Cornell Class of 2017 Forum

[toothbrush]

As 2Ls, did you guys find second semester of 1L easier or harder? My theory is that most people in general work harder and now have an understanding of what's going on/how to take tests/what worked and what didn't...etc. Do you think that's the case?

To give a different opinion, I did significantly less work during the Spring (didn't read for Property or Contracts) and did extremely well. However, I was confident in my ability to perform around exam time.

IMO people became more confident about being in law school in the Spring and that reflected in how people acted - whether it be defined study groups early on, not showing up to class ever, etc.

[Toubro]

BTW, I requested an unofficial transcript and it came along with a grading policy sheet, which says that the top-10% cut off for the Class of 2017 is 3.7937.

[runinthefront]

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[hephaestus]

BTW, I requested an unofficial transcript and it came along with a grading policy sheet, which says that the top-10% cut off for the Class of 2017 is 3.7937.

What about 2016/2015?

[Winter is Coming]

I also just got an unofficial transcript for 1L job apps. For 2015 and 2016 is says top 10% calculation isn't available yet- not sure why that would be.

[redsoxfan1989]

This is weird. The one I received with the transcript I downloaded yesterday had 5% and 10%s for 2014,15 & 16.

[Toubro]

BTW, I requested an unofficial transcript and it came along with a grading policy sheet, which says that the top-10% cut off for the Class of 2017 is 3.7937.

What about 2016/2015?

It just says "unavailable" for now.

[Lavitz]

This is weird. The one I received with the transcript I downloaded yesterday had 5% and 10%s for 2014,15 & 16.

Then that's the old one. 2014 isn't relevant anymore since they graduated.

[tyrant_flycatcher]

BTW, I requested an unofficial transcript and it came along with a grading policy sheet, which says that the top-10% cut off for the Class of 2017 is 3.7937.

Gosh darn it that seems high. Also I hate not knowing what exactly my GPA means.

[toothbrush]

BTW, I requested an unofficial transcript and it came along with a grading policy sheet, which says that the top-10% cut off for the Class of 2017 is 3.7937.

Gosh darn it that seems high. Also I hate not knowing what exactly my GPA means.

Top 10% should be around there - that is the top 10% after all. Literally only ~19 people have grades that high. (I know that's obvious but hopefully gives it some perspective.)

The people who are left the most in the dark are those at/below median. If you have a 3.45 I'd feel a bit concerned about where I stood.

<3.5 median abyss
3.5-6 top 40%
3.6+ Dean's list
3.7 top 20%
3.8 top 10%
3.9 top 5%
4.0+ top 1-3 students

[tyrant_flycatcher]

Deleted.

[toothbrush]

I feel you, it's just that my UG gave us a very specific rank. I hated it at the time but now it doesn't seem so bad.

I hear ya. My HS actually ranked us and it was updated every trimester and posted on the wall when you came into the school on a huge bulletin board. (Absurd, I know).

However, thank Cornell (and many t14) for leaving obscurity in the grading process. Remember, they tell employers median is a 3.35 with a slight deviation. While employers are smart and probably know it's closer to a 3.4-.45, there is still a guessing game as to where exactly you fall. Thus, in my breakdown above, that's probably how employers perceive your grades - in a huge band. The difference between a 3.6 and a 3.69 isn't THAT much in the grand scheme.

[tyrant_flycatcher]

so what's the deal with civ pro and contracts exams this semester? is it more same name, different course or am i going to be in trouble if i don't have a perfect grasp of last semester's concepts?

[Lavitz]

so what's the deal with civ pro and contracts exams this semester? is it more same name, different course or am i going to be in trouble if i don't have a perfect grasp of last semester's concepts?

The material is different. Spring CivPro is much less rule-based and is about jurisdiction and effects of judgments. Contracts is about ways to get out of contracts, interpretation, duties, conditions and effects on third parties. I don't remember anything from Fall being on the exams or being necessary to understand the Spring material.

[Toubro]

Prof. Rachlinski only lists Hillman's hornbook and a book of statutes for Contracts, but I'm guessing he's going to use Prof. Hillman's casebook again?

[toothbrush]

Prof. Rachlinski only lists Hillman's hornbook and a book of statutes for Contracts, but I'm guessing he's going to use Prof. Hillman's casebook again?

Not sure why it's listed as such, but he is most likely going to be using the casebook that Hillman wrote.

[King Cayuga]

Ummm... so I just checked my bursar bill for January and suddenly I have a school scholarship for this semester? It's separate from my loans and financial aid grant. I looked it up by name and it's a legit Cornell Law Scholarship awarded at the Dean's discretion, but it's yearly and I didn't get it in the fall. I never received any sort of notification about it either. Did someone in the Finaid office make a mistake?

[runinthefront]

Ummm... so I just checked my bursar bill for January and suddenly I have a school scholarship for this semester? It's separate from my loans and financial aid grant. I looked it up by name and it's a legit Cornell Law Scholarship awarded at the Dean's discretion, but it's yearly and I didn't get it in the fall. I never received any sort of notification about it either. Did someone in the Finaid office make a mistake?

did u like crush it last semester

that sounds awesome but I would check with Fin Aid just to be sure

[toothbrush]

Ummm... so I just checked my bursar bill for January and suddenly I have a school scholarship for this semester? It's separate from my loans and financial aid grant. I looked it up by name and it's a legit Cornell Law Scholarship awarded at the Dean's discretion, but it's yearly and I didn't get it in the fall. I never received any sort of notification about it either. Did someone in the Finaid office make a mistake?

i've heard of things like this but am surprised that you weren't notified. def check w/ FA office and dont get your hopes up

[King Cayuga]

Ummm... so I just checked my bursar bill for January and suddenly I have a school scholarship for this semester? It's separate from my loans and financial aid grant. I looked it up by name and it's a legit Cornell Law Scholarship awarded at the Dean's discretion, but it's yearly and I didn't get it in the fall. I never received any sort of notification about it either. Did someone in the Finaid office make a mistake?

did u like crush it last semester

that sounds awesome but I would check with Fin Aid just to be sure

Above median but definitely wouldn't say that I crushed it. It just seems very odd. The thing is, the scholarship is supposed to be given to students who went to Cornell for UG like I did, so...

[runinthefront]

Ummm... so I just checked my bursar bill for January and suddenly I have a school scholarship for this semester? It's separate from my loans and financial aid grant. I looked it up by name and it's a legit Cornell Law Scholarship awarded at the Dean's discretion, but it's yearly and I didn't get it in the fall. I never received any sort of notification about it either. Did someone in the Finaid office make a mistake?

did u like crush it last semester

that sounds awesome but I would check with Fin Aid just to be sure

Above median but definitely wouldn't say that I crushed it. It just seems very odd. The thing is, the scholarship is supposed to be given to students who went to Cornell for UG like I did, so...

pure conjecture but maybe there's only like 10 kids in the 1L class hailing from Cornell and the school has set funds to give one Cornell UG student money and u crushed it more than all the other students

idk man that's still awesome though

[Lavitz]

am surprised that you weren't notified.

I'm not.

/cryptic anti-administration message

[toothbrush]

am surprised that you weren't notified.

I'm not.

/cryptic anti-administration message

If it was Cornell-sponsored it would be one thing, but I always felt that the named scholarships provided by a trust of some rich people involve a bit more paperwork for the school and can't be given so light-handedly (probably not a word). In turn, I assumed the school notifies the recipient to get info from that person so that they can provide it to the trust administrator before they disperse...

Who knows. This is me making sense of Cornell's bad admin.

[Lavitz]

If it was Cornell-sponsored it would be one thing, but I always felt that the named scholarships provided by a trust of some rich people involve a bit more paperwork for the school and can't be given so light-handedly (probably not a word). In turn, I assumed the school notifies the recipient to get info from that person so that they can provide it to the trust administrator before they disperse...

Who knows. This is me making sense of Cornell's bad admin.

All I'm saying is that it wouldn't be the first time that the FinAid office has forgotten to send an important e-mail to one or more students.

Alternatively, they're probably just slow.

[Winter is Coming]

Any general thoughts on Underkuffler and Ohlin?