Alfred Si '26 Wants to Use the Law to Improve People's Lives

Alfred Si ’26 said he wants to use his law degree to improve the lives and experiences of people on the margins of society.

This story is part of a series of profiles on members of the incoming JD class of 2026 at UC Law San Francisco.

When Alfred Si ’26 started working in the Career Development Office of UC Law San Francisco five years ago, he had little interest in becoming a lawyer or studying law.

“I came here to gain experience working in higher education,” he said. “I wasn’t interested in law.”

But something changed over the next five years as he helped organize an annual career fair for public interest and public sector law, met over 100 practicing attorneys, and discovered more about their work.

“I learned that as a lawyer, there are so many things you can do,” he said. “You can work for the government, nonprofits, for cities … There are so many types of practices that I didn’t even know about.”

After catching the law bug, Si applied to and was accepted into the JD program at UC Law SF. He started his first year of law school this fall. He said he chose UC Law SF for several reasons: its proximity to major government institutions and law firms, its cutting-edge new facilities, active alumni network, and distinguished faculty and dedicated staff.

Alfred Si ’26 worked for five years as Senior Administrative Assistant & Programs Coordinator in the Career Development Office at UC Law San Francisco.

“The faculty and staff really care about students’ success and not only want them to learn how to be attorneys but get jobs they will thrive at or build a strong foundation from,” he said.

Born in Myanmar, also known as Burma, Si was about 18 months old when his parents brought him to the U.S. and settled in San Francisco. Coming from a country run by a military dictatorship, Si said he values living in a place where the rule of law is respected and upheld.

“I want to go into law because I was born in and came from a country where there is no rule of law, and the people suffer for it,” he said.

Before coming to UC Law SF, Si earned a bachelor’s degree in biology from the University of San Francisco. He was on a path to medical school before deciding he wanted to “bring about change on a higher level” than he could as a physician treating individual patients.

After college, he worked for a tutoring company, teaching math to homeless youth in the Tenderloin. He also taught classes at public schools in San Francisco, an experience that he said opened his eyes to deep disparities in the education system. He recalled feeling upset that he could help students in the classroom but could not give them food security, housing, or solve other challenges.

He then decided to pursue working in higher education, landing a job as Senior Administrative Assistant & Programs Coordinator in the Career Development Office at UC Law SF. In that role, Si helped manage day-to-day operations for the Bridge Fellowship Program, which financially supports recent graduates doing public interest work. He was also lead organizer of the annual Public Interest Public Sector (PIPS) Career Fair Day, which brings together over 100 nonprofits and government agencies with students from eight Northern California law schools.

As a student, Si said he plans to take full advantage of all UC Law SF has to offer through career development, professional networking, and experiential opportunities so he can maximize his education and change the world.

“I want to use my law degree to improve the lives and experiences of people who are marginalized, forgotten, and overlooked,” he said. “I want to shift resources towards folks who could really use it to not only better their own lives, but better their community, city, state, nation, and world.”