Michigan 1L taking questions Forum

[topsome]

Hey everyone, I see some of you have already been accepted to law school for the 2009-2010 cycle. Congratulations! TLS has been an invaluable source when I was in your shoes last year so I figure we can spread the wealth!

About me: I didn't even think about applying to Michigan until my father talked me into it. I'm from NYC. I got into half of the T14s and a pretty decent scholarship to every T14 I got into. I ended up going to Michigan because I fell in love with the school and more so because I fell in love with the people. People here just seem to adore their school and Michigan adores them right back. I've never been the school-spirited type but the vibe here is just contagious.

So I'm opening it up to any questions you may have and any 1L, 2L or 3L at Michigan should definitely feel free to chime in.

One last thing, Supreme Court Chief Justice came to our Torts class today!!!! It was unfuckingbelievable. I think this is the type of thing only us law nerds get excited about. We're celebrating our 150th Anniversary this weekend.

[lawlover829]

What year are you?

Also, thanks for starting this thread

[topsome]

What year are you?

Also, thanks for starting this thread

I'm a 1L so I have a measly 3 week of experience to share with you TLSers. But, I have a lot of experience with the whole application process, going to almost all the Accepted Student Days/Weeks and of course, orientation and first week of law school. Also I'm straight out of a undergrad in NYC but I've worked for all four years of undergrad.

Also, I just want to stress so much to those of you who have written off Michigan because of its hated location next to the freezing great lakes... don't! Apply, come visit and THEN write us off. You really won't regret it. <-- I'll probably be singing a different tune come December

As you can tell, I just really love it here.

[hypermeganet]

A/S/L?

[topsome]

A/S/L?

23/M/Ann Arbor

[dk8]

How is the QOL? Having a good time so far?

[Anastasia Dee Dualla]

.

[laolbjob]

.

[hypermeganet]

A/S/L?

23/M/Ann Arbor

Do not want.

[jackassjim]

You mention getting a number of decent scholarships. I was wondering what the process was with Michigan. Were the acceptance and financial aid decisions made at the same time? If not, how did you handle the period between the two?

[Allpakireject]

if you dont mind...stats?

[topsome]

How is the QOL? Having a good time so far?

The quality of life is amazing. I really thought that I would have to sacrifice a lot coming to Ann Arbor from NYC but the exact opposite happened. I kind of feel like I'm living it up.

My apartment is bigger AND it is a lot cheaper (I pay $650 for a studio apartment close to the law school) while I was paying around $1200 in NYC. The quality of food here is amazing and the supermarket is HUGE stocked with ten different types of every produce I didn't even know existed and it is open twenty-four hours a day. Whole Foods, Trader Joes and everything else a foodie needs is a five minute car ride away or a short bus ride away. I hear the public transportation here is very good.

If you're into restaurant eating, the food is really decent here. I love Asian food and they have pretty much everything right around the corner from the Law School and my apartment. There's Viet, Thai, Japanese and a crapola of Chinese food. There are a lot of bars and we do Bar Review at different bars around here which is always fun.

All in all... Michigan exceeded my expectations.

I hope I answered your question.

[topsome]

What is the best advice you can give us for the application process?

How were the first three weeks?

I'm from IN, but lived in MI at one point; that snow will get you later on! Heads up...buy some boots

I tried stocking up on snow stuff a few weeks ago but they weren't in stock... I am planning on buying all sorts of things to keep me warm. Thanks

The best advice I can give for the application process is to be very... candid? Real? Non-douchey? I can't speak for Dean Z personally but it really feels like she tried to pick out people that seemed interesting and not just "I invented the Kindle" kind of interesting (we have a guy here who DID!) but people who are just plain fun. I feel like they really value REAL people here... like you don't have to write your personal essay about curing cancer or winning an Olympic Medal (although we have one of those too... damn I'm coming up with sucky examples) but it could just be about being a middle child or your experiences living in Canada or something. I wrote my essay about growing up in America... nothing really exciting and I got accepted a few days after I sent in my application. I think the point is for you to make yourself sound compelling in one way or another because you definitely are compelling in one way or another, you just have to let that come across on paper.

The first three weeks were the most fun I've had in a long time. I thought I would be devastated leaving my entire family behind and a SO (I have a four year relationship with SO and we live together in NYC-- still going strong, we're both very happy) but I've been too busy meeting all the great people, attending the endless amounts of events Michigan has to offer and reading for classes I haven't had the time to really sit down and miss home. I have to say though, Law School is a big like being back in HS again. Everyone knows everyone and everyone seems to know everyone's business too. Yes, I definitely miss my family and SO but I think Michigan has made it really easy on me not to get too homesick.

[topsome]

Do you have some wonderful advice to offer as to the "Why Michgan?" essay?

Did you write one?

No, I didn't write a "Why Michigan" essay but DO NOT MAKE THIS MISTAKE!

Not writing a "Why Michigan?" or a "Why Penn?" or a "Why NYU?" or just fill in the blank school is VERY dangerous. I had no idea when I submitted my applications that the "Why ____?" were so important. I cannot stress how IMPORTANT the "Why ______?" essays are so important. Please write one for every school that offers them, it was one of the biggest mistakes I made. I know several people who had the numbers but just simply did not show enough interest in the school and got waitlisted.

You do not want to be on the waitlist, I know Michigan (along with a few other schools) didn't have to go to it because they over enrolled.

As for advice, personally, I think Dean Z would be impressed if you wrote about the culture at Michigan. I get the general sense that Dean Caminker, Dean Z, the entire faculty and the student body really value the culture here. I know Michigan is known for taking the holistic approach so maybe you can work that into the essay somehow? You can talk about how you plan to give back by way of the many clubs we have here and how you want to get involved with clubs and clinics. It just seems to me that it would be more impressive than going on wikipedia and regurgitating arcane facts that they probably already know.

[topsome]

You mention getting a number of decent scholarships. I was wondering what the process was with Michigan. Were the acceptance and financial aid decisions made at the same time? If not, how did you handle the period between the two?

The scholarships are very numbers oriented. If you fall into X GPA and X LSAT then they give you X amount of money. I know it's negotiable because I was able to leverage my UVA scholarship to increase my scholarship at Michigan (granted it was only like $5000). However, I was unable to leverage my UVA scholarship to increase my scholarship at Duke. Definitely try to negotiate, there's nothing for you to lose by asking and a whole lot to gain.

None of my scholarship notices came with my acceptance. The scholarship notification usually came a week or two after the acceptance and you have no way of knowing if you receive a merit scholarship based on your acceptance. Also, you don't have to apply for the merit scholarships they're automatically given. Financial Aid is something you must apply for on the other hand, but all that stuff isn't due until Feb or March and it's completely separate from the admissions process.

I believe, the only scholarship that require some sort of action are the ones from NYU and Georgetown but don't quote me on that. They require essays.

[topsome]

if you dont mind...stats?

Sure, 170 3.81.

[FlightoftheEarls]

Thanks for creating this thread topsome. I'm assuming you are EFGH as well since you referred to Roberts coming into Torts?

I'm also a 1L at Michigan and can assist in answering any questions or providing a supplementary perspective on any issues that you might have. Anyone can feel free to PM me with any questions as well that you don't want to ask in the thread, I'll be more than happy to answer.

[Kant]

Do you hit on hot undergraduates?

[rondemarino]

Do you hit on hot undergraduates?

Follow Up: Were you successful?

[Kant]

Do you hit on hot undergraduates?

Follow Up: Were you successful?

Also, are there a lot of hot female undergraduates?

[rondemarino]

On a more serious note - when looking at Michigan did you have any concerns about its location? I mean, football and beer is great and all, but I can't imagine that its easy to find opportunities to clerk with prominent law firms during the school year.

[Anastasia Dee Dualla]

.

[topsome]

Do you hit on hot undergraduates?

Follow Up: Were you successful?

Also, are there a lot of hot female undergraduates?

1. Do you hit on hot undergraduates? No. I know a lot of guys here whom are single and it doesn't seem like they're chasing the undergraduate tail so if you come to Michigan you will have free reign of 20,000 undergrads available for ya. Haha, but really... I hear if undergrads are your thing, it's pretty impressive to the girls that you're in Law School so that's a plus for the single guys. On the other hand, girls are more likely to strike out with undergrad guys (Although, I've never heard of any girls here looking in the undergrad department) because it's evidently intimidating? Double standard man...

2. Was I successful? See 1.

3. Are there a lot of hot female undergraduates? Honestly? There are A LOT of girls around... Michigan is huge. If you're coming to Law School to hook up there are definitely no shortage of girls. As with any college, there is more than a fair share of sorority girls lurking around every corner. I'm not kidding when I say it feels like you're surrounded by a sea of sorority girls simply walking to Law School. There are MANY MANY opportunities to mingle with every school... whether it be business, undergrad, engineering, social work etc... you can hang out with anyone and everyone.

*Caveat: I'm sorry I'm not more help with the dating scene. As I've mentioned, I've been in the happiest relationship of my life for almost four years so I haven't been looking at all. Maybe some single Michigan Law students can chime in on the dating scene?

[topsome]

On a more serious note - when looking at Michigan did you have any concerns about its location? I mean, football and beer is great and all, but I can't imagine that its easy to find opportunities to clerk with prominent law firms during the school year.

Definitely, the location was my number one concern for me. I'm not into football at all and the nice thing is that you don't have to be into football... I do all my weekly shopping during the football games and the stores are deserted. It's sweet.

You mean... interning with a law firm and clerking with a judge right? Okay so...

Interning with a law firm: Law firms generally do not take 1Ls. In fact, the career center won't even begin to help you until December 1st. If you're lucky enough to score an internship, it takes place in the summer so location is not an issue there. I hear there are ABA restrictions on how much you can work during 1L and additionally, YOU DON'T WANT TO WORK YOUR 1L YEAR! Concentrate on getting good grades, everything else will fall into place later. If you're talking about 2L or 3L year, you can get an externship which mean you can leave Michigan and go to any city you want and intern, clerk, take classes.. whatever. I think that's true at every Law School though. I heard that if you never want to step into Michigan Law again after 2L, you don't have to because of all the outside opportunities available.

Clerking with a Judge: This happens during the summer so location is not an issue.

I want to double stress that location is definitely not a minus to Michigan. There's nothing you can do at other schools that you can't do at Michigan academically and career-wise.

[merc280]

how much does Michigan value volunteering and public service that I may have done during undergrad. I have a low gpa and will have a 3.0 at graduation, but have a strong upward trend. Do they put much emphasis on that?