Opinions on University of Florida law school Forum

[missmango]

I have visited most of the schools I am applying to, but will not be able to visit UF until the Spring. I am curious about the school's reputation, the city of Gainesville, competitiveness, etc.

[06072010]

I'm did my first-year studies at UF. I'm transferring to Michigan. Feel free to pm me any specific questions.

[gates52]

I've been at UF for three years now so ask away in this thread or pm me.

I am a little biased against UF, not for academic reasons, but for location. I'm not even considering going here despite 9k/yr instate tuition.

It's definitely a true college town if you like that. I've lived in southwest florida all my life so I was used to hot and humid weather, but gainesville takes it to an entirely different level. This is my main reason for wanting to leave gainesville.

The law school is a little bit off the campus but that shouldn't effect you too much. HUGE campus, that is enclosed by the 4 "major" roads of gainesville. Most people live on or a few miles out from these four roads. Rent is pretty reasonable anywhere form 400-700/mo depending on how many roommates you have, etc. Some people complain about the bus system, but I think it's pretty reliable, nice A/C on the busses which is very very nice.

If you like attractive females, this is not the place for you. As academic standards rise, the amount of hotties decline (this is something 75%-100% of males here will confirm).

I can tell you pretty much anything, except about the academics of the law school.

[missmango]

I've been at UF for three years now so ask away in this thread or pm me.

I am a little biased against UF, not for academic reasons, but for location. I'm not even considering going here despite 9k/yr instate tuition.

It's definitely a true college town if you like that. I've lived in southwest florida all my life so I was used to hot and humid weather, but gainesville takes it to an entirely different level. This is my main reason for wanting to leave gainesville.

The law school is a little bit off the campus but that shouldn't effect you too much. HUGE campus, that is enclosed by the 4 "major" roads of gainesville. Most people live on or a few miles out from these four roads. Rent is pretty reasonable anywhere form 400-700/mo depending on how many roommates you have, etc. Some people complain about the bus system, but I think it's pretty reliable, nice A/C on the busses which is very very nice.

If you like attractive females, this is not the place for you. As academic standards rise, the amount of hotties decline (this is something 75%-100% of males here will confirm).

I can tell you pretty much anything, except about the academics of the law school.

thank you for your info. the low tuition is one of the huge draws for me for UF's law school. i have never been to gainesville so i am completely clueless about the town. you said it is a college town, so i'm assuming there is a good amount to do there?
also, what is UF's reputation within the state of Florida? there is a good chance i will practice in Florida after i finish my degree

[06072010]

I can tell you pretty much anything, except about the academics of the law school.

I'll bite on this. I had a good academic experience at UF. The professors were interesting and engaging and far above what UF as an institution is. They really were top nuts professors, and I'm honored to have studied under them.

However, the institution by and large blows goats. The students are bright, so you can't fault them. It's a little frat boyish, but those who compete for the top are smart smart cats. So it's competitive to break into the top 20 percent.

My main beef lies with career services, the job prospects, and the general administration of the school. Career Services is unlike any office I've ever seen. I found the staff rude, wasteful of my time. With the best school in Florida only pulling in about 70ish firms for Early Interview Week -- that's scary. Also, every firm only wanted top 20% or above.

So 80% of the students are locked out of OCI. That sucks. I think there should be more transparency for what prospects are actually out there.

Lastly, here is something I've discussed privately, but not publicly, so just know it's based only on my observations. However, I believe there might be significant racial tension between the faculty members. This is evident to me through my first-hand interactions with professors from both side of the coin. Maybe I pick up on this type of stuff more easily then others. I think it's moving in a good direction, but it's there for sure.

This received mention in the NY Times ( http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.h ... A9669C8B63) and even in prominent academic journals. (See generally The Derailing of Black Faculty at the University of Florida Law School - The Journal of Blacks in Higher Education, No. 32 (Summer, 2001), pp. 41-43).

Sometimes you can get a good glimpse of faculty infighting (elites vs. non-elites) at UF by reading Prof. Harrison's blog

http://classbias.blogspot.com

[missmango]

I can tell you pretty much anything, except about the academics of the law school.

Sometimes you can get a good glimpse of faculty infighting (elites vs. non-elites) at UF by reading Prof. Harrison's blog

http://classbias.blogspot.com

thank you for your insight on this. these are the kinds of things i wish more people would talk about on these forums (things you usually don't know until you get to the schools).

[gates52]

I'll bite on the racial tension as well...come to think of it I've never had a black professor or ever seen one on campus....
This is all assumption, but when Ron Zook was fired as head football coach 3 years ago and Charlie Strong (black) took over as interim head coach for the bowl game many people thought he would end up getting the head coaching job for the following year. However I've been told by someone close to the program that the administration was weary of hiring a black head coach because it might upset alumni. Charlie Strong will become a head coach for some team in the near future so it wasn't a matter of qualifications. Our nightlife is segregated. You have the black venues and the white venues. There is some mixing, but not as much as you would think. I dont find that students have any racial tension though.

In terms of things to do, it's actually quite limited. We have a decent bar scene. University Ave (the street that runs east to west that directly borders the north side of campus) has a handful college bars, this is called "mid town". These bars are more casual, have a good amount of frat boys, and generally host a younger crowd than the downtown scene. This is the main spot for monday, tuesday, wednesday nights. Friday and Saturday are both midtown and downtown nights. Downtown is getting better places, but it's a little trashy as you have mostly college kids then you have a good amount of creepy 35 year olds mixed in. I work downtown so trust me on this. During the summers we have a lot of pool parties at various apartment complexes that have huge turnouts.

When I say gainesville is a college town, I mean it's a place where you can party but other than that there is not much else to do. This is a reason why I'm stick of this town. Princeton review just rated us the #1 party school, and the school that studies the least. One of my teachers actually canceled class when he heard this saying we probably needed that extra time to do some studying haha

We have two movie theaters, a few lakes and springs that people tend to enjoy, to lay out, to go tubing, that kind of thing. Most are about 45 min drive. A decent mall that is about 10 minutes away from campus. Decent gainesville restaurants downtown. 1.5-2 hours away from Jacksonville. 2 hours away from tampa. About 1 hour away from St. Augustine, our closest beach.

[gates52]

In terms of respect around the state, UF wins hands down. This includes undergrad and grad school. Huge rivalry with FSU, I love this part. For the most party its a friendly rivalry, UF fans aren't that hardcore in my opinion. FSU fans are, they still talk trash even when their football team sucks. I respect them.

What do UF kids and FSU kids all have in common? They were all accepted into FSU muahaha

[danielfgator]

In terms of respect around the state, UF wins hands down. This includes undergrad and grad school. Huge rivalry with FSU, I love this part. For the most party its a friendly rivalry, UF fans aren't that hardcore in my opinion. FSU fans are, they still talk trash even when their football team sucks. I respect them.

What do UF kids and FSU kids all have in common? They were all accepted into FSU muahaha

Oh not friendly at all! Remember that FSU kid that got shot/killed last year in that parking lot downtown after the game?

Completely disagree with the statement about the girls. The ratio of hot - ugly girls in Gainesville is incredible high. In fact, I have been to several countries, and I have never been in a place where that many individuals look like Abercrombie & Fitch models... (girls and guys)

Overall, Gainesville is alright. Nothing spectacular by any means but does the trick if you like small college towns. For being so small, in my opinion it has too many trashy places, but is the South and it's to be expected. The Campus is really beautiful in general. Like someone mentioned, the Law School is still on the main campus, but a little separate from the rest of the UG buildings. The LS looks kind of blaaa, but I have been to the law library and a couple of classrooms and they are great.

Agree with everything else that has been said.
PM me if you have more questions for sure.

[gates52]

In terms of respect around the state, UF wins hands down. This includes undergrad and grad school. Huge rivalry with FSU, I love this part. For the most party its a friendly rivalry, UF fans aren't that hardcore in my opinion. FSU fans are, they still talk trash even when their football team sucks. I respect them.

What do UF kids and FSU kids all have in common? They were all accepted into FSU muahaha

Oh not friendly at all! Remember that FSU kid that got shot/killed last year in that parking lot downtown after the game?

Completely disagree with the statement about the girls. The ratio of hot - ugly girls in Gainesville is incredible high. In fact, I have been to several countries, and I have never been in a place where that many individuals look like Abercrombie & Fitch models... (girls and guys)

Overall, Gainesville is alright. Nothing spectacular by any means but does the trick if you like small college towns. For being so small, in my opinion it has too many trashy places, but is the South and it's to be expected. The Campus is really beautiful in general. Like someone mentioned, the Law School is still on the main campus, but a little separate from the rest of the UG buildings. The LS looks kind of blaaa, but I have been to the law library and a couple of classrooms and they are great.

Agree with everything else that has been said.
PM me if you have more questions for sure.

[/i]

I dont remember hearing about that fan that died...I do remember hearing bout a fan that died during the georgia vs florida game (this is a hostile rivarly!) But this was a drunk kid who fell off the top of a parking garage.

I've have only heard a few guys say the girls in this town are decent, let alone hot. Of course there are some hotties, but with 50,000 kids the ratio is not good at all. I'm from southwest florida and the girls there are 10 times better, maybe I'm just spoiled.

[danielfgator]

In terms of respect around the state, UF wins hands down. This includes undergrad and grad school. Huge rivalry with FSU, I love this part. For the most party its a friendly rivalry, UF fans aren't that hardcore in my opinion. FSU fans are, they still talk trash even when their football team sucks. I respect them.

What do UF kids and FSU kids all have in common? They were all accepted into FSU muahaha

Oh not friendly at all! Remember that FSU kid that got shot/killed last year in that parking lot downtown after the game?

Completely disagree with the statement about the girls. The ratio of hot - ugly girls in Gainesville is incredible high. In fact, I have been to several countries, and I have never been in a place where that many individuals look like Abercrombie & Fitch models... (girls and guys)

Overall, Gainesville is alright. Nothing spectacular by any means but does the trick if you like small college towns. For being so small, in my opinion it has too many trashy places, but is the South and it's to be expected. The Campus is really beautiful in general. Like someone mentioned, the Law School is still on the main campus, but a little separate from the rest of the UG buildings. The LS looks kind of blaaa, but I have been to the law library and a couple of classrooms and they are great.

Agree with everything else that has been said.
PM me if you have more questions for sure.

[/i]

I dont remember hearing about that fan that died...I do remember hearing bout a fan that died during the georgia vs florida game (this is a hostile rivarly!) But this was a drunk kid who fell off the top of a parking garage.

I've have only heard a few guys say the girls in this town are decent, let alone hot. Of course there are some hotties, but with 50,000 kids the ratio is not good at all. I'm from southwest florida and the girls there are 10 times better, maybe I'm just spoiled.

Southwest FL? Isn't that the Naples/Ft. Myers area that has an average population age of 84.5? In South Beach we call it "Jurassic Park"....
jk.

Yeah, I heard about the UG-UF kid that died, but that was in JAX I think. But there was a guy that go killed in the parking lot diagonal to Speak Easy, they had video and everything of the fight and shooting.

[GordonGekko1]

There are a lot of good places in Florida but I really don't care for Gainesville. Nothing really makes it special other than having a major university; it might as well be any other place in the south. I know academically speaking UF has been competitive but I'm not so sure it will be a T1 school in 5yrs. Florida's university system has had some major budget cuts in the past year and now a lot of good professors are leaving the state. Given the economic problems Florida is facing, I'd be at least somewhat concerned about attending any public school in the state.

[danielfgator]

There are a lot of good places in Florida but I really don't care for Gainesville. Nothing really makes it special other than having a major university; it might as well be any other place in the south. I know academically speaking UF has been competitive but I'm not so sure it will be a T1 school in 5yrs. Florida's university system has had some major budget cuts in the past year and now a lot of good professors are leaving the state. Given the economic problems Florida is facing, I'd be at least somewhat concerned about attending any public school in the state.

I agree with your assessment of Gainesville. The place would be nothing without the University. I have personally talked with 2 professors (not law) who have literally been fired after submitting their tenure packages because of the budget cuts. The ones looking for tenures get the boot, which is sad is you think about it because these guys have been busting their asses for 5+ years and now have to start over somewhere else. However, if you want to practice in Fl, a public school like UF or FSU is the way to go. Tuition is so much cheaper and reputation is considerable better when compared to other private institutions in the state.

If you think about it, are the budget cuts going to affect UF and FSU so much that the $25k + (year) difference between them and UM and Stetson will become worthwhile? I don't think so. They will have to take a major tumble and UM and Stetson will have to find a way to considerably improve for this to happen. I just wouldn't put my money on it.

Unless something major happens, public will continue to be the way to go in FL, if you are planning on practicing here. Now with that said, I am not even considering staying in Fl because of the reasons you mentioned. I am getting my UG and heading North or West!!!

[Gators08]

Florida is a great school and Gainesville is an amazing place, IF you're from a southern (as in way of life, not location) part of the state. All the Miami kids hate Gainesville, and most of the rest of the people in Gainesville aren't real fond of the Miami kids. Welcome to Florida, which should in fact be split into two states, north and south, somewhere around the big lake.

I personally loved UF and Gainesville, thought the women were very good looking, and would recommend it highly to anyone who likes the college town feel. If you're looking for clubs and the South Beach scene, yeah, probably not your kind of place.

[gates52]

Florida is a great school and Gainesville is an amazing place, IF you're from a southern (as in way of life, not location) part of the state. All the Miami kids hate Gainesville, and most of the rest of the people in Gainesville aren't real fond of the Miami kids. Welcome to Florida, which should in fact be split into two states, north and south, somewhere around the big lake.

I personally loved UF and Gainesville, thought the women were very good looking, and would recommend it highly to anyone who likes the college town feel. If you're looking for clubs and the South Beach scene, yeah, probably not your kind of place.

I disagree with the southern aspect. While they are some southern boys, and a few southern frats, I dont get this general vibe at all. I'm not a miami boy or a southern boy. I grew up in southwest florida, while southern in location, is not "southern." I dont think you can polarize gainesville like this. You can easily pick out the Miami kids and the southern kids, and I have friends in both categories. However the majority of kids in Gainesville do not fall into one of these categories. I also dont feel everyone dislikes the Miami kids, but I will say many of the douche bags on campus are from Miami, or want to be from Miami.

One of the things I do like about Gainesville is that from my experience gainesville is not polarized. Meaning that everyone seems to get along with each other. I find most of my groups of friends are very mixed, with the exception of the kids who are very involved with Greek life. This could just be my perception as I've always been able to fit into different groups and never conformed to one social circle.

I do agree that if you want a college town feel Gainesville is a good place to live. I dont have beef with gainesville, not just the city I want to live in, I would prefer an urban setting.

One thing I would like to say to prospective law school students is that you may feel old and too mature for this town. Most of my friends in grad school, especially the women, feel like they are too old for this place. The undergrad population is around 40,000 kids so you will be in a young environment. From what I've asked of others, I think the general feel of gainesville is that it's a decent town for college but most people are ready to leave after a few years. I dont find too many people that hate gainesville or too many that love it either.

[mdd05d]

I'm a Senior at Florida State and I feel qualified enough to speak on a few things UF, or at least the FSU/UF comparisons.

1) I definitely agree with the concerns about feeling too old in Gainesville, and Tallahassee as well. If you're looking for nightlife while you're an undergrad UF is great (provided that you like chasing 5's and 6's all night ).. There really isn't a nightlife scene for the grad school crowd. I know this is true in Tallahassee, and I have many good friends in Gainesville who have expressed the same concerns.

2) The racial tension here in Tallahassee is MUCH greater than it is in Gainesville, at least amongst the students. I'd say it's mostly because FAMU is located here. It is a commonly accepted practice for FSU students to leave town the weekend that FAMU has their homecoming because of an irrational fear that FAMU students parade the city looking for white FSU students to murder. The FSUPD and TallahassseePD even block the roads leading into the FSU campus that weekend for that very reason. I can say I haven't heard of any real racial tension amongst the students at UF

3) I don't see what real advantage UF law has over FSU law. The rankings and costs are virtually the same. However there are far greater opportunities in Tallahassee with the Capitol being here, whereas I don't know exactly what sort of jobs are available in Gainesville. I've heard UF has a greater alumni base, but not exactly sure how much truth there is to that.


EDIT: Oh yes, and Florida should be divided into two states. Draw the line so South Florida gets Orlando and everything South, and North Florida gets Tampa and everything North of that.

[gates52]

3) I don't see what real advantage UF law has over FSU law. The rankings and costs are virtually the same. However there are far greater opportunities in Tallahassee with the Capitol being here, whereas I don't know exactly what sort of jobs are available in Gainesville. I've heard UF has a greater alumni base, but not exactly sure how much truth there is to that.


EDIT: Oh yes, and Florida should be divided into two states. Draw the line so South Florida gets Orlando and everything South, and North Florida gets Tampa and everything North of that.

The advantage of UF law over FSU law is the better faculty. I agree that Tally has much better oppruntinites in the city in regards to law than UF has. Most law students that I know get their internships out of the city so I dont see that as a problem. Unless you want to work in government and plan on volunteering during the year (tally being the capital) I dont see FSU being a better choice.

I agree with your separation line. Jacksonville isn't quite the same as the other North Florida cities but it's definitely closer to the north Florida culture than the south Miami culture.

[GordonGekko1]

I think the actual proposed South Florida state would consist of Palm Beach, Broward, Miami-Dade, and Monroe counties.

[SouthFloridaGrad]

EDIT: Oh yes, and Florida should be divided into two states. Draw the line so South Florida gets Orlando and everything South, and North Florida gets Tampa and everything North of that.

Just a quick note...Tampa is further south than Orlando. So anyone drawing a line would have to do it at a diagonal across the state. Which may be what was intended, but I just wanted to clarify that point for anyone who might happen onto this thread as I did.

[montoya31]

Lets be realistic. Although UF and FSU are ranked better than UM, the latter has much more to offer. Florida's capital and best job opportunities are concentrated in South Florida and that is a UM stronghold. The University of Miami's location by itself supersedes any other positives that the state schools might have.
If you really want to see all this for yourself check out and compare the starting salary of each of these three schools and you will see that UM grads make much more than those of any school in the state. Best of luck!

[jack123]

I live in Jacksonville, grew up in dc, lived in Mississippi, Texas and South Carolina. In terms of racism, hands down Mississippi is the worst. There is no comparison. Parts of South Carolina too are bad. I would not let a few upset teachers keep you from attending UF but keep in mind Gville is a town with a big university and that’s about it.

[hannah]

Florida's capital and best job opportunities are concentrated in South Florida and that is a UM stronghold.

Is that a mistake or do you think Miami is the capital of Florida?

Here are my .02:
I'm at UF right now, RIGHT NOW as I type this. Ha. Anyway, I'd agree with most of the other posters. TOTAL college town. Lots of partying and drinking. I'm still in undergrad (my last year), but my friends in grad school have all expressed to me the same sentiments (that Gainesville is too young for them, etc).

I'm not a fan of this place. I don't care much for football and I don't drink too often (and hardly ever to excess). So there's not much to do here, for me. Great restaurants, great opportunities for kayaking, springs, etc, great hippie/veggie underbelly to the town, which I like (though that in itself is tainted with uberhippies who sometimes annoy me)... And the standing of UF within Florida, for law school or undergrad, is the best in the state. You'll be in a good position for practicing in FL if you go to UF. The law library is nice, the part of campus that the law school is in is removed from all of the chaos of most of the ugrad population.. and if you're a FL resident, it's about 10 grand a year. Can't beat that.

That said, I'm G-ingTFO of here as of May. I have no interest in staying here for law school unless all else fails. Three years here was plenty for me. But I know LOTS of people who absolutely love Gainesville and who want to stay here for grad school and beyond.. so it's very subjective.

[green918]

Here are my .02:
I'm at UF right now, RIGHT NOW as I type this. Ha. Anyway, I'd agree with most of the other posters. TOTAL college town. Lots of partying and drinking. I'm still in undergrad (my last year), but my friends in grad school have all expressed to me the same sentiments (that Gainesville is too young for them, etc).

I'm not a fan of this place. I don't care much for football and I don't drink too often (and hardly ever to excess). So there's not much to do here, for me. Great restaurants, great opportunities for kayaking, springs, etc, great hippie/veggie underbelly to the town, which I like (though that in itself is tainted with uberhippies who sometimes annoy me)... And the standing of UF within Florida, for law school or undergrad, is the best in the state. You'll be in a good position for practicing in FL if you go to UF. The law library is nice, the part of campus that the law school is in is removed from all of the chaos of most of the ugrad population.. and if you're a FL resident, it's about 10 grand a year. Can't beat that.

That said, I'm G-ingTFO of here as of May. I have no interest in staying here for law school unless all else fails. Three years here was plenty for me. But I know LOTS of people who absolutely love Gainesville and who want to stay here for grad school and beyond.. so it's very subjective.

Same for me. Last year at UF and I am happy to leave Gainesville. It's been fun for undergrad but it is definitely a college party town. Some people love it here and some people hate it. The law school is great for practicing in Florida, but definitely consider a weekend visit to get a feel for the town. As others have pointed out, it is very different from Tallahassee and Miami.

[mdd05d]

I know Tampa is north of Orlando, I just feel like Orlando has more of a SoFla feel, and Tampa is more like most of Northern Florida. Just my observations from living in Florida and knowing someone from pretty much every city in the state..

Also, there are differences between Gainesville and Tallahassee. For instance, you wouldn't wish the girls of UF on your worst enemy or even that it's comical that UF students feel that since Princeton Review anointed them the #1 party school that it makes it true.

But seriously though despite those differences they are essentially the same type of town(college towns with a lot of nightlife centered around the younger crowd). Tallahassee does have the Capitol and I think their residents are a bit less white trash than the residents of Gainesville, but I feel the same way as many of the people graduating from UF. I loved my four years, but I don't know if I could do another three.

[danielfgator]

Lets be realistic. Although UF and FSU are ranked better than UM, the latter has much more to offer. Florida's capital and best job opportunities are concentrated in South Florida and that is a UM stronghold. The University of Miami's location by itself supersedes any other positives that the state schools might have.
If you really want to see all this for yourself check out and compare the starting salary of each of these three schools and you will see that UM grads make much more than those of any school in the state. Best of luck!

First of all, don't get fooled by the UM placement stats on USNEWS. Even though their numbers seem at first to be "slightly" better to UF's and FSU's, you need to seriously take in consideration that only 40% (yes, only 40%) of UM's grads actually reported their salaries back to their school. Compare it to UF's 65% and you can get a much more representative sample of the realities in their career prospects.
When you don't know how much 60% of the graduating class is making, how can you seriously say that UM has so much more to offer?
Secondly, UM costs almost twice as much as UF and FSU. Average indebtedness for UM grads is $90k compared to UF's $53k and FSU's $56k.
Finally, I have lived in both Miami and Gainesville and you can seriously expect to spend around 40% less on living expenses here in Gville. Transportation is free, short distance driving, low rent, cheap bars and food, etc etc etc...

Like I said before, I am not applying to schools in Florida but if I were I know which schools would be the smart decision. Choosing UM over FSU or UF, even if you want to move to SFL (where UF and FSU almost dominate UM) is irresponsible unless you get some serious serious serious $$$$$$$ from them.