How tough is 1L? Can I still do well with a part-time job?

[IAmMultipleBooks]

I'm about to start 1L at a top tier school. I have heard that it is very tough and that the homework and reading is heavy. Can anyone give me an idea of how heavy?

Also, I am considering a part-time job teaching an LSAT class for Kaplan. I have heard though that having a part-time job will put me at a significant disadvantage because of the enormous work load 1L bestows upon its students.

Any experiences or advice you can share with me?

[TPS Report]

Check out your school's website.  The registrar's website might have published information about grade distribution, which would give you an idea of how many people receive what grade.  It might also have student surveys and statistics about the professors, the reading load per class, the difficulty of the class, etc.  Telling you what the reading load is a BC isn't going to help that much if you go to Texas. 

[drbuff123]

You can have a part-time job and still do well if you manage your time.  I didn't work, but I had enough free time that I probably could have.  You might not want a job so you can have some downtime between all the school related stress.

[kilroy55]

I'm about to start 1L at a top tier school. I have heard that it is very tough and that the homework and reading is heavy. Can anyone give me an idea of how heavy?

Also, I am considering a part-time job teaching an LSAT class for Kaplan. I have heard though that having a part-time job will put me at a significant disadvantage because of the enormous work load 1L bestows upon its students.

Any experiences or advice you can share with me?

You might also want to check on your school policies regarding full-time students having employment.  If I remember right, the ABA has rules against full-time students working more than 20 hours a week outside of school.  I am also not aware if this is still in effect, or how strictly it is enforced.

[osakakid]

1L studying certainly should not take up all of your time.  If it does you are doing something wrong.  However, the free time you do have needs to be spent relaxing, hanging with friends and family, excercising, etc.  I know some people that worked, but the people who didn't were generally much happier.

[templeace]

My kaplan instructor was a 1L and she made law review and still did great at a T6 school. She did say that there wasn't as muc pressure to be ranked as high or get great grades because she was at such a great school, but she worked and is working for a firm this summer. She is doing great.

[yvyty]

I agree with osakakid above. Most 1Ls will struggle to complete the coursework, and a part-time job will definitely bring their academic achievements down. Unless you have really need the money to survive, have exceptional time management skills or adapt to different modes of learning very quickly, a part-time job would be to your disadvantage. Your task in 1L is to learn the law and do well academically. You will need your spare time to relax, exercise and sleep. There's always time in 2L to take on a part-time job if you wish.

[Finally]

Work for BarBri or PMBR. I don't think you get an hourly wage, but it takes no effort and you can take the classes for free (I think). I wish I would have done that!

[Strong]

subtle autoadmit trolling

[UCLA LAW]

If you are starting at a top tier law school you probably want to invest the time to do really well and make law review - financial rewards in the long run will be much greater than if you work part time now!!!