Getting the most out of (law) school Forum

[NightHooded]

I am curious -besides the legal learning- how can you better yourself in law school? I want to put academics first, but if I have enormous resources at hand, I don't want to waste them.

Some ideas I have-
Start working out/exercising
Take up a ritzy sport (ie golf, tennis)
Make sure to join legal societies (or perhaps university-wide ones)

Basically, I want to come out of the experience a better, rounded person. If possible...

[mikeytwoshoes]

[strike]I am curious -besides the legal learning- how can you better yourself in law school? I want to put academics first, but if I have enormous resources at hand, I don't want to waste them.

Some ideas I have-
Start working out/exercising
Take up a ritzy sport (ie golf, tennis)
Make sure to join legal societies (or perhaps university-wide ones)

Basically, I want to come out of the experience a better, rounded person. If possible...[/strike]

Study, sleep, rinse and repeat.

This is what I call 0L-psychosis. You want to do everything backwards. Study before law school and be social in law school. It just doesn't work in that order.

[bk1]

The only thing I would focus on is to maintain a healthy eating and workout regime. Nothing too hardcore but just working out regularly and maintaining a balanced diet (of course indulging every so often). This makes me feel more motivated, but ymmv.

[jks289]

1L I am going to just obsessively study and try to eat, sleep, exercise and shower as permitted. If I emerge from that with decent grades, I'll consider joining school groups the last two years. My natural inclination is to be anti-social, but a lawyer I talked to recently advised me not to underestimate the importance of networking with my peers during school, which does make sense to me.

[NightHooded]

I understand there's a lot of studying to be done, but I have been told about "diminishing returns."

Also, I'm told it's more important than before to join journals, societies, etc. to get you to stand out.

[mikeytwoshoes]

I understand there's a lot of studying to be done, but I have been told about "diminishing returns."

Also, I'm told it's more important than before to join journals, societies, etc. to get you to stand out.

Grades>>>>>>>everything else.

lol at societies.

[Netopalis]

It's not entirely impossible to have a social life or better oneself during 1L year. I'm just finishing up my 1L year, and I'm in the top 10% at my school - I think that I've had a better quality of life than I had in undergrad. Now, admittedly, if your goal is to get drunk or party every night, or to spend 5 hours a day watching TV, then you'll be sorely disappointed. But, for me, it's all about focusing on that which is important and jettisoning that which isn't. Quite frankly, about 50-60% of the work that 1Ls do isn't really all that necessary to get good grades, and a lot of times students who are otherwise brilliant ignore certain avenues which will boost their scores incredibly. Expect to spend about 6-10 hours a day on law school, but that still leaves 6-10 hours for your own purposes.

[270910]

This is what I call 0L-psychosis. You want to do everything backwards. Study before law school and be social in law school. It just doesn't work in that order.

Holy shit. That was the most violently brilliant thing I have ever seen written on TLS. I'm not even kidding. I think you just won the law forum.

[mikeytwoshoes]

It's not entirely impossible to have a social life or better oneself during 1L year. I'm just finishing up my 1L year, and I'm in the top 10% at my school - I think that I've had a better quality of life than I had in undergrad. Now, admittedly, if your goal is to get drunk or party every night, or to spend 5 hours a day watching TV, then you'll be sorely disappointed. But, for me, it's all about focusing on that which is important and jettisoning that which isn't. Quite frankly, about 50-60% of the work that 1Ls do isn't really all that necessary to get good grades, and a lot of times students who are otherwise brilliant ignore certain avenues which will boost their scores incredibly. Expect to spend about 6-10 hours a day on law school, but that still leaves 6-10 hours for your own purposes.

You're the exception. They need the rule. As a general rule, law students are anti-social assholes who study all fucking day.

[mikeytwoshoes]

This is what I call 0L-psychosis. You want to do everything backwards. Study before law school and be social in law school. It just doesn't work in that order.

Holy shit. That was the most violently brilliant thing I have ever seen written on TLS. I'm not even kidding. I think you just won the law forum.

You can't get back in my good graces by sucking up!

I do like being called violently brilliant.

[270910]

This is what I call 0L-psychosis. You want to do everything backwards. Study before law school and be social in law school. It just doesn't work in that order.

Holy shit. That was the most violently brilliant thing I have ever seen written on TLS. I'm not even kidding. I think you just won the law forum.

You can't get back in my good graces by sucking up!

I do like being called violently brilliant.

I don't suck up, I didn't even remember your haterade in my thread until you posted that. I feel like you had a profound and well-worded insight and it made me stop and think; that has never happened to me on TLS before, it may have never happened to me on the internet before.

[engineer]

I don't suck up, I didn't even remember your haterade in my thread until you posted that. I feel like you had a profound and well-worded insight and it made me stop and think; that has never happened to me on TLS before, it may have never happened to me on the internet before.

Right, you just suck. OHHH MAN, SOMEONE CALL 911 BECAUSE I'M ON FIRE. Seriously people, I'll be here all night. <3.14

[270910]

I don't suck up, I didn't even remember your haterade in my thread until you posted that. I feel like you had a profound and well-worded insight and it made me stop and think; that has never happened to me on TLS before, it may have never happened to me on the internet before.

Right, you just suck. OHHH MAN, SOMEONE CALL 911 BECAUSE I'M ON FIRE. Seriously people, I'll be here all night. <3.14

Hey engineer? Could you get me some ointment for this burn

[Netopalis]

It's not entirely impossible to have a social life or better oneself during 1L year. I'm just finishing up my 1L year, and I'm in the top 10% at my school - I think that I've had a better quality of life than I had in undergrad. Now, admittedly, if your goal is to get drunk or party every night, or to spend 5 hours a day watching TV, then you'll be sorely disappointed. But, for me, it's all about focusing on that which is important and jettisoning that which isn't. Quite frankly, about 50-60% of the work that 1Ls do isn't really all that necessary to get good grades, and a lot of times students who are otherwise brilliant ignore certain avenues which will boost their scores incredibly. Expect to spend about 6-10 hours a day on law school, but that still leaves 6-10 hours for your own purposes.

You're the exception. They need the rule. As a general rule, law students are anti-social assholes who study all fucking day.

They may be, but it's not really necessary. What is necessary is learning the analysis, policy and the black letter law. When you are actually done with a class, there's not that much material left. It can generally be condensed in well under 15 pages - I usually go between 5 and 10 pages for my outline. The idea is to focus on what will actually gain you points on the final rather than attempting to cram down every single word that the professor says.

[Styrofoam]

The most important thing is to avoid the (uncritical) use of parentheticals.

[270910]

The most important thing is to avoid the (uncritical) use of parentheticals.

162

[mac.empress]

The most important thing is to avoid the (uncritical) use of parentheticals.

162

+1

[strike]I am curious -besides the legal learning- how can you better yourself in law school? I want to put academics first, but if I have enormous resources at hand, I don't want to waste them.

Some ideas I have-
Start working out/exercising
Take up a ritzy sport (ie golf, tennis)
Make sure to join legal societies (or perhaps university-wide ones)

Basically, I want to come out of the experience a better, rounded person. If possible...[/strike]

Study, sleep, rinse and repeat.

This is what I call 0L-psychosis. You want to do everything backwards. Study before law school and be social in law school. It just doesn't work in that order.

+1

[dspit]

"I can't wait to be away from my parents so I could party"

[bilbobaggins]

These threads lead me to believe most of you are robots.

[mac.empress]

These threads lead me to believe most of you are robots.

Nope. Ghost in the shell.

[270910]

These threads lead me to believe most of you are robots.

Nope. Ghost in the shell.

It's 1L year that completes the de-souling process. A person making the choice to attend law school just suggests it will be effective.

[dudders]

NightHooded wrote:
Take up a ritzy sport (ie golf, tennis)

Have fun that on your student loans.

[engineer]

The most important thing is to avoid the (uncritical) use of parentheticals.

162

+1

So, like, 163?


<- IS GOOD AT MATH

[engineer]

These threads lead me to believe most of you are robots.

Nope. Ghost in the shell.

It's 1L year that completes the de-souling process. A person making the choice to attend law school just suggests it will be effective.

Now here's a question, did we possess the mens rea to become soulless? This is almost analogous to People v. Rideout; but for our choice to attend law school, we wouldn't have become soulless, right? "The causation element of an offense is generally comprised of two components: factual cause and proximate cause." People v. Schaefer 473 Mich. 418, 418 (2005). Right now, we note that there is no dispute at this point that we chose to attend law school and are therefore law students. But the question of whether our choice to attend law school, to wit becoming law students, is the proximate cause of our subsequent loss of soul, is not so easily resolved.

...I think we can all guess which exam I have on Monday.

[mikeytwoshoes]

These threads lead me to believe most of you are robots.

Nope. Ghost in the shell.

It's 1L year that completes the de-souling process. A person making the choice to attend law school just suggests it will be effective.

Now here's a question, did we possess the mens rea to become soulless? This is almost analogous to People v. Rideout; but for our choice to attend law school, we wouldn't have become soulless, right? "The causation element of an offense is generally comprised of two components: factual cause and proximate cause." People v. Schaefer 473 Mich. 418, 418 (2005). Right now, we note that there is no dispute at this point that we chose to attend law school and are therefore law students. But the question of whether our choice to attend law school, to wit becoming law students, is the proximate cause of our subsequent loss of soul, is not so easily resolved.

...I think we can all guess which exam I have on Monday.

Bluebook fail.