Megan Bess
Introduction
Megan Bess is the Director of UIC Law's Externship Program and an Assistant Professor of Law. Her areas of focus include professional identity formation, legal ethics, and the future of legal education.
"Straight From The Students: The Impact Of Law School Experiences On Professional Identity Formation"
Assistant Professor and Externship Program Director Megan Bess published an article about the impact of different law school experiences on professional identity formation, grounding her analysis in a research study of UIC Law graduates. Read an excerpt below:
“Unlike other professions, there exists little research about the professional identity formation of law students. This process is key to professional socialization as they transition from student to lawyer. Research from other fields (notably medicine) and limited research on first-year law students suggest that authentic real-world experiences have a significant impact on professional identity formation. With this hypothesis in mind, this paper presents data gathered from graduating law students about the impact of law school experiences on their ability to think and act like a lawyer. This research was conducted with a goal to aid law schools in focusing professional identity formation efforts on the experiences that students identify as most valuable to their professional development.”
Presentations, Awards & Appointments
Presentations
- “Part-Time Division Programs, Sponsored by Clinical Legal Education” session presented at the Annual Meeting (2026)