Chicago 2L Takings ?s Forum

[sharks_suck]

is it as nerdy as it seemed?

do people have fun?

When did it seem nerdy? ASW?

[tintin]

is it as nerdy as it seemed?

do people have fun?

When did it seem nerdy? ASW?

i went to one of the day in the life programs

people just didn't seem like they were relaxed at all, they seemed kinda wound up, and like all they wanted to talk about was theories of the law...

[sharks_suck]

are profs accessible? how many hours a day do you study (during normal periods and during exams?) how would you characterize the student body as a whole?

Vast majority of profs are accessible.

I study ~ 0-1 hours/day outside exams. (I am a 3L.) During exams, maybe closer to 4 or 5.

Student body as a whole is pretty diverse.

[Mr. T6]

is it as nerdy as it seemed?

do people have fun?

When did it seem nerdy? ASW?

i went to one of the day in the life programs

people just didn't seem like they were relaxed at all, they seemed kinda wound up, and like all they wanted to talk about was theories of the law...

Strange. Usually, we also talk about conceptions of the law, not just theories.

[sharks_suck]

i went to one of the day in the life programs

people just didn't seem like they were relaxed at all, they seemed kinda wound up, and like all they wanted to talk about was theories of the law...

Sounds like you talked to 1Ls.

Also, did you go shortly before finals, like in March or something? Everyone I know is pretty relaxed. But then again, they're 3Ls.

[Mr. T6]

i went to one of the day in the life programs

people just didn't seem like they were relaxed at all, they seemed kinda wound up, and like all they wanted to talk about was theories of the law...

Sounds like you talked to 1Ls.

Also, did you go shortly before finals, like in March or something? Everyone I know is pretty relaxed. But then again, they're 3Ls.

Ditto on 2Ls.

[tintin]

i was there the first day after break i believe.

and yeah, i think i only talked to 1Ls.

[sharks_suck]

i was there the first day after break i believe.

and yeah, i think i only talked to 1Ls.

1Ls tend to be a lot more obsessed about the law and law school than upper levels. I suspect this is true at all schools. It's certainly true of my friends at other schools.

[hiromoto45]

What is the OCI process like? Pre-Screening, lottery, bidding( how does that work)

[sharks_suck]

What is the OCI process like? Pre-Screening, lottery, bidding( how does that work)

There is no pre-screening. There are a few firms whose descriptions will say "top 10% only," like Williams & Connolly or Susman, but anyone can still bid on and interview at these firms. Most firms don't have these sort of grade cut-offs though, or at least don't enforce them as strongly in hiring.

Generally, you get 50 bids, and rank firms from 1-50 (or less, if you don't use them all). If you bid 50 times, you'll probably get 25-30 interviews. Additionally, during OCI, you can sign up for more interviews either in blank slots the day of the interview, or online a couple days before the interviews. If you do that, you could probably snag 2-5 more interviews per day.

For what it is worth, I did 30-something OCI interviews.

[tintin]

how about those going into academia? how do they fare? do you know anyone doing this? what advantages if any do you think someone wanting to do this has at chicago?

[sharks_suck]

how about those going into academia? how do they fare? do you know anyone doing this? what advantages if any do you think someone wanting to do this has at chicago?

I am only a 3L. I don't know anyone going into academia specifically. Generally, to go into academia (at a good school), you'll need to land a good clerkship. I think Chicago has an advantage over CCN-and-lower schools due to generally better clerkship numbers, and more Chicago grads in academia. (It is often a slight bump to be from the same school as the person you're looking to be hired by, since there is some degree of kinship.)

As for clerkship numbers, this past year, Chicago 3Ls got 28 clerkships, while Chicago alumni got 21 clerkships. That's 49 total clerkships, from a school with a graduating class of ~200, which isn't bad at all. That vast majority of these were federal clerkships, and most of those were appellate courts. (They just recently published the clerkship manual which, among other things, lists the clerkships Chicago students have had over the past 10-15 years.)

Those with appellate court clerkships and published writings will have a leg up on getting academia jobs. There are also some faculty members willing to advise people how to get careers in academia. Since I'm not personally interested in academia, I haven't spoken to these people though.

Sorry I can't be more helpful on this one.

[jerjon2]

How did IP (patent specifically) people fare at OCI relative to their class rank? (I realize this may be to specific to get any answer but I figured why not)

[A Fern Port]

How did IP (patent specifically) people fare at OCI relative to their class rank? (I realize this may be to specific to get any answer but I figured why not)

I made a new thread, under a new name, so the thread title is accurate.

I will try to answer this question there.

[AngryAvocado]

For what it is worth, I did 30-something OCI interviews.

I worked for a little while after graduating and went through a few interview processes for internships and such, and 20+ interviews sounds like it would be incredibly stressful to me. Is it as bad as it sounds?

[Mr. T6]

For what it is worth, I did 30-something OCI interviews.

I worked for a little while after graduating and went through a few interview processes for internships and such, and 20+ interviews sounds like it would be incredibly stressful to me. Is it as bad as it sounds?

I did almost 40.

You get into a groove and then it's not so bad. Rejections sting less, acceptances feel better. Think of it like dating. You need to get your heart broken several times before you acquire the jaded attitude that makes love possible.

[tintin]

best/worst things about the law school in your opinion?

what would you change if you could?

[rsg87]

What is the OCI process like? Pre-Screening, lottery, bidding( how does that work)

There is no pre-screening. There are a few firms whose descriptions will say "top 10% only," like Williams & Connolly or Susman, but anyone can still bid on and interview at these firms. Most firms don't have these sort of grade cut-offs though, or at least don't enforce them as strongly in hiring.

Generally, you get 50 bids, and rank firms from 1-50 (or less, if you don't use them all). If you bid 50 times, you'll probably get 25-30 interviews. Additionally, during OCI, you can sign up for more interviews either in blank slots the day of the interview, or online a couple days before the interviews. If you do that, you could probably snag 2-5 more interviews per day.

For what it is worth, I did 30-something OCI interviews.

Good to see a fellow hockey fan at Chicago (although I am a die hard sabres fan). I am from Florida and people here don't know what hockey is. I was just wondering how taxing is the typical 1L day? Is it more like a 9-5 job or is it longer (talking more about non exam times)? I guess I am just worried about not having any time to do other things besides studying.

[A Fern Port]

best/worst things about the law school in your opinion?

what would you change if you could?

Worst thing about the law school is the weather here. I'd move the school to California or Texas or North Carolina, if I could. Academically, there are things the school could do better. They could have more secondary journals, for example. It would also be nice if they had a few more clinic spots (although, to be fair, I could have got into a clinic as a 3L had I taken the prereqs for it as a 2L). They could also move Wine Mess to Thursdays instead of Fridays.

It'd be nice if we have more foosball tables. Or maybe a couple pool tables, like the business school does. (Though, you can just go to the b-school and use theirs if you want.)

They also do lots of things right. It's pretty easy to take whatever class you want, whenever you want, rather than having to lottery. (You have to lottery for seminars, but you can get into 90% of them by emailing the professor and showing up the first day anyhow.) There was a solid network of staff around to help people apply for clerkships, and a solid alumni network of judges willing to interview Chicago grads for clerkships. The Chicago name helped me a great deal in finding a job and finding internship opportunities. Every employer I spoke to seemed to appreciate the school's qualities. I also really like a lot of the profs here.

[tintin]

Worst thing about the law school is the weather here. I'd move the school to California or Texas or North Carolina, if I could. Academically, there are things the school could do better. They could have more secondary journals, for example. It would also be nice if they had a few more clinic spots (although, to be fair, I could have got into a clinic as a 3L had I taken the prereqs for it as a 2L). They could also move Wine Mess to Thursdays instead of Fridays.

It'd be nice if we have more foosball tables. Or maybe a couple pool tables, like the business school does. (Though, you can just go to the b-school and use theirs if you want.)

They also do lots of things right. It's pretty easy to take whatever class you want, whenever you want, rather than having to lottery. (You have to lottery for seminars, but you can get into 90% of them by emailing the professor and showing up the first day anyhow.) There was a solid network of staff around to help people apply for clerkships, and a solid alumni network of judges willing to interview Chicago grads for clerkships. The Chicago name helped me a great deal in finding a job and finding internship opportunities. Every employer I spoke to seemed to appreciate the school's qualities. I also really like a lot of the profs here.

ok, i am really scared of this, east coast weather in general. i have never lived outside of CA. i have never seen snow actually fall from the sky, come to think of it.

i feel like the more i forget about chicagos ugly building / the more nerdy people i meet when i visited, the more i like the sound of going there...

[A Fern Port]

ok, i am really scared of this, east coast weather in general. i have never lived outside of CA. i have never seen snow actually fall from the sky, come to think of it.

i feel like the more i forget about chicagos ugly building / the more nerdy people i meet when i visited, the more i like the sound of going there...

Oh, that reminds me of something I like about the school: I like the chairs. I think the chairs in both the library and the classrooms (they are pretty similar, but the ones in the library have casters and some recline) are pretty comfortable. It may not seem like a big deal, but you do a lot of sitting in those chairs.

I think you'll be able to find friends at basically any law school you attend. I wouldn't worry about the student body seeming nerdier. Seems likely to just be because the 20 or whatever students you spoke to happened to be a bit nerdier. I don't know anyone that was involved with ASW this year. Perhaps only nerdy kids got involved. (None of my friends got involved. But we're 3Ls, so we don't care anymore.)

[TXDeac]

are profs accessible? how many hours a day do you study (during normal periods and during exams?) how would you characterize the student body as a whole?

Vast majority of profs are accessible.

I study ~ 0-1 hours/day outside exams. (I am a 3L.) During exams, maybe closer to 4 or 5.

Student body as a whole is pretty diverse.

This seems like surprisingly little to me, but perhaps I've just worked myself up into a frenzy about workloads. What would you say your hours were for 1L, and if you don't mind me asking, how have you done?

[Mr. T6]

are profs accessible? how many hours a day do you study (during normal periods and during exams?) how would you characterize the student body as a whole?

Vast majority of profs are accessible.

I study ~ 0-1 hours/day outside exams. (I am a 3L.) During exams, maybe closer to 4 or 5.

Student body as a whole is pretty diverse.

This seems like surprisingly little to me, but perhaps I've just worked myself up into a frenzy about workloads. What would you say your hours were for 1L, and if you don't mind me asking, how have you done?

It depends on how you study, but most people have free weekends, even during 1L. Of course, you need to buckle down around Finals, but that's also true for undergraduate.

[hiromoto45]

1.When do we get our email address?
2. Can you sync it to gmail?

[Mr. T6]

1.When do we get our email address?
2. Can you sync it to gmail?

1. No clue. Probably in June or July.
2. Almost everyone does.