Harvard Student(s) Answering Your Questions Forum

[Person1111]

How do transfer students do at OCI?

Generally very well. They tend to do better if they came from better schools, but I don't think anyone in the transfer class struck out or anything.

[Eichörnchen]

Thanks for all the info regarding my notetaking questions guys! I guess I will go ahead with the system I've planned on. I suppose for my laptop I'll get a Mac, despite the fact that my techie brother says I'd be an idiot to do so.

I have an unrelated question - the Harvard website says that it is possible to get a SO to qualify for a gym membership. Does anyone have any experience with this? I figure it would be much more convenient for us to belong to the same one. Also, I'll be moving to Cambridge in July. Does anyone know if I can start my membership early, or if there is anywhere that would let me join for a decent price if I'm only joining for like a month and a half?

[Searchparty]

Thanks for all the info regarding my notetaking questions guys! I guess I will go ahead with the system I've planned on. I suppose for my laptop I'll get a Mac, despite the fact that my techie brother says I'd be an idiot to do so.

I have an unrelated question - the Harvard website says that it is possible to get a SO to qualify for a gym membership. Does anyone have any experience with this? I figure it would be much more convenient for us to belong to the same one. Also, I'll be moving to Cambridge in July. Does anyone know if I can start my membership early, or if there is anywhere that would let me join for a decent price if I'm only joining for like a month and a half?

Incoming..

Went online, says I already have an active membership that expires next May.

Law school full year is $166 for family member (spouses or qualified domestic partner) or else $126 for the academic year.

[Eichörnchen]

Thanks for all the info regarding my notetaking questions guys! I guess I will go ahead with the system I've planned on. I suppose for my laptop I'll get a Mac, despite the fact that my techie brother says I'd be an idiot to do so.

I have an unrelated question - the Harvard website says that it is possible to get a SO to qualify for a gym membership. Does anyone have any experience with this? I figure it would be much more convenient for us to belong to the same one. Also, I'll be moving to Cambridge in July. Does anyone know if I can start my membership early, or if there is anywhere that would let me join for a decent price if I'm only joining for like a month and a half?

Incoming..

Went online, says I already have an active membership that expires next May.

Law school full year is $166 for family member (spouses or qualified domestic partner) or else $126 for the academic year.

Hmm I didn't ever think that our memberships could be active as of now. That would be really nice! And I did see that we could have "qualifying" domestic partners join, but didn't see where or how to qualify them. If anyone has experience with it I'd love to hear it.

[bosmer88]

For current students, I had a question about Harvard's pet policy in HUH.

Does it follow the policy to the letter or is there a blind eye unless there are complaints, calls, etc ?

[lakers24fan]

The academic calender says that the 1L student orientation is on Sep 2-4 this year. As someone who lives on the West coast and is going to live in Gropius, I had a couple questions:

1) What, exactly, is accomplished at orientation (I'm assuming it's mandatory)? Is it an all day kind of thing, for all 3 days? Are people able to do other things, like will I have time to settle in, buy groceries, and do other miscellaneous things that I assume tend to pop up when you move cross-country?

2) What day would you guys/gals suggest I fly in to Boston? The day before, or maybe give myself a couple days to get acclimated? Keeping in mind that I will need to get settled in my dorm/have no food/bedding/no idea whatsoever of the Cambridge area/know absolutely no one beforehand I would like to buy my flight soon

Thanks everyone! All your insights, info, and advice are really helpful

[tomwatts]

You do have some time during orientation, and classes are not all that intense at first, so you have some time during the first week of classes, too. They're doing orientation differently this year than they did two years ago when I had it, because for us it was a Friday and Monday of mandatory academic orientation and a weekend of optional social events (one day canceled by hurricane). We had a mock class on Friday and a bunch of other events, but the evenings were free, if I remember correctly.

There is a site here: --LinkRemoved--. It doesn't contain a lot of information right now, but they claim that it will have more soon.

I'd recommend moving in on the official 1L dorm move-in day (August 30th) if it's all the same to you. You'll need to buy some basic dorm things (sheets, probably a fan, perhaps a mini-fridge, perhaps food) and it's nice to have a few days to walk the campus a bit and get used to the surrounding areas. You also get a chance to meet your dorm neighbors and RA. You can move in a couple days later (say, the 1st) if you want, but you have to get acclimated faster.

[Lubberlubber]

For current students, I had a question about Harvard's pet policy in HUH.

Does it follow the policy to the letter or is there a blind eye unless there are complaints, calls, etc ?

I believe HUH is entitled to come in at any time (to fix something, or if you requested them), and I imagine if they saw an illegal pet they would tell someone. The lease says you can be expelled at any time for any reason, so I really wouldn't smuggle in animals.

That said, some HUH units are specifically pet-friendly. It's too late this year, but next year, look to Botanical Gardens, and some other units close to the undergrad dorms. I would say about 5-10% are pet friendly--not a lot of units, but you can get lucky with the lottery number and snag one.

[Lubberlubber]

The academic calender says that the 1L student orientation is on Sep 2-4 this year. As someone who lives on the West coast and is going to live in Gropius, I had a couple questions:

1) What, exactly, is accomplished at orientation (I'm assuming it's mandatory)? Is it an all day kind of thing, for all 3 days? Are people able to do other things, like will I have time to settle in, buy groceries, and do other miscellaneous things that I assume tend to pop up when you move cross-country?

2) What day would you guys/gals suggest I fly in to Boston? The day before, or maybe give myself a couple days to get acclimated? Keeping in mind that I will need to get settled in my dorm/have no food/bedding/no idea whatsoever of the Cambridge area/know absolutely no one beforehand I would like to buy my flight soon

Thanks everyone! All your insights, info, and advice are really helpful

For me, orientation was the weekend when I met everyone, and hung out with the people that later became my "regular" group of friends, so I definitely wouldn't miss it. Friend-mart at HLS pretty much closes after the first couple of weeks, and if you miss it, it may be hard to break into established groups. I would fly in the night before move-in day (maybe stay with a friend or at a hotel that night), so you can have time to go to target, get settled in, etc. on move-in day.

Oh, orientation is also a lot of fun.

Finally, I would advise against serious grocery shopping if you're living in Gropius.

[Mista Bojangles]

1L grades out. sorry to be the first 1L to kickstart this discussion, but - median is 4H 6P right?

[Stinson]

I think that's right, 3-4 H's is probably median because there are ten classes and 1/3 get H supposedly. Bear in mind what OCS says about bidding though, because I think it's generally true. The question isn't really median or not but rather whether you fall into

Straight P's
Couple H's (1-2)
Several H's (3-5)
Lot's of H's (6-8)
Holy Shit (8-10 with DS's in there)

They will talk about before EIP what those various bins mean. Anyway, congrats on finishing 1L; it's the worst of the three.

[DoubleChecks]

Also for bidding, depends on the market you're bidding into of course. Some are much easier (NYC) than others (Chicago/DC/SF).

[Lubberlubber]

Chiming in.

Someone should go ahead and start the 2013 EIP thread...could use some bidding advice.

[Eichörnchen]

For me, orientation was the weekend when I met everyone, and hung out with the people that later became my "regular" group of friends, so I definitely wouldn't miss it. Friend-mart at HLS pretty much closes after the first couple of weeks, and if you miss it, it may be hard to break into established groups. I would fly in the night before move-in day (maybe stay with a friend or at a hotel that night), so you can have time to go to target, get settled in, etc. on move-in day.

Oh, orientation is also a lot of fun.

Finally, I would advise against serious grocery shopping if you're living in Gropius.

Welp...Now auditioning to fill the parts in my future group of friends.

[bosmer88]

For current students, I had a question about Harvard's pet policy in HUH.

Does it follow the policy to the letter or is there a blind eye unless there are complaints, calls, etc ?

I believe HUH is entitled to come in at any time (to fix something, or if you requested them), and I imagine if they saw an illegal pet they would tell someone. The lease says you can be expelled at any time for any reason, so I really wouldn't smuggle in animals.

That said, some HUH units are specifically pet-friendly. It's too late this year, but next year, look to Botanical Gardens, and some other units close to the undergrad dorms. I would say about 5-10% are pet friendly--not a lot of units, but you can get lucky with the lottery number and snag one.

Thanks for answering my question. I was hoping to snag one of the pet-friendly apartments, but received a crappy lottery window. There weren't any pet-friendly apartments available during my select period. Of course, one showed up right after my select period (99% sure it was pet-friendly) and I couldn't switch. HUH wasn't too helpful in telling me whether any more would be available.

I will transfer or try again next year and hopefully get something in Botanic or Shaler Lane.

[Lubberlubber]

For me, orientation was the weekend when I met everyone, and hung out with the people that later became my "regular" group of friends, so I definitely wouldn't miss it. Friend-mart at HLS pretty much closes after the first couple of weeks, and if you miss it, it may be hard to break into established groups. I would fly in the night before move-in day (maybe stay with a friend or at a hotel that night), so you can have time to go to target, get settled in, etc. on move-in day.

Oh, orientation is also a lot of fun.

Finally, I would advise against serious grocery shopping if you're living in Gropius.

Welp...Now auditioning to fill the parts in my future group of friends.

This is not only true at HLS, it's true at any school. It's a lot easier to get to know people and introduce yourself to them when everyone is doing it and no one knows anyone. But when cliques start forming (not that HLS is clique-ish), it's a lot harder.

Not like you CAN'T make any friends after the first weeks, but orientation is when you meet people--that's why it's there.

[pupshaw]

I think that's right, 3-4 H's is probably median because there are ten classes and 1/3 get H supposedly. Bear in mind what OCS says about bidding though, because I think it's generally true. The question isn't really median or not but rather whether you fall into

Straight P's
Couple H's (1-2)
Several H's (3-5)
Lot's of H's (6-8)
Holy Shit (8-10 with DS's in there)

They will talk about before EIP what those various bins mean. Anyway, congrats on finishing 1L; it's the worst of the three.

How do DS's affect this analysis? Obviously, say, 3H+2DS beats 5H, but does it beat 6H? (It does, of course, for the purposes of internal gpa calculation, but what about for employers?)

[Stinson]

I think that's right, 3-4 H's is probably median because there are ten classes and 1/3 get H supposedly. Bear in mind what OCS says about bidding though, because I think it's generally true. The question isn't really median or not but rather whether you fall into

Straight P's
Couple H's (1-2)
Several H's (3-5)
Lot's of H's (6-8)
Holy Shit (8-10 with DS's in there)

They will talk about before EIP what those various bins mean. Anyway, congrats on finishing 1L; it's the worst of the three.

How do DS's affect this analysis? Obviously, say, 3H+2DS beats 5H, but does it beat 6H? (It does, of course, for the purposes of internal gpa calculation, but what about for employers?)

This was two years ago so grain of salt, but when I interviewed the DS was ill-understood. (I think saying it is like a book prize other places puts it in terms with which most of the interviewers will identify.) In several screeners I was asked what it was/meant. The whole HLS system is like that to an extent. So in that sense I would rather have two H's than 1 DS because I don't think it gets you a ton extra.

One exception might be that if interviewing and saying you're really interested in a specific firm for a specific thing, if the DS is in a subject that really hits that thing on the nose, I think that's a very nice thing for you. It signifies that you were one of the ten or twenty best students at HLS in that subject, which I guess is cool. I wouldn't posit this except I'm pretty sure that happened with a callback I had. So again grain of salt.

[despina]

Hey all, rising 2L here. I lurked in this thread last year and found it really helpful, so thought I'd come pay it forward.

Friend-mart at HLS pretty much closes after the first couple of weeks, and if you miss it, it may be hard to break into established groups.

For the record, this was not my experience at all. Orientation was great for having the same 10-second "where-are-you-from, where-did-you-go-to-school, what-have-you-been-doing-between-undergrad-and-HLS" conversation with a thousand people, but during orientation I didn't even meet most of the people in my section who eventually became my closest friends. I absolutely continued to make new friends throughout the year from student groups and social activities. Several of my closest friends outside my section were people I didn't even hang out with until second semester.

I also would NOT count on having time to finish moving in during the first few weeks of class. I found the first few weeks to be totally overwhelming and was really glad I was already settled in to my place. For me, it took a few weeks to really figure out how to prepare efficiently for class, not to mention the zillions of info-sessions, student group intro meetings, cool lectures, happy hours, etc, so there was not much free time in September.

[despina]

I found (through bad reviews of another furniture place) a seemingly decent furniture store with an "outlet" that has cheap couches <$500 called Jordan's furniture. Yelp reviews seemed positive. Also have mattresses in the outlet... I think I'll end up purchasing from there

Jordan's is legit. The one in Reading also has an Imax theater with Tempurpedic memory foam seats. Ooohhhh yeeeaaah.

[KaNa1986]

.

[Person1111]

Yeah my totally speculative and baseless guess would be:

15% - 0-1 H's
35% - 2-3 H's
20% - 4-5 H's
15% - 6-7 H's
15% - 8+ H's

I'd say 2-5 H's is the big middle, and is where you don't really have to worry about getting something but probably should be thinking about how to construct a bid list to maximize both your # of offers and the quality of the firms that you can get offers from in the location where you want to be. 0-1 is where I think you are in the danger zone, and 6+ is where you will have lots of options and can afford to take some calculated risks (like bidding in SF or DC exclusively, bidding more selectively in NY, etc.).

[Blessedassurance]

How do DS's affect this analysis? Obviously, say, 3H+2DS beats 5H, but does it beat 6H? (It does, of course, for the purposes of internal gpa calculation...)

the part in parenthesis is not necessarily true.

also, median is around 3 H's... not 4...this has been discussed to death.

summon: desert fox

[pupshaw]

How do DS's affect this analysis? Obviously, say, 3H+2DS beats 5H, but does it beat 6H? (It does, of course, for the purposes of internal gpa calculation...)

the part in parenthesis is not necessarily true.

Can you explain in what case it wouldn't be true? I'm not challenging you, I'm just not sure I understand. Would it just be if the 2 DSs were in LRW (only two credits) but the 6 Hs were in substantive classes? Or am I missing something else?

[despina]

How do DS's affect this analysis? Obviously, say, 3H+2DS beats 5H, but does it beat 6H? (It does, of course, for the purposes of internal gpa calculation...)

the part in parenthesis is not necessarily true.

Can you explain in what case it wouldn't be true? I'm not challenging you, I'm just not sure I understand. Would it just be if the 2 DSs were in LRW (only two credits) but the 6 Hs were in substantive classes? Or am I missing something else?

As I understand it, for GPA purposes H = 4, DS = 5.

So 3H + 2DS = 12 + 10 = 22
6H = 24

So I think you're right, cerealdan, that some of those grades would have to be LRW (weighted by 0.5?) in order for 6H to be lower than 3H+2DS for GPA purposes. For example:

3H + 2DS (not LRW) = 22
4H + 2H (in each semester of LRW, so GPA equivalent of 1H) = 16 + 4 = 20