Michigan 2012 Forum

[tl]

I'd also recommend seeking out something besides law school related things to do, apart from other law students. I really like the people in my classes, and I'm looking forward to getting to know them better, but I can already tell that a section of 22 students is going to get stifling, fast, unless I spend some regular time outside of this environment. Michigan recommends volunteer work in the local community, and I think that's what I'm going to do.

I don't find this true at all. I hang out with law students about 99% of the time (and this is true of A LOT of people), and I don't find them "stifling." It helps to have friends in different sections that you don't have all your classes with. (Don't take this personal because it's not meant to be) But I find it you tend to complain about how much you are tired of law students and you want to get away from them here at Michigan, it says a lot more about you than them. The type of people at Michigan who complain about this are likely to be miserable in any environment.

These are the things I like to hear. The majority of the law school workload paranoia that I hear about all comes from 0L's. Most of the current students that I've met all seem to have some semblance of a life outside of law school work. Sure, I'm nervous about the workload, because I was an arts major and never really had to do a TON of studying in any particular semester, but I couldn't fathom staying SANE unless I had some sort of free time during the week - whether that's getting sucked into some lame reality TV show, going to saturday football games, playing an IM sport, or whatever.

Yes there is a good amount of reading per night. Yes there will be times when Legal Practice will get hectic and make you hate your life. But if you find yourself studying so much that you don't have free time to do the stuff that you want to do, then you might be studying too much. The material is really not that difficult to grasp. IMO, succeeding in law school is about being able to write a good exam not memorizing the material on a nightly basis. The only time that you really need to ramp it up is during finals. Any other time, you can easily get done with your work putting in 8 or less hours a day and that is including class time.

[MLaw11]

I seriously don't know if people are joking when they ask these questions or if they're serious. If you've ever worked a full-time job, you will have the exact same amount of free time (except during finals when there is no free-time, but you probably won't care at this time anyway).

Though I agree with you (and your subsequent post), there were people who spent nearly every waking moment studying. And I'm only talking normal people, not the gunnerish ones. I've heard people who were looking forward to taking a break from studying to watch a movie...because they earned it through 2-3 days of work prior.

I cannot fathom this; I probably put in 40 hour weeks. But I certainly got the impression that I was studying less than most and that the 'no free time' people do exist. Not advocating, just saying it's not a myth.

[summertimechi]

i should probably know this already but how/when do we go about applying for GradPLUS loans at Mich? also, i 'accepted' my federal stafford loans and got an e-mail saying i still needed to sign the master promisory note for those, but should i go ahead and sign that now or wait until i've gotten those gradplus loans as well, since they're all Direct loans?

[WIdan]

i should probably know this already but how/when do we go about applying for GradPLUS loans at Mich? also, i 'accepted' my federal stafford loans and got an e-mail saying i still needed to sign the master promisory note for those, but should i go ahead and sign that now or wait until i've gotten those gradplus loans as well, since they're all Direct loans?

I accepted my loans this morning and completed the MPN a couple weeks ago. If you go to the financial aid site, there's a link somewhere about supplemental aid. If you click it there's a Grad PLUS link that tells you what you need to do. There are two sheets you have to print and send back to them - one is allowing them to check your credit and the other is the loan application. There's also a link to the MPN site and some sort of online financial aid counseling you have to complete.

I haven't done anything but the MPN yet, this is just what I saw this morning when I didn't feel like working (kinda like right now). So I could be wrong or there might be more...

[nicoz]

I submitted my GradPlus app a month ago and still haven't heard anything, although I was told that the school doesn't start processing those until later in the summer. Just comb through the finaid page and it pretty much walks you step by step through the whole process.

[nhambley]

So I just signed up for the Lawyer's Club housing! I am staying in the double's suite deal. It is a single room that shares a common room with another person.

Anyone want to room with me? PM me if you are interested.

I figure instead of leaving it up to chance, I can find someone beforehand on TLS....as long as you are not a psycho killer.

-Nick

[just a girl]

I don't find this true at all. I hang out with law students about 99% of the time (and this is true of A LOT of people), and I don't find them "stifling." It helps to have friends in different sections that you don't have all your classes with. (Don't take this personal because it's not meant to be) But I find it you tend to complain about how much you are tired of law students and you want to get away from them here at Michigan, it says a lot more about you than them. The type of people at Michigan who complain about this are likely to be miserable in any environment.

I'm not tired of law students (and I don't anticipate becoming so) but since I'm a summer starter, I only really interact with about 85 other people, and for the most part, only with the roughly 22 people in my section. I'm not complaining about being around them, but I know that for my own mental health, I can't only be around people who are doing the same thing as me. I need to be reminded about other people in my community, and I need to feel like I'm a part of something more than just my academics. That's all I meant by that. I think Dean Zearfoss has done an exemplary job in putting this group together, the people here really are awesome.

[06072010]

where the fuck are my grades?!?!?!?!

[awesomepossum]

ditto.

[Nietzsche]

I am thinking about catching lunch with Dean Zearfoss. Anyone else from the summer section want to join?
Probably for next weekend....

[Alexandria]

OK, I'm officially entering my last two days of winter semester. The torture of paper-writing will be done by 11:59 tomorrow night.

[charliec9]

where the fuck are my grades?!?!?!?!

Still none here...and out of four classes, two were smaller. I don't know if it's the profs or the registrar that is running slow.

[Merriweather]

i was planning to move in the 22-23 just to be able to stay in my beloved chi-town as long as possible.

i would if i were you. it's really one of the worst feelings in the world being in ann arbor and realizing what you gave up. there were 2-3 months in both semesters i went to chicago every single weekend.

Law school is not prison.

I seriously don't know if people are joking when they ask these questions or if they're serious. If you've ever worked a full-time job, you will have the exact same amount of free time (except during finals when there is no free-time, but you probably won't care at this time anyway).

i think this is the collegeconfidential crowd moving up. CC is a place where people ask questions about their up and coming elite college experience down to questions like "should i bring notebooks or loose leaf paper?" (actual question) and "what kind of whiteboard do i need? will i need one to make friends?" (also actual question). it's ridiculous. the whole idea of getting there and seeing for yourself if you have enough time to watch tv is completely anathema. i went to chicago shortly before finals to get away. and when you finally realize briefing cases is dumb and worthless, class isn't much better, and reading doesn't really take that long when you are only trying to get a 1-3 line rule out of it... you have plenty of time to watch tv.

I'd also recommend seeking out something besides law school related things to do, apart from other law students. I really like the people in my classes, and I'm looking forward to getting to know them better, but I can already tell that a section of 22 students is going to get stifling, fast, unless I spend some regular time outside of this environment. Michigan recommends volunteer work in the local community, and I think that's what I'm going to do.

totally agree. honestly, it was enough for me to just not live in the LC. i'd have killed self if i was around these people constantly.

Yes there will be times when Legal Practice will get hectic and make you hate your life..

in those dark hours, we remember - it's pass fail.



oh and, generally, WHERE THE FUCK are my grades? fucking stupid.

[annarborbound]

I also have no grades, and it's also driving me crazy.

In addition, I'm not really enjoying waiting for journal/law review news. Can somebody remind me when the class of 2011 finds out this? I remember the dates for law review/journals being all different, but I was so sick of the packet by the end of the competition that I threw everything away. Also, can anybody who is currently on law review/a journal speak to the number/quality of applications, or is that top-secret?

[snotrocket]

In addition, I'm not really enjoying waiting for journal/law review news. Can somebody remind me when the class of 2011 finds out this? I remember the dates for law review/journals being all different, but I was so sick of the packet by the end of the competition that I threw everything away. Also, can anybody who is currently on law review/a journal speak to the number/quality of applications, or is that top-secret?

Don't look for law review before mid-July. Remember that they're waiting for our grades too, before they can make the cuts. CW in past years was that 1/2 of the class would finish the write-on for law review, but it's hard to tell if more people decided to do it this year because of the terrible hiring market. I expect that LR is not going to release any stats on how many apps they got until at least after notifications go out.

[Merriweather]

I also have no grades, and it's also driving me crazy.

In addition, I'm not really enjoying waiting for journal/law review news. Can somebody remind me when the class of 2011 finds out this? I remember the dates for law review/journals being all different, but I was so sick of the packet by the end of the competition that I threw everything away. Also, can anybody who is currently on law review/a journal speak to the number/quality of applications, or is that top-secret?

i was told late july.


just put that out of your mind dood

[annarborbound]

i was told late july.


just put that out of your mind dood

Definitely easier said than done.

[Merriweather]

i was told late july.


just put that out of your mind dood

Definitely easier said than done.

weird. i'm psychotic about grades and all but not this. don't even think of it.

[Son of Cicero]

where the fuck are my grades?!?!?!?!

Yeah, WTF, man. One of my profs (YLS grad) graded 90 exams in 10 days. Not a peep from the others, and we're at 3-4 weeks. Maybe Yalies really are special.

I'm getting kind of nervous about classes...

Everyone knows Mich summer start is super breezy. Don't ruin the party with this kind of talk.

Sartre's famous line "Hell is other people" should have been the caption for the group photo they took of my small section at the end of the first semester of LS, when everyone had spent the past few months making what was realistically a very manageable educational experience so much worse with their constant whining about how tough everything supposedly was. It's as if one of the rules of the law student club is that everybody has to exaggerate how stressful and confusing the study of law is. Don't be nervous. It clicks for everyone at some point in the semester. Let your public service for the semester be the internalization of your exasperation if that "clicking" takes a while.

[USC2009]

Ok, so I have a housing update.

I'm still in talks with a few guys about splitting a house in A2, but there's been no progress in the search for a place in the last couple months. I really want to get housing taken care of, as it's the last nagging concern I have for the fall. As a result, I want to keep my options open while housing is still available in A2, so here we go...

I started talking with Woodbury Gardens about possibly getting a 2 bedroom, 2 person apartment.

I'm looking for one male roommate. Woodbury is really close to campus, and has a bus stop right next to it for the cold days. Some info about me and what kind of roommate I'm looking for:
-21 years old. From California (near Los Angeles). Graduate of USC.
-I'm really laid back, and I usually keep it quiet a night. You won't have to worry about excess noise with me. I spend most of my free time watching sports/TV shows/movies, reading, going to the gym, and just going out. I'm really looking for someone who is friendly but also quiet in the evening, since noise/sleep is a big concern for me.
-I'm open to possibly having a pet, but I think there are fees at Woodbury and I'd probably prefer not to have one, at least as a 1L. One less thing to worry about, and they can get in the way when you don't have your own backyard.
-I want someone who will be willing to clean the apartment fairly regularly - I don't mean every week, but quite a few times per semester would be nice. I spent the last year living with four other guys who didn't clean AT ALL. It wasn't fun.
-Many of my past roommates have been very irresponsible and immature (forgetting to turn the stove and other appliances off for long periods, leaving the doors unlocked all night, etc.) and I'm really trying to avoid that.
-Non-smokers please (I'm from California and I'm kind of a health nut)
-I'm probably going to either bring a car or buy one in Michigan, and I would be happy to do joint grocery trips


The places I've looked at have two bedrooms, 1 1/2 bath, and most seem to come with a washer/dryer (although those will probably go faster than apartments without W/Ds). The guy at Woodbury said to figure about $575 per person per month.



PM me if you want more info.

[Alexandria]

I feel like I heard about journals in mid-July. Anyway, I'm grading some applications for my journal, and my deadline is in mid/late June. And then they'll have to compile the results from various graders, wait on the slackers who haven't turned them in, make decisions, etc.

[snotrocket]

From California (near Los Angeles). Graduate of USC.

Really? I did not know that. It's weird, you know. You think you know people, and then . . . one day they just come out with something like this, totally out of left field.

[USC2009]

From California (near Los Angeles). Graduate of USC.

Really? I did not know that. It's weird, you know. You think you know people, and then . . . one day they just come out with something like this, totally out of left field.

I wrote this for the Mich Law Facebook Group dammit!

[snotrocket]

Yeah, WTF, man. One of my profs (YLS grad) graded 90 exams in 10 days.

It's nice to get grades early, but that's unnervingly fast.

[06072010]

I also have no grades, and it's also driving me crazy.

In addition, I'm not really enjoying waiting for journal/law review news. Can somebody remind me when the class of 2011 finds out this? I remember the dates for law review/journals being all different, but I was so sick of the packet by the end of the competition that I threw everything away. Also, can anybody who is currently on law review/a journal speak to the number/quality of applications, or is that top-secret?

i was told late july.


just put that out of your mind dood

Late july can't be it, there are fucking off-cycle clerkships that need grades. I will cut a bitch.