Northwestern Pritzker - Class of 2020 Forum

[btruj777]

S. Florida to Chicago, zero idea of how to live in snow. What are some things to keep in mind that are not entirely obvious?

[btruj777]

So whats this last piece of SWAG? I find Cristina's emails funny.

Better be some article of clothing after they jilted us at ASW

Well, it's June, so maybe they'll send a sweater we can't wear for 4 months!

As someone who gets Chicago weather I'm definitely starting my sweater collection now, ha!

Chicago tip: your wool sock collection needs to be much deeper than your sweater collection.

This is a good example of something I did not consider. Socks.

[RedPurpleBlue]

S. Florida to Chicago, zero idea of how to live in snow. What are some things to keep in mind that are not entirely obvious?

The best way to prepare for winter is to buy quality winter gear. Get some wool socks, gloves that the wind doesn't cut through, a down jacket, some quality snow boots, and a wool winter cap. If you can keep your body warm walking place to place and protect your body from the wind, it's really not that bad. Beyond clothing, invest in some quality blankets. Other than that, there aren't really handy tips/tricks that would help out a law school student living in an apartment/condo. If you owned a home with a yard/driveway or had a car, there'd probably be a few more things to mention.

[guynourmin]

Long johns are super important imo. If you currently wear painted on-tight pants I can't help you, but otherwise just slip some long johns under your jeans and you're gold.

Like redblue said: down jacket. Wool coats are great and all, but there will be weeks where they aren't enough. Others will make due with their peacoats and whatnot, but know this: they're still a little cold if they're outside for any serious amount of time.

[SybillAnnDorsett]

ugh picturing myself in white fur on a snowy day.
coffee in hand.
in the library.
sweating.
profusely.
because i'm inundated with work.
and my sanity is one frail ass bih.
so I have to disassociate.
but my fur looks good.
so whatever.

hello, fellow wildcats. let's do the damn thing.

[carsondalywashere]

ugh picturing myself in white fur on a snowy day.
coffee in hand.
in the library.
sweating.
profusely.
because i'm inundated with work.
and my sanity is one frail ass bih.
so I have to disassociate.
but my fur looks good.
so whatever.

hello, fellow wildcats. let's do the damn thing.

Wish there was a "hands clapping" emoji on TLS

[Jclubb]

.

[Jclubb]

After a very difficult decision, I will be joining you all at Northwestern in August. I was accepted from the waitlist and they made an offer I could not refuse. I'm looking forward to meeting you all!

[BruiseWillis]

After a very difficult decision, I will be joining you all at Northwestern in August. I was accepted from the waitlist and they made an offer I could not refuse. I'm looking forward to meeting you all!

Welcome to the crew! Glad to have you

[guynourmin]

After a very difficult decision, I will be joining you all at Northwestern in August. I was accepted from the waitlist and they made an offer I could not refuse. I'm looking forward to meeting you all!

Check into the destinations thread and congrats on the decision!! I hope it proves to be a good one for all of us

[rhapsodelly]

Unsolicited insight from a Northwestern 2L (you'll receive a lot of it this year. )

About this time last year I was visiting Chicago from California to look at housing and not exactly sure where to start. So I wanted to give a few tips and my personal opinion on neighborhoods / pricing.

Searching:
- Its good and fine to use a broker to find housing, they'll take you around and be very helpful so they get a commission on your first month rent.
- Why I didn't use a broker - the larger apartment management companies do not work with brokers so there is a big chunk of the market you won't see with them.
- For the large management companies, BJB, Group Fox, etc., I would go to their website and call up a manager in a specific neighborhood, tell them what you are looking for and ask for a time to see any available units in your price range. (I wen't with BJB and they were very helpful). Going this route was best for me because I saw 8 units over a Friday/Saturday, found the perfect one and still had time to go to the beach and enjoy an architecture tour.

Neighborhoods:
- Lakeview / Boys Town / Lincoln Park: I decided to live at the border of Lincoln Park / Lakeview and I highly recommend it. Why? Housing prices are generally $200-600 cheaper per month, or just a lot more space. It is incredibly walkable - Trader Joes, Target, Marianos, Walmart Grocery, and a ton of trendy and delicious restaurants all just down the street. If you look near Lake Shore Drive, Broadway, N. Clark St you will have access to great trails/beach paths and be very close bus routes and express shuttles in the morning/evening when you are most likely going to need to go to from school. Commute is anywhere from 20-30 minutes by bus - for some of my friends that seemed like a real hike - but I liked leaving school and getting some distance at the end of the day. It also made me plan my day a little smarter and I was able to adopt a more 8-6 schedule for classes, homework, studying. Zero parking.

- Streeterville / Gold Coast / River North - I have many friends living in Streeterville less that .5 miles from school. It is very convenient and the buildings are all new, so less likely to have problems like burst pipes, or 20 layers of paint that flake off occasionally (some Chicago buildings are VERY old). Some of the buildings even have amenities like a rooftop pool and generally nicer gyms than further north. There are a lot of restaurants around but keep in mind this is one of Chicago's supreme tourist areas, so restaurants teeter between not great or fine dining. Pricing is some of the highest in Chicago for apartments, so be prepared to pay a lot for minimal space. One of my friends has a twin bed - gasp! Ask about the elevators in buildings like AXIS - there are about 60 floors in some of those building and a few of them take so long some mornings you have to wait 10-20 minutes for one (is this an exaggeration... you'd be surprised). Expensive parking.

- Everywhere else - I am under qualified to give advice, because I know very few people who lived in neighborhoods other than the ones listed above. Then again, that is advice in and of itself.

Misc.
- The winter is not so scary so long as you buy a warm coat - you don't need a Canada Goose to be warm, I found a $50 one from Nordstrom's labor day sale and was fine. Find an apartment close to a bus stop (try for under .5 miles). The trains are fine too, but red line is always a shit-show getting into downtown.
- You will have a locker and library locker at school, so carrying heavy books all the time is definitely mitigable.
- If you are really into the gym, check the equipment at the apartment buildings - none of mine actually worked when I moved in.
- In my experience, law NLaw students are very engaging - be open to doing things with other students and it doesn't matter where you live or whether you live by yourself.
- Air conditioning is huge in the summer. Ask if it is included in the rent, and if it isn't be prepared to buy an AC unit or slowly whither in the heat.
- Ask about local BYOB restaurants if you are into that sort of thing. Absolutely my favorite realization about Chicago. My favorite thing to do is BYOB dinners with friends before Bar Review on Thursdays.


If you read through all that and have questions - feel free to send me a message.

Congrats and can't wait to meet all of you!

[btruj777]

Heads up, new award letters are on CAESAR

[xandra_v]

Heads up, new award letters are on CAESAR

ooo, not for me yet...but staying tuned. Thanks for the heads up!

[btruj777]

I could be wrong, but I also think they updated the Orientation Schedule for 2017

http://www.law.northwestern.edu/law-sch ... hedule.pdf

[guynourmin]

I could be wrong, but I also think they updated the Orientation Schedule for 2017

http://www.law.northwestern.edu/law-sch ... hedule.pdf

interactive theatre

[btruj777]

I could be wrong, but I also think they updated the Orientation Schedule for 2017

http://www.law.northwestern.edu/law-sch ... hedule.pdf

interactive theatre

Haha, might be fun and a good opportunity to network. When in Rome?

[guynourmin]

I could be wrong, but I also think they updated the Orientation Schedule for 2017

http://www.law.northwestern.edu/law-sch ... hedule.pdf

interactive theatre

Haha, might be fun and a good opportunity to network. When in Rome?

I cannot think of an activity on the first day or orientation as a good opportunity to network. Just for my own sanity, I can't think like that. Let's just say a good opportunity to meet people.

[btruj777]

I could be wrong, but I also think they updated the Orientation Schedule for 2017

http://www.law.northwestern.edu/law-sch ... hedule.pdf

interactive theatre

Haha, might be fun and a good opportunity to network. When in Rome?

I cannot think of an activity on the first day or orientation as a good opportunity to network. Just for my own sanity, I can't think like that. Let's just say a good opportunity to meet people.

Lol good point. Zen life

[orangejuice23]

Checking in!

Off the waitlist today.

[btruj777]

Checking in!

Off the waitlist today.

Congrats!! Check In in the destinations thread!

[guynourmin]

New swag!

[thatlawlkid]

New swag!

????

[guynourmin]

New swag!

????

Don't you want to be surprised?

[thatlawlkid]

New swag!

????

Don't you want to be surprised?

Fine, i'll check my mail when i get home. Better be something good, because i feel guilty reppin gear from the schools i'm not going to.

[guynourmin]

New swag!

????

Don't you want to be surprised?

Fine, i'll check my mail when i get home. Better be something good, because i feel guilty reppin gear from the schools i'm not going to.

It is not something you can wear, but I think it's cool and better than anything else we've received from them yet.