Rutgers is a commuter school. Any law school in a metropolitan area is going to have this sort of flavor to a degree. People come from all over Jersey, New York City, even Brooklyn. With so many people commuting, the school does empty out after classes are over because people have to contend with rush hour traffic. There are some who stick around when you have to (guest lectures, journal stuff, student clubs, etc.)Justathought wrote:Hey X,get it to x wrote:2L. Small scholarship. High GPA, moderately ok LSAT (low 160's). I mean ideally I'd go to NYU or Columbia if I could have, but LSAT-wise it just was not in the cards for me. I'm content with Rutgers, the quality of my education is high (although no one on TLS really cares about the quality of their education, just what large firm or prestigious gov't job they'll apply hyper-early to and then wonder why it's been 48 hours and they haven't heard back yet), and I have a SA position that I'm looking forward to.
I stalk Rutgers threads, as you know. Since you're taking questions, I have a few quality of life ones to ask.
How's the social environment at school? Since it seems like such a commuter school (maybe I'm wrong there), do students tend to socialize outside of class?
We've spoken about Rutgers public interest focus, but are there legitimate networking opportunities with firms?
How's the general campus atmosphere? Would you describe it as a vibrant, i.e. crowded, lots of things to see and do? Every time I seem to visit its largely deserted, but this is probably due to heavy rain and/or it being a weekend - in my case.
Thanks!
I honestly don't spend time on campus. From what I've seen there's not too many students walking around. I don't know if this is because classes are in session at different points. My only contact with undergrads is when I ask them to politely shut up in the library because I'm trying to read. I guess my best piece of advice is to not get hung up on atmosphere. It's professional school. You're being trained to enter the legal profession. You won't have the time to enjoy anything going on during 1L anyway.
Firms come to Rutgers. Several (read 2-3) are NYC biglaw firms. If you have a very very high GPA they may even want to talk to you (perhaps even hire you if you don't have any major personality flaws and are proficient at filing paperwork). Most firms are mid-law Jersey/NY firms. These jobs used to be pretty easy to get if you were at median/above and were well-rounded (you have interests other than the law), but with the economy the way it is they're tough to get now. Lots of small-law firms hire Rutgers grads as well. Pay is not biglaw by any stretch of the imagination, but if you need employment it's better than nothing. You may even be able to go to court!