacks,” he said.
Students who have not had success in finding employment with a large law firm have been forced to look elsewhere. Mahoney said smaller firms and the government sector are strong alternatives in today’s market.
“Students should look at markets that are not in New York [City] or [Washington], D.C.,” he said, adding that the federal government also is hiring recent Law School graduates.

Several prominent Virginia businessmen, including two former University Board of Visitors members, have come together to work on a new initiative called Grow by Degrees, which hopes to make higher education more affordable and applicable in the workforce.
W. Heywood Fralin, former University Board of Visitors member and chairman of the Virginia Business Higher Education Council — the organization that launched Grow by Degrees — said the initiative’s goal was to increase the number of college graduates entering the job market in the commonwealth, an aim which he said would consequently improve Virginia’s budget situation.
“It’s the key to economic success of this state,” he said, noting that more graduates would provide significantly larger tax revenues, start more state businesses and fill demanding jobs, keeping established business in the Commonwealth.
Tom Farrell, a former member of both the State Council for Higher Education and the University’s Board of Visitors, as well as a current member of the Board at the University’s College at Wise, worked with Fralin to outline the goals of Grow by Degrees.
“Our [objective] is to try to convince public policy makers in the state that this should be one of their priorities in the legislature and the executive branch.” Farrell said. He also noted, however, that this change will likely be a gradual one.
“Grow by Degrees will have a very important impact for Virginians, but it will be in the long term … it could be over the next 10 or 20 years,” he said.
Mark Hubbard, Grow by Degrees communications director, said a recently completed poll found that 75 percent of Virginians thought a college degree was necessary for professional success. Hubbard noted, however, that only 35 percent of college-age Virginians are enrolled in college and only 42 percent of working-age Virginians actually hold college degrees.
“That’s a significant gap there between the number of people who feel that they need a degree to succeed and the number of people that get a degree,” Hubbard said. “We need to fix that.”
To shrink this gap, the number of college graduates would have to increase by 70,000 during the next 10 years so that half of all Virginians would hold a college degree, Hubbard said. Throughout the last decade, however, the state has decreased its funding per student by 40 percent, meaning that students and their families are shouldering more tuition than ever before or finding that they are unable to afford any college education at all, he said.
Though their specific plans for making higher education more accessible may differ, both candidates in Virginia’s upcoming gubernatorial election have expressed their support for the Grow By Degrees program.
Creigh Deeds spokesperson Mike Gehrke said his campaign worked closely with Grow by Degrees during the race for the Democratic nomination, adding that they plan to continue doing so if Deeds is elected governor.
“Higher education is a top priority and a crucial part of the economy as well,” Gehrke said.
Crystal Cameron, press secretary for Republican candidate Bob McDonnell, said although McDonnell agrees with the ideas set forth by Growth by Degrees, he has a slightly more ambitious goal of awarding 100,000 diplomas during the next 15 years.

The University recently altered its activities fees for graduate students this semester to give all full-time graduate students access to University athletic events.
Many students past their second year of graduate school at the University are still considered full-time students, but have fewer credit hours from classes and spend more time conducting research, said Matt Rannals, president of the Graduate Arts & Sciences Council. Previously, these students only paid a portion of the student activities fee for athletic events but could not access the events for free. The Board of Visitors, though, approved fee changes so that graduate students past their second year would pay full fees, and the athletics department would grant them full access to events, Athletics Director Craig Littlepage said.
“I think the fact that you were paying a third of the price and weren’t getting any access was something they found insulting and a bit of a kick to the face,” said David Hondula, chair of Student Council’s Athletic Affairs Committee.
Graduate Council representatives had been working with the athletic department to obtain access to some athletic events for students paying the partial fee, Littlepage said. In particular, the athletic department had considered giving access to several football and basketball games for students paying the partial fee.
“We were looking at that [option] in the fall of 2008 and early winter 2009, and when this [change] came out that became a moot point,” Littlepage said.
Both the athletic department and the Graduate Council are making efforts to publicize the recent change, Littlepage and Hondula said.
“Specifics are still in development, but I know the Graduate Council is doing some flyering and some e-mailing, and the athletic affairs committee [of student council] is planning on doing some work as well,” Hondula said.
Additionally, the athletic department is using e-mail and an announcement on its Web site to publicize graduate students’ access to games, Littlepage said, adding that the athletic department believes the full access should be beneficial for both the graduate students and the University’s athletics program.
“I think it is a win-win — something that’ll be beneficial for these graduate students and beneficial for us in terms of getting higher levels of support,” Littlepage said.

On Aug. 17, Dining Services hired Kendall Singleton, a 2007 University graduate, to serve as its first Sustainability Coordinator. In a prior interview with The Cavalier Daily, Director of Dining Brent Beringer noted that one of the primary functions of the position is to promote student engagement with sustainability issues through the expanded use of special projects and initiatives.
Sustainability is a not a trivial matter and the hiring of Singleton should be commended. The environmental and community impact of student dining merits examination in its own right, but the new coordinator’s emphasis on education gives the role much more relevance and will broaden the scope of its influence. Changing preferences remains a daunting task, however, and Singleton certainly has her work cut out for her. Fortunately she appears to be an excellent candidate for the position.
A more fundamental concern rests with the incentives for creating such an office. Too often those in charge of organizations create symbolic posts for disingenuous reasons. Frequently it is simply a mechanism to deflect criticism and evade tough decision-making. One appropriate political analogy is to a sham democracy: it may be perceived as less threatening than a dictatorship, but the peril is in its deception.
Less dramatic comparisons can be made with other University programs. A useful historical parallel can be drawn with the inception of the Office of African-American Affairs in the 1970s. The OAAA is now a vibrant, integral component of the University community, though it arose from more humble origins. This process can partially be explained from the natural progression of any new project. As African-American Affairs Dean Maurice Apprey pointed out, most young organizations require some period of time before they achieve large-scale results. Nonetheless, he acknowledges that the original intentions of those in power are sometimes less than sincere. “These types of things are often implemented with different intentions, but it is how the project responds to internal and external stimuli that will determine how it ultimately ends up,” he said.
Though Dining Services’ actual motives are indeterminable, they may be irrelevant to the outcome of this initiative. What determines its fate will be a combination of both internal circumstances and the degree of University community members’ interest. Benign intentions may make the nascent stages less difficult, but they are not a precondition to growth and success.
The obstacles Singleton may face as Sustainability Coordinator are plentiful: poor empowerment of her position, ambiguity in the traditional power structure, and inadequate resources. The key to her eventual success will be to quietly engender a cooperative culture from within while keeping the sustainability issue prevalent in community discourse. Singleton’s desire to incorporate student education and involvement might be more than simply a laudable idea. It could be just what makes this project soar.

WHEN ASKED to provide advice for incoming students at the University, my mind initially drew a blank. Every student’s heard the typical stories of college. We all know to take advantage of meeting as many people as we can, to seek involvement in activities, and to keep our grades up as our first priority. I could give typical advice, but it would sound forced and redundant. I could give atypical advice, and risk sounding ridiculous in the eyes of over 10,000 readers. So I’ll do my best to toe the line between the typical and the unusual, hopefully conveying at least a respectable image of myself in the next 700 words.
The best piece of advice before college is to know who you are before you ever arrive. For first-years, you’ve had about eighteen years to figure out what kind of a person you are. College certainly changes people, but most basic personality traits and interests are formed long before you set foot in Charlottesville. As bogus as it sounds, take time to do a little soul-searching; the clearer self-image you come into college with, the better chance you have of standing out amongst the crowd. Since all first-years live together in dorms, go to classes together in Central Grounds, and eat together in the dining halls, it’s inevitable that the general student population will start to blend together. The better you know yourself at the start of college, the better chance you’ll have of letting your unique characteristics show through to others.
The first month of college will be hectic, at best. Every time you go to eat or take a walk, you’ll be bombarded with requests to meet new people. Each trip to class will yield a new discovery about our Grounds. The sheer volume of new information to take in during such a short period of time is difficult, so it’s important to have some anchor to hold onto. This anchor could be a friend from high school or a roommate; you could find that watching a favorite television show every week or having a simple daily routine is enough to keep order in your life. It may seem obvious that you should avoid getting lost in the shuffle during the first few weeks of your college life, but it’s easier to get off-track than you might think. College brings new opportunities for academic adventures during the day and a myriad of, well, “exciting” opportunities at night. Taking control of all the options college brings can be difficult, but is certainly made easier if you know your priorities coming in.
One of the most valuable qualities of a residential University environment is the diversity of experiences each person brings to the table. Each person here comes from a different past, and each has an interesting and unique perspective on life. It’s important not to discount the opinions of others because of superficial reasons. Diversity is not limited to diversity among race, sex, or economic class, although there certainly exists a rich diversity in these areas in the college environment. More importantly, the University seeks students in its application process who have a diversity of ways to view the world. Going to class is just one way to broaden knowledge in the college environment. It can be even more enlightening to examine the way another person views the world, to understand a unique perspective, and to value an experience you may have never had yourself. The most important thing you can do as a student entering college is to know some basic priorities of your life but to keep an open mind; everything else will fall into place.
This University really is a special place. Its rich history and emphasis on tradition is largely unparalleled at other colleges and universities. Certainly you won’t be interested in every activity or program offered, but my best advice is to keep your options open. I never imagined writing for a school paper in high school, but have grown to treasure the power of words writing for The Cavalier Daily in college. To begin college by closing doors and limiting options would be a mistake, as I’m sure you’ve heard countless times. Learning interesting and exciting things about the place you’ll spend the next four years is often as simple as keeping your eyes and ears open to new possibilities.
Anthony Noble is a columnist for The Cavalier Daily. He can be reached at a.noble@cavalierdaily.com.

Mitch Ross’s thoughtful article on “Going International” (Thursday, August 27) correctly points out the importance of study abroad. “Studying abroad is an excellent way for students to encounter learning from a different perspective,” he writes. U.Va. has programs in a dozen or more countries, programs in English or in the language of the country, and thousands of students have benefitted from contact with one or more countries over the years. Mr. Ross logically could not mention all of the opportunities offered to U.Va. students, so I would like to call your readers’ attention to Semester at Sea, which, since 2006, has been sponsored by U.Va. The current voyage — the 100th — is taking students to Spain, Morocco, Ghana, South Africa, Mauritius, India, Vietnam, China, Japan, and Hawaii, and its strength is exactly the kind of experiential learning that Mr. Ross applauds in his article. Miss something at U.Va? Indeed! Students interested in more information can visit Semester at Sea’s Web site.

David T. Gies
Commonwealth Professor of Spanish

More than 59 percent of senior midfielder Ross LaBauex’s shots were on goal last season — the highest percentage on the team for players with at least two attempts. Photo by: Jason O. Watson

The Virginia men’s soccer team will wrap up its preseason schedule Saturday night when it takes on West Virginia at 7 p.m. at Klöckner Stadium with the hope of rebounding from its two previous exhibition matches — a 1-0 loss to George Mason and a 3-1 loss to Old Dominion.
Monday night’s showing against Old Dominion was characterized by experiments with the lineup, a mixture of quality and sloppy play and an end-of-game collapse that saw Old Dominion score two goals in the final nine minutes. The game remained scoreless until the 75th minute of play, when Old Dominion’s senior midfield Nane Joseph converted a penalty kick after he was fouled in the box. Virginia freshman forward Ahkeel Rodney was quick to respond, scoring an unassisted equalizer in the 82nd minute. The Monarchs struck again, however, scoring a breakaway goal in the 85th minute, and piled on another just before the final whistle.
“We didn’t combine as a team very well,” Virginia freshman forward Will Bates said. “There were sequences that were really good but at times we were just awful.”
Though they only found the back of the net once, the Cavaliers were not bereft of scoring chances, edging the Monarchs in shots 9-8 and in corner kicks 8-3. Sophomore Tony Tchani, the team’s leading scorer last season, tallied a team-high three shots — two of which were on goal. Junior goalkeeper Diego Restrepo started in goal for Virginia before being relieved by sophomore Matt Owen in the 75th minute.
Last Friday’s exhibition against George Mason also featured a late goal against Virginia. The match was scoreless until the 92nd minute, when George Mason junior forward Parker Walton slipped a low shot past freshman goalkeeper Will Whorton for the game’s only goal. Once again, the Cavaliers managed to outshoot their opponent — this time 19-5 — but failed to capitalize on opportunities. Virginia players and coaches showed little disappointment with the result, however, insisting their shortcomings were simply the result of preseason jitters and lineup experimentation.
“We’ll get it,” Bates said. “It’s just going to be a matter of time. We just gotta build off our chemistry since it’s the first time we’ve all played with each other.”
Virginia coach George Gelnovatch also is optimistic about the near future, noting that his team is finally poised to harness all of its talent and pursue a breakout season.
“This is the fittest we’ve been in a number of years, and we have most of our team returning from last year,” Gelnovatch said. “So far, so good.”
West Virginia is coming off a 1-1 exhibition draw against Michigan. The Mountaineers were picked to finish fourth in the Big East in the conference’s preseason poll, and they boast the Big East Preseason Goalkeeper of the Year in redshirt junior Zach Johnson.

Sophomore forward Lauren Alwine led Virginia in 2008 with 14 assists. She was second in goals, totalling six. Photo by: Jason O. Watson

Even from last season’s outset, the Virginia women’s soccer team struggled to finish its chances, costing the squad several important matches. Although the Cavaliers outshot their opponents 18-5, they only outscored them 2.2-1. This Friday, the Cavaliers will host Liberty in their young season’s home opener, and look to put those scoring percentage woes behind them.
In its first game of the season against then-No. 6 Penn State, Virginia suffered a 1-0 loss, outshooting the Nittany Lions 17-9.
“There was definitely a lot of good stuff we saw on film,” junior midfielder Sinead Farelly said. Coach Steve Swanson “put together tons of clips where if we would have just made one extra pass or just one right pass, we would have gotten so many more quality chances … So we just know we have to work on focusing and technique and we’ll be fine.”
With an inexperienced defense backing up the team, the Cavalier’s opponents may no longer find themselves stifled by last season’s all-senior backline. After graduating several key players, Swanson has spent much of the pre-season exhibitions and practices trying to find a successful lineup.
“I think we are getting more set,” Farelly said. “But not getting results is going to have people shift around positions.”
In some cases, though, the changing line is not an experiment, but a way for Virginia to exploit one of its most ubiquitous strengths: depth.
“I think it’s good that our team is so deep and that we have people that can play every position,”  Farelly said. “We have forwards that are playing outside back and people that can push up as forward and some of our outside mids are playing center mid. I think even when we have a pretty set core team we are still going to have shifting around to try and change things up especially for different opponents.”
After facing off against a tough, experienced opponent in its first regular season game, Virginia will have more opportunities to improve its “core team” when it plays Liberty.
“We play them every year,” Farelly said. “It’s not usually a really tough game. But I think what we want to work on is sometimes we get the quality chances but we don’t finish a lot. It’s a good way to get the result we want but also just work on the things we need to do.”
Sophomore forward Lauren Alwine and junior forward Meghan Lenczyk will be called upon to finish the chances they create and put the ball in the back of the net. The dynamic duo led the team in assists and goals last season, respectively.
Although Virginia has defeated Liberty the last three seasons, Swanson sees this week’s game as an opportunity to learn, assess and improve.
“I’m not sure that I look at anything in the past,” Swanson said. “I’m just looking at it ‘Hey, here we are this week, as compared to last week. Are we getting closer to our potential?’”

Senior back Lauren Elstein, who started 13 games for Virginia last year, combined for 15 points off four goals and seven assists. Photo by: Jason O. Watson

The No. 6 Virginia women’s field hockey team faces a challenging weekend as it takes on two quality non-conference foes at home — Miami University, Ohio and No. 11 Penn State.
The Red Hawks return six starters and nine letter winners from last year’s squad. Although unranked in the NFHCA poll, they earned some top-20 votes.
Sunday’s game against Penn State could prove more challenging. Virginia has not had great success against the Nittany Lions in the past, losing the teams’ previous five meetings and holding a 3-13 overall record against Sunday’s foe. The 2008 Big Ten Champions also return five of their top six scorers from last season.
Like Miami and Penn State, though, the Cavaliers return most of their offensive power, with seven of last year’s nine leading scorers present. Most notable among those returning is sophomore midfielder Paige Selenski, who had a breakout rookie season with 19 goals and 9 assists. Virginia also welcomes back 13 letter winners from last year’s squad, which advanced to the quarterfinals of the NCAA Tournament.
Though Virginia’s offensive play is strong, the Cavaliers’ biggest challenge will be on defense, which took a big hit after several key players graduated. Amy Desjadon, Inge Kaars Sijpesteijn and Lucy Meyers had been the foundation of the Cavalier defense during their time at the University.
“You are always going to lose players, you just have to work with what you have got and be the best you can be as a team,” senior back Lauren Elstein said. “I have complete confidence in the team this year.”
The Cavaliers will attempt to replace last year’s trio of defenders with several promising newcomers. Boston University transfer junior goalkeeper Kim Kastuk looks to fill Desjadon’s former role in the cage. Kastuk was the America East Goalkeeper of the Year in 2008 and recorded a conference high six shutouts last season.
“Having Kim come in and step in goal is great for the team,” Elstein said. “She has a lot of heart, a lot of drive, and a lot of ability, so I am really excited to see what she brings to the defense back there.”
Elstein, one of the team’s two seniors this season, will move to the back, assuming many of the responsibilities that Meyers and Sijpesteijn held on defense. The majority of Virginia’s newcomers will be on the defensive side of the field, and Elstein will attempt to lead and bolster the defense.
“I want to be the best leader for the team and do whatever it is to help the team win,” Elstein said. “I think we are looking at a really strong defense this year.”
The Cavaliers have enough offensive firepower to hang with anyone in the country. It will, however, be up to the defense to come up with key stops for the Cavaliers to find success this season. Untested, the youthful backline could be the team’s weakest link — or a pleasant, beneficial surprise.
“We are just trying to build on last year — one day at a time, one practice at a time,” coach Michele Madison said.

Senior outside hitter Lauren Dickson played 108 sets last season, contributing 307 kills and adding 37 service aces to the team’s total of 167. Photo by: Jason O. Watson

The Virginia volleyball team will travel to College Station, Texas this weekend at the Texas A&M Invitational to start its season against three opponents who will each pose their own challenge to the Cavaliers. The Cavaliers open the tournament this afternoon at 1:30 against NCAA tournament regular Northern Iowa.
“I think we’re ready to finally play someone besides ourselves,” senior outside hitter Lauren Dickson said.
Northern Iowa could provide the opposition the Cavaliers have been looking for to gauge their progress coming out of the preseason.
“We’re excited to get some quality competition right away,” Virginia coach Lee Maes said.
The Panthers went 25-9 in 2008, capturing their third consecutive trip to the postseason NCAA tournament. The team returns five starters, including junior libero Ellie Blankenship. Blankenship is the seventh ranked libero in the nation and finished the 2008 season with 676 digs.
Not only is the Panthers’ defensive specialist strong, but so is their sophomore duo of setter Bre Payton and middle blocker Michelle Burow. Both Payton and Burow were selected for the NCAA All-Freshman team last year. Senior outside hitter Shannon Aschoff also could be a presence this season after outstanding performances last year left her with second-team all-conference honors.
After facing a tough Northern Iowa squad, Virginia will test its mettle against Texas A&M and Iona.
“If we want to be the best, we have to play the best, and we’ve done that with our scheduling,” Maes said.
Texas A&M will test the Cavaliers with its height and talent. The Aggies boast a squad with more than half of its players measuring 6 feet or taller. This will put Virginia’s Dickson and sophomore outside hitter Simone Asque to the test. Asque, coming off her first season at Virginia in 2008, was named to the preseason All-ACC team.
“There are some expectations of her going from a first year to a second year — to be a different maker and an impact maker,” Maes said.
The Cavaliers will look to Asque to be a commanding force on offense and as the player most likely to overcome Texas A&M’s powerful blocking wall.
Like Virginia, Texas A&M had a nearly even win-loss record in 2008. The Cavaliers, however, displayed more poise at neutral sites, with a 4-2 record, whereas the Aggies went 1-3 on neutral ground.
Virginia rounds out its brief stay in Texas by playing Iona. The Gaels earned a fourth seed in the 2008 MAAC Championship last year.
In many aspects of the game, the Cavaliers are comparable to Iona, but edge them in the amount of kills per set. Iona’s defensive specialists, however, may challenge the Cavaliers’ strong hitters, as the Gaels average 18 digs per set. Virginia’s senior libero Brittani Rendina, though, also will provide strength on defense for her team. She finished with the fifth-highest season dig total in Virginia history last season, totalling 516.
“We’d like to go over there and do some damage,” Asque said.