The John A. Golden ’66 Fellowship is a competitive scholarship program at Colgate University designed to support students interested in attending law or medical school through financial support, professional advising and hands-on learning through planning events or initiatives. Olwethu Ezell, a senior planning to attend law school to become a public interest lawyer, is one of the program’s pre-law scholars. As described by Ezell, out of the aspects of guidance and pre-professional help provided by the fellowship, planning initiatives and honing the skills required to bring these events together seem to be primary.
“Golden [Fellowship] is separated into pre-law and pre-med, and we all work together on certain initiatives throughout the semester,” Ezell said. “The initiatives go back to the fellowship’s mission of building our skills as pre-professionals and giving back to the Colgate community.”
These initiatives tend to focus on skills that benefit both law and medical students, allowing both groups of scholars to work together.
“Last semester, we held a personal statement workshop, and that was a collaboration between the pre-law and the pre-med [Golden Fellows] because that is a component of both of our application tracks,” Ezell said.
The advising team of the fellowship focuses on building professional skills by working personally with the fellows to develop skills related to their future career paths. The Golden Fellows are advised by various members of the Career Services team, joined by Chair of the Health Sciences Advisory Committee Julie Chanatry.
Some of these skills — such as the ability to build interpersonal relationships, work within a team or develop a workshop — are strong foundational skills necessary for pre-law and pre-medicine students. When planning an event, Ezell explained that the Golden Fellows were instructed to think about what their attendees would learn or gain from it.
Ezell explained the importance of the skills that the program is instilling in its students and how she believes they already have and will benefit her in her future endeavors with the law.
“I feel that I have grown so much more confident, just as a person and someone who is going to be a lawyer,” Ezell said. “I think this is just a testament to the advisors’ focus on building those smaller skills that I guess you don’t think about necessarily when you think about a career in law, or what the fellowship would provide.”
Ezell shared how she learned how to advocate for herself and facilitate effective discussions with alumni through the fellowship. When recruiting alumni for a panel discussion, the Golden Fellows had to be confident enough to speak with them to explain their goals and purposes. Ezell also spoke to the alumni aspect of the fellowship and the connection between current fellows and those who previously participated.
“I think, honestly, the best thing I got out of the fellowship was the network,” Ezell said. “Just in regards to applying to law school, there are so many fellows that I have leaned on who have graduated to inform me about some of the steps they have taken or how they have prepared for their LSAT.”
Furthermore, the ability to reach out to Colgate alumni who were involved in the Golden Fellowship is a shining aspect of the program. Being able to reach out to someone who was in your shoes not very long ago helps pre-law and pre-medicine students conquer the daunting post-graduate world.
Some of the past and current Golden Fellows have shared their experiences working at particular law firms, as well as the steps they took to get there. Sometimes, they’re able to flag a resumé or share insight about certain application processes.
While these career-oriented skills and aids are important aspects of the program, Ezell continued to highlight the importance of the community it creates and the environment it fosters among the current fellows.
“I think for me, what was really helpful was having like-minded peers — people that are super ambitious and driven — and also really care about the type of work that they would want to be doing,” Ezell said.
Ezell continued to emphasize the uplifting environment of the current cohort.
“I do think it’s a testament to the environment that the fellowship tries to make between the Fellows and that ethos of lifting each other up throughout the process,” Ezell said. “Another aspect of the fellowship [is that] we all share [our achievements] and celebrate each other. Being able to learn from them and see various areas of law clarified my own path.”
Through the Golden Fellowship, Ezell has found an interest in public interest law, a moment of clarity she would not have had without this opportunity.
