Personality Profile: Breanna Helland

Breanna Helland is not an ordinary sophomore from a small town.

She’s driven enough to double major, include  a minor and take part in the mock trial team at the University of South Dakota.

Helland is from Frederick, S.D, and is majoring in criminal justice and political science while minoring in Spanish. On top of that, she is the captain of the mock trial team.

She began her involvement in mock trial as a first-year while taking a heavy class-load.

“Joining mock trial is definitely one of the best decisions I’ve ever made,” she said.

Helland said students learn rules of evidence, basic courtroom procedure and trial skills. The competitive team practices three hours a week, and participates in multiple tournaments around the Midwest.

“This fall, we competed in five tournaments in Missouri, Illinois, Minnesota and Iowa, and three in the spring in Iowa, Kansas and Missouri,” Helland said.

The team starts working on the case in September with competitions beginning in late October. USD’s season ended in mid-March after nearly advancing to the National Finals.

Helland said she believes mock trial is a great way to prepare for law school because of the hands-on experience it provides.

“Mock trial helps immensely with pre-professional skills for law school, but it also improves critical thinking and analysis skills, which can be useful for every fact of life,” she said.

But it’s not serious work all the time. Helland said she thinks everything about mock trial is fun, especially traveling and competing. She also values the friendships and interactions she has made through the team.

But the time commitment can be difficult she said, as students can spend eight hours a week working on the case, preparing for and attending practice.

“The time commitment is well worth it,” Helland said. “If you put in the work, you’re going to get a lot out of it.”