For fifth-generation Iowan, Chandler Mores, it was almost impossible to grow up in southwest Iowa with aspirations of going to law school and not be familiar with Iowa Law. Founded in 1865, the College of Law is the oldest law school west of the Mississippi and has produced countless judges, legal scholars, politicians, and even Heisman Trophy winners.

“I was heavily involved in 4-H” and “I went to the Iowa State Fair every year from when I was 3 months old to age 22,” said Mores. Chandler also participated in the Iowa State Bar Association’s mock trial competitions for six years, spanning her middle and high school years. The competitions “sparked my goal of attending law school, [and] growing up in Iowa, I knew of Iowa Law’s stellar reputation and successful alumni, so the possibility of attending Iowa Law was always on my radar.”

After graduating from high school, Mores enrolled at Stanford University in Palo Alto, CA, where she majored in International Relations with a minor in Spanish. “The weather, the people, the experiences were all incredible; attending Stanford was life-changing. Law school was next, and no matter where I went for law school I knew that I would eventually return to the Bay Area after obtaining my JD. The opportunities for growth, the work, the environment, it made the Bay Area a really attractive place to want to kickstart my legal career.”

Although two time zones and more than 1,900 miles separate northern California and Iowa City, when it came to attending law school Mores decided on Iowa Law.

“Iowa Law is well-respected. When I worked as a summer associate in Kansas City after my first year of law school, the attorneys constantly told me how impressed they are with Iowa Law graduates because of our work ethic.”

In her quest to return to northern California to practice, Iowa Law’s reputation was but one factor that helped Mores turn that possibility into a reality. This past summer Chandler was a summer associate in the Palo Alto office of Simpson, Thacher, & Bartlett LLP, and that’s where she’ll be heading after graduating and passing the bar.

“When it came to the job hunt, the administration connected me with several Iowa Law alumni that worked in the Bay Area, and those alumni were always eager to help me in any way possible: whether that was buying me several cups of coffee over fun conversation, providing job application advice and bar exam tips, or which classes to take. I’m so excited to return to Palo Alto to start the next chapter in my life, armed with the skills and resources that Iowa Law taught me.”

Chandler left Iowa to move to the Bay Area after high school, and like deja vu she’ll be making the Iowa to California trip one more time after she graduates Iowa Law. “Iowa Law has an incredible alumni network, a great reputation, and you can find Law Hawks almost anywhere. I was confident Iowa Law would help me get back to the Bay Area, and it absolutely did.”