NYU 1L: Taking Questions Forum

[NYU2011]

But i wonder about the convenience factor of not having to commute to places like Bk. You are glad you lived in the dorms and did you have any friends that lived off campus and preferred that?

I chose to live in the dorms because I was coming from the west coast, hadn't lived in NYC before and just found it immensely easier. I don't regret it, but am planning to move off campus next year. My friends who live in Brooklyn or UES or even Harlem don't seem to regret it at all, and most say they just use their commute time to read.

Where do most off campus law students live? EVillage? Brooklyn? UES? How difficult is it to commute to school, considering the 1L workload?

I would say the top 2 places are Brooklyn and the UES. Like I said above, none of my friends complain about the commute at all.

Is there any way you could post your schedule from a "typical week" of your first semester

This was my class schedule:

M: Ks 9-10:50
Lawyering 11-11:50
Torts 2-3:50

T: Lawyering 9:30-10:50
Civ Pro 12-1:50

W: Ks 9-10:50

R: Civ Pro 10-11:50
Torts 2-3:50

F: Lawyering 9:30-10:50
Civ Pro 11-11:50

Study time varies a lot depending on if there is a lawyering project or anything due that week. If not, I'd say I would spend maybe 1-2 hours a day reading plus another 5 on the weekend (but I'm planning to do more this semester). And that number went up a ton in Nov and Dec of course. I think sections where professors cold called probably spent more time reading carefully; mine didn't, so I slacked a bit with reading.

[carter17]

Thanks for all of the info. I'll be joining the NYU C/O 2012 in the fall and I have a few questions as well:

1.) Does getting one's housing application in early give one an advantage in securing one's residence of choice?

2.) Are past exams available for most 1L required courses (or do you find that you have to find other ways to prepare?)

3.) Do most people form study groups with their immediate friends or do people actively seek a wide range of thought by selecting group members with vastly different backgrounds?

4.) This is kinda random, but how is the team selected for the Dean's Cup game? I played b-ball in undergrad and would love to participate in this tradition.

Again, appreciate the responses, very helpful.

[NYU2011]

Congrats and glad you are joining us! I just checked old emails re: housing and it says this:

Individual Housing Applicants Assignment Process: All applications for incoming students for individual units (not family housing) received prior to May 15 are processed randomly. Applications received after May 15 will be processed based on the date of receipt of the application.

Exams are available for lots of professors online. Of my 3 substantive classes, one of my professors had a bunch of old exams online and 2 of them posted 1 or 2 for us on blackboard.

I didn't use a study group so maybe someone else can answer that.

There are tryouts for Dean's Cup in January.

[OperaAttorney]

Do you know anyone in Prof. Derrick Bell's Constitutional Law class? According to the course description, his teaching method is extremely non-traditional.

Any thoughts?

[underdawg]

nope, friedman is teaching conlaw for 1L's this sem

he is the bomb diggity though

and people form study groups with their friends; it's not an exact science. people don't actively try to find one poli sci guy, one economics guy, one philosophy guy, or anything, lolerz

[OperaAttorney]

and people form study groups with their friends; it's not an exact science. people don't actively try to find one poli sci guy, one economics guy, one philosophy guy, or anything, lolerz

Exactly. Although I always went for the smart people when forming study groups. Of course we stayed friends afterwards . I also don't think large study groups are effective. But I'm not in law school yet.

What do you think, UD?

[underdawg]

and people form study groups with their friends; it's not an exact science. people don't actively try to find one poli sci guy, one economics guy, one philosophy guy, or anything, lolerz

Exactly. Although I always went for the smart people when forming study groups. Of course we stayed friends afterwards . I also don't think large study groups are effective. But I'm not in law school yet.

What do you think, UD?

me neither. they are good in small doses to go over the material, and they are very helpful for going over practice exams that don't have answers posted. in general though...meh

[espresso]

Can you tell me anything about getting in IP from NYU?

Thanks!

I'd be interested in hearing about this as well. So, seconded.

[carter17]

thanks for the info NYU 2011,

now that you've received your 1st semester grades, would you say that you are happy that you chose to study individually or do you find that you would have done better otherwise?

also, more NYU-related, do you get the impression that living on campus would be better for a 1L looking to socialize with other law students? How would you describe the feel of the student body at NYU and how they interact with one another?

[Frank]

.

[NYU2011]

Yes, I'm happy I chose to study alone, and I'll continue to do so but I think most people who studied in a group were also happy with that so... it's just personal preference I guess. I just get more done studying alone.

The schedule I posted is the same (well, times vary) for every section. First semester is Lawyering, Torts, Ks, Civ Pro for everyone; second semester is Lawyering, Administrative and Regulatory State, Crim Law, and an elective. The electives you can choose from are Property, Con, Corporations, International Law, and Tax. You have to take Property before the end of 2L and Con before you graduate.

Yes, Lawyering is pass/fail and everything else is graded.

I suppose living on campus is more conducive to socializing with other law students just because you're all right there. That said, a good number of my friends live off campus and I still see them plenty; they tend to stay around school for most of the day (as opposed to going back to the dorms like many of us do during breaks) or come back to the dorms and hang out. I do see them less on weekends. I think a lot of the people that chose to live off campus have lived in the city prior to law school and have an established group of friends outside the school, whereas like myself, I didn't really know anyone here.

I wouldn't say the dorms themselves are that social though; for instance, I don't know any of my neighbors. But living here makes it easy to meet up with my lawyering group or other friends from my section.

I think the student body is great. Nobody is competitive and everyone is very nice and friendly, in my section there are only maybe 2 or 3 people I wouldn't really want to hang out with (and it's not that those are bad people, just not personality matches). That goes for the 2Ls and 3Ls I've met as well. Like the OP said, there is a level of social awkwardness, but I found as people got used to school and got to know each other people were less awkward, maybe that's just my section though. Overall I really can't say enough good things about the student body.

I'm not ignoring the IP questions, I just have no idea and don't know anyone going that route. Hope someone else can help you guys out.

[Frank]

.

[underdawg]

yes, we've covered stuff like OSHA safety regulations, Civil Rights Act cases, etc

it's a snoozefest though if you have the wrong professor.

[Frank]

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[NYU2011]

yes it's graded. like most classes, the exam probably depends on the professor. my professor's exam is a combo of short answers and hypos.

[edcrane]

yes, we've covered stuff like OSHA safety regulations, Civil Rights Act cases, etc

it's a snoozefest though if you have the wrong professor.

Sorry, I misunderstood that...

YES, it's graded? So, this random course outside the Big 6 is part of the 1L GPA? Is the exam just hypos or is it different from the other traditional courses?

Yes, it's included in your 1L gpa.

I don't think it's random. It's a statutory class, which purportedly makes it more relevant to most professional practice than the other common law classes in the first year curriculum. The final exam is structured accordingly.

It's not a bad class. I far prefer it to civpro, even though civpro was taught by a better, more methodical professor. The topics are not all "snoozefest" material. For example, we went through the Equal Employment Opportunity section of the Civil Rights Act and traced its interpretation through the years, culminating (for our purposes) in Weber, which rather dramatically reinterpreted the section that plainly prohibits any consideration of race during employment/promotion/etc to permit affirmative action.

[Frank]

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[underdawg]

there are some admin supps out there. i wouldn't worry about it as a 0L. it's sorta like civpro in that it's more statutory than common law i guess?

nyu is big on admin (our prof wrote the casebook, and our dean works in the field), so it's taking a bit of a stand by making it a required 1L class

i think it's a snoozefest, but others like edcrane like it i guess.

[edcrane]

there are some admin supps out there. i wouldn't worry about it as a 0L. it's sorta like civpro in that it's more statutory than common law i guess?

nyu is big on admin (our prof wrote the casebook, and our dean works in the field), so it's taking a bit of a stand by making it a required 1L class

i think it's a snoozefest, but others like edcrane like it i guess.

You liked civpro more than our admin class? I'm not saying it's fun, but at least I can remember what the cases are about.

[carter17]

just out of curiosity, how much free time do you all have? i understand that i will have to make a personal decision when it comes to balancing my interests/managing time, but do you find that you have time to explore the city and go out on the weekends or do you feel more like observers blocked by the walls that law school puts up. i only ask bc of course if u can't participate in the village/downtown lifestyle, i imagine that life would be like a big tease (look but don't touch...)

[Olto]

2. I would say two things have surprised me most. First, the collegial nature of the student body. Everyone is really relaxed and friendly and (relatively) social and gets along. Lots of people in my section shared the "this isn't as bad as it is supposed to be" experience. Second, I am not quite as awed by the intellectual nature of my classmates as I expected to be. There are definitely a few people that are a cut above, but for the most part I wouldn't say that this is a group that is particularly intellectually impressive or academic. I think this is in large part due to the fact that I spent a few years working with a VERY bright and driven group, so my perspective is skewed. I would also say (at least for my section) that it is a super socially awkward group; not that people don't go out and drink and have fun, just that they don't seem very comfortable doing it. Not exactly your frat-boy, watch football and drink beer type of people. Not for better or worse, necessarily.
B

I feel really sorry for you, to be honest. I guess each section really does have their own personality. My section parties together all the time. They're not awkward in the least. And it's a VERY bright and diverse group of people. Yes, there are a handful that have made it very clear that they want absolutely nothing to do with anyone else, but they're a very very small minority. I can't speak to your section, and in your defense I have heard that there are one or two sections that are how you describe, but I just think it should be said that not all of the sections are like this.

As for the attractiveness... well, I actually might have to disagree again. In general throughout the law school, I see attractive girls every day that I have never seen before. My section in particular, imo, is generally attractive and I'm pretty happy with the make-up.

I've also met a bunch of 3Ls, kind of through a random series of events, and they're also really awesome. Granted, they have absolutely nothing to do as far as school goes, so they're pretty much always out and partying... but fun and nice and generally awesome.

[huckabees]

Sorry, I've been spamming threads with this question but haven't gotten a good response yet:

If I have a 45 minute to hour long commute to the campus, is that going to detract from my academic experience?

I.e., Would my grades/participation in study groups suffer? What about participation in journals or other clubs/activities?

This is assuming I'm not rich enough to take cabs back and forth whenever I need to; I would probably commute by subway or bus, so leaving the campus very late at night would probably not be an option.

Thanks!

[future_1L]

How easy is it to get biglaw jobs? I mean really. Assume 3.0 GPA, lousy resume, and a lazy disposition.

[Olto]

Sorry, I've been spamming threads with this question but haven't gotten a good response yet:

If I have a 45 minute to hour long commute to the campus, is that going to detract from my academic experience?

I know quite a few people that commute from the UWS or from Brooklyn and they seem to be doing fine. You just have to plan your days better - ie bringing extra books to read during your breaks. Some just leave their books in their lockers and don't even bring them home because they plan on being around the whole day and getting their work done before they go back. As for participation outside of class, you really won't be doing too much outside of class for your first year. You'll have assorted meetings and lawyering things, but they'll mostly be during the day or right after class.

Overall, I don't think commuting would detract from your experience, your grades, your ability to make friends, etc. at all.

[carter17]

just out of curiosity, how much free time do you all have? i understand that i will have to make a personal decision when it comes to balancing my interests/managing time, but do you find that you have time to explore the city and go out on the weekends or do you feel more like observers blocked by the walls that law school puts up. i only ask bc of course if u can't participate in the village/downtown lifestyle, i imagine that life would be like a big tease (look but don't touch...)

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