Boston College Alum Taking Questions Forum

[BCLS]

1) When do 1L typically move into apartments? I see a lot of places available on Craigslist for Sept 1 but that might be too late. I'll also check out the housing event you mentioned.

2) Do all profs use the same textbook for each subject - example for Property, different sections have different profs - do they use the same text book?

They don't all use the same textbook. Also, Most students had to move in Sept 1. I was put up in a hotel downtown from orientation (late august) until September 1. Hope this helps-- from a current 1L

[BCLS Alum]

Most apartments are available September 1st, especially if you are looking in Boston proper. Newtown/Waltham/Watertown apartments will be available as they are available. I should note that I was in my early 20s when I was in law school and living in the Allston/Brighton area was amazing. I had a car to get to and from school, which I definitely suggest. I had older friends who had families who rented big houses out in the suburbs and that worked for them. Its all about what you are looking for. The good thing about where BC is located is that older students with families can live in a house and still have a short commute, something most schools in big cities lack.

Professors use different books, so you should wait until you know which book and which edition they want to use. For those of you who want to prep before schools starts, I don't recommend it, but if you do, I would suggest just reading through an Examples and Explanations for whatever subject you are looking at. It probably doesn't hurt, I just think you should relax before the whirlwind begins.

[franklin14]

Can BCLS talk about how the current market is at BC? How did things seem to go for OCI this year? How did either of you find your apartments? Any recommendations? CList is extremely cluttered and I have no interest in hiring a service. I am a lowly inlander, so are there a fair amount of transplants at the school?

Thanks for the help! BC students seem to be fairly dormant on here, which is actually probably a good sign.

[mikcou]

Can BCLS talk about how the current market is at BC? How did things seem to go for OCI this year? How did either of you find your apartments? Any recommendations? CList is extremely cluttered and I have no interest in hiring a service. I am a lowly inlander, so are there a fair amount of transplants at the school?

Thanks for the help! BC students seem to be fairly dormant on here, which is actually probably a good sign.

I just went to a real estate agent. If youre in the area, I would suggest coming in May or so to look for apartments before the other grad students arrive. Prices are generally fairly stable in the Brighton/Allston area but the quality of apartments vary widely. I ended up with a nicer apartment than many of my friends for basically the same price mainly because I got in early. Let me know if you have any other questions.

OCI from what I gathered went better this year than last year. The 2Ls are doing considerably better than the 3Ls have done. As to the current market - I'm not really sure as a lowly 1L. And yeah, our presence here is fairly minimal - we get out a lot

[BCLS Alum]

Below are two good resources to use:

http://www.bc.edu/offices/reslife/offcampus.html

http://www.bc.edu/schools/law/admission/housing.html

Note that the law school provides an off-campus housing fair in June for admitted students who plan to attend. This is how a number of law students met up and figured out their living situation for the first year. This is a great resource for people who don't live in the Boston area the summer before school starts.

[sullidop]

Interesting post, thanks. Very informative...even for current students at BCLS.

[skippy1]

Are 1Ls assigned mentors/advisors who are 2L/3L - I think this would be very valuable for incoming 1Ls....

[JusticeHarlan]

Are 1Ls assigned mentors/advisors who are 2L/3L - I think this would be very valuable for incoming 1Ls....

Yes, yes they are.

[africaforlife]

BCLS - can you give any insights to a student choosing between BC and Northeastern? I know BC is much higher ranked and has a better national profile, but I don't want to go to biglaw - i am much more interested in international public/human rights law. Do you have any advice to offer on that front? Can you comment on the strength of the international program at BC? Thanks!

[franklin14]

Thanks for the help! Great information.

[BCLS Alum]

BCLS - can you give any insights to a student choosing between BC and Northeastern? I know BC is much higher ranked and has a better national profile, but I don't want to go to biglaw - i am much more interested in international public/human rights law. Do you have any advice to offer on that front? Can you comment on the strength of the international program at BC? Thanks!

Northeastern has a great public interest program. However, while it may seem counter-intuitive, the public interest market is actually fairly competitive. If you are looking to work for some of the more well known public interest organizations, you are still going to be competiting with top students from top law schools.

There are a number of opportunities that will be made available to you at BC law, and given its class size, there is not a huge amount of competittion for these opportunities:
[*]Participate with the nationally recognized Center for Human Rights and International Justice (http://www.bc.edu/centers/humanrights/)
[*]Participate on the International and Comparative Law Review (http://www.bc.edu/schools/law/lawreviews/iclr.html)
[*]Participate on the Third World Law Journal (http://www.bc.edu/schools/law/lawreviews/iclr.html)
[*]Participate in Semester in Practice: International Human Rights (http://www.bc.edu/schools/law/services/ ... nical.html)
[*]Participate in the London Program (http://www.bc.edu/schools/law/services/ ... nical.html)
[*] Participate in the Law & Justice in the Americas program (http://www.bc.edu/schools/law/services/ ... ricas.html)

I think you would be interested in the Semester In Practice program, where students work with international non-governmental organizations, tribunals such as the International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia, the Inter-American Court of Human Rights, the Jesuit Refugee Service, or the Hague. I believe they take around ten students each semester, and given the class size at BC is small and there is less interest in some of these programs, your chances of participating are extremely high.
You'll also note a few student organizations that are centered on your interests. (http://www.bc.edu/schools/law/services/ ... cular.html)

While I am huge fan of Northeastern and their co-op model particularly, I think it is better served for their undergraduate student body. Law school inherently has a co-op program in the form of summer associate positions, which is largely sufficient to provide the student with a great experience. In addition, the law student usually has a job offer after a summer associate position, but this is not always (rarely?) the case with co-ops at the law school level.

All of this being said, I must warn you about taking out too much debt to pay for law school. The public interest route is not going to pay as much as the private for-profit sector. Two things you should consider are scholarships and LRAP programs.

Here is some info about the BCLS LRAP program.
http://www.bc.edu/schools/law/services/ ... c/lra.html

[jamie9248922]

Hey BCLS, how involved are the law students in BC Athletics? Do they attend games, get tickets etc? Is their time to catch a football game on a saturday afternoon?

[africaforlife]

Thanks for the info BCLS! Any chance you have a sense of how engaged BC students were in those kinds of international issues? I know that a lot of BC kids go the big law route, which is great, but was there serious engagement with international matters even for those interested in going to biglaw or was it a clear subset of students who were interested? Also, i have read a lot about the CHRIJ, but i have had a difficult time getting a sense of serious a presence it has on campus...were you aware of it or did you have to pursue it? What was the center known for on campus?

Thanks again - really appreciate your insights!

[BCLS Alum]

Students often go to BC sports games. There is a special BC law area for tailgaiting at football games. The basketball team and hockey teams are popular events to attend as well, but football in the fall was always the big attraction. It is a fun time to hang out and have that experience. It is rare to have a bigtime football program in a major northeastern market.


International human rights was very much discussed in law school and it was one of the more popular topics of discussion among students. The school puts on a symposium every year on a different topic of international human rights, which is a great experience because they pay top experts in the field to present at the school. This helps with networking as well. I have a friend who is at the Hauge now after graduation and she loves it. She got the position after interning there during school.

[BCLS Alum]

Jamie, are you a potential Double Eagle?

[jamie9248922]

Jamie, are you a potential Double Eagle?

Yes! Are there many of them?

[BCLS Alum]

There are always a handful of Double Eagles each year. The Double Eagle alums really love Double Eagle law students. It is a good group to be a part of, especially in Boston where there are a number of Double Eagle partners who are in charge of hiring at the big firms. They favor BC law students, and really favor Double Eagles. It is a good group to be apart of. A couple of my friends are Double Eagles and I know one or two triple eagles (BC High, BC, BC Law).

[JusticeHarlan]

Jamie, are you a potential Double Eagle?

Yes! Are there many of them?

The current 1L class has, I believe, ~34 BC undergrad alums (out of about 240 1Ls). Next most represented undergrad has only 10 1Ls. So yeah, a lot of Double Eagles here.

[BCLS]

Hey BCLS, how involved are the law students in BC Athletics? Do they attend games, get tickets etc? Is their time to catch a football game on a saturday afternoon?

Hey there!!!


Students go to football games all the time. Hockey and basketball are big here. There's more than enough time to catch a game on a saturday. People are pretty chill here. PM me with any questions.

[FlanAl]

hey any anecdotal evidence (or solid evidence for that matter) of the ability to take a BC law degree out west?

thanks a bunch for taking questions

[sullidop]

Jamie, are you a potential Double Eagle?

Yes! Are there many of them?

The current 1L class has, I believe, ~34 BC undergrad alums (out of about 240 1Ls). Next most represented undergrad has only 10 1Ls. So yeah, a lot of Double Eagles here.

BCLS tries to fill 15% of each incoming class with graduates of BC.

[BCLS Alum]

Taking questions again this week.

[FlanAl]

hey any anecdotal evidence (or solid evidence for that matter) of the ability to take a BC law degree out west?

thanks a bunch for taking questions

[jamie9248922]

Do many BC students live on Beacon ST. specifically the Coolidge Corner are or do they stay more towards Comm Ave, Brighton/Allston?

[JusticeHarlan]

Do many BC students live on Beacon ST. specifically the Coolidge Corner are or do they stay more towards Comm Ave, Brighton/Allston?

A good number do live on Beacon and in Brookline/Coolidge Corner area, thought not as many as in, say, Cleveland Circle or Allston (as far as I can tell).