Tennessee Class of 2014 Forum

[zrcm18]

Anyone?

[ran12]

I'm leaning towards going b/c I got the sweet deal with the Law Scholar and Research Associate program. I'm having qualms living in Tenn for 3 years since I'm from NY but everyone keeps telling me it won't be too bad.

[zrcm18]

I'm leaning towards going b/c I got the sweet deal with the Law Scholar and Research Associate program. I'm having qualms living in Tenn for 3 years since I'm from NY but everyone keeps telling me it won't be too bad.

Haven't decided 100%, but I'm strongly leaning towards UT. I go to school an hour and half away, and Knoxville is an awesome place to live. You better like orange though, because UT football is BIG and on gamedays there is hardly a person who doesn't have UT colors on....I know several people who have graduated from there, and I have heard nothing but positive remarks.

[fuzzypeach]

Knoxville is kind of awesome. Not like NYC, but definitely not small town. Plus, Chattanooga isn't too far away and that place is also great to visit. Lots of restaurants and a great aquarium. Hmmm...and if you like the outdoors, even just a little, East TN is amazing! I was really hoping for the the Law Scholar and Research Fellowship but I suppose they already decided on those. If you don't want it you should turn it down since there are other people kind of still hoping.....

[CliveStaples]

I got accepted to tennessee and with in-state tuition being so cheap it seems like a pretty good deal. I would love it if some actually students could tell us about the school/atmosphere/general thoughts... Or if anyone has visited the campus I'd like to hear their thoughts. I'll be visiting it soon I hope!

[rebexness]

[ATR]

...

[ran12]

What's the parking situation. The website makes it seem like there's a ton of parking for law students but I've read that parking is one of the worst things about UT.

[victorhugo]

What's the parking situation. The website makes it seem like there's a ton of parking for law students but I've read that parking is one of the worst things about UT.

The parking situation is not that bad unless your first class starts around 10 or 11. There are two garages on White Avenue. One is right beside the law school and another a few blocks down at White & 11th. I had a few times my first semester where I had to find a spot on the street, but for the most part it was fine.

I'm a 1L, so if there is anything else I can answer (instead of writing my client letter), I will give it my best.

[CliveStaples]

What's the parking situation. The website makes it seem like there's a ton of parking for law students but I've read that parking is one of the worst things about UT.

The parking situation is not that bad unless your first class starts around 10 or 11. There are two garages on White Avenue. One is right beside the law school and another a few blocks down at White & 11th. I had a few times my first semester where I had to find a spot on the street, but for the most part it was fine.

I'm a 1L, so if there is anything else I can answer (instead of writing my client letter), I will give it my best.

Is there a lot of competition between classmates or would you say it's more laid back? How has your experience been so far at UT?

[ran12]

Visiting in a couple of weeks. Anyone have a suggestions about what to see besides the law school.

[rebexness]

[victorhugo]

My section has been very laid back. There are maybe three gunners, but everyone knows what to expect from them. I haven't heard of anyone trying to sabotage another student. Often times we share notes and send instant messages when someone is struggling in class.

[jaymaynard]

I hope to be in Knoxville this fall

[sammykeb]

I may be there as well. In-state tuition is hard to pass up.

I hear Knoxville is very different from Memphis, which is where I grew up. For those of you currently at UT-Knoxville, how would you describe the area to someone who's never been there before? What do you like most about living there? Least?

Thanks!

[ran12]

Just finished up my campus visit. Liked it a lot. Knoxville looks like it's a pretty good place to go to school. All the people I met during the visit were very nice and informative. The law school building is one of the better one's I've seen and looks like it's technologically up to date which is always a positive. Definitely leaning towards going now.

[cmraider]

Visiting in a couple of weeks. Anyone have a suggestions about what to see besides the law school.

Go to Calhouns and Cotton Eyed Joes.

This person is trying to troll you. Don't take their advice. The Downtown Grill & Brewery on Gay St. and Southbound in the Old City >>>>>Calhoun's and One-eyed hoes.

[haoledugan]

Any inside information on job placement? Locally and regionally?

[cmraider]

I may be there as well. In-state tuition is hard to pass up.

I hear Knoxville is very different from Memphis, which is where I grew up. For those of you currently at UT-Knoxville, how would you describe the area to someone who's never been there before? What do you like most about living there? Least?

Thanks!

I don't live there now, but I did for many years.

The best way I can describe Knoxville is that it has most of the offerings of a big city without many of the hassles. There are plenty of restaurants, bars, stores, etc., but the interstates don't get gridlocked every day from 7-9 and 4-6, that kinda thing. If you like the outdoors, you will find plenty to do. There are plenty of rivers and lakes to kayak/canoe/boat/get drunk, and the Smokies are 45 min-1 1/2 hours away (depending on the traffic in Pigeon Forge/Gatlinburg). If you're in K-town for the summer, there's an annual free outdoor concert series called "Sundown in the City." You're not going to see any super huge names there, but they've gotten some decent acts in the past, considering the size of the market.

One of the most underrated things about Knoxville is the weather. Due to Knox's geography, it is pretty much immune to any severe weather. There are no tornadoes, floods, hurricanes, blizzards, hail, strong winds. People will freak out whenever snow is forecast, but that's a pretty common theme in the South.

As far as the drawbacks, if you hate the Vols, you will feel out of place. You may get murdered if you wear another SEC school's apparel (I keed, of course). The area is also fairly conservative (again, like most of the South). TN is a red state, but East TN is the bastion of conservative politics in the state. While the downtown area has improved a lot over the past few years, it's kind of small. There is a movie theater and a few restaurants/coffee houses on Gay St., about 20 bars/restaurants in Market Square and about a dozen bars/clubs in the Old City, but it's all pretty centrally located.

I'm sure people will disagree with me about the Strip (Cumberland Ave., which runs through campus), but I'm not a fan. There's tons of traffic year-round, little parking and every bar is the same (read: usually filled with fraternity brothers and sorority girls). There are a couple of interesting places to eat on the strip, but most of it is fast-food and chain restaurants.

If you like sports, you will either be satisfied or disappointed depending on how much you can get behind UT, because there's not much else. UT has big-time football, women's basketball and men's basketball programs. For football, UT packs 100,000+ people into Neyland Stadium for every home game. For basketball, Thompson-Boling Arena was recently renovated, is very nice and is a pretty large arena for college basketball (20,000+). Outside of UT sports, there's a minor league baseball and hockey team that do OK, but the sports pecking order in Knoxville is: UT football, UT spring football, Men's/Women's basketball (since the men's team started winning, both teams are pretty equal), UT Football recruiting, UT Football training camp, anything else related to UT football, minor league baseball, minor league hockey.

I hope that answers your question.

[sammykeb]

Thanks for the insight cmraider. It helps a lot.

I know it's early, but is anyone prepping to start a Facebook group for the Class of 2014? Or is there one already up that I'm missing?

[cmraider]

Thanks for the insight cmraider. It helps a lot.

I know it's early, but is anyone prepping to start a Facebook group for the Class of 2014? Or is there one already up that I'm missing?

No problem. If anyone has any more specific questions about Knoxville, I'll be happy to answer. I'm still waiting to see if I will join you in the fall.

[ran12]

What's the deal with the different areas in Knoxville. I know that West Knoxville is a place that a lot of the law students like but how's North, East and South Knoxville. I've heard East is not that safe.

[enida10]

What's the deal with the different areas in Knoxville. I know that West Knoxville is a place that a lot of the law students like but how's North, East and South Knoxville. I've heard East is not that safe.

South Knox from what I hear isn't that safe either. I had a friend get knifed there while someone was robbing his house. West Hills is the nicer part of Knoxville, but I think mostly grad students live there. Another popular place students is the Fort. It's basically right outside the law school. Closer than the dorms, really. I don' t really know anything about North and East. I only lived in Knoxville for a year and a half as a freshman/sophomore.

[cmraider]

What's the deal with the different areas in Knoxville. I know that West Knoxville is a place that a lot of the law students like but how's North, East and South Knoxville. I've heard East is not that safe.

West Knoxville, and West Knox County, is the most affluent of the four divisions you mention. There are a lot of doctors, lawyers and business people who live in that area. There are also a lot of scientists and engineers who work at the Oak Ridge National Laboratory and Y-12 plant (they used to make nuclear bombs there I think) in Oak Ridge who live in Farragut and Lenoir City (two communities west of Knoxville). There's also a lot of stuff to do in West Knox. There's an enormous shopping area called Turkey Creek (with a theater that was built in the image of early 20th century movie palaces) which is home to lots of stores and plenty of restaurants.

I probably know the least about North Knox. There's not a whole lot as far as business in North Knox, but it's hard to classify it because there's a mix of blue-collar and middle class people living there.

East Knoxville is probably the poorest of the four regions, but I wouldn't go so far as to say it's not safe. Yeah there's a big housing project there, but I wouldn't classify the entire area as "unsafe." The biggest project in Knox is actually in West Knox, FWIW. It's only unsafe if you go somewhere you shouldn't, and you'll be able to figure it out easily. You'll be fine in East Knox as long as you don't walk through the 'jects at night. Still, there are two streets in the East that are people's go-tos when talking about a bad part of town: Magnolia Ave. and Cherry St. People will joke that Magnolia is a good place to find a prostitute. However, Magnolia is also a great place to get pizza. There's a place, Pizza Palace, that was on Drivers, Dine-ins and Dives, and it's good and inexpensive. Other than that there's really not much else in East Knox that you can't get in other areas.

South Knoxville is a mostly blue-collar-to-middle-class area. There's a restaurant I would advise every one to visit if they go to UT: King Tut's. Most of the food is unspectacular, though the Greek Salad is amazing. The real charm of King Tut's is the owner: Moe. He and his family are from Egypt and he entertains the guests with jokes, magic tricks and karaoke and just makes it a fun place to hang out. Like East and North, most of what you can get in the South you can find in the other areas.

As far as places to live, I was surprised enida10 said a lot of students live in West Hills. I don't know any UT law students, so I really don't know, but West Hills is an expensive part of town and it's not that close to UT. If I were taking out loans to pay my rent, I wouldn't be renting in West Knox. But I've never looked at apt.s there, I'm just assuming they would be on the expensive side. I would say that every UT student I've known who didn't live with their parents either lived in the Ft. Sanders area, which is right by campus, or South Knoxville, across the Tennessee River. For those who may consider living in South Knox, one thing to consider is that they've closed Henley St. bridge for construction, and it's expected to be closed for years. Henley St. is the main bridge which crosses the river, and it is the road which serves as an unofficial boundary between downtown and UT.

Most of the stuff to do in Knoxville is downtown or in West Knoxville, but each region has its own attractions.

[enida10]

Well, from what I gather, a good deal of the women in grad and law school live in West Hills. You're right, though, a majority live in the Fort.