As a youngster, Isabella Sindelar made waves in the classroom and the swimming pool as the kid who loved to argue almost as much as she loved to swim.
Sindelar tested the post-secondary education waters and earned a degree at a California community college where she competed in several events on the school’s swim team.
After earning an associate degree, Sindelar did a deep dive into what she wanted her future to look like. She realized earning a law degree whetted her competitive spirit, and she embraced the challenge.
Sindelar is in her third year at University of Idaho School of Law enrolled via the 3 + 3 program, a College of Letters Art and Social Sciences fast track that allows applicants to earn a bachelor’s in three years followed by three years of law school.
“I was set on law school when I enrolled at U of I, so I applied for 3 + 3 program which allowed me to concurrently finish my bachelor’s degree in political science while completing the first year of law school,” she said. “Because of the fast-track program, Idaho was the only school I applied to.”
With approval from a major advisor and department chair the 3+3 program allows students to complete their undergraduate degrees while working toward their law degree. Students can contribute as many as 30 law school credits toward completing their undergraduate degree.
A vision and a plan
“Isabella had her eyes on 3+3 from the start,” said advisor and Associate Professor of Political Science Markie McBrayer. “Oftentimes advisees need significant steering and direction, as they make their way through their undergraduate degree. Isabella was not that kind of student, though. She had a vision and plan for her academic and career trajectory. She wanted to go to law school, particularly with the 3+3, and ultimately become a lawyer.”
After her first year of law school, Sindelar earned her bachelor’s, and she and a group of U of I law students chose to study abroad in Florence, Italy, with peers from Gonzaga University Law.
I wouldn’t want to be anywhere else
Isabella Sindelar
Law student
In 2017, U of I’s College of Law became an affiliate school to Gonzaga’s Florence Summer Law Program. U of I law students can join the program thanks to the affiliation and study at the Gonzaga campus in Italy.
Sindelar and a U of I teammate won the Best Lawyer-Client Interaction in the program’s annual summer mediation competition.
“U of I Law encourages an externship after your first year of law school. I decided I would rather pay for that course work while learning overseas,” Sindelar said. “I went to Italy, and it was such a great experience learning with students from all over the world. It was really a good deal.”
After her summer abroad, Sindelar jumped in with both feet. She completed an internship in Lewiston at the Clark and Feeney law firm and joined the student bar association, becoming its president. She also gained hands-on experience at the school’s Community Law Clinic. The clinic offers third-year law students the opportunity to provide free legal services under the guidance of a supervising attorney with cases commonly handled by Idaho lawyers.
“We do almost everything an attorney does,” said Sindelar, whose goal when she enrolled in law school, was to pursue family law. “We go to court hearings and trials and see the cases through until the matter is over.”
Fast track was a great fit
Sindelar, who worked as a barista before committing to law school, said her U of I experience has broadened her horizons to other aspects of the legal profession, including international and tort law.
Her most memorable experience at U of I was meeting the state’s Supreme Court justices.
“We got to know them and see them in session,” she said, “It’s pretty rare. We were pretty lucky. I was kind of star struck and amazed at how accessible they are.”
Sindelar said the 3+3 program that brought her to U of I was a great fit for a motivated student.
“After I learned about the 3+3 program, I was dead set,” she said. “I knew in my heart that this program was right for me. I wouldn’t want to be anywhere else.”
She and her fiancé, a U of I engineering alum, plan to stay in Idaho after graduation.