Go Thomas Jefferson School of Law! On the Rise... :)

[lsdreamer]

I think maybe it was the fact that you're too positive that got to me. I need a little cynicism to swallow that kind of positivity.

That said, last year I almost considered Thomas Jefferson for entertainment law, but I was scared away since. Kept hearing bad things about it. But, hey, if things are looking up, congrats.

  Thanks.  Yeah...I'm a positive person. But, not the kind of person who thinks every day  is filled w/ rainbows and sushine.  But, just wanted to share my positive experience. Take care! Bye the way, the Entertainment Law program is really good. A guy from my school just got an internship w/ SAG in Los Angeles. You going somewhere now? If you need  any info on Entertainment  Law and are still considering going, you could email the Entertainment Law Society (club-on campus).

[Big Boy Pants]

Wow! That's a lot of questions!!! Are you asking b/c you want to go there? Here's what I CAN answer...A job lined up for graduation? I'm finishing my 4th semester...So, like most people I don't. I have a Spring and Summer internsip lined up, as do most all the students in my graduating class. I don't graduate until after Fall of 09'.  I don't know what thte forced attrition rate is...In my Spring entering class, only 3-4 people didn't continue on out of 80-or so. I don't think that's very high. And why do you only care where the top 10% go? Sounds a bit snobby... I have never had to do an on-campus interview, so I wouldn't know that but could easily find out...but, I'm not interested in just obtaining info to prove to you that TJSL is not a crappy school...only if you're genuinely interested b/c that's asking a lot of my time. Take care...

I'm applying to all SD schools because I am from there and it would be easier.  I would expect a scholarship from TJSL and Cal Western, as safeties, but in the end am more likely to go to a higher-ranked school based upon some info on this site, mostly job opportunities.  Thanks for your response. Thank you internet!

[LawDog3]

No offense, but you do kind of sound like a cheerleader/adcomm.

No...not an adcomm(whatever that is) and DEFINITELY never been a cheerleader...just a positive person who thinks my school deserves props. You can look at my posting history to see I am a real person, who overcame a lot of personal challenges to get to law school and in my first semester. I wanted to be a lawyer more than anything and, honestly, the pervasively negative posts on here about TJSL almost swayed me not to go. I think there are a lot of students who, due to challenging life circumstances, may not have the money/time to study as much for the LSAT, but want nothing more than to advocate for others as an attorney. Many of  them come on here looking for advice/direction. A large amount of the posts are directed at Tier 1's/2's/3's. Anytime a student thinking about a tier 4 posts, I noticed people tackle and pick apart the post, throwing every negative remark they can think of at the poster. I think it's only fair to balance that negativity out w/ some positive energy and encouragement.   

TJLS did a great thing when they admitted you. You are a great advocate for them. I am with you and the other T2-T4 rah-rahs. I favor the top schools, and I have the credentials to go to them, but the only reason I will is that the top schools give easier access to those high-paying 1A jobs. Other than that, I can name many T-2 and T-3 schools (and I have visited and sat in on many) that I would pick over top schools. The allure of top schools is in the names that lead to better opportunities. It isn't like they're doing something better than the others schools.

Ever hear of a school called Albany? How about Akron or Dayton? Gonzaga (it has produced 1/4 of Washington State's top lawyers)? Howard (which beats out many top-30 schools in job placement? How about Pacific or Quinnepac? Oregon? Hofstra (it has quite a few graduates in NY BigLaw)? Miami? San Diego? Florida State? Wayne State? Denver? All are fantastic schools.

The fact is, law schools should be looked at like the NBA. If we were aliens visiting the planet Earth and looked at the law rankings, we might think those "lower-ranked" schools were pretty bad. But, the fact is, they all can play the game...just like every NBA player. Could anybody on this website beat the #12 guy on any NBA team? No. Because every player is good, even the comparatively "crappy ones", just by virtue of having reached that level...the same way that just about any American law school can provide an excellent education for a student who has the motivation to get one. But 1A jobs are the key, and those mainly come from the top. 

Yeah, Cooley and some others have kinks to work out, or they should close. And some of the elites w/o schools (Brown, Princeton, MIT, Cal-Techshould consider opening schools to replace the bad ones. But legal education in this country is such that one can build a good foundation no matter where he/she attends, it's that good.  But schools like Cooley need to work out the kinks.

 

[willametterules]

I'm a 2nd year student at Thomas Jefferson School of Law (TJSL) in San Diego...And I love it. I came onto lawschooldiscussion while deciding whether or not to go back in 2006, and ran into so many TJSL bashers. I swear, it was almost as though people enjoyed ripping apart a school they'd never even been to. I'm so glad I didn't listen...I love it here-the staff and faculty are awesome...they actually care how we do and who we are, which is evidenced by the huge leap in our bar passage rate! 75% in 2008! Take that, all you Tier 1 snobs who enjoy bashing schools not in your tier. We are on the rise...A new campus is also being built in downtown San Diego.

Just to give you an example of the awesome administration, during my first semester, my Dad was in the ICU and I happened to talk to one of the head Deans about what was going on...in the conversation, I mentioned my apartment didn't have heat (and in a really bad winter-for us--yeah, it's all relative, but it was 26 degrees!). She got up, went into another staff member's office, unplugged a space heater out of the wall and said, "She's going to use this for a while. " She even offered me extra blankets...How many administrators in a law school would do that? Not only that...most every teacher I've had has been excellent-very available to students. 

I'm happy to be at a school that I actually enjoy going to. You can't always say that for some of the elite schools. And where else in the country can you take your books to the beach and study! Anyways, I just saw SO many negative things about Thomas Jefferson on this site ("You won't get a job if you go there", etc...) while I was deciding if I should go. In my second semester, after receiving the high grade award in legal writing, I was given a clerkshiip with a notable labor rights attorney, which I did for a year. I've since had 2 awesome jobs. I don't  say that to brag, only to underscore that it's not WHERE you go, but what kind of PASSION you have and how hard you work. If you don't have that, you won't do well anywhere. If  you have it, you can succeed at any school. Good luck and if any potential TJSLers have questions, I'm happy to help.   

I just had to show some school pride.   

http://news.yahoo.com/s/sddt/20081125/lo_sddt/statebarexampassageratehighestinadecade

http://www.tjsl.edu/ground_breaking

http://news.yahoo.com/s/sddt/20081125/lo_sddt/statebarexampassageratehighestinadecade

This idiot made this exact same "free space heater" post over a year ago... and got all pissy when asked about the ridiculous attrition rates at the school. 

http://www.lawschooldiscussion.org/prelaw/index.php/topic,80685.msg1929318.html#msg1929318


Any fool can can see that if you flunk out 37% of the entering 1Ls by graduation, your bar passage rates will rise.  That "new" building will be built on the backs of all the uninformed tuition paying flunk outs that this school victimized... There are T4s that actually take an interest and support their students, this joint isn't one of them.

[LawDog3]

I'm a 2nd year student at Thomas Jefferson School of Law (TJSL) in San Diego...And I love it. I came onto lawschooldiscussion while deciding whether or not to go back in 2006, and ran into so many TJSL bashers. I swear, it was almost as though people enjoyed ripping apart a school they'd never even been to. I'm so glad I didn't listen...I love it here-the staff and faculty are awesome...they actually care how we do and who we are, which is evidenced by the huge leap in our bar passage rate! 75% in 2008! Take that, all you Tier 1 snobs who enjoy bashing schools not in your tier. We are on the rise...A new campus is also being built in downtown San Diego.

Just to give you an example of the awesome administration, during my first semester, my Dad was in the ICU and I happened to talk to one of the head Deans about what was going on...in the conversation, I mentioned my apartment didn't have heat (and in a really bad winter-for us--yeah, it's all relative, but it was 26 degrees!). She got up, went into another staff member's office, unplugged a space heater out of the wall and said, "She's going to use this for a while. " She even offered me extra blankets...How many administrators in a law school would do that? Not only that...most every teacher I've had has been excellent-very available to students. 

I'm happy to be at a school that I actually enjoy going to. You can't always say that for some of the elite schools. And where else in the country can you take your books to the beach and study! Anyways, I just saw SO many negative things about Thomas Jefferson on this site ("You won't get a job if you go there", etc...) while I was deciding if I should go. In my second semester, after receiving the high grade award in legal writing, I was given a clerkshiip with a notable labor rights attorney, which I did for a year. I've since had 2 awesome jobs. I don't  say that to brag, only to underscore that it's not WHERE you go, but what kind of PASSION you have and how hard you work. If you don't have that, you won't do well anywhere. If  you have it, you can succeed at any school. Good luck and if any potential TJSLers have questions, I'm happy to help.   

I just had to show some school pride.   

http://news.yahoo.com/s/sddt/20081125/lo_sddt/statebarexampassageratehighestinadecade

http://www.tjsl.edu/ground_breaking

http://news.yahoo.com/s/sddt/20081125/lo_sddt/statebarexampassageratehighestinadecade

This idiot made this exact same "free space heater" post over a year ago... and got all pissy when asked about the ridiculous attrition rates at the school. 

http://www.lawschooldiscussion.org/prelaw/index.php/topic,80685.msg1929318.html#msg1929318


Any fool can can see that if you flunk out 37% of the entering 1Ls by graduation, your bar passage rates will rise.  That "new" building will be built on the backs of all the uninformed tuition paying flunk outs that this school victimized... There are T4s that actually take an interest and support their students, this joint isn't one of them.

Wow...didn't realize TJSL was "Cooley Southwest", nor that the Original-Poster might be an "Im-Poster". It's obviously an administrator trying to hype the school, a current student who now realizes he/she is stuck at a lousy school or a graduate looking for a job. I take back my accolades for the OP. But my other general comments regarding undervalued schools still stand.

[T. Durden]

this thread just keeps paying dividends.

the honest truth it that once biglaw starts outsourcing its K attny work in earnest (India, Israel, wherever) schools like TJ and Cal Western will inevitably watch their employment numbers plummet bird-strike style ... except there won't be a Sully to bail them out .. instead, just a deep, murky watery grave at the bottom of some frigid, poo-brown east coast river. that's right, i said it.

[T. Durden]

haha you are quiet the patient one

[vlu]

so is TJ really this bad? I mean it's the only school i got accepted to so far, I got rejected from whittier law school, california western, and waitlisted at western state...

[iahurricane]

LOL at how none of the OP's links don't even work. I'll refrain from ripping into her since she's kinda cute (if thats her pic).

[zippyandzap]

LOL at how none of the OP's links don't even work. I'll refrain from ripping into her since she's kinda cute (if thats her pic).

ALL of them don't work!