Indiana-Bloomington Class of 2016 Forum

[NIUmelk]

I'm not sure why either of you hate it so much. Please elaborate lah.

[lah88]

I'm not sure why either of you hate it so much. Please elaborate lah.

I'm a current student, but I'm one of the ones who was not asked to participate in Spring Law Day. I hate everything about Maurer Law and wish I had never gone to law school at all. I probably sound like a bitter law student. That's because I am one. Maybe you should come back on another day and talk to me or one of the many other law students who you did not get to meet today.

[kay2016]

...anything more specific?

[Xs20]

I wasn't that impressed, but to be fair, I went into it with my mind more or less set on another school, so I may not have had the best mindset. I don't want to sound like a curmudgeon; all of the other prospective students I met there were really cool and I had a great time hitting some of the bars with everyone the night before. But with that said, IU of course chose the most successful students who landed the best jobs as the "fellows", as most schools probably do. But several students touted IU as a "powerhouse" in Chicago biglaw, and said things like, "when firms with IU alums get your resume, they automatically move it to the top of the stack," and ridiculous things like that. The CSO director gave us the "inside scoop" on their new ABA data and said they their placement is 84% according to the new method of reporting (still super artificially inflated). The alumni they brought in to speak to us all graduated 10-30 years ago (mostly partners in biglaw, of course) and so they couldn't relate much to the challenges of finding a legal job that current grads are facing since they graduated when the market was booming. Also the law building itself and its facilities were decent but nothing special, for whatever that's worth. Compared to IU's peer schools I've visited, I'd say it's below average in that category and could use some renovation, but of course that shouldn't make or break your decision one way or the other. Anyway, I'm not trying to totally trash IU; it can be a good decision for certain people at a certain price, but I'll agree with what others have said in saying that I wouldn't go there without a large (nearly full) scholarship.

[simplycatalina]

I wasn't that impressed, but to be fair, I went into it with my mind more or less set on another school, so I may not have had the best mindset. I don't want to sound like a curmudgeon; all of the other prospective students I met there were really cool and I had a great time hitting some of the bars with everyone the night before. But with that said, IU of course chose the most successful students who landed the best jobs as the "fellows", as most schools probably do. But several students touted IU as a "powerhouse" in Chicago biglaw, and said things like, "when firms with IU alums get your resume, they automatically move it to the top of the stack," and ridiculous things like that. The CSO director gave us the "inside scoop" on their new ABA data and said they their placement is 84% according to the new method of reporting (still super artificially inflated). The alumni they brought in to speak to us all graduated 10-30 years ago (mostly partners in biglaw, of course) and so they couldn't relate much to the challenges of finding a legal job that current grads are facing since they graduated when the market was booming. Also the law building itself and its facilities were decent but nothing special, for whatever that's worth. Compared to IU's peer schools I've visited, I'd say it's below average in that category and could use some renovation, but of course that shouldn't make or break your decision one way or the other. Anyway, I'm not trying to totally trash IU; it can be a good decision for certain people at a certain price, but I'll agree with what others have said in saying that I wouldn't go there without a large (nearly full) scholarship.

Yeah I feel the same way. I met a lot of cool prospective students and had fun going out, but I feel like the professors and alumni were out of touch with the current challenges of the legal market. And all of the alumni they brought in were in biglaw, which I don't want to do, so there was no one I was interested in talking to. Also, I think it was one of the least diverse law schools I have ever visited, both in terms of racial and ethnic diversity and in terms of diversity of life experiences. At least for me, I like to be surrounded by people from different backgrounds because I think that's a crucially important aspect of getting an education. In addition, at the Women's Law Caucus breakfast, the professor I was sitting with was totally bashing other law schools. She said that professors at Maurer truly care about their students, whereas professors at Chicago and Michigan (actually named these schools) couldn't care less. This completely turned me off. You shouldn't need to bash other schools to promote your school, and if you do, I feel like there is a problem.

[K Rock]

I hated spring law day last year. But I am a current student now and I love it. Bloomington is an awesome town. And probably the most diverse town in the entire state. If you want to practice in the region and you can go for a good price, I think it can be a good decision. The market is bad, but everyone (including the professors) knows it. I also hated the sale pitch used by admissions, but once you are actually a student you never have to deal with admissions again unless you want to.

[Xs20]

Yeah a couple students asked where else I'm considering and I told them WUSTL, and they all started trash talking it saying I'd be miserable there and that IU's campus is nicer, etc. In comparison, WUSTL students gave a more constructive answer about why they chose to go there over peer schools, and all of them even showed a lot of respect for SLU, which was nice to see. Anyway, I know the few students I talked to were a small representation of the larger class, but these were the students chosen by IUB to represent the school.

Also, after sending them my competing scholarship offers (higher offers from higher-ranked schools) and explaining that I'm interested in IUB if not for the higher cost relative to its peer schools, the director of admissions sent me this offhanded, two sentence email in response:

Dear Xs20,

The Committee is not able to increase your scholarship award at this time. I hope that you will be able to join the incoming Class of 2016, but given your other offers, I can understand should you decide otherwise.

Really? It's not even that they wouldn't increase my offer, but what director of admissions says that to a prospective student? That kind of set the tone for them not caring whether I attend or not, so I find it hard to care whether I do, as well.

[wannabelawstudent]

They sent me the same thing too.

[simplycatalina]

Yeah a couple students asked where else I'm considering and I told them WUSTL, and they all started trash talking it saying I'd be miserable there and that IU's campus is nicer, etc. In comparison, WUSTL students gave a more constructive answer about why they chose to go there over peer schools, and all of them even showed a lot of respect for SLU, which was nice to see. Anyway, I know the few students I talked to were a small representation of the larger class, but these were the students chosen by IUB to represent the school.

Also, after sending them my competing scholarship offers (higher offers from higher-ranked schools) and explaining that I'm interested in IUB if not for the higher cost relative to its peer schools, the director of admissions sent me this offhanded, two sentence email in response:

Dear Xs20,

The Committee is not able to increase your scholarship award at this time. I hope that you will be able to join the incoming Class of 2016, but given your other offers, I can understand should you decide otherwise.

Really? It's not even that they wouldn't increase my offer, but what director of admissions says that to a prospective student? That kind of set the tone for them not caring whether I attend or not, so I find it hard to care whether I do, as well.

So they trash talk other schools to promote themselves and then are entirely dismissive of students' financial concerns? Great strategy. I'm sure they're likely to attract a ton of qualified applicants.

[wannabelawstudent]

Yeah that's a shitty way to go about it. But probably a good way to get a lot of idiots. I personally liked OUs strategy of recruiting applicants. IUB pretty much told me they wouldn't match offers but would "let me know if they had more money to give in the future." From what I hear, I'm kinda glad I didn't go to preview day now.

Kinda sounds like Greek recruitment here (which I'm sure is big there too)

[simplycatalina]

Yeah that's a shitty way to go about it. But probably a good way to get a lot of idiots. I personally liked OUs strategy of recruiting applicants. IUB pretty much told me they wouldn't match offers but would "let me know if they had more money to give in the future." From what I hear, I'm kinda glad I didn't go to preview day now.

Kinda sounds like Greek recruitment here (which I'm sure is big there too)

YES. THIS. I was in a sorority for a year and hated it and it was totally like Greek recruitment. So much frattiness all around.

[lah88]

Like I said, everything you heard at Spring Law Day was bullshit. Current students are miserable. Nobody has jobs. And anything you heard about big law was a lie. Nobody is getting big law jobs, even the students graduating at the top of the class. If you have a full scholarship or close to a full scholarship, IU might be a good choice for you. If not, I strongly urge you to reconsider.

[lah88]

I wasn't that impressed, but to be fair, I went into it with my mind more or less set on another school, so I may not have had the best mindset. I don't want to sound like a curmudgeon; all of the other prospective students I met there were really cool and I had a great time hitting some of the bars with everyone the night before. But with that said, IU of course chose the most successful students who landed the best jobs as the "fellows", as most schools probably do. But several students touted IU as a "powerhouse" in Chicago biglaw, and said things like, "when firms with IU alums get your resume, they automatically move it to the top of the stack," and ridiculous things like that. The CSO director gave us the "inside scoop" on their new ABA data and said they their placement is 84% according to the new method of reporting (still super artificially inflated). The alumni they brought in to speak to us all graduated 10-30 years ago (mostly partners in biglaw, of course) and so they couldn't relate much to the challenges of finding a legal job that current grads are facing since they graduated when the market was booming. Also the law building itself and its facilities were decent but nothing special, for whatever that's worth. Compared to IU's peer schools I've visited, I'd say it's below average in that category and could use some renovation, but of course that shouldn't make or break your decision one way or the other. Anyway, I'm not trying to totally trash IU; it can be a good decision for certain people at a certain price, but I'll agree with what others have said in saying that I wouldn't go there without a large (nearly full) scholarship.

Yeah I feel the same way. I met a lot of cool prospective students and had fun going out, but I feel like the professors and alumni were out of touch with the current challenges of the legal market. And all of the alumni they brought in were in biglaw, which I don't want to do, so there was no one I was interested in talking to. Also, I think it was one of the least diverse law schools I have ever visited, both in terms of racial and ethnic diversity and in terms of diversity of life experiences. At least for me, I like to be surrounded by people from different backgrounds because I think that's a crucially important aspect of getting an education. In addition, at the Women's Law Caucus breakfast, the professor I was sitting with was totally bashing other law schools. She said that professors at Maurer truly care about their students, whereas professors at Chicago and Michigan (actually named these schools) couldn't care less. This completely turned me off. You shouldn't need to bash other schools to promote your school, and if you do, I feel like there is a problem.

This doesn't surprise me at all. The Women's Law breakfast is all for show too. They are just trying to get more female law students because their numbers have been way down. I'm guessing they just had a bunch of female law professors and members of the feminist student organizations tell you about how great IU is. The truth is, most of the professors don't care at all about students. I've had professors who run out of class as soon as it is over to avoid talking to students, professors who can't even find the time to hold office hours, professors who stared at me like I was a freak when I reached out for help, and professors who have gone as far as to bully and humiliate students in class. Professors, along with the rest of administration, don't care about anything except making money.

[K Rock]

This doesn't surprise me at all. The Women's Law breakfast is all for show too. They are just trying to get more female law students because their numbers have been way down. I'm guessing they just had a bunch of female law professors and members of the feminist student organizations tell you about how great IU is. The truth is, most of the professors don't care at all about students. I've had professors who run out of class as soon as it is over to avoid talking to students, professors who can't even find the time to hold office hours, professors who stared at me like I was a freak when I reached out for help, and professors who have gone as far as to bully and humiliate students in class. Professors, along with the rest of administration, don't care about anything except making money.

Wow you are bitter. 50% of the 1L class this year was women. And I have had the complete opposite experience with my professors. In my experience professors have been very helpful, and I've never seen anyone bullied or humiliated in class. Yeah the job market is rough, and I agree with you that students shouldn't take out a lot of debt to come to Maurer. But I have loved my experience here so far.

[lah88]

This doesn't surprise me at all. The Women's Law breakfast is all for show too. They are just trying to get more female law students because their numbers have been way down. I'm guessing they just had a bunch of female law professors and members of the feminist student organizations tell you about how great IU is. The truth is, most of the professors don't care at all about students. I've had professors who run out of class as soon as it is over to avoid talking to students, professors who can't even find the time to hold office hours, professors who stared at me like I was a freak when I reached out for help, and professors who have gone as far as to bully and humiliate students in class. Professors, along with the rest of administration, don't care about anything except making money.

Wow you are bitter. 50% of the 1L class this year was women. And I have had the complete opposite experience with my professors. In my experience professors have been very helpful, and I've never seen anyone bullied or humiliated in class. Yeah the job market is rough, and I agree with you that students shouldn't take out a lot of debt to come to Maurer. But I have loved my experience here so far.

Yes, I am bitter. And there is a reason I am bitter. I'm glad you have had an enjoyable experience so far, but there are many students who have had very negative experiences at IU. There are also many alumni who regret their decisions to attend IU or who regret going to law school at all. I remember when I was an optimistic 1L too. Let me know how you're feeling in a year or 2 when you can't get a job or you end up with a job you hate.

I've never attended another law school, so I can't compare IU to anything else, but I hate the law school culture in general and have been completely dissatisfied with every aspect of my legal education from the lack of professionalism of the staff to the attitudes of my fellow classmates. The admissions office hires students to call prospective students and talk up IU for them, and these are the students like K Rock who love law school. I am simply trying to make prospective students aware that not all students share this view of the law school.

[wannabelawstudent]

Someone's got a case of the Mondays

[lah88]

Someone's got a case of the Mondays

More like a case of reality.

[NIUmelk]

anyone wanna try to negotiate all these leases against each other?

You're trying to do this right now, aren't you?

[wannabelawstudent]

anyone wanna try to negotiate all these leases against each other?

You're trying to do this right now, aren't you?

I am not that person.

[c-monster]

Just wanted to throw in my 2 cents. I am a 2L at Maurer Law. I did not go to Spring Law Day, so I cannot comment directly, although I have heard that they really don't run it very professionally in a number of ways.

I like going to law school here. I think the professors are generally (although not always) great. I do know people who don't like it, and I think the problem is that they just don't like law school. It is challenging, they have a very specific way of teaching things, and it really is not for everybody. I don't think this is a bad thing. I do think people need to think very hard before throwing down $150k for three years of legal education.

I don't know the backgrounds of some of the critics here. In my experience, though, the students who generally dislike law school the most come straight out of undergrad. I spent a number of years outside of school after undergrad before starting law school. I know very few people who did the same who don't like it. I think that may be because people expected to get something they didn't get at law school, and those with a bit more experience understood what they were going into. Just my theory.

Anyway, I also think it is unprofessional and unnecessary for law students and professors to trash other schools. The rankings game is generally silly, and I think that the caliber of professors is probably pretty similar across the board. So yeah, take anything admissions or their fellows tell you with a grain of salt.

One last thing. There is a lot of exaggerating on this type of board. It is not easy to get a biglaw job. It is also not impossible. Some people do it. If you want a biglaw job and are unwilling to do anything else - do not go to law school (unless you get into a top 10 school, maybe not even then). If you want a good legal education, IU is a good place to get it. But there are many other good places as well.

[wannabelawstudent]

Just complete LOL at the admitted students page.

If I was looking for a summer sublet I'd post something like "Ok, I will rent one of your places, for $100 a month. That's it." Then I'd demand a deposit (to ensure that they rent me their place).

[Xs20]

Just complete LOL at the admitted students page.

If I was looking for a summer sublet I'd post something like "Ok, I will rent one of your places, for $100 a month. That's it." Then I'd demand a deposit (to ensure that they rent me their place).

Lets all start posting classified ads for random shit that we want to sell

[wannabelawstudent]

Shots fired.

[wannabelawstudent]

LOL @ every other thread complaining about seat deposits....am i rite?

[stars2134]

Is anyone here doing or considering the summer start program? Or does anyone have an opinion for or against it?