Ph.D., University of Chicago, 2005

Graduate student, University of Kansas School of Law

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Some might say the stars aligned to bring Sam LaRoque to KU Law.

As a doctoral candidate in astronomy and astrophysics at the University of Chicago, LaRoque wrote his dissertation on observational cosmology - the study of the structure, origin and evolution of the universe using high-powered telescopes. What he didn't discover observing the cosmos was a passion for astrophysics.

"It's funny because I came into law school knowing exactly what I wanted to do, and sometimes my classmates who haven’t decided yet say, 'You're so lucky to know exactly what you want to do after law school,'" LaRoque said. "And I always say, 'Yeah, I guess I am, but don't forget it took me 20 years to figure it out."