Law school tips from a guy with a #1 class rank Forum

[bizjunkie4]

I realize many TLS readers have their hearts set on elite schools and Big Law jobs. I've tried to stay away from both of those things as much as possible. However, you may still be interested in this interview I conducted with the No. 1 student in our class at the University of Louisville, where we are both 3Ls. He provides insight on final exams, student debt, and how to land a Big Law job coming from a Tier 2 school. Here is the interview: http://uofllawschool.blogspot.com/

[CanadianWolf]

The article states that "...he's a law school exam destroyer...", but fails to address how he approaches law school exams. Preparation for law school exams--briefing & outlining in this case--is one method of studying that reveals little about how to "destroy law school exams". Thank you for sharing your article, but I think that you really missed an opportunity to gather & share more insightful techniques.

[CanadianWolf]

I also read your article about the former musician who became editor-in-chief of the Louisville Law Review. Once again, this seems like a missed opportunity to gather & share meaningful information. "Networking" with law firms & law firm recruiters is an important issue, not networking with other law student law review members, in my opinion. Many law review editors--especially editors-in-chief-- receive private invitations to law firm functions & individual courting that would make for a very interesting & motivational read.

P.S. Sorry to be so negative, however these fluff pieces wasted great opportunities to learn valuable information.

[bizjunkie4]

I also read your article about the former musician who became editor-in-chief of the Louisville Law Review. Once again, this seems like a missed opportunity to gather & share meaningful information. "Networking" with law firms & law firm recruiters is an important issue, not networking with other law student law review members, in my opinion. Many law review editors--especially editors-in-chief-- receive private invitations to law firm functions & individual courting that would make for a very interesting & motivational read.

P.S. Sorry to be so negative, however these fluff pieces wasted great opportunities to learn valuable information.

You're not being too negative at all. I wish I had more time to delve into some of these finer points. As far as strategies for law school exams, I think there is some modest value to reading books such as Getting to Maybe, and also using study aids and the outlining process described by Mr. Rich in the interview. However, there is no Rosetta Stone in my opinion. At the end of the day, the biggest factor is probably the amount of time you spend preparing and outlining, along with innate intelligence and test-taking ability. For example, despite spending a gigantic amount of time on many classes during my three years of law school, I was never able to crack the top 10 percent of the class in terms of rank (although I did get close for a few semesters). I hope this helps. Any other specific questions?

[CanadianWolf]

Since you're an experienced journalist, an interesting book or law review article might be fashioned out of interviews with dozens of law review editors-in-chief. Again, thank you for sharing your work.

[bizjunkie4]

Since you're an experienced journalist, an interesting book or law review article might be fashioned out of interviews with dozens of law review editors-in-chief. Again, thank you for sharing your work.

It may bore you to tears, but I did write a lengthy piece last fall about the current state of law reviews, their relationship to getting an actual job, etc. It won't be published for another few weeks, but you can read the final draft at this link: http://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm? ... id=1968932