Appeals to the minorities
The Faculty of Law wants to attract students with minority backgrounds
- The Norwegian society needs more people with minority backgrounds in the legal profession in order to mirror the ethnical structure of the population, says Finn Arnesen, dean at the Faculty of Law.
This spring, Universitas wrote that the Faculty of Law, in particular, was struggling with attracting students with minority backgrounds. An inquiry carried out by Minorities in Focus in Academia (MiFA), proved that only one out of 20 law students were of minority background. The faculty has now faced the consequences of the inquiry and has formed a committee whose goal is to work for a more ethnically diverse faculty. The committee consists of ten people and is headed by Arnesen.
So far the committee has had two meetings where the discussion has circled around reasons why the faculty isn’t more popular amongst young people with minority backgrounds.
- Part of the reason why, is probably that youths from minority backgrounds aren’t given sufficient information about the many career opportunities the faculty offers. You don’t necessarily have to be a lawyer just because you are studying law, Arnesen adds.
- Avoid a quota system
Law student Usman Riaz is also on the committee. He is there as a representative from Juristforeningen, the student society at The Faculty of Law.
- The committee consists of a very diverse group of people, and I really do believe that we will come up with ideas that will lead to an increase in applications, says Riaz, who thinks that this is very positive.
Still, he also thinks that the lack of applications has got more to do with the general interest among young people.
- Every year, we see that the Faculty of Medicine manages to attract a great deal of students from a different ethnical background, so the problem isn't that the University of Oslo does not attract students with minority backgrounds. Obviously, there is a lot to be said for information campaigns and work that creates a different attitude towards the Faculty. Still, Riaz wants to make one specific reservation.
- Personally, I don’t believe in quota systems, and I think that this is something that must be avoided as a means. There are other ways to solve this.
- Very positive
- We are very happy to see that this committee is in place, says Kenth R. Volla, leader of the Juridisk studentmiljø (JSU), who is very positive to the initiative.
- For some time now, we have had fewer applicants with minority background than what is the case at other faculties. It is only natural that we look into why this has happened and that we try to do something about it, he says.
Lawyer Abid Q. Raja is not on the committee, but is positive to the workings of the faculty.
- I truly welcome such a committee. A lot of minorities do not know their own rights. Having more lawyers with a different ethnical background than Norwegian would undoubtedly give these people better legal protection.
He is particularly concerned with the role language plays when clients meet with the Norwegian legal system.
- We see that the clients feel a lot more secure when they can talk to lawyers who, like themselves, come from minority backgrounds, Raja says, and adds that there is a specific need for lawyers with African and South-East Asian backgrounds.
- Of course, we need lawyers with backgrounds from all over the world, but there is no doubt that there is a great need for lawyers with African minority backgrounds. The same goes for minorities from South-East Asia. This is especially important in connection with cases that involve social security, child welfare and other health and social issues.
The committee will present a rapport with findings and suggested action steps at the end of the year.
