Harvard Student(s) Answering Your Questions Forum

Pneumonia · Post by **Pneumonia** » Fri Jun 05, 2015 2:12 pm

Searchparty wrote:
Pneumonia wrote:
runinthefront wrote:Does anyone know the max amount of need based aid Harvard typically gives? I'm fairly sure I would qualify for the max aid but don't know how much that would actually be.
It's in the neighborhood of 35k. Max aid is calculated so recipients exit with $150kish in debt.
JW, do you know what this ends up being in monthly payments?

Rule of thumb I use is to divide by 100 for an approximation, but the estimate comes out a bit low.

robotrick · Post by **robotrick** » Fri Jun 05, 2015 3:11 pm

ph14 wrote:
robotrick wrote:Do firms at EIP ask for writing samples? I'm trying to figure out if I need to go out of my way to produce something good this summer.
A few do. Most do not. You can use something you wrote in LRW.

That's good to hear. The office where I'm interning is rather informal regarding style (definitely no bluebooking going on), and the assignments themselves seem to be more factual research than rule application :/

ph14 · Post by **ph14** » Fri Jun 05, 2015 4:44 pm

robotrick wrote:
ph14 wrote:
robotrick wrote:Do firms at EIP ask for writing samples? I'm trying to figure out if I need to go out of my way to produce something good this summer.
A few do. Most do not. You can use something you wrote in LRW.
That's good to hear. The office where I'm interning is rather informal regarding style (definitely no bluebooking going on), and the assignments themselves seem to be more factual research than rule application :/

I wouldn't worry about your writing sample for EIP. It's much more relevant for clerkships.

PotenC · Post by **PotenC** » Sun Jun 07, 2015 1:20 pm

Is there anyone who's done the Bay Area Diversity Fair? How was the experience?

wonka · Post by **wonka** » Mon Jun 08, 2015 6:50 pm

Post removed.

nothingtosee · Post by **nothingtosee** » Mon Jun 08, 2015 8:14 pm

wonka wrote:So, I know this is probably played out and TCR is don't take a car to HLS. . .but the closer I get to selling my car, the more I feel like I want to keep it. Having the option to get out of the Boston area when I want to seems pretty great, and I feel like at any rate I'll likely want it when I'm finished. I'm contracted in a dorm for next year, and I've read here that street parking around the law school can be a nightmare, but does anyone have any leads on parking spaces in the burbs? I was thinking there may be apartment complexes at the end of the red line that have extra parking spaces I could rent. Has anyone done this?

Is cost a factor?

TripTrip · Post by **TripTrip** » Mon Jun 08, 2015 8:20 pm

wonka wrote:So, I know this is probably played out and TCR is don't take a car to HLS. . .but the closer I get to selling my car, the more I feel like I want to keep it. Having the option to get out of the Boston area when I want to seems pretty great, and I feel like at any rate I'll likely want it when I'm finished. I'm contracted in a dorm for next year, and I've read here that street parking around the law school can be a nightmare, but does anyone have any leads on parking spaces in the burbs? I was thinking there may be apartment complexes at the end of the red line that have extra parking spaces I could rent. Has anyone done this?

As someone who grew up in the suburbs and was completely incredulous to the idea of ever not having a car: you will not regret selling your car and just using public transportation or walking to get everywhere.

Cars can be useful a few times a year to go on a road trip out of state, perhaps, but you can rent a car for a whole weekend every month for the same price you'll pay for a parking spot within a few miles of the law school. (I actually do this; the Army sends me to a base thirty minute drive north of Boston every few months and renting a Zipcar parked at the law school is infinitely easier than managing my own vehicle would be.) You won't be able to use your own car for things like getting groceries since, as you already pointed out, the car would be farther away from you than the grocery store.

If you haven't, check out Zipcar. You can rent a car for $7/hr or $80/day (they have a dozen within a few blocks of the law school) and not pay a car payment, insurance, or for a parking spot. I think a traditional rental car would be cheaper for longer trips (e.g. weekends), but nothing beats the simplicity of the wireless electronic reprogrammable card you get with Zipcar so you can randomly decide you want a car at 3am and have one available.

BUT to answer your actual question, there are always a handful of spots available from students or companies in Cambridge. Most of them are $100-$120/month depending on where they are. Don't count on street parking, especially long term. Even if you consistently found a spot you'd have to constantly pay close attention to the street cleaning schedule or get towed. (This sounds simple, but from everyone I know who has had a car near campus this has been a constant source of stress in their life.)

The end of the red line is about two miles from the law school. It's not the "burbs," but you could try it. In order to get to an area where the price for parking is significantly cheaper you would have to go far enough out that you would need to take a taxi to get to your car.

Mack.Hambleton · Post by **Mack.Hambleton** » Mon Jun 08, 2015 8:32 pm

Anyone who chose H over S want to pm me

lawschool22 · Post by **lawschool22** » Mon Jun 08, 2015 9:34 pm

TripTrip wrote:
wonka wrote:So, I know this is probably played out and TCR is don't take a car to HLS. . .but the closer I get to selling my car, the more I feel like I want to keep it. Having the option to get out of the Boston area when I want to seems pretty great, and I feel like at any rate I'll likely want it when I'm finished. I'm contracted in a dorm for next year, and I've read here that street parking around the law school can be a nightmare, but does anyone have any leads on parking spaces in the burbs? I was thinking there may be apartment complexes at the end of the red line that have extra parking spaces I could rent. Has anyone done this?
As someone who grew up in the suburbs and was completely incredulous to the idea of ever not having a car: you will not regret selling your car and just using public transportation or walking to get everywhere.

Cars can be useful a few times a year to go on a road trip out of state, perhaps, but you can rent a car for a whole weekend every month for the same price you'll pay for a parking spot within a few miles of the law school. (I actually do this; the Army sends me to a base thirty minute drive north of Boston every few months and renting a Zipcar parked at the law school is infinitely easier than managing my own vehicle would be.) You won't be able to use your own car for things like getting groceries since, as you already pointed out, the car would be farther away from you than the grocery store.

If you haven't, check out Zipcar. You can rent a car for $7/hr or $80/day (they have a dozen within a few blocks of the law school) and not pay a car payment, insurance, or for a parking spot. I think a traditional rental car would be cheaper for longer trips (e.g. weekends), but nothing beats the simplicity of the wireless electronic reprogrammable card you get with Zipcar so you can randomly decide you want a car at 3am and have one available.

BUT to answer your actual question, there are always a handful of spots available from students or companies in Cambridge. Most of them are $100-$120/month depending on where they are. Don't count on street parking, especially long term. Even if you consistently found a spot you'd have to constantly pay close attention to the street cleaning schedule or get towed. (This sounds simple, but from everyone I know who has had a car near campus this has been a constant source of stress in their life.)

The end of the red line is about two miles from the law school. It's not the "burbs," but you could try it. In order to get to an area where the price for parking is significantly cheaper you would have to go far enough out that you would need to take a taxi to get to your car.

I'll echo most of this. As someone who also always had a car and (still) loves having a car when in places where it is feasible, it really is not needed at HLS. I did not miss having a car one bit, and I'm glad I didn't have to deal with having one. Though I will say it doesn't seem to be much of a hassle to own one (just based on what I've noticed). The main thing is cost.

MyNameIsFlynn! · Post by **MyNameIsFlynn!** » Mon Jun 08, 2015 10:36 pm

ph14 wrote:
robotrick wrote:
ph14 wrote:
robotrick wrote:Do firms at EIP ask for writing samples? I'm trying to figure out if I need to go out of my way to produce something good this summer.
A few do. Most do not. You can use something you wrote in LRW.
That's good to hear. The office where I'm interning is rather informal regarding style (definitely no bluebooking going on), and the assignments themselves seem to be more factual research than rule application :/
I wouldn't worry about your writing sample for EIP. It's much more relevant for clerkships.

The clerkship hiring model is so early these days you might as well fine tune a writing sample pre-EIP and kill two birds w/ one stone. As others noted the majority of firms don't want one, among the firms that do ask for one half them probably don't read it, but if you're interviewing somewhere that wants a good writing sample you might as well have one ready.

The HLS EIP threads and the HLS website have lots of info on writing samples for EIP. Worth reading in your spare time but definitely not a priority.

Mr. Elshal · Post by **Mr. Elshal** » Mon Jun 08, 2015 11:49 pm

wonka wrote:So, I know this is probably played out and TCR is don't take a car to HLS. . .but the closer I get to selling my car, the more I feel like I want to keep it. Having the option to get out of the Boston area when I want to seems pretty great, and I feel like at any rate I'll likely want it when I'm finished. I'm contracted in a dorm for next year, and I've read here that street parking around the law school can be a nightmare, but does anyone have any leads on parking spaces in the burbs? I was thinking there may be apartment complexes at the end of the red line that have extra parking spaces I could rent. Has anyone done this?

There are a couple of buildings directly across the street from Wasserstein where some people rent their spaces. Not sure how you'd get in touch with them, but I figured I'd give you the lead.

Also, I would have preferred to have a car in Cambridge, but the cost-benefit ratio just didn't work for me.

Inboston · Post by **Inboston** » Tue Jun 09, 2015 12:28 am

Does anyone have any estimation on when grades will be released? Thanks in advance!

TripTrip · Post by **TripTrip** » Tue Jun 09, 2015 12:56 am

Inboston wrote:Does anyone have any estimation on when grades will be released? Thanks in advance!

Spring grades are all released. Any individual grade you still don't have will be professor and class specific.

nerd1 · Post by **nerd1** » Tue Jun 09, 2015 1:13 am

malleus discentium · Post by **malleus discentium** » Tue Jun 09, 2015 1:29 am

Inboston wrote:Does anyone have any estimation on when grades will be released? Thanks in advance!

I believe 1L grades were released on June 12 the past two years. A friend of mine called the registrar who said grades were due June 4, and they usually release a week after. So best bets for Thursday/Friday.

tomwatts · Post by **tomwatts** » Tue Jun 09, 2015 3:24 am

From page 240:

tomwatts wrote:Also, continuing the PSA, most 1L grades are in early/mid-June. Your elective grade probably will come out with the 2L/3L grades, but your other grades probably will come out around June 12. (It was June 12 in 2014 and in 2013.)

The last two years, Lisa Burns sent an email on the day of upper-level grade release announcing that upper-level grades were out and announcing that 1L grades would be released on June 12. So I'd expect something similar this year.

My bet is Thursday this year (June 11), just because I think they can get it done by then.

(Just to confirm the previous post.)

Inboston · Post by **Inboston** » Tue Jun 09, 2015 6:54 am

Great. Thanks, sorry for missing the earlier post!

wonka · Post by **wonka** » Tue Jun 09, 2015 11:03 am

Post removed.

codyoneill · Post by **codyoneill** » Tue Jun 09, 2015 11:15 am

wonka wrote:
lawschool22 wrote:
TripTrip wrote:
wonka wrote:So, I know this is probably played out and TCR is don't take a car to HLS. . .but the closer I get to selling my car, the more I feel like I want to keep it. Having the option to get out of the Boston area when I want to seems pretty great, and I feel like at any rate I'll likely want it when I'm finished. I'm contracted in a dorm for next year, and I've read here that street parking around the law school can be a nightmare, but does anyone have any leads on parking spaces in the burbs? I was thinking there may be apartment complexes at the end of the red line that have extra parking spaces I could rent. Has anyone done this?
As someone who grew up in the suburbs and was completely incredulous to the idea of ever not having a car: you will not regret selling your car and just using public transportation or walking to get everywhere.

Cars can be useful a few times a year to go on a road trip out of state, perhaps, but you can rent a car for a whole weekend every month for the same price you'll pay for a parking spot within a few miles of the law school. (I actually do this; the Army sends me to a base thirty minute drive north of Boston every few months and renting a Zipcar parked at the law school is infinitely easier than managing my own vehicle would be.) You won't be able to use your own car for things like getting groceries since, as you already pointed out, the car would be farther away from you than the grocery store.

If you haven't, check out Zipcar. You can rent a car for $7/hr or $80/day (they have a dozen within a few blocks of the law school) and not pay a car payment, insurance, or for a parking spot. I think a traditional rental car would be cheaper for longer trips (e.g. weekends), but nothing beats the simplicity of the wireless electronic reprogrammable card you get with Zipcar so you can randomly decide you want a car at 3am and have one available.

BUT to answer your actual question, there are always a handful of spots available from students or companies in Cambridge. Most of them are $100-$120/month depending on where they are. Don't count on street parking, especially long term. Even if you consistently found a spot you'd have to constantly pay close attention to the street cleaning schedule or get towed. (This sounds simple, but from everyone I know who has had a car near campus this has been a constant source of stress in their life.)

The end of the red line is about two miles from the law school. It's not the "burbs," but you could try it. In order to get to an area where the price for parking is significantly cheaper you would have to go far enough out that you would need to take a taxi to get to your car.
I'll echo most of this. As someone who also always had a car and (still) loves having a car when in places where it is feasible, it really is not needed at HLS. I did not miss having a car one bit, and I'm glad I didn't have to deal with having one. Though I will say it doesn't seem to be much of a hassle to own one (just based on what I've noticed). The main thing is cost.
Thanks guys for taking the time to write this out. You're all right about not needing it, I'm sure...and I'm definitely not in a position to handle the extra cost of keeping the car. Ah well! Looks like the decision is made.

Well the point might be moot now, but I meant to respond to this.

I did not have a car before law school, but I have a car in Cambridge and I love having it and haven no complaints whatsoever.

I live about a ten minute walk from campus, never have a problem finding a parking space (and have a Cambridge parking permit, which is only $25 for the year(!)), and use my car once a week for groceries and occasionally for other reasons. It is nice to be able to drive out to Trader Joe's or into Somerville or to the movies or to the Cape. I very much enjoy having a car here. And everyone I know who had a car this past year is keeping the car for their next year at HLS and feels similarly.

If you register your car in MA, you can get a Cambridge parking pass. I guarantee that you will consistently find an available Cambridge permitted spot within a few blocks from the law school. Street cleaning is only one day a month so you won't need to move it often.

Feel free to PM me or post more questions here if you have any Cambridge car questions. Aside from shoveling out in winter—which is a total pain, but there's no street cleaning in winter so you never have to move it and can just let it be a frozen in the snow for as long as necessary—I have had no problems and few complaints.

Oh, one more thing: Boston drivers are crazy and Cambridge is a mess of one way streets.

LS2515 · Post by **LS2515** » Tue Jun 09, 2015 11:19 am

Are people hearing Thursday for 1L grades?

What is the grade requirement for feeder judges from HLS (kavanaugh, garland, srinivasen, wilkinson, kozinski, etc.)?

ph14 · Post by **ph14** » Tue Jun 09, 2015 4:29 pm

LS2515 wrote:Are people hearing Thursday for 1L grades?

What is the grade requirement for feeder judges from HLS (kavanaugh, garland, srinivasen, wilkinson, kozinski, etc.)?

Pm me.

094320 · Post by **094320** » Tue Jun 09, 2015 5:34 pm

wealtheow · Post by **wealtheow** » Tue Jun 09, 2015 8:37 pm

Gonna echo the sentiment that having a car in Cambridge is awesome! Never have trouble finding a spot near the law school. I forgot about street sweeping once and the car got towed (from IN FRONT OF MY HOUSE), but that's my own fault for not reading the sign. I live about 15 mins from the school (by foot) and it's nice when I don't feel like walking or taking the T (which I haaaaaate).

Watch out for codyoneill though; he's one of those nut buckets who support space savers in the winter.

lawschool22 · Post by **lawschool22** » Tue Jun 09, 2015 9:59 pm

wealtheow wrote:Gonna echo the sentiment that having a car in Cambridge is awesome! Never have trouble finding a spot near the law school. I forgot about street sweeping once and the car got towed (from IN FRONT OF MY HOUSE), but that's my own fault for not reading the sign. I live about 15 mins from the school (by foot) and it's nice when I don't feel like walking or taking the T (which I haaaaaate).

Watch out for codyoneill though; he's one of those nut buckets who support space savers in the winter.

Custom?

malleus discentium · Post by **malleus discentium** » Tue Jun 09, 2015 10:04 pm

wealtheow wrote:Gonna echo the sentiment that having a car in Cambridge is awesome! Never have trouble finding a spot near the law school. I forgot about street sweeping once and the car got towed (from IN FRONT OF MY HOUSE), but that's my own fault for not reading the sign. I live about 15 mins from the school (by foot) and it's nice when I don't feel like walking or taking the T (which I haaaaaate).

Watch out for codyoneill though; he's one of those nut buckets who support space savers in the winter.

Just going to note, though, that both wealtheow and codyoneill have long-term SOs. It's been pointed out in this thread before that people with SOs generally get more use out of a car. Of the four 1Ls I know with cars, three have long-term SOs. It may be coincidence, but it's nevertheless somewhat consistently true that people who have SOs find having a car useful more often than those who don't.