Harvard Student(s) Answering Your Questions Forum

[GoBucks6612]

How did you guys answer the "Why Harvard Law" question during the Skype interview?
I looked at the HLS website -- fairly typical stuff that could be applied to any other top law school...

What distinguishes HLS from other peer schools? (besides large class size, location, etc)

What's really, really unique about HLS?

Thank you

I interviewed awhile back so can't remember exactly what I said but tried to put everything in the context of my application and goals. For instance, I am interested in consulting/entrepreneurship and have an interdisciplinary background so talked about the relationship with the business school, the Harvard Law Entrepreneurship Project and then talked about the size and the benefits I saw coming from a large undergrad. It sounds cliche but there is no right answer and you just gotta think about what matters to you.

[alpinespring]

How did you guys answer the "Why Harvard Law" question during the Skype interview?
I looked at the HLS website -- fairly typical stuff that could be applied to any other top law school...

What distinguishes HLS from other peer schools? (besides large class size, location, etc)

What's really, really unique about HLS?

Thank you

I interviewed awhile back so can't remember exactly what I said but tried to put everything in the context of my application and goals. For instance, I am interested in consulting/entrepreneurship and have an interdisciplinary background so talked about the relationship with the business school, the Harvard Law Entrepreneurship Project and then talked about the size and the benefits I saw coming from a large undergrad. It sounds cliche but there is no right answer and you just gotta think about what matters to you.

Model answer. Thanks!

[Nonconsecutive]

It sounds cliche but there is no right answer and you just gotta think about what matters to you.

I agree with this. Just sound interested and informed. I spoke about a few specific professors and some of the work they had done that interested me, and it genuinely did. I also tied that to some work experience I had. I think my undergraduate thesis made up like a solid 40% of the conversation though, so my "Why Harvard" portion wasn't actually that long.

Also, for what it's worth, I ended up taking all of one class with one of those professors, and am now entering an area of law that isn't even remotely related to what I spoke about the during the interview, so don't sweat that aspect of it either.

[jlet0314]

For those of you who lived in Terry Terrace, how was it? Any issues with noise? Struggling whether to go private housing or HUH. Any feedback is greatly appreciated

[wubwubwub]

For those of you who lived in Terry Terrace, how was it? Any issues with noise? Struggling whether to go private housing or HUH. Any feedback is greatly appreciated

I live in Terry Terrace, and I've been very happy with it. My unit's a good size and it's quite quiet even though I live on the first floor. It's also great to have Harvard as a landlord: they have a huge full-time maintenance team, so the property is generally in very good condition. I think it's a bit more expensive than other landlords in the area, but keep in mind that all utilities are included in the rent, which isn't the case for most places in the area. My only complaints are that the units don't have dishwashers, washer/dryers, or central air, but I think that most private housing in the area don't have them either. If you have a good selection window and can get a unit in Terry Terrace, I'd highly recommend it.

[JordanLaw15]

Are there current students or grads that transferred that received need-based aid? Would anyone be worth disclosing how much they received and if it was on par with other students that attended as 1Ls?

[alpinespring]

Do all 1L's at HLS study the same textbooks for the required courses (like Torts, etc)?

Is it possible to get a syllabus for all the courses I might be taking? Thank you guys!

[QuentonCassidy]

Do all 1L's at HLS study the same textbooks for the required courses (like Torts, etc)?

Is it possible to get a syllabus for all the courses I might be taking? Thank you guys!

Textbooks will be different for different professors, and the syllabi will all be different as well; no way to do anything until you know your professors in August, sorry.

[QuentonCassidy]

Anyone who got the LR materials mailed to them have an issue receiving them? They were supposed to arrive by noon today but didn't, and FedEx got hit by that malware attack yesterday so I imagine that may be an issue. Wondering what's gonna happen if we don't get the materials.

[tomwatts]

Are there current students or grads that transferred that received need-based aid? Would anyone be worth disclosing how much they received and if it was on par with other students that attended as 1Ls?

I'm pretty sure that financial aid is identical regardless of whether you're a transfer or not. The Financial Aid Policy is what it is for transfers and non-transfers alike.

[alpinespring]

Do all 1L's at HLS study the same textbooks for the required courses (like Torts, etc)?

Is it possible to get a syllabus for all the courses I might be taking? Thank you guys!

Textbooks will be different for different professors, and the syllabi will all be different as well; no way to do anything until you know your professors in August, sorry.

Thanks

How would you guys describe the social atmosphere of HLS?

Is it really like high school (or middle school)?

Do students generally hook up/date each other like undergrad?

[agnes_bean]

How would you guys describe the social atmosphere of HLS?

Is it really like high school (or middle school)?

Do students generally hook up/date each other like undergrad?

1L at any school does have a bit of a high school feel in that you have a set schedule where you see the same people all the time, all have lunch at the same time, etc., but I definitely did not find HLS at all cliquey, which is what I normally associate with the middle/high school label. I guess that will depend on your section, but in my experience the vast majority of people here are very friendly and open. In my section, people were very apt to post to the section Facebook group like, "Hey, I'm going to grab drinks at X, everyone is welcome!" Especially first semester. By second semester people did settle more into different friend groups, as to be expected. But it still never felt cliquey--there were still plenty of all-section events, and plenty of moving in between the different "groups." Like sure, by second semester I had the people I was closest too, but if they didn't happen to be at lunch one day I always felt welcome sitting with anyone from my section, there were plenty of times I would grab drinks with people I was not as close to, etc. (And even the friend "groups" weren't as defined and closed off as a stereotypical high school clique. If you asked each of my 10 closest friends from my section to come up with a list of THEIR 10 closest friends from the section, everyone's list would look different. There's lots of social fluidity.)

(2L is even further from any sort of high school experience because everyone is on different schedules/classes. In that way it becomes a lot more like college or the real world, where you sometimes have to make a point of seeing your closest friends because your schedules don't necessarily naturally overlap anymore.)

As for if students hook up: It's not at all like undergrad. A lot of people come in already in relationships, and many people who are single are looking for something a little more serious. The people I know who go on a lot of dates/hook up with a lot of people tend to mostly do that through online dating/outside of the law school. Some relationships definitely form at the school, don't get me wrong, but it's nothing like the "everyone's hooking up with everyone, everyone is dating another student" atmosphere I experienced in undergrad.

[alpinespring]

How would you guys describe the social atmosphere of HLS?

Is it really like high school (or middle school)?

Do students generally hook up/date each other like undergrad?

1L at any school does have a bit of a high school feel in that you have a set schedule where you see the same people all the time, all have lunch at the same time, etc., but I definitely did not find HLS at all cliquey, which is what I normally associate with the middle/high school label. I guess that will depend on your section, but in my experience the vast majority of people here are very friendly and open. In my section, people were very apt to post to the section Facebook group like, "Hey, I'm going to grab drinks at X, everyone is welcome!" Especially first semester. By second semester people did settle more into different friend groups, as to be expected. But it still never felt cliquey--there were still plenty of all-section events, and plenty of moving in between the different "groups." Like sure, by second semester I had the people I was closest too, but if they didn't happen to be at lunch one day I always felt welcome sitting with anyone from my section, there were plenty of times I would grab drinks with people I was not as close to, etc. (And even the friend "groups" weren't as defined and closed off as a stereotypical high school clique. If you asked each of my 10 closest friends from my section to come up with a list of THEIR 10 closest friends from the section, everyone's list would look different. There's lots of social fluidity.)

(2L is even further from any sort of high school experience because everyone is on different schedules/classes. In that way it becomes a lot more like college or the real world, where you sometimes have to make a point of seeing your closest friends because your schedules don't necessarily naturally overlap anymore.)

As for if students hook up: It's not at all like undergrad. A lot of people come in already in relationships, and many people who are single are looking for something a little more serious. The people I know who go on a lot of dates/hook up with a lot of people tend to mostly do that through online dating/outside of the law school. Some relationships definitely form at the school, don't get me wrong, but it's nothing like the "everyone's hooking up with everyone, everyone is dating another student" atmosphere I experienced in undergrad.

This post is gold. Thank you so much!

[crescentstars]

Thanks

How would you guys describe the social atmosphere of HLS?

Is it really like high school (or middle school)?

Do students generally hook up/date each other like undergrad?

Gonna echo pretty much everything that agnes_bean said, but I'll really emphasize that it depends on your particular section (which I assume is true at most/all law schools).

To contrast, my section was pretty cliquey and competitive, and the main cliques were mostly formed by the end of September. That said, most people were still nice when you talked to them individually. The upside is that the student body is huge, so I had no problem making friends in other sections/in the 2L and 3L classes through SPOs, student orgs, my spring elective, etc. And sections are big too -- even though I didn't like the overall vibe of mine, I still made some great friends, and section events were fine overall (though not too many people went starting second semester).

[cantorb]

How would you guys describe the social atmosphere of HLS?

Is it really like high school (or middle school)?

Do students generally hook up/date each other like undergrad?

1L at any school does have a bit of a high school feel in that you have a set schedule where you see the same people all the time, all have lunch at the same time, etc., but I definitely did not find HLS at all cliquey, which is what I normally associate with the middle/high school label. I guess that will depend on your section, but in my experience the vast majority of people here are very friendly and open. In my section, people were very apt to post to the section Facebook group like, "Hey, I'm going to grab drinks at X, everyone is welcome!" Especially first semester. By second semester people did settle more into different friend groups, as to be expected. But it still never felt cliquey--there were still plenty of all-section events, and plenty of moving in between the different "groups." Like sure, by second semester I had the people I was closest too, but if they didn't happen to be at lunch one day I always felt welcome sitting with anyone from my section, there were plenty of times I would grab drinks with people I was not as close to, etc. (And even the friend "groups" weren't as defined and closed off as a stereotypical high school clique. If you asked each of my 10 closest friends from my section to come up with a list of THEIR 10 closest friends from the section, everyone's list would look different. There's lots of social fluidity.)

(2L is even further from any sort of high school experience because everyone is on different schedules/classes. In that way it becomes a lot more like college or the real world, where you sometimes have to make a point of seeing your closest friends because your schedules don't necessarily naturally overlap anymore.)

As for if students hook up: It's not at all like undergrad. A lot of people come in already in relationships, and many people who are single are looking for something a little more serious. The people I know who go on a lot of dates/hook up with a lot of people tend to mostly do that through online dating/outside of the law school. Some relationships definitely form at the school, don't get me wrong, but it's nothing like the "everyone's hooking up with everyone, everyone is dating another student" atmosphere I experienced in undergrad.

Motion to add this to the first post on this thread.

[theventriloquist]

I have a question. For those students at HLS interested in Investment Banking/finance--how easy was it to get internships and jobs in those positions? Also, can HLS students make use of HBS career services, if they take HBS courses (up to 12 credits, I believe)? And was HLS carreer services knowlegable about non-law positions and helpful in that regard?

I would like to work in investment banking after law school. I was thinking of an MBA, but I feel that, without the appropriate work experience, an MBA would not really open the same doors as a law degree. Furthurmore, I have heard of BigLaw Associates lateraling into investment banking. so it seems like law would be a better choice for me, but I want to be sure.

I like that law school offers 2 internship opportunities. I have read abotut McKinsey 1L summer JD internship. I would be intersted in that, expecially if I can work in McKinsey financial services division.

I have a background in science. I'l be applying this cycle. Thank you again for all your time and responses.

[Hildegard15]

How would you guys describe the social atmosphere of HLS?

Is it really like high school (or middle school)?

Do students generally hook up/date each other like undergrad?

1L at any school does have a bit of a high school feel in that you have a set schedule where you see the same people all the time, all have lunch at the same time, etc., but I definitely did not find HLS at all cliquey, which is what I normally associate with the middle/high school label. I guess that will depend on your section, but in my experience the vast majority of people here are very friendly and open. In my section, people were very apt to post to the section Facebook group like, "Hey, I'm going to grab drinks at X, everyone is welcome!" Especially first semester. By second semester people did settle more into different friend groups, as to be expected. But it still never felt cliquey--there were still plenty of all-section events, and plenty of moving in between the different "groups." Like sure, by second semester I had the people I was closest too, but if they didn't happen to be at lunch one day I always felt welcome sitting with anyone from my section, there were plenty of times I would grab drinks with people I was not as close to, etc. (And even the friend "groups" weren't as defined and closed off as a stereotypical high school clique. If you asked each of my 10 closest friends from my section to come up with a list of THEIR 10 closest friends from the section, everyone's list would look different. There's lots of social fluidity.)

(2L is even further from any sort of high school experience because everyone is on different schedules/classes. In that way it becomes a lot more like college or the real world, where you sometimes have to make a point of seeing your closest friends because your schedules don't necessarily naturally overlap anymore.)

As for if students hook up: It's not at all like undergrad. A lot of people come in already in relationships, and many people who are single are looking for something a little more serious. The people I know who go on a lot of dates/hook up with a lot of people tend to mostly do that through online dating/outside of the law school. Some relationships definitely form at the school, don't get me wrong, but it's nothing like the "everyone's hooking up with everyone, everyone is dating another student" atmosphere I experienced in undergrad.

This was exactly my experience with my section this year.

[despina]

How would you guys describe the social atmosphere of HLS?

Is it really like high school (or middle school)?

Do students generally hook up/date each other like undergrad?

1L at any school does have a bit of a high school feel in that you have a set schedule where you see the same people all the time, all have lunch at the same time, etc., but I definitely did not find HLS at all cliquey, which is what I normally associate with the middle/high school label. I guess that will depend on your section, but in my experience the vast majority of people here are very friendly and open. In my section, people were very apt to post to the section Facebook group like, "Hey, I'm going to grab drinks at X, everyone is welcome!" Especially first semester. By second semester people did settle more into different friend groups, as to be expected. But it still never felt cliquey--there were still plenty of all-section events, and plenty of moving in between the different "groups." Like sure, by second semester I had the people I was closest too, but if they didn't happen to be at lunch one day I always felt welcome sitting with anyone from my section, there were plenty of times I would grab drinks with people I was not as close to, etc. (And even the friend "groups" weren't as defined and closed off as a stereotypical high school clique. If you asked each of my 10 closest friends from my section to come up with a list of THEIR 10 closest friends from the section, everyone's list would look different. There's lots of social fluidity.)

(2L is even further from any sort of high school experience because everyone is on different schedules/classes. In that way it becomes a lot more like college or the real world, where you sometimes have to make a point of seeing your closest friends because your schedules don't necessarily naturally overlap anymore.)

As for if students hook up: It's not at all like undergrad. A lot of people come in already in relationships, and many people who are single are looking for something a little more serious. The people I know who go on a lot of dates/hook up with a lot of people tend to mostly do that through online dating/outside of the law school. Some relationships definitely form at the school, don't get me wrong, but it's nothing like the "everyone's hooking up with everyone, everyone is dating another student" atmosphere I experienced in undergrad.

This was exactly my experience with my section this year.

Yes, second all of this.

I'd also add that if you are somebody who wants to go out drinking a lot, there will be a lot of people who you can do that with. If you are somebody who doesn't drink at all, you can still be very social (including with the people who drink a lot). I found myself in between and have no complaints.

[HLSstudent]

.

[tomwatts]

Any chance 3L grades come out this week? Or will it be next Monday?

Ordinarily, it's Thursday or Friday before Commencement (so Thursday or Friday this week).

[Pneumonia]

Any chance 3L grades come out this week? Or will it be next Monday?

Ordinarily, it's Thursday or Friday before Commencement (so Thursday or Friday this week).

Yeah I have a prof who mentioned that the deadline is the 13th, so this Friday.

[wubwubwub]

How would you guys describe the social atmosphere of HLS?

Is it really like high school (or middle school)?

Do students generally hook up/date each other like undergrad?

1L at any school does have a bit of a high school feel in that you have a set schedule where you see the same people all the time, all have lunch at the same time, etc., but I definitely did not find HLS at all cliquey, which is what I normally associate with the middle/high school label. I guess that will depend on your section, but in my experience the vast majority of people here are very friendly and open. In my section, people were very apt to post to the section Facebook group like, "Hey, I'm going to grab drinks at X, everyone is welcome!" Especially first semester. By second semester people did settle more into different friend groups, as to be expected. But it still never felt cliquey--there were still plenty of all-section events, and plenty of moving in between the different "groups." Like sure, by second semester I had the people I was closest too, but if they didn't happen to be at lunch one day I always felt welcome sitting with anyone from my section, there were plenty of times I would grab drinks with people I was not as close to, etc. (And even the friend "groups" weren't as defined and closed off as a stereotypical high school clique. If you asked each of my 10 closest friends from my section to come up with a list of THEIR 10 closest friends from the section, everyone's list would look different. There's lots of social fluidity.)

(2L is even further from any sort of high school experience because everyone is on different schedules/classes. In that way it becomes a lot more like college or the real world, where you sometimes have to make a point of seeing your closest friends because your schedules don't necessarily naturally overlap anymore.)

As for if students hook up: It's not at all like undergrad. A lot of people come in already in relationships, and many people who are single are looking for something a little more serious. The people I know who go on a lot of dates/hook up with a lot of people tend to mostly do that through online dating/outside of the law school. Some relationships definitely form at the school, don't get me wrong, but it's nothing like the "everyone's hooking up with everyone, everyone is dating another student" atmosphere I experienced in undergrad.

This was exactly my experience with my section this year.

Yes, second all of this.

I'd also add that if you are somebody who wants to go out drinking a lot, there will be a lot of people who you can do that with. If you are somebody who doesn't drink at all, you can still be very social (including with the people who drink a lot). I found myself in between and have no complaints.

Seconding this. Law school and the legal profession definitely have a drinking culture, but there were several people in my section who were very social despite not drinking for religious reasons. It's accepted without comment. At the other extreme, there were also a few people who liked to get blackout at section events, and that was also accepted without comment (ok, with some good-natured teasing).

[nothingtosee]

3L grades today?

[jingosaur]

3L grades today?

Nah

[HLSstudent]

.