University of Texas 1L Taking Questions Forum

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Fall semester:

3 doctrinal classes, each with total of 200 minutes per week of class meetings.
1 legal research & writing seminar, with just over an hour of week of class meetings.

Spring Semester:

Same class commitments as fall semester plus an elective, meeting for either 2, 3, or 4 hours per week.

No classes on Friday (unless your elective meets on Friday).

On campus and hours of homework really come down to the individual IMO. There are people who are efficient, and there are people who are inefficient. There's no way to predict it.

Everyone I've talked to agrees that the Spring semester is way more work because of the elective

don't you also secure a 1L summer position in the spring? what is your understanding of how successful you and other 1Ls have been in locking down a position? do you know anyone who was able to get a paid position? also, how generous is UT's public interest 1L summer stipend?

As at all law schools, you may start contacting legal employers on December 1st, and the more prestigious employers (federal judges, big law firms) may begin hiring in December. The first couple weeks of school in late January were especially hopping with students interviewing with firms, and with certain public service groups that were at PSCD (basically OCI for public service/interest groups). Most people have been quiet about their success, but from what I gather the more proactive people are getting positions, and perhaps the majority of people are still looking.

Texas Law Fellowships give out public interest stipends, about $4000 for the summer I think, but those are limited and probably rather competitive. I think they gave out 22 stipends last year - their fund raising was hurt by the economy. There are some other funding sources, but there is no Harvard-style school-wide program that gives out stipends for everyone doing public interest in their 1L summer.

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Fall semester:

3 doctrinal classes, each with total of 200 minutes per week of class meetings.
1 legal research & writing seminar, with just over an hour of week of class meetings.

Spring Semester:

Same class commitments as fall semester plus an elective, meeting for either 2, 3, or 4 hours per week.

No classes on Friday (unless your elective meets on Friday).

On campus and hours of homework really come down to the individual IMO. There are people who are efficient, and there are people who are inefficient. There's no way to predict it.

Everyone I've talked to agrees that the Spring semester is way more work because of the elective

Is there a general time when classes start in the morning for 1L and end in the afternoon? Or does it vary widely by section?

Varies somewhat by section. Most 1L sections begin class around 9:00 - 9:30 and are done by 3:00, with an hour or two off for lunch. Class itself doesn't actually take up all that much time.

[NN4]

Is there a general time when classes start in the morning for 1L and end in the afternoon? Or does it vary widely by section?

Varies somewhat by section. Most 1L sections begin class around 9:00 - 9:30 and are done by 3:00, with an hour or two off for lunch. Class itself doesn't actually take up all that much time.

Thanks! That helps. I have two school-age children and am trying to figure out how much child care to factor in at each of the schools I am most strongly considering.

[goreman]

Hi everybody. I'm an admitted student, but I'm not going to be able to have a chance to visit anytime before the summer. While I'm overall impressed with the school and there is a good chance I'll end up there, I feel there is quite a lack of pictures of the actual law school itself (common areas, library, classrooms, etc.) to give me a better idea of the actual physical environment of the school. Any chance anybody could email me pics from their visits or any of the current students could send me any pictures they have? Feel free to email to iangore@live.com. Thanks!

[EE2JD]

http://s295.photobucket.com/albums/mm149/TopLawSchools/

I'm sure more pictures can be found on TLS with some creative use of the search function. I remember a thread from a couple years back with a lot of pictures.

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http://s295.photobucket.com/albums/mm149/TopLawSchools/

I'm sure more pictures can be found on TLS with some creative use of the search function. I remember a thread from a couple years back with a lot of pictures.

Here's the UT specific link.

http://s295.photobucket.com/albums/mm14 ... f%20Texas/

Personally, I don't think the school wins any beauty contests, but IMO, who cares...

[DallasCowboy]

What kind of job prospects is a 2L near the median looking at ITE?

[PigNipple]

What is the Texas pride like? Obviously there are a ton to TX residents, and let's be honest they're known for over-loving their state. Would it feel weird to go to UT not being from Texas?!

over-loving Texas? i'm not sure that's possible...it's like loving bacon too much.

point proven.

no way! we can't help it that we live in the best state EVAR!!!! (i know this kind of talk is annoying to non-Texans, though I can't imagine why.....)

Here's my take on it:
--ImageRemoved--

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What kind of job prospects is a 2L near the median looking at ITE?

We'll find out this Fall, at OCI. Some of my classmates have 1L SA offers, so hiring has definitely picked up since the Class of 2011 got slaughtered this past August. I'm cautiously optimistic.

[DallasCowboy]

That's good to hear. UT v. Duke is really throwing me for a loop! I'm starting to lean towards wanting to work in Texas, so if UT gets me the same job at a similar class rank, then I'd like to have less debt while enjoying 3 years in ATX.

For example in the oft-quoted chart, pdfserver.amlaw.com/nlj/20080414employment_trends.pdf are there a decent amount of near-market BigTex jobs that are counted as "other firms". Seeing double the red at Duke makes me wonder.

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That's good to hear. UT v. Duke is really throwing me for a loop! I'm starting to lean towards wanting to work in Texas, so if UT gets me the same job at a similar class rank, then I'd like to have less debt while enjoying 3 years in ATX.

For example in the oft-quoted chart, pdfserver.amlaw.com/nlj/20080414employment_trends.pdf are there a decent amount of near-market BigTex jobs that are counted as "other firms". Seeing double the red at Duke makes me wonder.

I'd say this is probably true. Texas has a lot of boutique and medium sized firms that pay market or close to it, but aren't measured in the NLJ250.

ITE, its difficult to know exactly what is going on. Duke has the advantage of a smaller class size, but it shouldn't be forgotten that UT's class size is about 15% smaller than it was 5 years ago. For example, my class has about 375 people, whereas the class of 2009 had 420, and I believe average class sizes were 450 and higher not too long ago.

[entrechatsix]

Hi everybody. I'm an admitted student, but I'm not going to be able to have a chance to visit anytime before the summer. While I'm overall impressed with the school and there is a good chance I'll end up there, I feel there is quite a lack of pictures of the actual law school itself (common areas, library, classrooms, etc.) to give me a better idea of the actual physical environment of the school. Any chance anybody could email me pics from their visits or any of the current students could send me any pictures they have? Feel free to email to iangore@live.com. Thanks!

so these are kinda random... but the first is a makeout tour of the law school and the second is a great view of a classroom! haha

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bvMgqa-VQA4

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N7SdeDJSJew

[gmichaelbluth]

So 1Ls can serve on journals at UT? How does that process work? Is it second semester only?

[jelizabeth88]

So 1Ls can serve on journals at UT? How does that process work? Is it second semester only?

I'm a 0L but earlier in the thread I believe a current student posted that they were a 1l on a journal. So, yes? But I have no idea how that works and would be interested in knowing as well.

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Quite a number of the secondary journals allow 1Ls to join, and it is apparently pretty easy to do so, with minimal write-on requirements. But from what I've heard even the 1L journal takes a bit of time, and doesn't really do anything for you resume-wise.

[JazzOne]

Quite a number of the secondary journals allow 1Ls to join, and it is apparently pretty easy to do so, with minimal write-on requirements. But from what I've heard even the 1L journal takes a bit of time, and doesn't really do anything for you resume-wise.

The only reason I kind of regret (not really) that I didn't join a journal is that 1Ls get very little instruction on their writing. I found citations to be a real hassle, and it seems like my classmates who are on journals have a better grasp of the Bluebook. I think OperaAttorney is on a journal, so perhaps he'll weigh in.

[entrechatsix]

they really seem to be pushing the society program... i was just wondering if one of you could comment on it. how often do you have "society" events. helpful? fun? lame?

[JazzOne]

they really seem to be pushing the society program... i was just wondering if one of you could comment on it. how often do you have "society" events. helpful? fun? lame?

Because the law school is so big, I think the society stuff is very helpful. I don't even recognize many of my fellow 1Ls as law students because there are something like 385 of us. However, I know almost everyone in my society by name. I'm not very social, and I don't go to the events, but I do appreciate the fact that there is a small network of individuals I can turn to if I need help with something.

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they really seem to be pushing the society program... i was just wondering if one of you could comment on it. how often do you have "society" events. helpful? fun? lame?

Because the law school is so big, I think the society stuff is very helpful. I don't even recognize many of my fellow 1Ls as law students because there are something like 385 of us. However, I know almost everyone in my society by name. I'm not very social, and I don't go to the events, but I do appreciate the fact that there is a small network of individuals I can turn to if I need help with something.

Seconded.

[86revolt]

i'm trying to decide between vandy and UT and the fact that Texas Law Review is the #8 ranked law review (as ranked by W&L university) in the country is a decided advantage. but do you have any sense of how difficult it is, relative to other schools, to make it onto the TLR? obviously making it onto any law review is difficult given the writing requirements, but i just want to know if, given the larger class size at UT, getting on the law review is especially difficult. and more specifically, is selection based solely on GPA or is based also on a writing sample?

[law vida loca]

I'd be interested to hear if any current students could speak about the clinics at UT...how hard they are to get into, what their experience working in them has been like, just what they know about them, period. are there opportunities to volunteer with a clinic your first year?

[JazzOne]

i'm trying to decide between vandy and UT and the fact that Texas Law Review is the #8 ranked law review (as ranked by W&L university) in the country is a decided advantage. but do you have any sense of how difficult it is, relative to other schools, to make it onto the TLR? obviously making it onto any law review is difficult given the writing requirements, but i just want to know if, given the larger class size at UT, getting on the law review is especially difficult. and more specifically, is selection based solely on GPA or is based also on a writing sample?

Law review is based on grades and a writing competition. I'm a 1L, so I'll refrain from speculating about how hard it is to get on LR.

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i'm trying to decide between vandy and UT and the fact that Texas Law Review is the #8 ranked law review (as ranked by W&L university) in the country is a decided advantage. but do you have any sense of how difficult it is, relative to other schools, to make it onto the TLR? obviously making it onto any law review is difficult given the writing requirements, but i just want to know if, given the larger class size at UT, getting on the law review is especially difficult. and more specifically, is selection based solely on GPA or is based also on a writing sample?

Law review is based on grades and a writing competition. I'm a 1L, so I'll refrain from speculating about how hard it is to get on LR.

I'm also a 1L, so I have no first-hand info on the write-on process for LR. All I know for sure is that last year LR took on about 50 new members from the Class of 2011. That seems to me like quite a large number for a class size of less than 400.

1Ls can't participate in the clinics, so I don't have any first-hand info on those, either. All the 2Ls and 3Ls who've been on them say that they are incredible. From what I've heard, they usually aren't too hard to get on, but demand varies each semester. Some clinics, such as Criminal Defense, aren't available until Spring of 2L.

[adrib]

Do any of y'all know people living in married housing? I could have sworn that I found info on it at one point, and I thought that I applied to live on campus in it, but now that I look for it again, I can't find any info on it. I don't really want to live on campus, but apartment hunting without knowing the area scares me, and I think it wouldn't be too bad to live on campus for a semester while we figure things out.

[JazzOne]

Do any of y'all know people living in married housing? I could have sworn that I found info on it at one point, and I thought that I applied to live on campus in it, but now that I look for it again, I can't find any info on it. I don't really want to live on campus, but apartment hunting without knowing the area scares me, and I think it wouldn't be too bad to live on campus for a semester while we figure things out.

I don't know of any married student housing on campus. However, Austin is a really nice city, and I feel very safe living in the Hyde Park area. As long as you don't live south of campus or east of I-35, you should be okay. There are people here on TLS who can point you in the right direction for apartment hunting. There are some apartments in the North Campus area that are within walking distance of the law school.