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What's the OCI thing looking like? I heard that some firms are actually extending offers to people that they originally rejected at other schools. Have you seen/heard about this phenomena at NYU?

Kurama - I've heard that as well, but I don't personally know anyone who has gotten a job that way. Most people I know who wanted firm jobs got them through the EIW process in August/September.

twistedwrister wrote:Kurama - I've heard that as well, but I don't personally know anyone who has gotten a job that way. Most people I know who wanted firm jobs got them through the EIW process in August/September.

Any guess as to what the process is when it comes to accepting a job offer like that?

Hey, thanks for taking questions.

What are your recommendations regarding housing? What are your thought on the dorm housing available? If someone were to live off-campus, what neighborhood would have the best combination of a short commute and cheap housing?

Also, regarding financial aid...is the only aid given through the named scholarships or do they offer merit aid independent of those named schollys?

Kurama - from what I've heard, a firm will call the school administration (perhaps the Office of Career Services?) and ask whether student X or Y is still interested in an interview. Take this with a grain of salt, though. It is only what I've heard second-hand. Some firms also schedule screening interviews at NYU throughout the fall/winter. Students who don't have anything lined up yet can bid on the interview(s) and hopefully get something that way.

Ravens - re housing, I loved living off campus in northern NJ. My commute was a bit long, but it was nice to get away from school at the end of the day. There are 2 NYU Law dorms - D'Ag and Mercer. D'Ag is closer (literally next to the Law School), but Mercer has nicer rooms, from what I've heard. The rates are pretty much in line with what you would pay for a non-NYU apartment in the area. The Village is quite expensive in general, so many students choose to live in Brooklyn, northern NJ, etc. The dorm rooms in both Mercer and D'Ag are quite small, but that is the norm in the Village, regardless of whether you live in NYU housing or not. I have a bunch of friends who live in Brooklyn and love it. The rent is much cheaper, you get more apartment for the $$, and the commute is relatively short if you live near the subway.

Re financial aid, I believe NYU also awards "Dean's Scholarships" of various amounts to some incoming 1L's based on (I believe) LSAT score and GPA.

Since there aren't too many questions, I'll share an interesting tidbit that I recently learned. Evan Chesler, the Presiding Partner at Cravath and one of the top practicing litigators in the country, is teaching a "Trial Practice" seminar at NYU next semester. Pretty sweet, especially for those students who want to go into litigation.

twistedwrister wrote:Since there aren't too many questions, I'll share an interesting tidbit that I recently learned. Evan Chesler, the Presiding Partner at Cravath and one of the top practicing litigators in the country, is teaching a "Trial Practice" seminar at NYU next semester. Pretty sweet, especially for those students who want to go into litigation.

Wow...it seems that they keep improving their faculty there. Any professors you recommend taking a class with?

And also how has OCI gone? At some other top schools, it seems you have to finish higher in class rank than ever before to get a look from biglaw in this economy. Where do you need to be in terms of class rank at NYU to have a shot at biglaw?

ravens20 wrote:

twistedwrister wrote:Since there aren't too many questions, I'll share an interesting tidbit that I recently learned. Evan Chesler, the Presiding Partner at Cravath and one of the top practicing litigators in the country, is teaching a "Trial Practice" seminar at NYU next semester. Pretty sweet, especially for those students who want to go into litigation.

Wow...it seems that they keep improving their faculty there. Any professors you recommend taking a class with?

Yeah, the profs at NYU are amazing. I've really enjoyed most of my classes, but if I had to recommend one professor to take a class with, it would be Professor Burt Neuborne. I've also heard that Professor Vicki Been (Property) and Professor Kenji Yoshino (Con Law) are great, but I don't know from personal experience. Are you planning on coming to NYU, or are you just curious?

twistedwrister wrote:

ravens20 wrote:

twistedwrister wrote:Since there aren't too many questions, I'll share an interesting tidbit that I recently learned. Evan Chesler, the Presiding Partner at Cravath and one of the top practicing litigators in the country, is teaching a "Trial Practice" seminar at NYU next semester. Pretty sweet, especially for those students who want to go into litigation.

Wow...it seems that they keep improving their faculty there. Any professors you recommend taking a class with?

Yeah, the profs at NYU are amazing. I've really enjoyed most of my classes, but if I had to recommend one professor to take a class with, it would be Professor Burt Neuborne. I've also heard that Professor Vicki Been (Property) and Professor Kenji Yoshino (Con Law) are great, but I don't know from personal experience. Are you planning on coming to NYU, or are you just curious?

I got in ED, so barring a major catastrophe I will be attending next fall.

ravens20 wrote:And also how has OCI gone? At some other top schools, it seems you have to finish higher in class rank than ever before to get a look from biglaw in this economy. Where do you need to be in terms of class rank at NYU to have a shot at biglaw?

I would generally agree that it is been tougher to get Biglaw this year than ever before (no surprise there). However, out of my 15 or so good friends who wanted Biglaw, only two did not get an offer. Personally, I did quite well 1L (top 5-10% or so), and I was lucky enough to have lots of options. I did twenty-something screening interviews, got twenty-something callbacks, actually went on 5-8 callbacks (don't want to out myself), and got an offer out of every callback. It seems like those at the top of the class had lots of offers, those in the middle had fewer callbacks and 1-2 offers, and those at the bottom (especially those w/o work experience) may not have fared so well. From what I've heard, if you were median or above and could interview well, you did just fine. If you were below median and didn't interview well, you could end up without a Biglaw offer. Hope this helps.

ravens20 wrote:

twistedwrister wrote:

ravens20 wrote:

twistedwrister wrote:Since there aren't too many questions, I'll share an interesting tidbit that I recently learned. Evan Chesler, the Presiding Partner at Cravath and one of the top practicing litigators in the country, is teaching a "Trial Practice" seminar at NYU next semester. Pretty sweet, especially for those students who want to go into litigation.

Wow...it seems that they keep improving their faculty there. Any professors you recommend taking a class with?

Yeah, the profs at NYU are amazing. I've really enjoyed most of my classes, but if I had to recommend one professor to take a class with, it would be Professor Burt Neuborne. I've also heard that Professor Vicki Been (Property) and Professor Kenji Yoshino (Con Law) are great, but I don't know from personal experience. Are you planning on coming to NYU, or are you just curious?

I got in ED, so barring a major catastrophe I will be attending next fall.

Congrats! It is a great school, and no one I know (myself included) regrets choosing NYU.

twistedwrister wrote:

ravens20 wrote:And also how has OCI gone? At some other top schools, it seems you have to finish higher in class rank than ever before to get a look from biglaw in this economy. Where do you need to be in terms of class rank at NYU to have a shot at biglaw?

I would generally agree that it is been tougher to get Biglaw this year than ever before (no surprise there). However, out of my 15 or so good friends who wanted Biglaw, only two did not get an offer. Personally, I did quite well 1L (top 5-10% or so), and I was lucky enough to have lots of options. I did twenty-something screening interviews, got twenty-something callbacks, actually went on 5-8 callbacks (don't want to out myself), and got an offer out of every callback. It seems like those at the top of the class had lots of offers, those in the middle had fewer callbacks and 1-2 offers, and those at the bottom (especially those w/o work experience) may not have fared so well. From what I've heard, if you were median or above and could interview well, you did just fine. If you were below median and didn't interview well, you could end up without a Biglaw offer. Hope this helps.

Thank you...that was very helpful. It would seem, then, that NYU is doing a bit better than some of the "lower" T14 schools in terms of impact from the recession.

twistedwrister wrote:

ravens20 wrote:And also how has OCI gone? At some other top schools, it seems you have to finish higher in class rank than ever before to get a look from biglaw in this economy. Where do you need to be in terms of class rank at NYU to have a shot at biglaw?

I would generally agree that it is been tougher to get Biglaw this year than ever before (no surprise there). However, out of my 15 or so good friends who wanted Biglaw, only two did not get an offer. Personally, I did quite well 1L (top 5-10% or so), and I was lucky enough to have lots of options. I did twenty-something screening interviews, got twenty-something callbacks, actually went on 5-8 callbacks (don't want to out myself), and got an offer out of every callback. It seems like those at the top of the class had lots of offers, those in the middle had fewer callbacks and 1-2 offers, and those at the bottom (especially those w/o work experience) may not have fared so well. From what I've heard, if you were median or above and could interview well, you did just fine. If you were below median and didn't interview well, you could end up without a Biglaw offer. Hope this helps.

Wow, you clearly had a fantastic 1L year. Would you mind sharing your study strategy? Did you do any reading the summer before 1L?

Also, I just got into NYU RD, and I was thinking about applying for one of the PI scholarships. Would you happen to know if you can apply after you've already applied to NYU/how competitive the scholarships are?

Thanks so much for your help!

twistedwrister wrote:
Congrats! It is a great school, and no one I know (myself included) regrets choosing NYU.

Thanks. It's definitely good to hear that the students are generally happy there. I'm guessing the reputation of the school and its students as being relatively laid back is not a myth then.

brennanlives wrote:

twistedwrister wrote:

ravens20 wrote:And also how has OCI gone? At some other top schools, it seems you have to finish higher in class rank than ever before to get a look from biglaw in this economy. Where do you need to be in terms of class rank at NYU to have a shot at biglaw?

I would generally agree that it is been tougher to get Biglaw this year than ever before (no surprise there). However, out of my 15 or so good friends who wanted Biglaw, only two did not get an offer. Personally, I did quite well 1L (top 5-10% or so), and I was lucky enough to have lots of options. I did twenty-something screening interviews, got twenty-something callbacks, actually went on 5-8 callbacks (don't want to out myself), and got an offer out of every callback. It seems like those at the top of the class had lots of offers, those in the middle had fewer callbacks and 1-2 offers, and those at the bottom (especially those w/o work experience) may not have fared so well. From what I've heard, if you were median or above and could interview well, you did just fine. If you were below median and didn't interview well, you could end up without a Biglaw offer. Hope this helps.

Wow, you clearly had a fantastic 1L year. Would you mind sharing your study strategy? Did you do any reading the summer before 1L?

Also, I just got into NYU RD, and I was thinking about applying for one of the PI scholarships. Would you happen to know if you can apply after you've already applied to NYU/how competitive the scholarships are?

Thanks so much for your help!

No problem! Re study habits, here is what worked for me:

(1) I did all the assigned reading, taking notes as I read. I didn't "brief cases" per se, but rather distilled each case down to a 1/2 page or so of important points.

(2) I went to (pretty much) every class and took thorough class notes.

(3) At the end of each semester, I combined my reading and class notes into a long outline. I then created a short outline (20 or so pages) that consisted of the most important points from my long outline.

(4) I learned my outlines as well as I could, even if the exams were open book.

(5) I did a few practice tests for each class, just to get an idea of what each professor was looking for and how long it would take me to write a good answer.

I didn't read any supplements (E&E, Hornbooks, etc.) for any class, although I know students who did and also performed really well. However, if you do read supplements, be aware of what your professor is looking for. I heard of one professor who got really annoyed when students pointed out issues that we never even came close to covering in class.

As far as reading the summer before law school, read books that you enjoy that have nothing to do with the law or law school. You will do enough law-related reading next year.

I'm not sure about the PI scholarships...sorry about that. I have heard they are very competitive, though.

twistedwrister wrote:

brennanlives wrote:

twistedwrister wrote:

ravens20 wrote:And also how has OCI gone? At some other top schools, it seems you have to finish higher in class rank than ever before to get a look from biglaw in this economy. Where do you need to be in terms of class rank at NYU to have a shot at biglaw?

I would generally agree that it is been tougher to get Biglaw this year than ever before (no surprise there). However, out of my 15 or so good friends who wanted Biglaw, only two did not get an offer. Personally, I did quite well 1L (top 5-10% or so), and I was lucky enough to have lots of options. I did twenty-something screening interviews, got twenty-something callbacks, actually went on 5-8 callbacks (don't want to out myself), and got an offer out of every callback. It seems like those at the top of the class had lots of offers, those in the middle had fewer callbacks and 1-2 offers, and those at the bottom (especially those w/o work experience) may not have fared so well. From what I've heard, if you were median or above and could interview well, you did just fine. If you were below median and didn't interview well, you could end up without a Biglaw offer. Hope this helps.

Wow, you clearly had a fantastic 1L year. Would you mind sharing your study strategy? Did you do any reading the summer before 1L?

Also, I just got into NYU RD, and I was thinking about applying for one of the PI scholarships. Would you happen to know if you can apply after you've already applied to NYU/how competitive the scholarships are?

Thanks so much for your help!

No problem! Re study habits, here is what worked for me:

(1) I did all the assigned reading, taking notes as I read. I didn't "brief cases" per se, but rather distilled each case down to a 1/2 page or so of important points.

(2) I went to (pretty much) every class and took thorough class notes.

(3) At the end of each semester, I combined my reading and class notes into a long outline. I then created a short outline (20 or so pages) that consisted of the most important points from my long outline.

(4) I learned my outlines as well as I could, even if the exams were open book.

(5) I did a few practice tests for each class, just to get an idea of what each professor was looking for and how long it would take me to write a good answer.

I didn't read any supplements (E&E, Hornbooks, etc.) for any class, although I know students who did and also performed really well. However, if you do read supplements, be aware of what your professor is looking for. I heard of one professor who got really annoyed when students pointed out issues that we never even came close to covering in class.

As far as reading the summer before law school, read books that you enjoy that have nothing to do with the law or law school. You will do enough law-related reading next year.

I'm not sure about the PI scholarships...sorry about that. I have heard they are very competitive, though.

Thanks, it's amazing how many different approaches there are to doing well 1L year. I'm starting to think that the best advice is to just do what works best for you.

Which outline did you focus on knowing well- your long one, short one, or both?

ravens20 wrote:

twistedwrister wrote:
Congrats! It is a great school, and no one I know (myself included) regrets choosing NYU.

Thanks. It's definitely good to hear that the students are generally happy there. I'm guessing the reputation of the school and its students as being relatively laid back is not a myth then.

Nope, not at all. Although "friendly" is perhaps a better description than "laid back." People certainly worked hard, but law school grades were not the be-all-end-all for the vast majority of students. The diversity of interests among the students at NYU is staggering. That diversity, in part, helps make the environment fun and non-competitive.

flyers05 wrote:Which outline did you focus on knowing well- your long one, short one, or both?

I tried to know both as well as possible. However, my short outline also doubled as a table of contents for my long outline, so during the exam I could look up a topic on the short outline and then quickly find that topic on my long outline if I needed more detail.

I don't think there is any one "best way" to study for law school exams. However, I believe that the difference between an average exam and a good exam is (generally) the number of issues correctly spotted, while the difference between a good exam and a great exam is the degree of depth with which you explore the nuances of each issue. If you can both (1) spot the important issues, and (2) recognize and discuss why the issue in question is not black-and-white, you will do well on most law school exams.

twistedwrister wrote: I would generally agree that it is been tougher to get Biglaw this year than ever before (no surprise there). However, out of my 15 or so good friends who wanted Biglaw, only two did not get an offer. Personally, I did quite well 1L (top 5-10% or so), and I was lucky enough to have lots of options. I did twenty-something screening interviews, got twenty-something callbacks, actually went on 5-8 callbacks (don't want to out myself), and got an offer out of every callback. It seems like those at the top of the class had lots of offers, those in the middle had fewer callbacks and 1-2 offers, and those at the bottom (especially those w/o work experience) may not have fared so well. From what I've heard, if you were median or above and could interview well, you did just fine. If you were below median and didn't interview well, you could end up without a Biglaw offer. Hope this helps.

Thanks for taking questions!

Do you happen to know how NYU students did in non-NYC firms? NYU seems like a good match for my numbers and interest, but I'm not sure if I want to live in NYC after graduation.

Any idea of numbers (i.e. percentage with callbacks/offers) for students interested in PI/govt?

How highly would NYU rate (againsts MVPB) in training students for careers in legal academia?

I know they have strong faculty in areas on jurisprudence/legal philosophy, but I was wondering if the NYC location makes the school extremely big law focused.

Jumbo wrote:

twistedwrister wrote: I would generally agree that it is been tougher to get Biglaw this year than ever before (no surprise there). However, out of my 15 or so good friends who wanted Biglaw, only two did not get an offer. Personally, I did quite well 1L (top 5-10% or so), and I was lucky enough to have lots of options. I did twenty-something screening interviews, got twenty-something callbacks, actually went on 5-8 callbacks (don't want to out myself), and got an offer out of every callback. It seems like those at the top of the class had lots of offers, those in the middle had fewer callbacks and 1-2 offers, and those at the bottom (especially those w/o work experience) may not have fared so well. From what I've heard, if you were median or above and could interview well, you did just fine. If you were below median and didn't interview well, you could end up without a Biglaw offer. Hope this helps.

Thanks for taking questions!

Do you happen to know how NYU students did in non-NYC firms? NYU seems like a good match for my numbers and interest, but I'm not sure if I want to live in NYC after graduation.

No problem! I did not apply to firms outside of NYC, but many of my friends did and were quite successful. All of my friends who want to practice in CA got offers from firms out there (Irell, Kirkland, etc.), and several others have offers from D.C. firms. I don't know anyone who targeted Chicago/Midwest firms.