ExCel with Experience - Erica Chong
Excel with Experience | Erica Chong | Naomi Burton | Lillianna Cwynar
Erica Chong, junior, majoring in criminology (pre-law) and systems engineering
By Dave Scheiber
aptivated by the legal dramas she watched on TV, Erica set her sights on a career in law as a child.
“One of my biggest takeaways was how intimidating and isolating the legal system can be,” she says. “My parents instilled in me how important it is to volunteer and give back. I want to become a source of guidance and support for people who have the least understanding of the legal system or how to navigate it — people who are overlooked or forgotten.”
She’s on a fast track to achieving that goal. By the time she graduated from Dixie Hollins High School in St. Petersburg in 2024, she had already completed her prerequisite courses at USF, and she’s scheduled to receive her bachelor’s after just two years.
Erica is making the most of that time, becoming a member of USF’s Law Fraternity, Phi Alpha Delta, and a research assistant in USF’s Department of Criminology; working as editor of the USF Undergraduate Law Review; writing for Her Campus Media national news outlet; joining the Future Attorneys of America chapter; serving as vice president of the KidsPACK initiative to help underprivileged children; and volunteering as a Feeding Tampa Bay Student Ambassador.
“Knowing I was going to graduate sooner than my peers, I didn’t have time to wait, so I kind of hit the ground running — looking for meaningful experiences and also really trying to find a job,” she says.
She found one as a restaurant server when she enrolled at USF St. Petersburg, and she kept it after switching to the Tampa campus. She applied for internships and eventually got a response that seemed perfect: Ripley Whisenhunt law firm in Pinellas County offered interns the opportunity to assist in capital law and post-conviction cases.
Erica juggled classwork, her 5-10 p.m. serving job and a new world of hands-on law education from 9:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. It began with a lot of shadowing and progressed to reading motions, sitting in on calls, and proofreading and scanning documents.
Eventually, she helped prepare detailed mitigation presentations, even drafting and editing legal motions and supporting documents for attorney review. In March, the firm offered her work as a criminal defense paralegal with enough hours and pay to allow her to leave the restaurant job.
She also took advantage of opportunities to hone critical skills and boost her resumé by participating in real-world research. She’s currently involved in a Directed Independent Study investigating sexual harassment and Title IX at institutions of higher learning. Her research on how universities resolve reports on sexual misconduct was honored at the 2025 OneUSF Undergraduate Research Conference.
An internship with Ripley Whisenhunt law firm inspired Erica to explore other opportunities related to law and governance, including the Virginia Capitol.
