ARCHIVE FOR JANUARY 2010

January 29, 2010

Fridays From The Frontline

Hello there, and welcome back to Fridays From the Frontline, Clear Admit’s weekly post featuring the lives of ‘blawgers.’ This week the community was a bit more abuzz, with many  back and sharing the latest from their lives. 1Ls were focused on internships and interviews while other students were glad to receive their grades.

0L Sue shared her incredibly quick tirimisu recipe. 0L Ricky Nelson found himself questioning Facebook’s impact on real life relationships. 0L LSATLifer waited for his first acceptance letter after receiving five rejections, one deferral and one waitlist notification.

1L Valentina learned that her summer internship’s dress code is business professional, and asked for advice on where to get at least 3 affordable suits. NYU ‘12 Invisible Man noted the likelihood of liberality found at the school, but pointed out that dreams are more warming than law school. Miami ‘12 Goateed 1L learned that his crim pro professor is a vegetarian with a bad back. NYU ‘12 IDWSJ learned how he did, grade-wise, last semester and, relatively pleased with the results, shared his outlines for future 1Ls. Berkeley ‘12 Alex fought against buying rain boots or an umbrella, but began to reconsider after a particularly wet day at school. NYU ‘12 Reckless received her grades for the last semester and was making an effort to go to recruiting cocktail parties. 1L Esquire was generally pleased with her grades, though the perfectionist in her wanted better. Austin ‘12 Mariel returned to the blog after a lengthy hiatus, and let her readers know what she had been up to since her last post. NCCU ‘12 TDOT thoroughly deconstructed his grades from the previous semester, the good ones, the bad ones, and the ugly ones. 1L Legalista experienced an unusual interview experience that included a Hypo, a conversation in Spanish and a few valiant attempts to recall information long since forgotten. Columbia ‘12 Soleil began to prepare for her inevitable moot court appelate brief.

Harvard ‘11 Ivy Lea was moving up on her journal’s staff and as a tenant advocate. Though she still struggled with choosing classes and outfits, Yale ‘11 SB was officially halfway through her law school career. Harvard ‘11 Cat had only one day’s vacation between her winter and spring semesters.  2L Huma surprised herself by finding bankruptcy law interesting and hoped, one day, to become a snarky, haiku writing judge. 2L New Law Mom was pleased to learn that her class ranking improved, and was a happy law student. Minnesota ‘11 Jansen was older and wiser than his 1L self, and quickly dropped a clinic he knew would drive him crazy. Austin ‘10 Paragon2Pieces met the GPA requirement that her potential employer imposed on her job offer.

And that sums up this rendition of Fridays From the Frontline. We hope that 0Ls get good news as the month progresses (and let us know if you’re a 0L blogger, we’d love to include you in FFF) and that the generally optimistic mood of current students stays that way as the weeks progress. Until next week, have a great weekend!

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# posted by admin @ 8:15 am in Fridays From the Frontline

January 28, 2010

Cornell Law’s Applications Spike Greater Than Previously Reported

A Jan. 10 New York Times article put data figures to expected increases in law school applications this admissions cycle.  Despite a relatively stable ranking, Cornell University Law School was one of the programs highlighted, with a significant 44 percent increase in year-over-year applications.

Now, according to the school’s Cornell Daily Sun, the application increase is even more impressive than previously reported, as candidates to the law school have increased by 52 percent ahead of the Feb. 1 application deadline.

Richard Geiger, the school’s dean of admissions who indicated to the Times that he was “thrown off” by the upsurge, reiterated his sentiment to the university’s paper on Tuesday.  “The increase is probably the result of a number of things working together,” he said.  “What I can’t explain is why it’s 50 percent and not 20 percent.”

With the record number of candidates to choose from, Geiger indicated that his office will review decisions with more scrutiny and will be able to admit a more selective, diverse class.  The school also plans to maintain its enrollment cap, despite the additional applicants.  Cornell Law enrolls just about 200 students per class, making it one of the smaller schools among its peer group.

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# posted by admin @ 12:00 pm in Law School News, School: Cornell

Admissions Blog: University of Michigan Law’s A2Z

The University of Michigan Law School has recently launched a new admissions blog, A2Z. The blog entries are written by Sarah C. Zearfoss, Assistant Dean and Director of Admissions. Though she has just recently begun writing posts, Zearfoss has already discussed a number of topics that may be of interest to current and prospective students alike. Her inaugural post focused on the reasons why pursuing a law career is a smart decision even in today’s tumultuous economy, while more recent posts have covered such topics as traits the admissions committee looks for when admitting candidates and avoiding common application pitfalls.

The A2Z blog is one of several recently launched law school admissions blogs. In the past, we’ve highlighted Yale Law School’s (203) Admissions Blog and Stanford Law School’s The Fayemous SLS Blog.

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# posted by admin @ 8:00 am in Admissions Blogs, School: Michigan

January 27, 2010

American Bar Association President Defends Law School Oversight

A Jan. 8 op-ed in The Los Angeles Times centered on law school oversight has generated much discussion over the last few weeks, and now has generated feedback from the president of the American Bar Association.

The original piece, written by Mark Greenbaum, a practicing attorney, advocates accreditation limits to scale back the legal marketplace.  The response by Carolyn Lamm, as a letter to the editor and then expanded upon to Above the Law, defends the ABA’s regulatory role.

Specifically, while Lamm concedes the struggling economy’s effect on increased law school interest, she says that voluntary class reductions by law schools have, in part, stemmed the surge of graduates.  She also takes issue with Greenbaum’s contention that the ABA could erect more stringent barriers for the profession.

“The ABA is responsible to the Department of Education in fulfilling its accrediting function,” Lamm wrote to the blog. “And a key principle in DoE recognition of an accrediting agency is that it be demonstrably independent of the profession served by the schools it accredits, to prevent the profession from imposing protectionist policies on behalf of those already practicing.”

Lamm also said that ABA seeks to provide young people with “realistic information about the economy and their own prospects for employment,” and is currently investigating further information to offer prospective lawyers.

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# posted by admin @ 8:16 pm in General, Law School News

Northwestern Law Follows Trend in Enhancing Public Service Loan Forgiveness

Following in the footsteps of certain peers, Northwestern University School of Law has become the latest top-tier program to enhance its public service loan forgiveness alongside federal initiatives.

The move, outlined Tuesday in a school press release, follows Berkeley School of Law and Georgetown University Law Center, respectively, in offering full federal loan forgiveness for graduates who work in public interest law for ten years.  As with the other schools, Northwestern’s plan dovetails off of federal loan modifications outlined in 2007’s College Cost Reduction Act and is individually tailored in accordance with debt and salary levels.

Additionally, the law school’s forgiveness program offers assistance over the first five years after graduation, thereby ensuring that alumni can still chip away at outstanding loans should life circumstances push them out of public interest law.

This new loan forgiveness plan goes into immediate effect, and is also available retroactively for Northwestern Law’s last two graduating classes.

For more information, recall that we covered Berkeley’s loan forgiveness announcement in September and Georgetown’s in November.

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# posted by admin @ 12:00 pm in Law School News, Public Interest Career Resources, School: Northwestern

Admissions Tip: The Addendum

Most law schools offer addendum essays, in which applicants are required or have the opportunity to explain extenuating circumstances in their application, including serious issues including academic, professional, or criminal records.  Today we’d like to offer some advice to candidates who are obliged to write essays responding to these circumstances.

1. Consider the requirements. Most schools do request that applicants write an optional essay to address certain issues, such as an academic probation or criminal record.  In this case, it’s necessary that you answer the question being asked.  However, some schools offer s broad optional essay option, in which students have the opportunity, but are not required, to discuss negative aspects of their candidacy.  In deciding whether or not to discuss your background, consider if writing an essay about your situation would be helpful to your candidacy, quieting potential concerns and demonstrating your growth, or whether an optional essay would instead cause the adcom to dwell on negative aspects of your candidacy.

2. Remain constructive. As you approach writing your addendum response, think carefully about the way this information might be perceived and make sure that the impact it makes on your chances of admission is a positive one.  Although it’s necessary that you explain the situation as honestly as possible, you should also include information to demonstrate how you have grown from the experience and/or improved since the time it occurred.

For instance, an essay that simply alerts the adcom to a serious medical condition might help its author stand out from other applicants, but could also leave the reader wondering whether this person could handle the demands of a rigorous academic program. On the other hand, a few details about this applicant’s strategies for achieving success in spite of some kind of disability and commitment to supporting others with a chronic illness or impairment might make him or her seem like a very valuable addition to the law school community.

3. Be concise. It’s important to keep in mind that by responding to this type of essay, you are creating extra work for the person reading your file. This should not dissuade you from addressing a required topic or one that you have deemed important based on the considerations above.  However, it’s very important that you demonstrate good judgment by limiting your comments to the most relevant information, keep your response as direct and concise as possible, and follow any set page or word limits.

We hope that these general guidelines have helped to shed some light on the sometimes confusing issue of law school application addendum responses.  For further help on this topic, check out our other Admissions Tips on essay writing.

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# posted by admin @ 8:00 am in Admissions Tip

January 26, 2010

Trivia Tuesday: For-Credit Colloquia at the University of Chicago Law School

Welcome back to Trivia Tuesday, Clear Admit’s weekly peek into a leading law school program.  Today we are considering the University of Chicago Law School’s weekly colloquia, known as Workshops, for which J.D. and LL.M. students can earn credit.

Workshops are a popular way for Chicago students who are interested in a particular legal discipline to get involved in cutting edge research while engaging with faculty and visiting lecturers on discussions of scholarship and innovations within the legal profession.  This year, Chicago students are taking Workshops in subjects that range from the broad, such as Law and Economics or Law and Philosophy, to the specific, such as Constitutional Law or Regulation of Family, Sex and Gender.

Workshops generally meet once a week for 1.5 or 2 hours for a full academic year, and students earn one credit for actively participating in each session.  Each meeting generally consists of an interactive presentation and discussion of a paper written by a faculty member from Chicago or another institution.  Following Workshop meetings, students frequently have the opportunity to further engage with the faculty member or visiting scholar whose work was the topic of discussion that day through meals and other social events organized by the school.

Students complete readings and prepare questions prior to each session, and some workshop leaders require students to write short responses to be turned in the day or two following each meeting.  In these responses, students offer constructive criticism regarding the author’s main arguments, with the aim of helping the author improve his or her paper.  This criticism can include a discussion of the argument’s validity, overlooked implications or extensions, and the empirical strength of its claims or assumptions, or can simply offer corroborating or conflicting ideas.  A number of workshops also assign seminar papers of 20-25 pages due at the end of the semester.

To learn more about Chicago’s offerings, be sure to check out the Clear Admit Law School Guide to the University of Chicago Law School!

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# posted by admin @ 8:00 am in School: Chicago, Trivia Tuesday

January 25, 2010

Columbia Law Includes First-Year Spring Electives

This year Columbia made changes to its traditional first-year curriculum: no longer consisting solely of required courses, students now have a chance to choose from seven new elective courses in creating their spring schedules.  Dean David M. Schizer, also the Lucy G. Moses Professor Law, states that this change was made so Columbia gave students the freedom of choice, allowing them to pursue their “professional passions” while in law school.  This opportunity enables students to begin their professional training earlier in their academic career, states Schizer.  In addition, these required electives also give first-year students the chance to develop closer relationships with their peers and professors, as these electives are smaller in size than typical first-year core curriculum courses.

This change is unique among law schools, most of which offer a strict first-year schedule of core classes: only 19 out of 102 schools offer a first-year elective, according to the Association of American Law Schools’ 2006 survey.

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# posted by admin @ 12:00 pm in General, Law School News, School: Columbia

Duke Law to Offer Master’s in Law and Entrepreneurship Degree

Announced Thursday, Duke University School of Law will begin a new degree program aimed at synthesizing legal theory and principles of business innovation.

Beginning in the fall, the Law and Entrepreneurship LL.M. Program will include courses on innovation, intellectual property, finance and business law.  In total, the program is two semesters and 23 credits.   There is also a practicum, which places students with an emerging company or a law firm, and a capstone research project.

In advocating for the program, Dean David Levi stressed the importance of legal counsel in a start-up environment.

“In America and, increasingly, on a global basis, we look to the entrepreneurial sector for creativity and solutions,” said Levi in a school press release.  “The ongoing economic shifts resulting from the crisis in the global capital markets are likely to accelerate this trend.  As a result, we believe that this program, which focuses on how the law and lawyers can best support entrepreneurship, is extremely timely.”

Levi noted that such a program would prepare students for advising or leadership roles with a start-up.  The law school also plans to “take advantage of strategic ties to entrepreneurial companies in the nearby Research Triangle Park.”

Admission to the LL.M. is limited to those who already hold a J.D. or LL.M. from an American Law School.  The JD Journal also indicated that a similar degree will be offered on a smaller basis at the University of Colorado Law School.

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# posted by admin @ 8:28 am in LL.M., Law School News, School: Duke

January 22, 2010

Fridays From the Frontline

Hi there, and welcome to a brand new installment of Fridays From the Frontline, Clear Admit’s weekly waltz through the ‘blawgosphere.’ This week summer jobs were on many first years’ minds while other bloggers were making changes to their sites, all for the entertainment and edification of their readers.

oL Sue provided her take on how to tackle the LSAT assumption questions. 0L Ricky Nelson was grateful to his parents for their financial backup, but felt guilty that not all future law students had similar support. 1L Anonymous participated in 3 summer job interviews in 18 hours. NYU ‘12 Invisible Man sarcastically suggested that changing how one refers to their studies will make them more important. Miami ‘12 Goateed 1L completed his first week of classes in the new year and turned his attentions to football. NYU ‘12 IDWSJ continued to await his grades from the previous semester, and refused to change his study habits until he knew whether they were helpful or hurtful. NCCU ‘12 TDot’s trial team came in second at the Kilpatrick-Stockton Case Competition. Columbia ‘12 Soleil was not overly pleased with her first Legal Practice Workshop assignment, and accidentally missed one of her morning classes. The new year saw Northwestern ‘12 Jeremy make a few changes to his blog, which included more posts and tactical advice.

Harvard ‘11 Ivy Lea welcomed suggestions on how she could celebrate her 100th blog post. Yale ‘11 SB wondered what the most important number in a person’s life was, and outlined a few possibilities. 2L Huma shared what her next 16 weeks would be like now that her second semester kicked off, and it was a little dire. 2L Laughing was shocked to find that the loud people in the library weren’t 1Ls … they were 3Ls! Minnesota ‘11 Jansen got a new dog and named her Gertrude.

3L I’m Nobody did not find her third year to be any easier or boring than her first two years. 3L (In)Sanity Gal wholeheartedly enjoyed her weekend visit to Vermont, cocktails, woolen stockings, dance parties and all. Austin ‘10 Paragon2Pieces shared some news about the school’s Center for Women in Law and its new Executive Director.

And that wraps up this round of the realities of applying to, and attending, law school. We here at Clear Admit hope that the fresh semesters are full of fun, and not too terribly draining, for current students, and that aspiring law students keep their eyes on the goal as they move forward in their application process. Until next week, have a great weekend!

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# posted by admin @ 8:00 am in Fridays From the Frontline

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