Over the years, students have found respite from their studies in activities both solitary and social, on campus and off. Life Beyond the Law: Exploring Student Life Outside the Harvard Law School Classroom examines the experiences of Harvard Law School students from the mid-1840s to the 2010s.

The exhibit focuses on life outside the classroom along the themes of:

Largely told in their own words, this exhibit gives a glimpse into the lives of individual students whose experiences are captured in letters to friends and family, personal diaries, student publications, and photographs.

Many activities that law students enjoyed in the past, such as visiting local attractions, going to the Harvard-Yale football game, and attending informal events with faculty, remain a part of social life today. Other activities, such as playing games of euchre or whist, have fallen out of favor.

As students try to balance life within the “university world” and the “outside world,” their lives become a mix of their work at the law school, interactions with friends and faculty, and the personal interests and hobbies they bring with them to campus.

The scope of this exhibit is shaped by the changing demographics of the Law School student body and the materials that have made their way into Historical & Special Collections. It by no means represents every student’s experience.

Current and former law students, think about what words and images you would use to describe your experience outside the classroom. How does it compare to what you see here and what would you have included to tell your story? We look to you to provide the material to broaden the story of student life at the Harvard Law School.

This exhibit was curated by Jane Kelly and Lesley Schoenfeld, Historical & Special Collections, Harvard Law School Library and was on view in the Caspersen Room, Harvard Law School Library, September 2, 2014 - January 8, 2015.

This online exhibit features highlights from the physical exhibit along with some additional resources and extra materials not featured in the physical exhibit.

Banner image credit: Detail of Harvard Black Law Students Association's Black history month events calendar, February 1994, Harvard Law School Ephemera collection, Box 4, Folder 6, HOLLIS 990151361270203941, Harvard Law School Library, Historical & Special Collections