Illinois Law 1L Taking Questions Forum

[Barbie]

No. And thank God. Pass/Fail with high honors for top 10% and honors for the next 30%.

You can get honors in a pass/fail course?

Yep. It doesn't affect your GPA at all, but it looks good on your resume and can open up some summer jobs and other stuff for you.

Great! I'm assuming thats the class I'll do best in, so I was pretty bummed about it not counting for much haha

[Barbie]

Just booked my flight to Indianapolis, rental car to drive to Champaign, and hotel room! I will be there Jan 20-23! I am going to plan to tour the LS and sit in on a class on Friday the 21st. My boyfriend will be off running around because he knows some of the guys on the ftball team, so if anyone wants to meet or get a beer with me after I will be trying to get a feel for the town! Also, taking recommendations for places I should try (restaurants, bars, parks, whatever!) while I'm there

[Kilpatrick]

.

[Barbie]

I'll chip in with my personal recommendations. Best restaurants in town:

Black Dog
Escobar's
Radio Maria

Of those Black Dog is my favorite. It's cheap, delicious and has a ton of awesome beers. Radio Maria is tapas. People around here think it's expensive but I'm from LA so it still seems pretty cheap. Some dishes are better than others, you've got to try a lot. The chorizo and potatoes is like crack. Escobar's is like latin fusion. I've only been there once but it was pretty great. Good mole. (Don't ever go to Dos Reales, that place is vile). (Also don't go to KoFusion, it's super douchey and mediocre)

As for bars I think Blind Pig in downtown Champaign is the place to go. I like Clark Bar too because it's the closest to my house and they have the best people watching - every Thursday is Goth Night, and they have Steampunk night. And when it's not a crazy theme they have crazy townies to watch.

Thanks!! "Bling Pig" is where I'll go Thurs night then

[mez06]

Illini,

I'm most likely attending the February admitted student open house...what is the best city/airport to fly to in terms of convenience and COST? Currently living in North Carolina fyi...

[ChattelCat]

Illini,

I'm most likely attending the February admitted student open house...what is the best city/airport to fly to in terms of convenience and COST? Currently living in North Carolina fyi...

There are a lot of places to fly into. Where you want to go depends on how far you want to drive once you get to Illinois. Cheapest is usually Chicago, second cheapest, and much closer, is usually Bloomington.

1. Chicago (ORD or MDW) is usually (a lot) cheaper than the closer regional airports, but you'll end up driving 3+ hours from either airport to get down here.

2. Champaign (CMI) is incredibly convenient, a 10 minute drive from the school. I think most of the flights coming into Champaign involve a transfer in Chicago (and a 30 minute flight from there to here).

3. Bloomington (BMI) is more popular because it tends to be cheaper, is a nice small airport with free parking (most flights I've taken out of there are Delta with a changover in Atlanta or Detroit) and it's less than an hour drive from Champaign.

4. Another option is Indianapolis (IND), I've never been there personally but have a lot of friends who have flown out of there - it's a nice, fairly new airport, but farther away. You're looking at a 2 hour drive to get to Champaign.

5. Peoria and Springfield (PIA and SPI) also have small regional airports, but those tend to be equally as expensive as flying directly into Champaign in my experience. Both are a little less than a 2 hour drive away.

[mez06]

Appreciate it! Don't mind driving but the 3-hour route is sounding like an absolute negative. Errr I can already see how visiting schools is pretty damn expensive. Not to mention the nightly activities.

[Barbie]

I'm flying into Indianapolis.. I'll let you know how it goes! It was only like $88 each way from Southwest, and that was kind of last minute. If you book them now I think you can get them as low as $59 each way. Also, I found a place that will rent me a car (not 25 years old) if that helps. With a student ID its really cheap.

[ChattelCat]

Appreciate it! Don't mind driving but the 3-hour route is sounding like an absolute negative. Errr I can already see how visiting schools is pretty damn expensive. Not to mention the nightly activities.

Yeah I hear you. Two hours is not horrible but three+ starts to feel more like a road trip. But the good news is that everything else in Champaign-Urbana is cheap!!

[Barbie]

No one else has advice for my visit ?

[ChattelCat]

No one else has advice for my visit ?

I'd second Kilpatrick - Radio Maria has awesome food and also has a beer selection that rivals the Blind Pig. The downtown Champaign area (that's where Radio Maria and Blind Pig are) is really nice - I would try to walk around there if you have time - it's where most of the law students hang out - a lot of bars/restaurants a few coffeeshops and little stores (and very few undergrads). The other common nighttime destination is Green Street which is where all the undergrad bars are - I always feel a little old at those places though Downtown Urbana is not quite as happening but it's a nice small downtown area also - both courthouses are over there too. If you want to check out shopping options most everything is out on Prospect Avenue north of I-74 but it's pretty much your standard-issue shopping area (the mall and every other big box store/chain restaurant known to mankind). If you're looking for something that doesn't involve eating or drinking you could check the schedule for the Krannert Center (the U of I Performing Arts Center) http://www.krannertcenter.com/makeplans/calendar.aspx or Assembly Hall (sporting events and concerts) http://www.uofiassemblyhall.com/ - there's usually something going one at one or the other.

[Barbie]

No one else has advice for my visit ?

I'd second Kilpatrick - Radio Maria has awesome food and also has a beer selection that rivals the Blind Pig. The downtown Champaign area (that's where Radio Maria and Blind Pig are) is really nice - I would try to walk around there if you have time - it's where most of the law students hang out - a lot of bars/restaurants a few coffeeshops and little stores (and very few undergrads). The other common nighttime destination is Green Street which is where all the undergrad bars are - I always feel a little old at those places though Downtown Urbana is not quite as happening but it's a nice small downtown area also - both courthouses are over there too. If you want to check out shopping options most everything is out on Prospect Avenue north of I-74 but it's pretty much your standard-issue shopping area (the mall and every other big box store/chain restaurant known to mankind). If you're looking for something that doesn't involve eating or drinking you could check the schedule for the Krannert Center (the U of I Performing Arts Center) http://www.krannertcenter.com/makeplans/calendar.aspx or Assembly Hall (sporting events and concerts) http://www.uofiassemblyhall.com/ - there's usually something going one at one or the other.

thanks

[Thirteen]

No one else has advice for my visit ?

Don't forget to visit the ARC rec center. It's AMAZING.

[kk19131]

Hey guys!!! SO I got into Illinois today, INSANELY huge reach for me and I'm super excited about it. My only issue is that I would be paying out of state tuition, and while I received a 10K scholly, I'm still going to be paying a fortune for tuition which kind of scares me. I'm from the LA area and want to practice in LA, how do you guys say the job prospects look for people that want to get placed out here? I'm not really looking for Biglaw, though I'm not opposed to it, that's not the lifestyle I envision myself living. That being said I obviously don't have a 200k job to look forward to, and ITE do you think this would be a sound decision on my part? Let's hypothetically say I will also receive half tuition at a high/low tier 2. With your experience, I wanted to know what you guys thought about this.
thanks for taking questions guys

I'm in pretty much the same boat (although my scholarship is a little higher). I don't know how I can justify paying so much money for Illinois when I can go to a lower-ranked school for virtually free.

...sad because I'd really like to go to Illinois.

[unc0mm0n1]

Appreciate it! Don't mind driving but the 3-hour route is sounding like an absolute negative. Errr I can already see how visiting schools is pretty damn expensive. Not to mention the nightly activities.

Grew up on the Southside of Chicago (not too far from MDW) it has never taken me three hours to get to UIUC. Maybe 2 1/2 but most definately not 3+ (unless my grandmother was driving)

[ChattelCat]

Appreciate it! Don't mind driving but the 3-hour route is sounding like an absolute negative. Errr I can already see how visiting schools is pretty damn expensive. Not to mention the nightly activities.

Grew up on the Southside of Chicago (not too far from MDW) it has never taken me three hours to get to UIUC. Maybe 2 1/2 but most definately not 3+ (unless my grandmother was driving)

Totally. I was referring to O'hare + traffic - it's taken me 3 hours both times I've done it... but if you time it right and don't hit any traffic you can probably do it in 2.5. Midway's about 30 miles closer so if you can find a decent price on a flight out of there that's definitely a better bet.

[Chupavida]

.

[kk19131]

In a vacuum, half tuition at a T2 wouldn't be worth taking over Illinois. Better career prospects, LRAP (if you don't go the Biglaw route), and a better education easily justify the difference in cost. Full tuition at any school will always be a decent option, but you would also want to factor in any requirements for keeping the scholarship; many lower schools condition your scholarship on staying in the top 1/3rd. As far as LA, Illinois does place people on the west coast, but for most jobs you'll be better off at any of the decent west coast schools.

...a better education?

[Chupavida]

.

[kk19131]

To the extent that better professors and smarter classmates = a more stimulating experience, yes, a better education.

I have no idea how you're gauging "better professors and smarter classmates".

[Chupavida]

.

[2011Cycle]

Are practice exams for 1L courses readily available in the library, directly from professors, or other sources? Thanks

[Lwoods]

SAT score divided by penis circumference/cup size, naturally.

To add some substance to this post for the sake of appearances, I should mention that my doctrinal classes this past semester were fantastic; Brilliant professors, bright classmates, it was everything I was hoping to get out of the experience. Only my legal writing class managed to disappoint.

You know cup size is a letter, right?

[ChattelCat]

Are practice exams for 1L courses readily available in the library, directly from professors, or other sources? Thanks

Yes and yes. There are old exams in the library and also a large collection on the law school Intranet - also some professors who don't have exams available online or in the library will give out a practice exam or two during the semester (I had this happen in two classes my 1L year).

[Barbie]

Is "Clark Park" neighborhood a good place to live? My realtor found a house there he said is perfect for me with all the things I want but I want to make sure it is a safe place to live // recommended for grad students?