Penn Students Taking Questions Forum

[justicefishy]

Sorry about that! It's by one of the S. 47th St. stops. I can PM the exact address if needed.

Yeah, the trolley going down Baltimore is pretty solid. Just gotta stand on the corner and wave it down. Also, you can get tokens that cost less than $2 a piece if you buy a bunch at a time.

Public transpo in Philly I found to be very good.

Thanks!!
the PennPass for SEPTA looks decent, too.

I've had horrible experiences with regional rail (trains coming an hour + late, trains just never showing up, so on) but that's only an issue if you're coming in or going to the 'burbs.

[clee33]

which trains? between the chestnut hills, norristown, fox chase, trenton i have ridden 100s of times and never had an issue that bad. did that happen to you recently? I know they have made a lot of upgrades in the last few years, currently phasing in a bunch of new cars.

personally i think the regional rail is awesome. I'm a fan of the East/West trolleys and subway too. North/South still needs work (I guess that isn't surprising though). Hopefully in a few years we will make the switch from tokens/tickets to swipe cards (already in the works), I always lose those things.

[r6_philly]

I'm also wondering about the ease of commuting to Penn Law from off campus. I'm thinking of living around 22nd and Cherry, and it seems like there is a 24/7 trolley that goes from 22nd and Market basically to Penn Law. Is the trolley safe/ convenient to take from Penn Law to Center City late at night (like after midnight)?

Yes and yes. You can also get a bike.

Also, is there a refrigerator/freezer and microwave at Penn Law that 1Ls can use? I'm wondering for purposes of storing lunch and maybe heating up frozen dinners if I stay at the law school late.

Yes, 1 fridge and 2 microwaves in the same spot. Pretty easy if you want to bring lunch/dinner.

One last question: do students living off campus generally go home at dinner and not return? Or is there a sizable group that goes home for dinner and returns to study in the library?

Most people who live off campus try to stay away from campus.

[r6_philly]

Sorry about that! It's by one of the S. 47th St. stops. I can PM the exact address if needed.

Yeah, the trolley going down Baltimore is pretty solid. Just gotta stand on the corner and wave it down. Also, you can get tokens that cost less than $2 a piece if you buy a bunch at a time.

Public transpo in Philly I found to be very good.

There are several token machines around campus. $1.55 each but you have to buy 5 at a time. They took away the machine in 34st station I think because students will just pay the $2 cash fee. You can also buy tokens at all the other stations that you get on/off to go home.

[justicefishy]

which trains? between the chestnut hills, norristown, fox chase, trenton i have ridden 100s of times and never had an issue that bad. did that happen to you recently? I know they have made a lot of upgrades in the last few years, currently phasing in a bunch of new cars.

personally i think the regional rail is awesome. I'm a fan of the East/West trolleys and subway too. North/South still needs work (I guess that isn't surprising though). Hopefully in a few years we will make the switch from tokens/tickets to swipe cards (already in the works), I always lose those things.

A few years back, on the the R3 heading to Media/Elwyn. Never any problems getting *to* work, it only got delayed when I wanted to go home though

[PennBull]

Were we supposed to apply for the Wharton certificate by now or something? Did I miss a deadline?

[PennBull]

One last question: do students living off campus generally go home at dinner and not return? Or is there a sizable group that goes home for dinner and returns to study in the library?

Most people who live off campus try to stay away from campus.

I stayed at the school for lunch/dinner and left at night, but that's because I am terrible at working at home. once people go home, they're home for good. But, there's a decent amount of us that stay at the school through dinner.

[absolutazn87]

Were we supposed to apply for the Wharton certificate by now or something? Did I miss a deadline?

Just emailed Mariel and got a reply. She said we can apply for it anytime before November 15 and there's more info at https://goat.law.upenn.edu/registrar/We ... ation.aspx

Oh and hi new admits! I'm a rising 2L too working in NYC this summer. Been a pretty chill week so I'm back here happy to answer any questions!

[absolutazn87]

One last question: do students living off campus generally go home at dinner and not return? Or is there a sizable group that goes home for dinner and returns to study in the library?

Most people who live off campus try to stay away from campus.

I stayed at the school for lunch/dinner and left at night, but that's because I am terrible at working at home. once people go home, they're home for good. But, there's a decent amount of us that stay at the school through dinner.

Yeah agreed. I can't work at home either. So I either stay at school through dinner or I go home and don't do anything til it's midnight and I realize I haven't read anything and scramble to skim somewhat. But yeah, if I go home, I don't go back to the law school after.

[PennBull]

Were we supposed to apply for the Wharton certificate by now or something? Did I miss a deadline?

Just emailed Mariel and got a reply. She said we can apply for it anytime before November 15 and there's more info at https://goat.law.upenn.edu/registrar/We ... ation.aspx

Thanks broski. I totally forgot that we can put that on our resume now even though we're not in it (yet).

Oh and hi new admits! I'm a rising 2L too working in NYC this summer. Been a pretty chill week so I'm back here happy to answer any questions!

+1, it's Friday and I do not feel like doing any actual work. I'd rather answer questions about how awesome Penn is.

[clee33]

Is there any supplemental books that you for especially helpful? More with certain profs than other maybe? (sure I'm not the first to ask this, but hey, you offered!)

Also, do you guys have any expierience with the penn bus/shuttle? Is it reliable? I'm living in cc and it would be nice to not have to pay for the subway/walk all the time.

[PennBull]

Is there any supplemental books that you for especially helpful? More with certain profs than other maybe? (sure I'm not the first to ask this, but hey, you offered!)

The only one that is universally adored by law students is Glannon's E&E for CivPro. Other than that, it's entirely personal/professor based and you need to sift through the heaps of information on TLS, as well as ask upperclassmen who had your specific professors before you do anything. Nobody can answer this question any more specifically until you know your professors.

Also, do you guys have any expierience with the penn bus/shuttle? Is it reliable? I'm living in cc and it would be nice to not have to pay for the subway/walk all the time.

I took it a few times going home. I never looked up the schedule, but occasionally it would be there and I would hop on. I hate waiting for buses when I could just walk 15 minutes, so I never really cared too much. But they exist and I always see them driving around.

You might wanna give it a try for a week to get a sample size on how accurate they are.

[r6_philly]

I took it a few times going home. I never looked up the schedule, but occasionally it would be there and I would hop on. I hate waiting for buses when I could just walk 15 minutes, so I never really cared too much. But they exist and I always see them driving around.

You might wanna give it a try for a week to get a sample size on how accurate they are.

You can get on the mobile site and it shows where each bus is at all times (GPS). So you don't have to stand around waiting for the bus. It runs every 30 minutes.

[Shooter]

Hi, everyone. I saw some posts earlier about 1L summer positions. What factors determine whether or not a person gets a good 1L summer gig? Tips?

[r6_philly]

Hi, everyone. I saw some posts earlier about 1L summer positions. What factors determine whether or not a person gets a good 1L summer gig? Tips?

Previous work experience, undergrad degree, personality/charisma, luck, connections. Good grades of course helps, but most likely you need one of the other things while good grades is not necessary.

[Veyron]

Hi, everyone. I saw some posts earlier about 1L summer positions. What factors determine whether or not a person gets a good 1L summer gig? Tips?

Previous work experience, undergrad degree, personality/charisma, luck, connections.

Almost everyone gets a good 1L summer gig. Be more specific?

[Shooter]

Yeah, "good" was pretty vague. I'm talking about jobs at law firms/jobs that pay well/jobs that would improve your performance during OCI.

I'm just a 0L, so I didn't even know that employers saw grades before 2L OCI.

[Pate]

Good grades of course helps, but most likely you need one of the other things while good grades is not necessary.

Run that by me again, about good grades not necessary. Has the job market improved that much? Aren't there some rising 3Ls still unemployed?

[r6_philly]

Good grades of course helps, but most likely you need one of the other things while good grades is not necessary.

Run that by me again, about good grades not necessary. Has the job market improved that much? Aren't there some rising 3Ls still unemployed?

The question/answer was for 1L jobs.

[Pate]

Good grades of course helps, but most likely you need one of the other things while good grades is not necessary.

Run that by me again, about good grades not necessary. Has the job market improved that much? Aren't there some rising 3Ls still unemployed?

The question/answer was for 1L jobs.

Got it, thx. Any take on the job market? I ask knowing that there are some rising 3Ls still unemployed (ditto 2Ls

Edit: Definition on “some”. . .more than a few.

[r6_philly]

Got it, thx. Any take on the job market? I ask knowing that there are some rising 3Ls still unemployed (ditto 2Ls).

Job market is not great, but seems to be improving year over year (the NALP report notwithstanding, I did say seem). It's still very competitive, but it isn't impossible. If you can have some of the attributes I mentioned above, it looks decent. I believe the vast majority of students are worried about getting the job they want, not simply getting a job.

[Veyron]

Yeah, "good" was pretty vague. I'm talking about jobs at law firms/jobs that pay well/jobs that would improve your performance during OCI.

I'm just a 0L, so I didn't even know that employers saw grades before 2L OCI.

All 1L jobs are pretty much equal when it comes to OCI. Everyone gets a 1L job. You do the math.

[yikes0117]

Is living west of campus dangerous/a bad idea? I just don't really have the budget for CC or even on-campus housing and I've found some cheap places around UC that seem to be decent from googlemaps street-view. Lol. Does anyone know if I'm being mislead?

[PennBull]

Is living west of campus dangerous/a bad idea? I just don't really have the budget for CC or even on-campus housing and I've found some cheap places around UC that seem to be decent from googlemaps street-view. Lol. Does anyone know if I'm being mislead?

Everything is beautiful and nice all the way out to 48thish, and even past there it's fine. The people who say living in West Philly is dangerous don't know what they're talking about.

The area is all nice families and Penn/Drexel students. I love it.

[PennBull]

Yeah, "good" was pretty vague. I'm talking about jobs at law firms/jobs that pay well/jobs that would improve your performance during OCI.

First of all, no 1L summer gig really HELPS your OCI performance, save for if you worked for the firm that you are interviewing with in OCI. Sure, you are supposed to have a unique/quality experience to talk about in interviews, but no job is a de facto automatic bump. Also, nothing is really a negative unless you're working in traffic court.

But, getting paid is awesome, so about that:

Again, as you saw in my previous post, I got my in house job through 1L OCI. The company did not choose their two selections based on grades alone. r6_philly is right, getting a paid job your first summer is much more about being opportunistic and being creative. I feel like I fell ass backwards into the job I have now thanks to the 1L OCI, but, for the most part, the people getting paid jobs this summer worked their magic here or there and got something.

I think they value grades more than r6 insinuated, but I will agree that grades might not even be the most important factor in getting a paid 1L summer position (whereas it is the most important thing for your 2L summer position).

I was shocked as to how doable getting a paid 1L summer job is at Penn. That said, the number is still REALLY low. Don't bank on it. I used to think they were like mythical unicorns and didn't exist, but now I see they're just kinda rare.

If you really want one, see what kind of networking things you can do and get in firms' ears now, and maybe talk to career services or something. Everybody who has paid jobs got them in totally different ways, so there's no "right way" to do it.