Advertise on podcast: Admissible: A Look Inside Law School Admissions

Buddy Palmer ’26 and Alex Wilfert ’26 share how the North Grounds Softball League helps shape student life and culture at UVA Law, even for those who never pick up a bat or glove.

Artificial intelligence expert and UVA Law professor Mike Livermore joins Admissions Dean Natalie Blazer ’08 to discuss how AI is affecting legal academia and the future of legal practice. Far from replacing the need for lawyers in the future, Livermore argues that AI — when harnessed properly by humans — could in fact elevate the standing of attorneys and democratize access to legal services.

They’ve seen it all and heard it all, and now they’re spilling the tea. Third-year law student workers join Admissions Dean Natalie Blazer ’08 to share advice and insights based on hundreds of interactions with applicants and prospective students each cycle.

Admissions Dean Natalie Blazer ’08 ventured outside the studio and into a freak snowstorm to report heartwarming stories from behind the scenes of UVA Law’s 2026 Admitted Students Open House. Through on-site interviews with admitted students, their guests, current law students and alumni, this episode highlights the admissions cycle’s main event that brought hundreds of visitors to Charlottesville this (snowy) spring.

Assistant Dean for Community Engagement Mark Jefferson joins Dean Blazer to discuss how UVA Law students are trained to become outstanding lawyers by learning to disagree with one another in a supportive environment.

Amelia Isaacs ’26 and Kyle Trotman ’26 met as undergraduates at Florida State University and quickly bonded over their interests and aspirations for law school. The couple joins Admissions Dean Natalie Blazer ’08 to share how they navigated the application process, 1L coursework, leadership positions, job searches and more, all while leaning on one another for support and encouragement.

UVA Law’s three directors of admission — Katie Delsandro ’12, Rosanne Ibanez and Jennifer Echemendia — discuss the 2026 application cycle and offer advice to candidates seeking to obtain admission to a top law school in an increasingly competitive process.

Admissions Dean Natalie Blazer ’08 wraps up the year with insights about each episode of Season 7.

Assistant Dean for Private Practice Lauren Parker ’08 and Director of Private Practice Kira Walmer ’08 join classmate Admissions Dean Natalie Blazer ’08 to discuss how UVA Law’s individualized approach to career counseling prepares students to navigate an increasingly fast-paced and unpredictable job market. Parker and Walmer offer practical tips for balancing the job search with first-year coursework; advise how to make the most of each career counseling session; share which skills and traits make someone a “keeper” in the legal industry; and more.

UVA Law Professor and Education Rights Institute Director Kimberly Jenkins Robinson discusses her passion for education rights and why she founded ERI, how law students are critical to the institute’s operation and the work the institute is doing to further the right to a high-quality education in America. Robinson also shares why she loves teaching at the Law School and why she believes UVA Law students are “the happiest group of law students.”

Older, wiser law students (“owls”) Neil Noronha ’26 and Kathleen Samuelson ’26 join Admissions Dean Natalie Blazer ’08 to discuss how they forged their paths as nontraditional applicants and found community at UVA Law.

Judge Lisa Lorish ’08 joins her classmate, Admissions Dean Natalie Blazer ’08, to discuss her path to the Virginia Court of Appeals following a successful career in private practice and as a federal public defender. Currently a lecturer at UVA Law, Judge Lorish offers advice to law school applicants, students and graduates, and shares what she loves most about serving on the bench.

From college sophomores to first-year law students, Sarah Beddingfield ’28 and Morgan Gaspar ’28 join Admissions Dean Natalie Blazer ’08 to discuss their experience in UVA Law’s Roadmap Scholars Initiative.

Professor and Double Hoo Xiao Wang, director of UVA Law’s Supreme Court Litigation Clinic, joins Admissions Dean Natalie Blazer ’08 to discuss how the clinic gets selected to take on high-profile cases; why a people-first approach is critical to successful advocacy; and how his time at UVA helped prepare him for the grand stage of the Supreme Court. Following the clinic’s back-to-back 9-0 victories at the Supreme Court in the 2024-25 term, Wang emphasizes that UVA Law students are at the forefront of the research, briefing and preparation for oral argument of each case presented before the Supreme Court, all while still in their third year of law school.

Virginia men’s basketball Associate Head Coach Griff Aldrich ’99 joins Admissions Dean Natalie Blazer ’08 to discuss his journey from UVA Law student to college basketball coach to corporate attorney and back again. Now in his first season coaching at UVA, Aldrich shares the “intangibles” he looks for that signal success on the court and in the classroom, his take on the transfer portal and the recent transformation of college sports, how skills learned in law school apply to all areas of life and more.