UVA Law Students Taking Questions Forum

[5ky]

Forgive me for a question that is particularly specific to my situation, but regarding OGI: I'm K-JD and a relatively young one at that (I don't turn 21 for a couple more months), so my resume isn't super-deep. Everything it does have is DC--pretty much every activity is DC-specific, and all my professional contacts are there as well.

After the cutoff for DC (top third-ish?), people seem to recommend going back to a midsize market where you have ties, but I don't really have any other ties, and no sector I've ever worked in really operates outside of DC. My resume is pretty much tailor-made to work in DC Biglaw if I have the grades. If.

So my question is, if I whiff on top third or whatever the DC grade cutoff is, how screwed would I be? Is there any way I could make it work with midsize city interviewers as a babyfaced K-JD with no practical experience in their fields and markets?

First off, nobody has a tailor-made resume to work in big law in any city, particularly if you're K-JD. You can also just dump a bunch of bids in NY with all of the other medianish students, since they don't care quite as much about ties as other places.

The best advice is that since you don't have to worry about bid lists for literally over a year you should seriously take a couple of deep breaths.

[anon sequitur]

So my question is, if I whiff on top third or whatever the DC grade cutoff is, how screwed would I be? Is there any way I could make it work with midsize city interviewers as a babyfaced K-JD with no practical experience in their fields and markets?

You didn't come out and say this, but it sounds like you're not interested in NY biglaw? If that's the case, you should be a little worried, since you'd be eliminating the #1 source of jobs for UVA grads. Especially for people without ties to a secondary market, especially for K-JDs.

I don't think there's any official data about getting biglaw in smaller markets without ties (how could there be), but everyone I know who's doing a non NY/DC firm had some sort of ties established with that market (not a comprehensive sample). However, I have talked to quite a few people who have been able to manufacture ties during law school (1L summer employment helps).

[5ky]

So my question is, if I whiff on top third or whatever the DC grade cutoff is, how screwed would I be? Is there any way I could make it work with midsize city interviewers as a babyfaced K-JD with no practical experience in their fields and markets?

You didn't come out and say this, but it sounds like you're not interested in NY biglaw? If that's the case, you should be a little worried, since you'd be eliminating the #1 source of jobs for UVA grads.

Over the last few years, more have gone to DC than NY and sometimes more have stayed in VA (non-DC) than NY (though the school-funded fellowship things might count in VA, I'm not sure). In reality, UVA doesn't send all that many people to NY, there's just not a huge demand for it. Which makes sense, because if people really loved NY/wanted to work there, many could have gone to Penn or CN.

Chart:

[Monochromatic Oeuvre]

So my question is, if I whiff on top third or whatever the DC grade cutoff is, how screwed would I be? Is there any way I could make it work with midsize city interviewers as a babyfaced K-JD with no practical experience in their fields and markets?

You didn't come out and say this, but it sounds like you're not interested in NY biglaw? If that's the case, you should be a little worried, since you'd be eliminating the #1 source of jobs for UVA grads. Especially for people without ties to a secondary market, especially for K-JDs.

I don't think there's any official data about getting biglaw in smaller markets without ties (how could there be), but everyone I know who's doing a non NY/DC firm had some sort of ties established with that market (not a comprehensive sample). However, I have talked to quite a few people who have been able to manufacture ties during law school (1L summer employment helps).

I don't dislike NY Biglaw, but I come down more on the "Avoid NYC if you can" side of the COL debate. As a result, it's in sort of a second tier for me with maybe a dozen other medium-to-large markets. Of course I have the luxury of looking down on it now before I'm absolutely screwed and can't afford to look a gift horse in the mouth (a city I could work in at 23-24 without ties). But I know for sure I wouldn't enjoy it. DC Biglaw would be a dream come true because a) I know and like the city, plus my entire personal life is there and b) I know and love the work culture (well, as much as I've experienced).

So I suppose if I were to end up in the 3.4x range, I could find something decent in NYC. Of course I overreacted (I'm sure that will be the first and only time ) by saying I'd be "screwed." A more proper way to phrase that would be "For me, NYC would be a significant step down in a way it wouldn't be for most other students."

[thesealocust]

Cross that bridge when you get there. DC is a more competitive market than others, but that doesn't mean you should toss darts at a map if you don't do as well as you hoped. Some diversity in bidding can be smart, but buckshot isn't generally a wise strategy either.

Most importantly though... cross that bridge when you get there. Don't over-think things. The path is as simple as it always was: try hard in law school, apply for things that interest you 1L summer, and then assess the situation when 2L comes into view on the horizon.

[005618502]

anyone know when the grade deadline is for spring grades? Kind of hard to put a bid list together, or even start thinking about it, when I have only 1/2 my grades

[anon sequitur]

anyone know when the grade deadline is for spring grades? Kind of hard to put a bid list together, or even start thinking about it, when I have only 1/2 my grades

June 10th is the deadline, so sometime after that.

[seahawk32]

Does anyone know the deadline for spring semester grades? I know it was June 15th last year, but have heard it is earlier this year.

It's June 10th

[jediknight2424]

With callbacks for 2Ls happening this fall, would it matter if i took 12 credits? And would three 4-credit classes look bad?

[5ky]

With callbacks for 2Ls happening this fall, would it matter if i took 12 credits? And would three 4-credit classes look bad?

There is no reason why you can't take 13/14 credits for fall of 2L but no, it wouldn't matter.

However, you'll soon learn there are incredibly few 4 credit elective courses, and the chances are overwhelming you wouldn't be able to take three in one semester. I tried to spread mine out to make sure I could take at least 1 a semester for credit purposes.

I'm trying to think of a list of them:

Corporations
Sometimes Evidence
Accounting/Corp Finance
Tax
CrimPro (precluding you from taking either Criminal Investigation or Criminal Adjudication)
Sometimes (?) Admin
Civil Liberties
Sometimes Fed Courts

I honestly can't think of any others, aside from various clinics.

[bananapeanutbutter]

Which professors are most condusive to racehorse exams with no broad policy questions?

[5ky]

Maybe some grades today, eh?

I've been doing some thinking, and the earliest I've ever gotten all of my grades has been the deadline day.

1L fall -- 1 day after deadline
1L spring -- deadline day
2L fall -- 2 on deadline day
2L spring -- deadline day
3L fall -- 2 days after deadline day

[evoluna]

Okay I will do that, thanks all.

[North]

You should probably call a lawyer and ask that question. Sorry, this forum isn't meant for dispensing legal advice. Good luck with your situation, though.

[chem]

You should go to the housing clinic on campus

[5ky]

Yeah you can't really ask for legal advice here, but that shit will mess with your credit and potentially C&F so you'll want to get it sorted out straightaway by talking to a lawyer.

[RSterling]

I'm just now hearing of the awful internet/cable service in Ivy? Is it really that slow and intermittent? I'll be ultra pissed if my internet goes out every week.

[jkpolk]

I'm just now hearing of the awful internet/cable service in Ivy? Is it really that slow and intermittent? I'll be ultra pissed if my internet goes out every week.

It's really bad.

[jawsthegreat]

Which professors are most condusive to racehorse exams with no broad policy questions?

Cohen and Mitchell jump to mind immediately. Walt and Nachbar also gave me issue spotting racehorse exams.

[jacksonmead]

I still have exactly zero grades.

[bananapeanutbutter]

If any entering students are still looking for a single at Ivy, I may have a sublet for you and would be willing to charge you $100 less than the cost ($750 a month or whatever) just to not be stuck with it. I'd much prefer to handle money with other law students, and not townies.

[chem]

Michael Collins, you dog. Stop working on your summer movie watch list and post our exam grades!

[canoe]

Since UVA doesn't have a strict grade distribution requirement as long as they maintain a 3.3 mean, are there cases in which 1L students really aiming for an A get screwed when a professor gives around <=5% A's and almost all B's?

A couple pages back someone mentioned that the school is discontinuing the policy of allowing professors' grade distributions from being disclosed to students.

UVA's grading policy seems to be a little shady b/c it gives too much discretion towards professors.

[seahawk32]

UVA's grading policy seems to be a little shady b/c it gives too much discretion towards professors.

I have no idea what you're talking about, but here's the text of the policy for anxious 0Ls.

--LinkRemoved--

"Grading System

Faculty policy requires that each instructor conform his or her grades in all courses to a mean of 3.3 (B+). However, there is no particular grading curve to which a faculty member must adhere. Thus, the mean can be achieved either by averaging relatively high and low grades or by having most grades grouped more closely around the B+ (3.3) mean."

In addition to that, there's a new grading policy that was adopted last semester. Correct if wrong, but I think it allows professors to use the mean GPA of the students in the class, but only if it's higher than a 3.3.

[seahawk32]

Last semester, Collins submitted his grades ~2 weeks after exams, but his grades didn't appear on SIS until the deadline.

Michael CollinsCary Bennett, you dog. Stop working on your summer movie watch list and post our exam grades!