After Fudan University graduate Chloe Xu (Xu Ke) decided to come to Vanderbilt to pursue an LL.M., program director Cynthia Coleman was able to connect her with Devon Chen (Chen Yutong), a graduate of the Shanghai University of Finance and Economics, who was also joining Vanderbilt's 2007 LL.M. class.
The two girls met in China and roomed together during their year at Vanderbilt.
Chloe, who now works in the Beijing office of the law firm of Vinson & Elkins, offers this advice to Chinese students: “Study seriously! I studied here for only one year, but I learned much more than I expected in just one year of study.”
She also appreciated the help extended to her by American law students, including her J.D. mentor. “The study methods are not the same as Chinese,” she says. “My J.D. student mentor gave me class notes and helped me with my writing. The writing part is hard for most Asian students, and Vanderbilt offers a Legal English program that was really nice for us, because the focus was on our small group.”