HLS Amicus

HLS Amicus Overview

• Amicus Overview

  What is HLS Amicus?
  HLS Amicus is Harvard Law School’s directory, community-building platform, and advising network. HLS Amicus is secured with HarvardKey and is the best platform for connecting with HLS community members who share your interests and aspirations.

  What are future phases of HLS Amicus?
  HLS Amicus features will continue to be developed with the input of the HLS community. If you have ideas about how Amicus can better serve HLS alumni, we want to hear from you! Contact us at amicus@law.harvard.edu.

• How to register and sign in

  How do I login to HLS Amicus for first time?
  Before you can begin using HLS Amicus, you must claim your HarvardKey. If you have yet to claim your HarvardKey, contact the HLS HarvardKey support line at 617-495-5631 or HLS Alumni Records at alumrec@law.harvard.edu.

  You will also need to read and accept the HLS Amicus terms and conditions to learn about proper use of the system. You will be asked to agree to the terms set forth in the policy to complete your registration process.

  What is HarvardKey?
  HarvardKey is a “single identity for life” spanning the Harvard Community and enables access to the applications and services Harvard offers for students and alumni. Once you claim your HarvardKey, you will have access to:

  • A self-service portal where you can reset your password, set or change recovery email addresses (no more security questions to remember!), and update preferences at any time
  • Optional two-step verification to boosts your security by backing up your login name and password using an easy-to-use smartphone app (or text/phone verification)

  How do I log in to HLS Amicus after I have claimed my HarvardKey?
  Within this site, click on the “Sign In” button in the top right corner.

• The Alumni Directory

  What is the Alumni Directory
  As a member of the HLS community, you can log in at any time to the Alumni Directory to update your personal information or search for the contact information of other alumni. The Alumni Center will receive your updated information to ensure you are invited to events, receive mailings, etc.

  What is my profile?
  Your profile in Alumni Directory is your personal contact information page and a way to share information with your classmates about yourself. You can customize your profile to be as general or specific as you would like. The more information you put in the better we can connect you to other HLS alumni with shared interests to form a greater community. You can include current and previous work experience, areas of interest and expertise, as well as hobbies.

  If I had created a profile in the previous HLS alumni directory, HLS Connect, what happened to that information?
  If you created a profile in HLS Connect, that information was brought directly into HLS Amicus. Please check your HLS Amicus profile to ensure the information is still accurate, if it is not, you can easily edit and update your profile.

  If I had a profile in another Harvard University online directory platform, what happened to that information?
  If you created a profile in another Harvard University directory, that information was brought directly into HLS Amicus. We recognize that Alumni have different privacy fields for different groups of people, for example, you may choose to display something to the HLS Alumni community that you do not wish to share to the Harvard Alumni community. Because of this we did not bring any privacy settings from your Harvard Alumni Association (HAA) profile into your HLS Amicus profile. Please login to Amicus to change your settings. Please note that not all of the fields in the HAA directory are law specific and may not be an exact match with fields in Amicus. Please check your Amicus profile to ensure the information is still accurate.

  What happens to the information I enter in HLS Amicus?
  Your information will not be shared outside of the Harvard Community.

  What types of searches can I perform?
  You can search for fellow alumni using a variety of criteria including: name, keyword, class year, section, HLS degree, city, state, country, bar admissions, HLS student organizations, HLS journals, issue area, job title, legal academia area of interest, legal practice setting, non-legal industry, seeking employment, work type, and degree.

  You are able to use multiple search criteria as well as dictate the importance of each criterion.

  Why am I getting zero search Results?
  If your search produces 0 results, it does not necessarily mean that there is no one that fits your search criteria. It could mean that the HLS community members have hidden information or not yet updated their profiles. As this is a new system, members are still cultivating their profiles. As more people log in and update their profiles, more search results will generate.

  Can I decide what information I want displayed?
  Harvard Law School has made every effort to give you the flexibility to share as much or as little information as you wish. The information you provide forms part of the school’s records and is not accessible to anyone except users of HLS Amicus. HLS Amicus offers the ability to hide information on a field-by-field basis, except for name, HLS degree, degree year, and any applicable section or honor details. Simply adjust the “visible / private” settings for each entry. If an alumnus searches for your record, any information that you have chosen to be private will not be provided. If you make a mistake or change your mind about removing any information from view, just adjust the visibility box. The changes you make are effective immediately.

  Can I change my home, business address or other information?
  Yes. You can update all contact information online in your “edit my profile page” instantaneously except for a few noted fields. Fields that are pre-populated by HLS (including your legal name) and colored gray, must be updated by contacting the HLS Alumni office at alumrec@law.harvard.edu or (617) 495-5631.

  Can I send a Direct Message to another Alumni in the Alumni Directory?
  Yes, to send a direct message you can either do a search of the person you want to contact or browse for contacts. In each person’s search results there is a “send message” button click that button and you can draft a message to that person. When the message is sent a new “connections” option will appear in the left hand navigation menu on your home page. If you receive a message, that will appear in the messages tab on your left hand navigation menu.

  *If you would like to opt out of direct messaging in the Alumni Directory, go to the top right of your screen where your name is highlighted. Click on the drop down menu and select “my account settings” Select the “Participation” tab. In the section marked “Contact Limits” select the number 0 from the drop down menu under the header named “Max inbound contacts” then click the save button on the bottom right hand of your screen.You have now opted out of messaging in the  system.

  Can I save contacts in the Alumni Directory?
  Yes, to save a contact, click on the “view full profile” drop down button to the right of the contacts name and information. Select the “Save contact” option. The contact will now be saved under the “Saved Contacts” button on your right hand navigation menu.

  Who can see my profile, and what can they see?

  1. All HLS alumni can see name, degree and year, honors, section (as applicable) by default. They can also see any additional information your added to your profile and marked as visible.
  2. You have the ability to mark fields as private or visible, if set to private no one will be able to see that information.
  3. Portions of your profile will be visible to students if you answer “yes” to the question about sharing your directory information with current students in the “Connect” section of your profile.
  4. If you wish to opt-out entirely from the Alumni Directory, please contact the Alumni Center at alumrec@law.harvard.edu to have your profile removed.
• Alumni Directory Search Tips

  • In the left navigation, you have the option within “Search” to select either “Keyword Search” or “Browse All”. Keyword search provides the opportunity to filter down the alumni list based on specific search criteria and browse all will return all alumni within the database.
  • To begin your search, click on “Search” on the left-hand menu of your home page. Select “Keyword Search” and you will begin a new keyword search. Choose what field you would like to search on from the first dropdown menu (keyword, location, legal practice setting and many other options) and then enter a search term in the in the middle field. You can then select the importance of that search term from required to not very important; you can even select “excluded” to have it omit records with that search term. Search results will include anything with the search term as part of a word. If you search for Anna, it will return all Annas as well as Johanna and Hannah.
  • By hitting the “Add Criterion” button you can add additional search terms to refine your results.
  • To remove a search criterion, you can click on the “-” (minus sign) at the end of the row and that option will be removed.
  • The results screen will display an individual’s photo, first and last name, degree, class year, section, any honors they received, and the results of your search. For additional profile information, click on the “View Full Profile” button on the right side of the screen.
  • If you’d like to keep track of specific individuals, you can select “Save Contact” by clicking on the “View Full Profile” dropdown. You can then view all of your saved contacts by clicking on the “Saved Contacts” link in the left navigation.
  • If you’d like to contact an alumnus, click on the “Send Message” link within their profile in the search results. They will receive an email notifying them they have a message in Amicus and can come back to the dashboard and click on Messages in the left navigation to retrieve any new messages. If you do receive an email from another alumni through Amicus, you can also reply directly to the email and your contact will receive your message.
  • The system will not know nicknames that were not supplied or part of an individual’s name. For instance, if someone is entered at “Robert” the system will not find them as “Bob” unless they have included that as part of their profile.
  • Once you have the results, you can sort them by match %, first name, or last name and then select the to appear in ascending or descending order.
  • In general, the fewer search criteria you enter, the more results you will get; the more criteria you provide, the more you will narrow your results.
• Student-Alumni Connect

  What is Student-Alumni Connect?
  Student-Alumni Connect is an online database in where alumni are visible to current HLS students to share information about their careers, education, professional experiences and HLS affiliations. Students will be able to search this directory and contact alumni via the HLS Amicus messaging system to ask you quick questions.

  What information is visible to students?
  The information that will be visible to students by default is:

  • HLS education – HLS class year, program, JD section and honors
  • Harvard education (if applicable) – all Harvard schools, all Harvard degrees, Harvard College house, all Harvard honors
  • Name – first name, middle name, last name, last name at graduation, suffix
  • Home address – city, state, country (note: NO street address will be visible to students)
  • Business address – employer name, city, state, country

  All other fields will default to private; you may update your visibility settings to provide additional information to students that will be helpful to them as they search the directory for expertise in the fields they are interested in pursuing.

  Can I opt out of Student-Alumni Connect?
  To opt out please email amicus@law.harvard.edu.

  What kind of time commitment is involved in being in the Student-Alumni Connect program?
  The time commitment for being in Student-Alumni Connect is very small. Students will search your profile in the network and email you quick questions through the HLS Amicus system based on questions they may have about careers options, transition points, navigating law school, etc.

• Mentoring Program

  View a complete overview of the Amicus Mentorship Program.

  What is the Amicus Mentoring Program?
  The Amicus mentoring program pairs an HLS student with an HLS alumni. Alumni can share experiences and insights with students in a way that is convenient and flexible. The Amicus database makes it easy for you to select topics on which you would like to base the mentorship relationship and for students to find mentors that are a good match for their goals.

  How do I sign up to be a mentor?
  Sign up to be a mentor through Amicus and fill out your Amicus profile completely. You can sign up to be a mentor within the Student-Alumni Connect tab. (Please note to access Amicus you must have claimed your Harvard Key.)

  What is the commitment of being a mentor?
  The program will last for one academic year.

  How do I “meet” with my mentee?
  Mentoring conversations can take place by video conferencing, messages through Amicus, email, phone, or in-person as mutually agreed upon by both parties. You do not need to live in the same city, state or country as your mentee.

  What are some best practices for the mentorship relationship?
  Learn more about mentorship best practices.

• HLS Amicus Security

  How secure is my information?
  Harvard Law School has taken every effort to ensure that individual privacy is protected. The site is technologically secure and password-protected through HarvardKey, and it is intended strictly for the purpose of personal interaction between students and the School.

  How do I report inappropriate behavior in Amicus?
  If you would like to report someone for inappropriate use of the system, please go to their profile and click the “Report inappropriate behavior” flag at the bottom of the page. This will generate an email notifying the Amicus team. Please explain in the email what the behavior is and we will forward the email to the relevant office at HLS to determine appropriate next steps. You will receive a response that your message was acknowledged and may also receive a follow up email from that HLS office. Inappropriate behavior includes any violation of the terms and conditions of the system.

  What happens if someone misuses the system?
  Please see the HLS terms and conditions for appropriate use of the platform.