USC 1L (rising 2L) taking questions Forum

[Allie]

So, I don't believe I saw a USC thread here. At least not a recent one. Sorry if it's there and I just missed it.

Anyway, if any USC admits/hopefuls/etc want to ask questions/are curious about anything USC law related comment away and I'll try my best to answer your questions. (Other USC students who want to jump in, please do!)

[n1o2c3a4c5h6e7t]

Given UCLA's better employment stats recently, do people in LA still consider USC/UCLA peer schools? If so, what explains the consistently lower numbers? Are you concerned that over 40% of the most recent class did not have LTFT legal jobs once school-funded jobs are removed?

I'm not trying to harass you with difficult questions, I ask because I'm genuinely curious. I almost attended USC, but I just had too many nagging concerns about its employment trends and the state of the CA economy.

[cron1834]

Given UCLA's better employment stats recently, do people in LA still consider USC/UCLA peer schools? If so, what explains the consistently lower numbers? Are you concerned that over 40% of the most recent class did not have LTFT legal jobs once school-funded jobs are removed?

I'm not trying to harass you with difficult questions, I ask because I'm genuinely curious. I almost attended USC, but I just had too many nagging concerns about its employment trends and the state of the CA economy.

Similar concerns here. I have a generous offer from USC and family in the area, but I'm worried about employment. Does the student body feel better about the smaller class numbers? CO'13 was almost certainly too big, and the %s dropped off accordingly. Fall '13 1Ls were 45 fewer in number than Fall'10 1Ls, which seems like a good thing.

[twenty]

Slightly fruity questions, but what does USC offer in terms of real estate-related law options? How hard is it to cross-register at Marshall to take classes there? Have you found at all that the Trojan network so widely known in undergrad applies to Gould as well?

[Allie]

Re UCLA: I definitely think we're considered peer schools. This may change over the years, of course, but I don't have any authority on that or have any reason to suppose that the gap will grow either in the rankings or anything else. FTLT placement w/o school-funded jobs was mentioned and from the chart I saw on this (could be a diff one from the person who pointed it out) we're about equal in this regard. From the people I've talked to - students, alumni, etc - it seems like the schools hold up well against each other.

Re jobs post grad: I don't have too much info here. From the 3Ls I know (which are few, admittedly, they all have a job of some sort already lined up after graduation or have a good idea what their plan is. I haven't experienced much doom-and-gloom here on this subject. But again, I know a limited number of 2-3Ls and all the 1Ls are mostly focused on 1L summer jobs (which, I think, by this point almost everyone has one, or at least that's my impression).

Re Trojan network: I was skeptical myself but I'm starting to think that this is a real thing. At career fairs and networking events I've often met USC alumni and most of them are very willing to offer themselves as a contact or seem to make a metal note that you're also from USC (if they're employers). We host lots of networking events and alumni are active in providing resources such as mock interviews and being willing to talk over e-mail. Anecdotal evidence from classmates/2-3Ls suggests that some will even go for more personal contact or offer to put in a word for you at their firm. I do feel like 1Ls are very well taken care of here in general.

[Allie]

twenty: I'm sorry, I'm totally out of the know when it comes to cross-registration anywhere. I'm also not sure if there's anyone I know in particular in that situation. As for real estate...I can't think of anything specific, although I believe we did have a panel not so long ago on opportunities in that field. I feel like entertainment law is the big thing here though. That and IP of course.

[cron1834]

Allie, thanks. Are you planning on participating in OCI in the fall? Do you have a sense of how good your grades/rank have to be to feel somewhat confident?

[unodostres]

What kind of living expenses do you have? Do you live in LA?

What's the student environment like?

[hous]

How much debt will you graduate with?

[Allie]

Re OCI: Yes I do plan to participate in OCI. I can’t say for sure, because we don’t have the list of firms/their requirements yet but judging by what I’ve heard and by the couple of large-ish firms that came to spring OCI 3.6 is a good gpa to have. Given last year’s 10 percent cut off of 3.65 I’d wager this puts you at least in the top 20 percent (assuming numbers are consistent from year to year). My gpa is probably more like top third and employers seemed to look favorably on it when job searching for the summer. Admittedly, these were not big firms, so not as OCI/BigLaw relevant.

Re living expenses: Yes, I live in LA. It CAN get a little pricy, especially if you want to live in certain very nice areas. I live downtown in a nice area and a nice apartment building plus alone so my rent is high 1.5k/month. However, I know people who live with one roommate splitting a two bedroom and pay more like 1k/month in other nice areas. You can go lower than this but quality of neighborhood will likely go down. Utilities aren’t that expensive, at the very least not more than I was used to. Internet and tv are somewhat pricy, but I’m sure you could get a deal if you’re able to shop around. Sometimes, you might just get stuck with something more pricy because your building only does business with one or two companies. (I pay 55$ a month for internet and a very basic tv package and this was considered a good deal for this company but my landlord didn’t give us much of a choice.) But yea, the biggest expense is rent and this will be a balancing test, somewhat, between where you want to live and how much you can/are willing to pay. Oh also, if you decide to live someone near the metro and you don’t want to have a car, the expo line goes literally straight to school and you can get a highly discounted metro card through the school.

Re student environment: very collegial and supporting. Not just from upper classmen to 1Ls but among the 1L class as well. Our supersection (we have three) doesn’t have any gunners or anything like that. At least, I wouldn’t be able to point at anyone and say “he/she’s a gunner”. I mean, maybe they’re there but they’re hiding it very very well then. I’ve heard of other supersections having a few very competitive people, but honestly, no horror stories or anything. For the most part everyone’s very friendly, people will go out for drinks together and study together. I missed some classes at one point because of personal things and a person in my section offered to send me their notes. It’s very supporting. Also, I know that at least in CA USC has kind of a reputation for being a “school for snotty rich kids.” I don’t know if the undergrad is like that but the law school isn’t like that at all. I was actually very pleasantly surprised by this.

Re debt: I’m a bad example for this, my situation isn’t standard. But lets say this: school expenses are around 53k a year plus living expenses of about 22k a year comes out to 225k for three years. But I also have a no stips scholarship of 20k per year from the school which brings the total down to 165k. BUT I don’t live very cheaply, other people live on fairly less than I do. I also have family support for living expenses and an outside source of funding so I personally estimate my debt at graduation to be more around 60k. But that’s not typical by any means.

[twenty]

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[Allie]

I went to USC ASD and was pretty underwhelmed by the apparent lack of support for PI/govt, and almost everyone there was gunning for some variation of a private practice gig. Is this par for the course at USC, or was my limited experience not very telling?

By lack of support do you mean what sort of resources the school has or just in the sense of what most people seem to be talking about?

Resources wise, I think the school does well. I was specifically interested in working in PI over the summer and the CSO was quite helpful in providing resources and advise as to where to look for these sort of internships. There is definitely more of a structure when it comes to BigLaw but I think this has less to do with the school and more to do with the fact that BigLaw has stable hiring practices which are well known etc, while PI and gov. are very hit-and-miss in general.

Socially, as someone who is hoping to go into government after graduation, I haven't felt any stigma from classmates or staff etc when it comes to that sort of career goal. But, yes, I think most people do want to get into BigLaw at least ideally, but I'd say this is more of a "most people have this personal goal" rather than "the school is a snob" kind of thing, if you know what I mean.

[samoby]

twenty: I'm sorry, I'm totally out of the know when it comes to cross-registration anywhere. I'm also not sure if there's anyone I know in particular in that situation. As for real estate...I can't think of anything specific, although I believe we did have a panel not so long ago on opportunities in that field. I feel like entertainment law is the big thing here though. That and IP of course.

There was a real estate lawyer on a panel at Law Day, and she was talking about a land use class, and then an advanced seminar around that same topic led by some professor (I don't remember the name). According to her, of the people who took the advanced seminar along with her, a very high percentage are still involved with that type of law in some capacity, so supposedly it's very good.

[sequins]

I'm a current 2L - I think there is relatively less support for PI jobs when compared to UCLA mainly when it comes to things like summer funding. USC relies on PILF (a student run organization) to do fundraising to give summer stipends for PI. These are also limited in number, so not everyone who wants them can get them. On the other hand, UCLA has school-sponsored stipends and I think they go to everyone who wants them. I think this is the one way that USC is less supportive of PI work. However, I think in terms of CSO support, networking, linking up with alumni etc. USC offers the same support for PI aspirants as for the private sector.

[Allie]

I'm a current 2L - I think there is relatively less support for PI jobs when compared to UCLA mainly when it comes to things like summer funding. USC relies on PILF (a student run organization) to do fundraising to give summer stipends for PI. These are also limited in number, so not everyone who wants them can get them. On the other hand, UCLA has school-sponsored stipends and I think they go to everyone who wants them. I think this is the one way that USC is less supportive of PI work. However, I think in terms of CSO support, networking, linking up with alumni etc. USC offers the same support for PI aspirants as for the private sector.

Seconding this. PILF grants are kind of frustrating. Not only is there a limited number that goes out but to be eligible you have to do quite a bit of volunteer work throughout the year.

[janwlee]

Hi guys--- I attend a different law school but apparently my spring semester Crim Law Professor is Prof. Dan Simon, visiting from USC! Since this is a mystery guy to me and my classmates, if you guys know anything about this professor could you please share some information? Teaching/exam style, personality etc. Also if there are any outlines out there for his Crim Law class I'd very much appreciate if if you could share that with me. Just trying to get a feel of what/how he's gonna teach. Thanks so much!

[curlietop86]

Echoing jawnlee's question - would love to hear any useful information about Simon!

[Tobin]

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[gastronomy]

Thanks for answering questions!

How safe is the campus, and surrounding neighborhoods? I've heard mixed opinions, so just trying to get a better idea of what it's like.

Also, are there any housing options directly on-campus?

[kade]

Thanks for answering questions!

How safe is the campus, and surrounding neighborhoods? I've heard mixed opinions, so just trying to get a better idea of what it's like.

Also, are there any housing options directly on-campus?

I don't recommend going south of the campus. Many people live near school, and as long as you are aware of your surroundings, you'll be fine. Note that you'll probably end up encountering some dangerous situations at night. The school security patrols the area. Look up DPS patrolled area.

There is no housing options directly on campus for law students unfortunately. They are for undergrads, and you don't want to request for undergrad housing because they are on a different academic calendar as the law school. Having said that Terrace can be great if you want a more social atmosphere. The rooms at Terrace are a good size.

When leaving school late at night, you might use the Supplemental Uber program. The information can be foumd online. Uber rides are free after a certain hour if you are going to or leaving the campus.

Hope that helps. Congrats on your admission to USC. If you have further questions regarding this or another matter, please feel free to pm or post.

TLDR. As long as you watch yourself and know where you are going, you will be fine. It's not so bad that concerns about safety should be a big factor in deciding where you go, for instance.

[gastronomy]

Thanks for answering questions!

How safe is the campus, and surrounding neighborhoods? I've heard mixed opinions, so just trying to get a better idea of what it's like.

Also, are there any housing options directly on-campus?

I don't recommend going south of the campus. Many people live near school, and as long as you are aware of your surroundings, you'll be fine. Note that you'll probably end up encountering some dangerous situations at night. The school security patrols the area. Look up DPS patrolled area.

There is no housing options directly on campus for law students unfortunately. They are for undergrads, and you don't want to request for undergrad housing because they are on a different academic calendar as the law school. Having said that Terrace can be great if you want a more social atmosphere. The rooms at Terrace are a good size.

When leaving school late at night, you might use the Supplemental Uber program. The information can be foumd online. Uber rides are free after a certain hour if you are going to or leaving the campus.

Hope that helps. Congrats on your admission to USC. If you have further questions regarding this or another matter, please feel free to pm or post.

TLDR. As long as you watch yourself and know where you are going, you will be fine. It's not so bad that concerns about safety should be a big factor in deciding where you go, for instance.

PM'ed.

[rnoodles]

Do you have faith in Adoree' Jackson and Juju bringing one home this year?