UVA Law Students Taking Questions Forum

[Gecko of Doom]

also, it was hard

+1.

Additionally, ours was a two-part test. We had to do the first part (multiple choice), then turn it in to the professor in the WB hallway and get the second part ("essay"). When the first batch of students went out to the hall to turn in the first part and pick up the second part, the professor was nowhere to be found. ITC had to make calls to locate him, and he didn't arrive until 7-10 minutes later (the clock running the whole time). No full-on meltdowns, but the number of four-letter words flying around during that 7-10 minutes was pretty epic.

[Puttanesca]

So how did CivPro go for the 1Ls? Any great meltdown stories? Who hit 30 pages?

Good for the most part. Nobody cried. Hardest part for my section was concentrating through all the people cheering in the hallway outside our classroom when their exam was over (ours was 4 hours, so we were still going when most of the other sections had already finished).

[paulinaporizkova]

So how did CivPro go for the 1Ls? Any great meltdown stories? Who hit 30 pages?

Good for the most part. Nobody cried. Hardest part for my section was concentrating through all the people cheering in the hallway outside our classroom when their exam was over (ours was 4 hours, so we were still going when most of the other sections had already finished).

sorry about that

[joemoviebuff]

So how did CivPro go for the 1Ls? Any great meltdown stories? Who hit 30 pages?

Good for the most part. Nobody cried. Hardest part for my section was concentrating through all the people cheering in the hallway outside our classroom when their exam was over (ours was 4 hours, so we were still going when most of the other sections had already finished).

sorry about that

Oh so that was you... haha

[paulinaporizkova]

So how did CivPro go for the 1Ls? Any great meltdown stories? Who hit 30 pages?

a gchat ring went off in the middle of our test

also, it was hard

Mine went off during the exam. It was towards the beginning, though. My computer froze right as Nelson said we could begin and my gmail notifier opened automatically when I restarted.

Also, I had a meltdown in the library on Sunday night about a niggling question that no one could give me a satisfactory answer to and then it ended up on the exam. I didn't figure out how to answer it properly until 5 AM this morning, when I woke up and sat bolt upright in bed like, "OF COURSE."

Good times.

You're not in my class but that sucks. Someone's in our class literally went off like 2 hours in

[paulinaporizkova]

So how did CivPro go for the 1Ls? Any great meltdown stories? Who hit 30 pages?

Good for the most part. Nobody cried. Hardest part for my section was concentrating through all the people cheering in the hallway outside our classroom when their exam was over (ours was 4 hours, so we were still going when most of the other sections had already finished).

sorry about that

Oh so that was you... haha

yeah it was our class, since your room was like right next to where we were standing. (sorry, but i'm not cuz i'm so happy that shit is over)

[RVP11]

Why do I feel like I either did embarrassingly poorly or extremely well but nowhere in the middle? Is this a common phenomenon for a Mitchell exam?

That's a common reaction for a 1L. You don't yet realize the gravity of the B+ curve. You'll spend a month thinking your grades could be As or B-s, when they're unlikely to be either.

By 3L, most students have plenty stories of "I barely studied and thought I completely bombed it, but got a B+!" and "I thought I had crushed it...but only got a B+."

[bgdddymtty]

Why do I feel like I either did embarrassingly poorly or extremely well but nowhere in the middle? Is this a common phenomenon for a Mitchell exam?

That's a common reaction for a 1L. You don't yet realize the gravity of the B+ curve. You'll spend a month thinking your grades could be As or B-s, when they're unlikely to be either.

By 3L, most students have plenty stories of "I barely studied and thought I completely bombed it, but got a B+!" and "I thought I had crushed it...but only got a B+."

I hope to be able to regale students, friends, and townpeople with many such stories once this semester ends.

[thesealocust]

Much like nuclear war, the only winning move with respect to talking about grades (in any context) is not to play.

[barry]

I have a question, if the cover page says you have to personally prepare your own outline, can I still go through someone else's outline and adapt it/take stuff from it for my own outline?

[Stringer Bell]

Here is a ?, does anyone think (or have heard of) a student from UVA being offered a summer at Wachtell? Would a student in the top 1% definitely be in the running if they wanted to even though they dont do OGI at UVA?

Not trying to be a dick or demean your question at all, but it is kind of amusing reading this while going through 1L finals.

[5ky]

I have a question, if the cover page says you have to personally prepare your own outline, can I still go through someone else's outline and adapt it/take stuff from it for my own outline?

Can you ask your prof? It depends on the wording, I guess. If it is one that says "you have prepared yourself or have had substantial input into," then I wouldn't see any problem going through another outline and adding some stuff to yours. But I don't think vice versa would be acceptable, e.g. adding to someone else's already-made outline.

[jawsthegreat]

Why do I feel like I either did embarrassingly poorly or extremely well but nowhere in the middle? Is this a common phenomenon for a Mitchell exam?

That's a common reaction for a 1L. You don't yet realize the gravity of the B+ curve. You'll spend a month thinking your grades could be As or B-s, when they're unlikely to be either.

By 3L, most students have plenty stories of "I barely studied and thought I completely bombed it, but got a B+!" and "I thought I had crushed it...but only got a B+."

Mitchells exams are basically typing races. The more points/pages the higher your grade in all likelihood.

[005618502]

Here is a ?, does anyone think (or have heard of) a student from UVA being offered a summer at Wachtell? Would a student in the top 1% definitely be in the running if they wanted to even though they dont do OGI at UVA?

Not trying to be a dick or demean your question at all, but it is kind of amusing reading this while going through 1L finals.

Haha and I didnt at all mean it to sound like "Hey Im gonna be at the top of the class, do I have a chance?"

I was just more curious if they would consider UVA even though they dont recruit there and dont take below CCN (besides Penn rarely)

[thesealocust]

Any firm will consider you if you make your case, coming to OGI is always a cost/benefit decision rather than an articulation of their attitude toward the school.

I did the whole process with Quinn in NYC my year, for example, despite the fact that they didn't come to OGI. 'Mass mailing' during OGI won't work for everyone and usually has a low success rate, but OGI is definitely not the only way to score even a big / brand name firm job.

[Cavalier]

I know someone at UVA who got a Wachtell offer, so it's definitely not out of the question. As stated earlier, Wachtell's summer class is only a fraction of the size of other V10 classes (just 22 summer associates last year), so it would make no economic sense for the firm to visit every T14, but that doesn't mean they won't consider non-T6 (plus Penn) students with strong credentials. If you think you have a shot, it's definitely worth applying to some of the elite firms that don't recruit here (Wachtell, Munger, Irell, Susman, to name a few) if that's what interests you.

I have a question, if the cover page says you have to personally prepare your own outline, can I still go through someone else's outline and adapt it/take stuff from it for my own outline?

If you're uncertain it's best to ask your professor, but I doubt anyone would object to that.

[jawsthegreat]

I know someone at UVA who got a Wachtell offer, so it's definitely not out of the question. As stated earlier, Wachtell's summer class is only a fraction of the size of other V10 classes (just 22 summer associates last year), so it would make no economic sense for the firm to visit every T14, but that doesn't mean they won't consider non-T6 (plus Penn) students with strong credentials. If you think you have a shot, it's definitely worth applying to some of the elite firms that don't recruit here (Wachtell, Munger, Irell, Susman, to name a few) if that's what interests you.

I have a question, if the cover page says you have to personally prepare your own outline, can I still go through someone else's outline and adapt it/take stuff from it for my own outline?

If you're uncertain it's best to ask your professor, but I doubt anyone would object to that.

Definitely true. I personally know someone working at Susman and Irell.

[cubbiesyear]

Anyone know/care to comment on how easy or difficult it is to get to Chicago/the Midwest from UVA? I was offered 25 a year a couple weeks ago and that's more than I'm going to get at UMich or Chicago (if i even get into the latter) so it's pretty tempting. But I don't want to be barred from my home region.

[Cavalier]

Anyone know/care to comment on how easy or difficult it is to get to Chicago/the Midwest from UVA? I was offered 25 a year a couple weeks ago and that's more than I'm going to get at UMich or Chicago (if i even get into the latter) so it's pretty tempting. But I don't want to be barred from my home region.

Take the money and come to UVA. I know several students who found summer associate positions in Chicago. Midwest ties seem to be required, but given your username and avatar I don't think that will be a problem for you. UVA shouldn't put you at much of a disadvantage compared to Michigan and Chicago--certainly if those schools offer any advantage, it's not worth $75k.

[bgdddymtty]

Anyone know/care to comment on how easy or difficult it is to get to Chicago/the Midwest from UVA? I was offered 25 a year a couple weeks ago and that's more than I'm going to get at UMich or Chicago (if i even get into the latter) so it's pretty tempting. But I don't want to be barred from my home region.

Take the money and come to UVA. I know several students who found summer associate positions in Chicago. Midwest ties seem to be required, but given your username and avatar I don't think that will be a problem for you. UVA shouldn't put you at much of a disadvantage compared to Michigan and Chicago--certainly if those schools offer any advantage, it's not worth $75k.

+75000

[cubbiesyear]

Anyone know/care to comment on how easy or difficult it is to get to Chicago/the Midwest from UVA? I was offered 25 a year a couple weeks ago and that's more than I'm going to get at UMich or Chicago (if i even get into the latter) so it's pretty tempting. But I don't want to be barred from my home region.

Take the money and come to UVA. I know several students who found summer associate positions in Chicago. Midwest ties seem to be required, but given your username and avatar I don't think that will be a problem for you. UVA shouldn't put you at much of a disadvantage compared to Michigan and Chicago--certainly if those schools offer any advantage, it's not worth $75k.

Thanks a lot for the info. Any idea on getting to secondary markets? (I'm actually originally from a large non-chicago midwest city but currently live in Chicago). Again is this just a ties thing?

[Gecko of Doom]

Take the money and come to UVA. I know several students who found summer associate positions in Chicago. Midwest ties seem to be required, but given your username and avatar I don't think that will be a problem for you. UVA shouldn't put you at much of a disadvantage compared to Michigan and Chicago--certainly if those schools offer any advantage, it's not worth $75k.

Also curious about this (but my question is sort of the inverse of cubbiesyear's). Do ties to other Midwest cities seem to cut it for Chicago firms, or do they want ties to Chicago specifically?

[paulinaporizkova]

Why do I feel like I either did embarrassingly poorly or extremely well but nowhere in the middle? Is this a common phenomenon for a Mitchell exam?

That's a common reaction for a 1L. You don't yet realize the gravity of the B+ curve. You'll spend a month thinking your grades could be As or B-s, when they're unlikely to be either.

By 3L, most students have plenty stories of "I barely studied and thought I completely bombed it, but got a B+!" and "I thought I had crushed it...but only got a B+."

Mitchells exams are basically typing races. The more points/pages the higher your grade in all likelihood.

good (on the page count I guess, not necessarily the actual point count)

[sundance95]

Anyone know/care to comment on how easy or difficult it is to get to Chicago/the Midwest from UVA? I was offered 25 a year a couple weeks ago and that's more than I'm going to get at UMich or Chicago (if i even get into the latter) so it's pretty tempting. But I don't want to be barred from my home region.

You might also want to consider that it is probably easier to bid and get Midwest firm interviews at UVA than at Michigan and Chicago, just as a result of less competition for those slots. But, that might be offset by a greater number of firms or interviewers coming to Michigan/Chicago. But, I think you should be able to get that kind of data from the career services offices of the schools you are considering to control for that second factor.

Also, think of it as getting paid $75k to have an awesome law school experience (it really is-I'm very glad I made the choice that I did, and I'm in the middle of 1L finals, so take that for what it's worth).

[jawsthegreat]

Why do I feel like I either did embarrassingly poorly or extremely well but nowhere in the middle? Is this a common phenomenon for a Mitchell exam?

That's a common reaction for a 1L. You don't yet realize the gravity of the B+ curve. You'll spend a month thinking your grades could be As or B-s, when they're unlikely to be either.

By 3L, most students have plenty stories of "I barely studied and thought I completely bombed it, but got a B+!" and "I thought I had crushed it...but only got a B+."

Mitchells exams are basically typing races. The more points/pages the higher your grade in all likelihood.

good (on the page count I guess, not necessarily the actual point count)

Out of curiousity, how many did you write?