Catholic University Columbus School of Law Forum

A forum for applicants and admitted students to ask law students and graduates about law school and the practice of law.
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Brucewaynegretzky

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Re: Catholic University Columbus School of Law

Post by Brucewaynegretzky » Tue Apr 07, 2009 10:57 pm

Were you a CUA undergrad as well?

The Cobi Jones Experience

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Re: Catholic University Columbus School of Law

Post by The Cobi Jones Experience » Wed Apr 08, 2009 3:03 pm

No, never attended CUA undergrad program.

smartypants

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Re: Catholic University Columbus School of Law

Post by smartypants » Thu Apr 09, 2009 2:42 pm

I graduated from CUA Law School. I found the law school oppressively conservative and regretted my choice of law school because of it. For example, one constitutional law professor does not teach Roe v. Wade to his students. He simply ignores the case, as though it never happened. I can provide more shocking stories if you personal message me.

I chose CUA over higher ranked schools in both DC and NYC because CUA gave me a generous scholarship. At the time, it seemed I was making a wise financial decision. Unfortunately, I did not fully investigate CUA's LRAP (which was boasted about during my tour by an admissions office staff member). I practice public interest law and CUA's LRAP basically exists in name only. I believe since 2006 CUA has only given one grant. So, while at the outset, my legal education cost less, with no assistance for my loan payments from CUA, I'm actually paying more in the long run. Obviously, another reason I regret my choice.

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HopefulCareerSwitch

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Re: Catholic University Columbus School of Law

Post by HopefulCareerSwitch » Wed Apr 15, 2009 11:05 am

Is anyone still waiting to hear back from Catholic? I know I need to be patient because my application went in late February, but it seems like they are taking a long time making decisions!

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Re: Catholic University Columbus School of Law

Post by Danteshek » Thu Apr 16, 2009 1:29 am

I am. I might have cared if they got back to me in a reasonable time frame. I've already made my decision.

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HopefulCareerSwitch

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Re: Catholic University Columbus School of Law

Post by HopefulCareerSwitch » Thu Apr 16, 2009 12:17 pm

That's cool you were able to make a decision! I'm still sitting on a bunch of WL's and lacking an acceptance so I hope Catholic will get around to sending me something! Good luck to you! :)

parallax

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Re: Catholic University Columbus School of Law

Post by parallax » Thu Apr 23, 2009 4:02 pm

I came across this site after I heard that CUA had falling in rankings. I believe it was in the mid 40s when I was the school several years ago. While I do not believe that rankings should dictate why you choose a school, one should question why the law school has declined in the rankings. I think part of the problem is that the school deliberately shifted to the right and attempted to become more doctrinaire (to compete with the Ave Maries of the world). While it is perfectly within the school's right to do so, it may have negative side effects. For instance, I know this has created an apathy from alumni who attended the school before the shift. In addition, I believe it has limited the ability for the school to obtain outstanding and credentialed professors who can be invaluable in helping you obtain a job or internship.

I don't want to be overly negative because I did enjoy my time at Catholic. If you are going to joing the SEC or communications program, it will give you a great head start. In addition, CUA alumni are entrenched in major law firms, government and inhouse, which can be helpful for when looking for a job.

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Teapot

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Re: Catholic University Columbus School of Law

Post by Teapot » Thu Apr 23, 2009 5:28 pm

parallax wrote:I came across this site after I heard that CUA had falling in rankings. I believe it was in the mid 40s when I was the school several years ago. While I do not believe that rankings should dictate why you choose a school, one should question why the law school has declined in the rankings. I think part of the problem is that the school deliberately shifted to the right and attempted to become more doctrinaire (to compete with the Ave Maries of the world). While it is perfectly within the school's right to do so, it may have negative side effects. For instance, I know this has created an apathy from alumni who attended the school before the shift. In addition, I believe it has limited the ability for the school to obtain outstanding and credentialed professors who can be invaluable in helping you obtain a job or internship.

I don't want to be overly negative because I did enjoy my time at Catholic. If you are going to joing the SEC or communications program, it will give you a great head start. In addition, CUA alumni are entrenched in major law firms, government and inhouse, which can be helpful for when looking for a job.
nice post. thanks for contributing.

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Re: Catholic University Columbus School of Law

Post by wdd440 » Thu Apr 30, 2009 8:42 pm

i am trying to decide too... i actually went there for undergrad and loved it...there is a real sense of community and most people are very helpful, fun and genuine..i loved DC... the area really isn't that bad, though i can see people not from the area thinking that it is..btw it is getting better..there are def worse places...also i think if you just live in dc near the hill, etc then it won't even matter...also the clinics are ranked in like the top 15 so if you get in those or the institutes they are supposed to act like feeder programs into gov. jobs etc...you should take a visit if you get the chance..i think the campus is beautiful...the largest in DC and has a metro stop on campus...easy to get to and from...the law school is pretty new and nice....i know it isn't the highest ranked...but catholic grads are vvveeerry loyal, so people will def help you out

so there is some food for thought....i kind of convince myself when i talk about it..i know i just went there for undergrad and cant tell everything about law school ..but i know about catholic in general and people who have gone to law school there...so if you have any questions, feel free to ask

p.s. when i played volleyball there in undergrad, I worked the intramurals for work-study..and a lot of the law school students participated and had a lot of fun, went out for drinks, etc...i know not a make or break it...but having fun with people in the class def sweetens the deal....

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ckalis

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Re: Catholic University Columbus School of Law

Post by ckalis » Mon May 04, 2009 12:00 pm

HopefulCareerSwitch wrote:That's cool you were able to make a decision! I'm still sitting on a bunch of WL's and lacking an acceptance so I hope Catholic will get around to sending me something! Good luck to you! :)
Hopeful-- I went complete in early March and just received my acceptance email on Friday, May 1 (followed by the scholarship offer email). Status checker updated to "Decision Mailed" Friday morning, email came on Friday afternoon.

Best of luck!!

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Brucewaynegretzky

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Re: Catholic University Columbus School of Law

Post by Brucewaynegretzky » Mon May 11, 2009 6:36 pm

I'm bumping this thread to post the latest publicity the school has gotten.

http://www.washingtoncitypaper.com/display.php?id=37178

Like I said before, when it comes to CUA in the press, all news is bad news. The comments are interesting, but I would suggest anyone considering the school think about whether they could tolerate the atmosphere described in the article because it can get that bad and worse at times. In the interest of objectivity though it can be much much better and there is an element of self-selection when it comes to these things. Sometimes the crazies are just unavoidable, though.

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trinacria1383

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Re: Catholic University Columbus School of Law

Post by trinacria1383 » Mon May 11, 2009 7:08 pm

I ultimately decided to shit can this cycle, retake the lsat and reapply next cycle. That said I was admitted to Catholic without scholarship funds (a solid gpa, amazing application and shitty lsat will do that for you). I decided to try and solicit some non-financed aid from Catholic and was incredibly disappointed with the administration. Two letters (financial aid and admissions), three e-mails to financial aid and two e-mails to the Dean of Admissions went without a response and two phone calls went unreturned. To say the least I am incredibly disappointed with the administration.

iman883

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Re: Catholic University Columbus School of Law

Post by iman883 » Tue May 12, 2009 4:14 pm

Brucewaynegretzky wrote:I'm bumping this thread to post the latest publicity the school has gotten.

http://www.washingtoncitypaper.com/display.php?id=37178

Like I said before, when it comes to CUA in the press, all news is bad news. The comments are interesting, but I would suggest anyone considering the school think about whether they could tolerate the atmosphere described in the article because it can get that bad and worse at times. In the interest of objectivity though it can be much much better and there is an element of self-selection when it comes to these things. Sometimes the crazies are just unavoidable, though.

I don't really understand the point of this post. First off, this talks about the undergrad institution, not the law school. Secondly, are you planning on using an empty classroom as a bedroom? Most if not all law students live off campus- this would seem to apply to dorm life. I'm not sure why the subject of this article would make any difference in choosing your law school...

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debbiestevens

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Re: Catholic University Columbus School of Law

Post by debbiestevens » Tue May 12, 2009 4:17 pm

I know a girl that went to CUA and still does not have a job. From what I hear, their career services sucks.

ckalis

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Re: Catholic University Columbus School of Law

Post by ckalis » Tue May 12, 2009 4:22 pm

debbiestevens wrote:I know a girl that went to CUA and still does not have a job. From what I hear, their career services sucks.
Just curious, but what was her rank?

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hoffb86

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Re: Catholic University Columbus School of Law

Post by hoffb86 » Tue May 12, 2009 4:31 pm

debbiestevens wrote:I know a girl that went to CUA and still does not have a job. From what I hear, their career services sucks.

I have a friend who just finished 1L (towards the top of her class) at CUA, and found a internship with a DC Superior Court judge for the summer, not bad, but not awful in this economy.

You do have to be towards the top of your class coming out of CUA for any degree of comfort in your job prospects, ESPECIALLY right now.

ckalis

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Re: Catholic University Columbus School of Law

Post by ckalis » Tue May 12, 2009 4:44 pm

hoffb86 wrote:
debbiestevens wrote:I know a girl that went to CUA and still does not have a job. From what I hear, their career services sucks.

I have a friend who just finished 1L (towards the top of her class) at CUA, and found a internship with a DC Superior Court judge for the summer, not bad, but not awful in this economy.

You do have to be towards the top of your class coming out of CUA for any degree of comfort in your job prospects, ESPECIALLY right now.
This is the impression I get from the Catholic alumni. We have 7 associates from Catholic here at the firm I work at (BigLaw/DC). They all had several offers, but were in the top of the class ranks. Though honestly for DC right now, I'd say you need to be in the top of your class if you want to get a job in this town without a Georgetown or higher degree.

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hoffb86

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Re: Catholic University Columbus School of Law

Post by hoffb86 » Tue May 12, 2009 4:49 pm

ckalis wrote:
hoffb86 wrote:
debbiestevens wrote:I know a girl that went to CUA and still does not have a job. From what I hear, their career services sucks.

I have a friend who just finished 1L (towards the top of her class) at CUA, and found a internship with a DC Superior Court judge for the summer, not bad, but not awful in this economy.

You do have to be towards the top of your class coming out of CUA for any degree of comfort in your job prospects, ESPECIALLY right now.
This is the impression I get from the Catholic alumni. We have 7 associates from Catholic here at the firm I work at (BigLaw/DC). They all had several offers, but were in the top of the class ranks. Though honestly for DC right now, I'd say you need to be in the top of your class if you want to get a job in this town without a Georgetown or higher degree.
We've got like 4 or 5, I think they just let one go though, but I know we have one coming in as a summer associate this year (but they used to work as a paralegal here).... My firm doesn't actively recruit CUA, but will accept resumes from top students.

ckalis

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Re: Catholic University Columbus School of Law

Post by ckalis » Tue May 12, 2009 5:00 pm

hoffb86 wrote:
ckalis wrote:
hoffb86 wrote:
debbiestevens wrote:I know a girl that went to CUA and still does not have a job. From what I hear, their career services sucks.

I have a friend who just finished 1L (towards the top of her class) at CUA, and found a internship with a DC Superior Court judge for the summer, not bad, but not awful in this economy.

You do have to be towards the top of your class coming out of CUA for any degree of comfort in your job prospects, ESPECIALLY right now.
This is the impression I get from the Catholic alumni. We have 7 associates from Catholic here at the firm I work at (BigLaw/DC). They all had several offers, but were in the top of the class ranks. Though honestly for DC right now, I'd say you need to be in the top of your class if you want to get a job in this town without a Georgetown or higher degree.
We've got like 4 or 5, I think they just let one go though, but I know we have one coming in as a summer associate this year (but they used to work as a paralegal here).... My firm doesn't actively recruit CUA, but will accept resumes from top students.
Good to know!!

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Brucewaynegretzky

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Re: Catholic University Columbus School of Law

Post by Brucewaynegretzky » Tue May 12, 2009 9:39 pm

iman883 wrote:
Brucewaynegretzky wrote:I'm bumping this thread to post the latest publicity the school has gotten.

http://www.washingtoncitypaper.com/display.php?id=37178

Like I said before, when it comes to CUA in the press, all news is bad news. The comments are interesting, but I would suggest anyone considering the school think about whether they could tolerate the atmosphere described in the article because it can get that bad and worse at times. In the interest of objectivity though it can be much much better and there is an element of self-selection when it comes to these things. Sometimes the crazies are just unavoidable, though.

I don't really understand the point of this post. First off, this talks about the undergrad institution, not the law school. Secondly, are you planning on using an empty classroom as a bedroom? Most if not all law students live off campus- this would seem to apply to dorm life. I'm not sure why the subject of this article would make any difference in choosing your law school...
I'm just trying to point out the general attitude of the administration. You're right that the issues here are not DIRECTLY related to LS. However, it is my belief that the biggest problem with CUA is their administrative philosophy. This article is a great example of that philosophy in action.

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Re: Catholic University Columbus School of Law

Post by debbiestevens » Tue May 12, 2009 9:52 pm

ckalis wrote:
debbiestevens wrote:I know a girl that went to CUA and still does not have a job. From what I hear, their career services sucks.
Just curious, but what was her rank?

Not sure--probably top 1/3 or so. She basically said career services is inept and if you want a job, you are on your own to find it (at CUA).

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ckalis

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Re: Catholic University Columbus School of Law

Post by ckalis » Wed May 13, 2009 7:28 am

debbiestevens wrote:
ckalis wrote:
debbiestevens wrote:I know a girl that went to CUA and still does not have a job. From what I hear, their career services sucks.
Just curious, but what was her rank?

Not sure--probably top 1/3 or so. She basically said career services is inept and if you want a job, you are on your own to find it (at CUA).
Gotcha. I've heard similar things re: career services and Catholic, American, and GW. You're basically on your own. Best of luck to her!!

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Re: Catholic University Columbus School of Law

Post by stioseco » Sun May 17, 2009 8:21 pm

this economy is terrible. we can't look just at the one example of this girl who went to CUA law and now is without a job to assess the overall prospects of the school generally. My cousin is graduating from georgetown law in the spring and her job offer was retracted (she did a summer associate job in one of the top d.c. firms last summer for 2L) and now is doing temp work. so, we can't really say overall, that CUA sucks based on one example. We have to look at the overall picture here.

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Re: Catholic University Columbus School of Law

Post by Bankhead » Mon May 18, 2009 1:14 pm

My firm recruits actively (OCI) from Catholic, but you have to be at the top of the class.

ckalis

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Re: Catholic University Columbus School of Law

Post by ckalis » Mon May 18, 2009 1:52 pm

nitsudrx wrote:My firm recruits actively (OCI) from Catholic, but you have to be at the top of the class.
Good to know!

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