Tips for incoming 1L Fall08?

[clarkh1026]

Does anyone have any tips for my first semester at Cooley.  I am taking Kent for Contracts I, Bretz for Crim Law, Buttrey for Intro to Law, Finnegan for Property I, and Dotson for Torts I.  Thanks in advance.

[Dubyk87]

I got one...
Don't go.

In this economy, are you kidding me? Especially in Michigan.
Cooley will get you nothing but comical stares from prospective employers when they review your Resume.
Honestly, DON'T GO THERE.
What a waste of money.

[TheDudeMan]

I got one...
Don't go.

In this economy, are you kidding me? Especially in Michigan.
Cooley will get you nothing but comical stares from prospective employers when they review your Resume.
Honestly, DON'T GO THERE.
What a waste of money.

Agreed.  Though something tells me that you probably aren't even in law school lol.

[otrintroy]

Wow - had to register myself just to give my input here...
You know, people have different career goals and motives for attending law school.
Maybe this person who asked an honest question wants to stay close to home and wants the convenience of Cooley's campuses.
I'm sure that the original poster of this question will not post again on this site.
And yes, I am going to attend Cooley.  I'm a mom and wife, an Occupational Therapist and will be a returning student going there on a full scholarship.

 

[bdill]

I dont go to Cooley, but I would get some commercial outlines and practice some essays.

[jacy85]

Wow - had to register myself just to give my input here...
You know, people have different career goals and motives for attending law school.
Maybe this person who asked an honest question wants to stay close to home and wants the convenience of Cooley's campuses.
I'm sure that the original poster of this question will not post again on this site.
And yes, I am going to attend Cooley.  I'm a mom and wife, an Occupational Therapist and will be a returning student going there on a full scholarship.

 

Different goals are fine, but there's a point where the return just isn't worth it.  The money you'll spend at an over-priced school with poor career prospects may likely be better served by investing it for your kid's (or kids') future, whether that include college, a wedding, a down payment on a house, etc.

[TheDudeMan]

A full scholarship at Cooley is nothing more than a waste of 3 years of your life.  Nobody in the profession will ever take you seriously.  I don't even know how people can expect a school that will give full-rides to anyone that scores slightly above the median on the LSAT to be respectable. 

The cliche "if it sounds too good to be true, then it probably is" comes to mind.

[Jan09grad]

Yes, here are some tips from a spring 09 grad from Cooley:

1. Get down to the book store and buy commercial outlines for Contracts, Crim Law, Property and Torts - Emanuels is usually pretty good.  Bretz will tell you to buy another book.  If you enjoy the material or don't understand it at all, I suggest you get the extra book.  It explains in good detail, otherwise, it's not necessary if you get it to begin with.  I'm sorry you have finn for property - He is huge into theory and light on black letter law.

2. Go across the hall to the SBA office and ask to purchase outlines for the class and professors you have.  It's a buck per outline and then you have to go to insty prints to pick them up.  THese are outlines from students who have taken the course before, and will make your life super nice!

3. You really don't have buttrey for Intro, you have an adjunct who will give you your grade.  Here's my input...Do the work as soon and as well as you possibly can.  If you get great grades on the writing assignments, you can blow off the final completely.

4. Get 1 or 2 people max to study with - anything beyond that will create drama in your life.  The school will introduce you to upperclassmen in the beginning of your term (during orientation) - these folks are there to help during orientation (and what most people forget) and beyond.  Meet these people, take them out to lunch, and for your next year or two meet their friends, get their outlines, prof impressions, inside info, etc.  The folks who have been there for two years can and will steer you right.  There isn't much competition at the school - it's very friendly and helpful.  If you ever feel lost, ask your prof as quickly as possible to get on the right track.  There are a few profs who will try to make you feel like an idiot, so chew them out - it's your money, your right, and exams are graded anon. 

Cooley can be fun, it's a great learning experience, it's scary, it's rewarding, it's depressing to have the rest of the world crap on you for being there, it gets old hearing your profs tell you how much better off you are to be there than anywhere else, so have fun and get involved.  SHrug off bad news, bad grades, and bad friends quickly and keep moving forward.  Otherwise you'll hate yourself in 3 years.  Yes, it's extremely hard to get a job when you graduate, so pray that the economy will turn around before you graduate.  As for me, no such luck, and I'm in the top 25% of my graduating class.  If you're on a full ride, go get a free JD, then get an LLM somewhere respectable. 

Go out and enjoy bretz's blues band - don't worry, bittrey seams like she's going to have a heart attack, but she won't - freshman midterms do matter (10%) even though people tell you they don't - If you need a quick lunch, get a slice of pizza at cottage inn - the state reading room in the library is the quietest room because most folks don't know it's there - and that's about what I can remember about my first semester.
All the best! 

[FortheDefense]

I got one...
Don't go.

In this economy, are you kidding me? Especially in Michigan.
Cooley will get you nothing but comical stares from prospective employers when they review your Resume.
Honestly, DON'T GO THERE.
What a waste of money.

I say congratulations. I may even see the OP next year. Yes, if you want to break the bank and buy a home in Waialae Iki on the other side of Diamond Head with a year round pass at Mid Pac Country Club, Cooley wont get you there right away. But if you want a law degree and can pass the BAR go for it.