I've deferred for a year--how can I use this year wisely? Forum

Sojourner2 · Post by **Sojourner2** » Sun Sep 14, 2014 5:26 pm

Hi All,

Over the summer I decided to defer at a top ten school until the Fall of 2015. As I now have almost an entire year before I start, I am wondering if there are any hints current/former law students can give as to how I might be able to use this year to prepare for law school.

I know there are a whole slew of "how to survive/succeed in law school books" that I can read. But I am wondering if there is anything beyond reading those books that someone can recommend. Would it be helpful to read a few law review articles every week? Are there any "standard" legal textbooks that I could study on my own before arriving? Etc.

Also, by way of background, I have been in grad school before and have now been out of school for a few years holding a variety of different jobs. I'm not in need of a "break" or "time off" before law school and I have enough of a sense of my limits that I'm not going to go burn myself out before school. I'm just looking for something I could commit a few hours a week to, if something like that exists.

Any thoughts anyone has would be helpful.

TheSpanishMain · Post by **TheSpanishMain** » Sun Sep 14, 2014 7:07 pm

Earn and save as much money as possible to minimize your debt. That's way more important than 0L prep.

McAvoy · Post by **McAvoy** » Sun Sep 14, 2014 7:09 pm

Get into the best drinking shape of your life.

TheSpanishMain · Post by **TheSpanishMain** » Sun Sep 14, 2014 7:11 pm

If you really must do something law related, try to reach out to alumni of your school and ask them if you can buy them a cup of coffee and pick their brain. Not to get an edge or anything, just to get a sense of what different types of lawyers do day to day and what interests you.

pancakes3 · Post by **pancakes3** » Sun Sep 14, 2014 7:11 pm

I hope you didn't defer for the sole purpose of 1L prep.

Desert Fox · Post by **Desert Fox** » Sun Sep 14, 2014 7:18 pm

Audit 4 classes (two each semester) at a local school.

notgreat · Post by **notgreat** » Sun Sep 14, 2014 7:48 pm

Find a good job and then don't go to law school.

whereskyle · Post by **whereskyle** » Sun Sep 14, 2014 7:50 pm

get experience in the field in which you'd like to work.

prezidentv8 · Post by **prezidentv8** » Sun Sep 14, 2014 7:57 pm

run away quickly

Cogburn87 · Post by **Cogburn87** » Sun Sep 14, 2014 8:05 pm

notgreat wrote:Find a good job and then don't go to law school.

NotMyRealName09 · Post by **NotMyRealName09** » Mon Sep 15, 2014 10:59 pm

McAvoy wrote:Get into the best drinking shape of your life.

This is under rated. The liver, like any pro athlete, requires practice before the big game. Don't rook out, challenge your liver, and he/she will get better with experience. Your body is amazing at processing toxins, it just needs training. It won't know the proper mix of enzymes to process booze unless it can practice. You think Dirty Dancing was about classism? No, it was about the well developed hips and dance sensibilities of drunken privilege. My point is, Jewish girls can drink, so law school.

RCinDNA · Post by **RCinDNA** » Wed Sep 17, 2014 11:05 am

Maybe go through the LEEWS CDs. I wish I read more of my professor's books, and articles. Once I did that, a lot of the advice from guides seemed to come together, and I had some insight into points they considered relevant, their general approaches to specific areas of law, and etc. so I'd recommend doing that.

reading law review articles probably won't help all that much, because most are terribly written and aren't even going to be relevant. As mentioned above, maybe read any article written by a Professor you are likely to have in Fall, but might be better to wait until they are actually assigned so you don't waste time.

Getting into good shape and relaxing is also helpful. Coming into school in good spirits, with a fresh mind, is a pretty great position to be in considering all the future gunners who will be coming in stressed out, with tons of worthless 0L prep, and etc. under their belts. And from what I saw, most Profs. and Deans preferred to talk to normal students who had a range of interests, and weren't harassing them from Day 1 with legal questions.

You could also take a look at the hornbooks or E&Es, but the only one I would strongly recommend is the Torts E&E, especially the last section which gives some advice on taking law school finals.

Sojourner2 · Post by **Sojourner2** » Thu Sep 18, 2014 2:23 pm

RCinDNA wrote:Maybe go through the LEEWS CDs. I wish I read more of my professor's books, and articles. Once I did that, a lot of the advice from guides seemed to come together, and I had some insight into points they considered relevant, their general approaches to specific areas of law, and etc. so I'd recommend doing that.

Reading law review articles probably won't help all that much, because most are terribly written and aren't even going to be relevant. As mentioned above, maybe read any article written by a Professor you are likely to have in Fall, but might be better to wait until they are actually assigned so you don't waste time.

Getting into good shape and relaxing is also helpful. Coming into school in good spirits, with a fresh mind, is a pretty great position to be in considering all the future gunners who will be coming in stressed out, with tons of worthless 0L prep, and etc. under their belts. And from what I saw, most Profs. and Deans preferred to talk to normal students who had a range of interests, and weren't harassing them from Day 1 with legal questions.

You could also take a look at the hornbooks or E&Es, but the only one I would strongly recommend is the Torts E&E, especially the last section which gives some advice on taking law school finals.

Thanks! I appreciate the advice.

Big Dog · Post by **Big Dog** » Thu Sep 18, 2014 2:42 pm

take a Financial Accounting course at your local juco.

RCinDNA · Post by **RCinDNA** » Fri Sep 19, 2014 10:56 am

Wanted to add that it might be helpful to get a temp or part time job with one or two law offices. You mentioned you held a variety of jobs, but didn't say if they were legal related. Knowing what real life practice looks like helps keep you sane in law school, and also gives you a better idea of what lawyers actually do.

jbagelboy · Post by **jbagelboy** » Sun Sep 21, 2014 5:32 pm

for west coast: Bellagio poker table, 1-3 no limit, $300 buy-in, 2x a week
for east coast: Borgata poker table, 1-2 no limit, $200 buy-in, 2x a week

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