They are.

a lot less. i mean one friend had scores (our LRW was scored) that gave him like a 90/100. got a P. and i knew like 10 other people in the section who had lower scores. i mean, maybe there were 13 people that got 90+ on all the assignments and i just didnt bump into them...but im a tad skeptical.

Know the person(s) who got it in your section?

Did the professor disclose how it was scored? We didn't have that...seems much more transparent which is nice. Then again it looks like you probably need like 98 for an H lol

hm curious, do you know what the curve is for LRW? pretty sure it is NOT ~36% get Hs and rest Ps (least in my LRW)[/quote]

You think your section got more than 36% H's or less? I'm also unaware if DS's are available in LRW or not.[/quote]

a lot less. i mean one friend had scores (our LRW was scored) that gave him like a 90/100. got a P. and i knew like 10 other people in the section who had lower scores. i mean, maybe there were 13 people that got 90+ on all the assignments and i just didnt bump into them...but im a tad skeptical.[/quote]

Did the professor disclose how it was scored? We didn't have that...seems much more transparent which is nice. Then again it looks like you probably need like 98 for an H lol[/quote]

Interesting. My LRW prof said he was sticking to the school's general curve, though it seemed like more than ~ 36% got H's.

wow im so envious. my climenko never mentioned grading curves at all, but did have scores (X out of Y total) on the assignments...though also never stated what was needed to get into the H threshold. just based on the 10 or so people's grades I know, especially one who, having a percentage-wise 90% average, should have gotten but did not get H somehow lol.

Can someone talk about transfer students' experiences? I was admitted and am trying to decide what to do. Specifically, I'm interested in how transfers fare at EIP, the social life of a transfer, and if there's any difference in journal/extracurricular opportunities (I know that the law review writing competition took place in May).

Any of you involved in the Lincoln's Inn Society? Is it worth it to join?

i imagine you can participate in any secondary journal you would like (same as 1L's). you would not be able to participate in HLR (as you said tryout already happened), and I am 95% sure that BSA (board of student advisers; basically 1L advising and LRW TA) and HLAB (harvard legal aid bureau) are also out. no clue on EIP. I talked to one transfer that got skadden at EIP though. no clue on social life either

Lincoln's Inn Society puts on a few events during the year that are fun - I did not join, but I heard the boat cruise at the beginning of the year and formal that they put on first semester were awesome. You won't miss out at all if you don't join, though - I know in my section we had parties every weekend, and as far as I'm concerned, a free party is better than a paid party!

Thanks! Another unrelated question: Do we use disks to access Exam 4 or any other applications for school? I just bought a Macbook Air for school, and I am really hoping that I don't have to return it now because it lacks a DVD drive. However, the minimum required specifications listed on the HLS website indicate that a DVD drive is required.

No DVD drive required that I know (or ever used). It's a program that you download. Fairly straightforward.

Great! That's what I thought, though I didn't know if there was some other program or something I was missing. Thanks!

Thanks to all taking questions - I appreciate your time!

I was wondering if any could speak to the selection of off-campus housing for families? I need to be in Cambridge in order to send my children to MLK, Jr. elementary school for a Chinese immersion program. Is a 3 bed/2bath apartment going to send me straight to debtor's prison?

Any recommendations on where to find such an apartment?

Finally, I need to enter my son in the lottery for the Chinese immersion program in Jan. Obviously, I probably won't have made a final determination of where I am going at that point. His result will have a huge impact on the decision though as his odds are probably 50/50. Like law school, his best chance to get in is to enter the first lottery in January. I called the local school district and they assured me that if I could produce a notarized lease showing I would be a resident in their district by the time the school year started, I could enter him in the lottery. Consequently, I need a lease agreement that can be broken without penalty should I decide not to attend Harvard/don't have the option/etc. - seems my best bet is to sign a sublet from a law student planning to be away come June, with a clause that allows me to break it with 60 days notice without penalty. Any suggestions on this issue?

I would focus in on Central Square if you need to stay in Cambridge for family living. Normally, I'd recommend Somerville but obviously that won't work.

Second, with regard to breaking the lease, I'm not sure anyone is going to be okay with you intending to break a lease at any time, especially since it seems like there's a significant chance that you will. Most lease provisions in the area have acceleration clauses and the like designed to punish just this behavior. Your best bet is to probably lease and then sublet or assign when you decide to leave. I know my apartment allows you to make an assignment (transferring the tenancy for the full remainder of the lease) without penalty, provided you find the new tenant yourself. That's what craigslist is for.

Third, why is this Chinese immersion program the end all, be all of you attending HLS? Are there similar programs in other areas that you'd go instead if this doesn't work out? Just to clarify, have you been admitted yet or are you applying next cycle?

This. You can hope to find someone who'll negotiate, but really, in the decent parts of Cambridge, there are so many renters that most landlords will likely just move on to find someone who'll commit to moving in.

Thanks, that is my fear. I need to find someone who understands my dilemma - student to student. I knew a leasing company would be a lost cause. Its an administrative hoop I just have to jump through, and I need someone who understands it as such. If my son gets a spot and we go elsewhere, a lucky child will get off the extensive wait list. Sounds alot like law school right? I'm assuming there are at least some HLS students who are not sure what their summer plans will be in late December, and will recognize that they have time to sublet. The results from the lottery are issued in Feb.

Yes, there are other Chinese immersion programs near other top law schools. There is a small chance that a Charter School with an even better program will get its MA charter this year, but it failed last year. I'm not pinning my hopes on it. The way these programs work, students must generally enter at Kindergarten or they are completely shut out. Siblings usually get in automatically when an older child is attending. Its just unfortunate that my son (and oldest) is starting kindergarten next year. He is already fluent in Chinese from pre-school and not losing this immense advantage is a priority for me. If you've learned a difficult Eastern language as an adult (as I have), you will understand how important this opportunity could be for him. I'm Scottish-American and my background is in Arabic, so its not like I can expose him at home.

That being said, I realize its a crap shoot. I'm trying to up my odds of finding the perfect fit for my whole family. I get tons of advice to just go to the best law school for me, which is easy for a non-parent to say. Ideally, I would like to increase my odds of finding both a great school for me and my son in the same location. The best way to do that is for both of us to enter as many respective lotteries as possible. I am hoping I don't end up getting into Yale or Stanford and rejected at Harvard, while he gets into the CI program near Harvard and is wait-listed in New Haven and Palo Alto. It may happen. In which case, my law school would obviously come first. It would be a huge disappointment though.

So to answer your question, I will be applying. And the CI program is not the end-all, be-all of attending Harvard. It will be an important factor in my decision. I am hoping to have more than one choice, and to have the visits to the schools help clarify my personal preference. I try not to get too set on a particular school before the admin results roll in. In this case, I have no chance but to plan far ahead because of the school district's policies.

That perspective is helpful. I had no idea these programs were so common, although I guess it makes sense that they would be located near top universities.

My advice depends greatly on the timing: when would you need to move to Cambridge? If you're looking to move now-ish, you might be able to find an 8 or 9 month lease, in which case you could leave in time to attend school elsewhere. Even if you opt for a 12 month lease, your chances of subletting to another group of students in the summer months would be good.

Obviously, there are other undisclosed factors at play. I don't know if you're married/together, and what your partner's work situation is. I don't know what you are doing yourself between now and law school; whether you plan to keep your job in your current location for several months or are willing to relocate ASAP. All of this plays a huge role.

PM me if it would be helpful, but I have a feeling you might already know the answer to your question now.

They actually aren't common. There are only about 10 in the country, including charters. Just happens they are in the places I need them.

If I'm living on Campus (Gropius), how necessary is it to sign up for the MBTA? I'm not quite sure which plan to sign up for. Also, does anyone have any recommendations for a bank that is close to campus? My current bank doesn't have any Boston locations

Nice avatar! I used to have Jimi as mine.

For the T, you can just get a Charlie Card and put money on it. I don't remember how much the passes are, but I doubt they're worth it unless you ride the T every day or so, which you probably won't do if you live on campus.

Just to add to this, Bank of America is all over campus/Cambridge.

No Chase in Massachusetts? I did not see this coming.

Switch banks ASAP. Bank of America or Citizen's are the most convenient choices.

i got rejected at harvard and i feel sad, can you guys say some stuff to ease my pain?