MORE ABOUT ROCÍO
Graduation Date: December 2007
Hometown: Eatontown, New Jersey
Undergraduate School: Boston University
Awards & Achievements:
- Recipient of the DePaul Law Achievement Scholarship
- Hispanic Lawyers Scholarship Fund of Illinois
- Latino Law Student Association Scholarship
- Public Interest Law Association Summer Stipend
- Jack Carey Scholarship (for clerking at the Office of the Cook County Public Defenders)
Campus Involvement:
- Founder of the Spanish Conversational Group
- Former Vice President of the Latino Law Student Association
- Former Secretary of the Student Bar Association
- Member of the Committee for Public Interest Law
Current Employment:
- Law Clerk for the Office of the Cook County Public Defenders
Rocio Armendariz
Area of Study:Law
I chose to study law because... ever since I was six, I knew that’s what I wanted to do. The thought of working within our system to effectuate change served as my motivation.
I decided to attend DePaul's College of Law because... I knew it offered amazing programs such as the international law program and the public interest law program. In the end, my desire to experience something new solidified my decision to attend DePaul and live in Chicago. In hindsight, I’m glad that I chose DePaul and cannot imagine pursuing my legal career elsewhere. It’s definitely the right fit for me.
The law class I have most enjoyed here... was criminal procedure with Professor L. Song Richardson. It was a class that not only opened my mind up to what is happening in the criminal justice system, but also led me to what I want to do, which is criminal defense. It was one of those classes with a professor that just made you think. It was a class that made me realize law school was all worth it.
When I have free time, I like to... run. Actually, I just completed my first marathon! Fortunately, living in Chicago gives me an amazing opportunity to run along the lake. Although I love running, I equally love food and Chicago has amazing restaurants and a variety of different cuisines.
Here, the diversity of students, faculty and staff... is amazing. Originally, I didn’t know what to expect because I had never been to Chicago before, but I look around the law school and see different types of people with different experiences, which helps us all learn from each other.
For DePaul College of Law students, Chicago is... a great place to be. There is every type of law practiced here and since the Law School is located in the Loop, there are so many resources at your fingertips.
DePaul’s College of Law is different from other law schools because... it has a great environment for every type of law. I never felt the evil competitiveness that people told me to expect out of law school. Instead, I found an amazing community full of camaraderie.
The instructors at DePaul's College of Law are... amazing. DePaul Law has professors that are very knowledgeable in their field and always willing to help.
My greatest success has been... being able to help others, especially first year law students ("1Ls"). The Latino Law Student Association has an amazing mentor program and an amazing community. It’s a great feeling to be able to able to talk to someone about the difficulties of law school, and to support each other during the hard times.
After graduation, I plan to... work as a public defender.
The one thing I’d like to say to students considering DePaul College of Law... come and visit. See for yourself, talk to students that are studying what you want to study, or if you don’t know, just talk to someone that goes here.
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