By Drew Jacobs

I recently spoke with Sue Bowen, a former joint History and Political Science major at Middlebury who graduated in 1989. Upon graduation, Sue studied Law at Suffolk University in Boston. She is currently employed as a Senior Litigation Associate at Bruce & Kelley PC. Sue works as a defense attorney in medical malpractice cases, representing doctors and nurses accused of wrongdoing. Prior to her current position, Sue served in personal injury defense work, representing home and business owners sued for personal injuries. For example, if an individual fell off of a roof and suffered an injury, Sue would represent the homeowner. Her current day-to-day responsibilities include meeting with clients, analyzing documents, and making court appearances.

As a History and Political Science joint major at Middlebury, Sue believes that the skills she learned at Middlebury have prepared her well for work as a lawyer. Her current job requires ample reading and demands that she process a great deal of information. She then must uncover the key information and write a briefing. Her writing in Law is often complex and she believes that this skill– like her critical reading skills–was strengthened at Middlebury. Like her time as a History major at Middlebury, Sue must obtain information from a wide range of sources, distill the key information, and create a clear argument.

Sue spoke of her Senior Thesis as a work she specifically remembers while at Middlebury. Broadly, she wrote about the role the media has played in History. Her thesis study helped instill the reading, analysis, and writing skills demanded of a lawyer. Sue admitted that her primary interest at Middlebury was European History and Politics. While this specific information is no longer relevant to her day-to-day life, Sue utilizes the skills she developed as a History major every day in her work as a Lawyer.