For this edition of Texas Law’s Student Spotlight series, meet 1L Maggie Coster!
Hometown: Falmouth, Maine
Degrees: B.A. in History, Bowdoin College; M.A. in Teaching, Relay Graduate School of Education
Tell us about your teaching experience, including the best and toughest parts of the job. Is there anything about the experience that helped prepare you for law school?
I was a teacher for five years in New York City. I taught one year each of eighth grade in Brooklyn and fourth grade in Manhattan, then three years of sixth-grade math in the Bronx. I loved teaching sixth-grade math because I got a second chance to become a “math person.” Once I was able to see it from a new lens as a teacher, I found it fascinating. So much has changed in the way we teach math over the last decade, and there’s a stronger focus now on number sense and real-world problem solving. The content can be tough—and being a sixth-grader can be tough for many reasons—so I tried to make it fun and help kids find joy in the learning process. The toughest part was navigating the very real issues that a lot of my students faced and trying to help them be successful in school while they managed all the other parts of their lives, too.
I’ve been surprised at how much my teaching background and education have helped me understand my law school courses. Many of the tools from the science of learning that I studied and used in my classroom I can now use as a student.
What made you want to become a lawyer?
Teaching is dynamic. One thing I really liked about it was that every day, I went in with a plan, but that plan necessarily changed in response to that day’s challenges. Lawyers do the same thing because the law says one thing, but every client’s situation is unique and presents a new opportunity to creatively solve a problem.
What has made you feel part of the Texas Law community?
The Texas Law community is unbelievable. I think the 1L Society Program is a big factor. My Green Society Dean’s Fellows (shout-out Sophie and Noah!) go above and beyond to support us, and they’ve both given me amazing advice. It’s also been very grounding to have a smaller community in Green, and it made the process of making new friends in a new place much easier. Sadly, our flag football team did not make the playoffs, but we’re coming in hot for the Society Games … it’s comeback season!
What has been the biggest surprise about living in Austin?
We had a snow day, and there was not even an inch of snow! In Maine, you don’t even get a snow day automatically if it snows. Also, I had never heard the term “freeze” to describe a weather event before.
What is a misconception you had about law school?
I went to a very small college, so I was nervous about the academic experience at UT. I figured that in law school, I would shuffle in and out of big lecture halls with professors who didn’t know my name, but it hasn’t been like that at all! Each one of my professors has been so welcoming and accessible. It truly feels like they care about each of us individually. I can’t say enough about how wonderful the Texas Law faculty are.