Boalt student taking questions about Boalt, law school in general, work, etc.

[Gary Glitter]

its unintelligent in the sense that it (the adcomm)  applies a blanket, uniform standard to disparate schools. the top 5% of school with an average admitted LSAT of 168 is going to be a much more competitive demographic to place into compared to a bottom of T1 school with say a 159 average admitted score. you may disagree, but then again you got in on your soft factors - what interest would someone like you have in a logical, egalitarian system based on merit defined by the strength or weakness of a particular program?

apparently none ...

but i have no reason to be angry. my SAT II spanish totally got me into UCLA as an illegal immigrant. at least the oh so sane admcomms of the UC system gave me that .... (and i am thankful)

did i mention that they gave me in-state tuition too? such nice guys, willing to break federal law and all to help me out. and no, they were so righteous in their actions that the federal government is NOT suing the UC Regents ... no, the UC system is NOT in court right now defending itself against the feds for its various admissions policies



 

[IvanTrbl]

boalt said they require top 5-10% from my shcool.
i'm at a school with a median lsat of 168 of they're requiring top 5-10% - looks like they're applying a uniform requirement across ALL schools.
who are these people.

I think their logic is that lower T1s and even T2s are just as difficult and perhaps even more competitive than the big dogs because of the cut-throat environment.  In any event, why on Earth would you want to transfer if you were, say, even top 25% of the class?   

[Gary Glitter]

weather

it has nothing to do with teh rigors of the particular academic environment. unless at yale, students (particularly 1Ls) do not kick their feet up and coast through law school. students here are brutally competitive, gunnerism is rampant, and people work / study ALL THE TIME. it's just how it is. we are competitive, driven people. these attributes don't magically disappear with the onset of law school (*especially* during the first year which can more or less define your legal career).

the whole "we are just as willing to take teh top 10 percent from a t2 as we are from a t14" thing is pure UC adcomm social agenda MO. they establish loop holes within strict criterion that will allow the necessary mobility for the creation of the "utopian" class of law students, med students, UG students, whatever.

when they drop the guise of academic merit people like me will stop with the needless frustrated complaining

and i suppose to a certain extent it (adcomm policy) is at least somewhat understandable. the state of the education system in california right now is one of chaos and misrepresentation. if the UC retains its SAT / GPA admissions index, over 50 percent of all incoming students will be asian [and this is in fact the reality at most UCs right now]. 40 something percent will be white, the remaining small minority will be hispanic / black. hispanics, and to a lesser extent blacks, are HUGELY underrepresented in the state-sponsored university system. UC adcomms don't know what to do about it. asians are hugely overrepresented because they are acheiving the requisite grades, where as other minority groups are not. so now they're allowing the sat II spanish to supplant the sat I score. multiply it (sat spanish) by 3 and that is your new sat score. they're handing away instate tuition to illegal immigrants (which is arguably a slap in the face to those like me who attended an UC for 4 years as an out-of-state student and who was not given in-state tuition because the required standards are unattainable for anyone but the independently wealthy) - and they are doing so in direct violation of federal law (supremacy clause anyone?). though when you look at the demographics of the state of california it's hard to get too angry and say that they are hugely in the wrong. at least ostensibly their motivation is at least semi-altruistic

it's just frustrating to have your accomplishments, merits, etc. demeaned on the basis of your race and sex and socioeconomic background - but then again when 25, 30 percen to the population comprises 2, 3% of the student body in university system you have to admit that something is wrong....

(god bless california)   

[TheRenegade]

Hey Ruskie I've got a couple random questions for you.

How tough is it to get a decently paying job at a CA firm in your first summer? I'm trying to factor that in when adding up how much my choices are gonna cost. I'm guessing it would be a lot harder from uva or nyu, but if it's really hard from boalt too I might as well not worry about it anyway.

Do most people hear back about the scholarship matching program before the end of April?

I swear I care about more than just $$$ stuff, that's just where I haven't been able to find a lot of info. Thanks.

[LittleRussianPrincess, Esq.]

Hey Ruskie I've got a couple random questions for you.

How tough is it to get a decently paying job at a CA firm in your first summer? I'm trying to factor that in when adding up how much my choices are gonna cost. I'm guessing it would be a lot harder from uva or nyu, but if it's really hard from boalt too I might as well not worry about it anyway.

Do most people hear back about the scholarship matching program before the end of April?

I swear I care about more than just $$$ stuff, that's just where I haven't been able to find a lot of info. Thanks.

CA is a tough market, so all I can tell you is that it's going to be difficult no matter what school you attend.  However, I think most students who are dilligent about the application process and who have decent grades get at least one or two bites for 1L summer.

I am not sure about the timeline for all these financial aid programs.  You should probably call the financial aid office and ask.

[lava]

Hey, I have a few questions as well.  I was admitted to Boalt and plan on going to the East Coast to work, but I have some concerns about the lack of networking with East Coast offices/firms and just the lack of networking between coasts in general.  Can you speak to that at all?  Also, is the fact that nearly 70% of students work in CA due to the fact that nearly that many ppl are CA residents or is this because most of the class just decided to switch coasts? 
Thanks!

[LittleRussianPrincess, Esq.]

Hey, I have a few questions as well.  I was admitted to Boalt and plan on going to the East Coast to work, but I have some concerns about the lack of networking with East Coast offices/firms and just the lack of networking between coasts in general.  Can you speak to that at all?  Also, is the fact that nearly 70% of students work in CA due to the fact that nearly that many ppl are CA residents or is this because most of the class just decided to switch coasts? 
Thanks!

I think that there idea that Boalt students are not successful in placement on the east coast is just one of those Boalt-bashing myths.  I've seen all students from various ends of the grade spectrum get placed at top 20 NYC firms.  I know someone who has mostly, if not all, Passes who is going to a top 5 NYC firm. Boalt is just one of those schools that attracts people who want to stay in the area.  But, like I said before, it's actually harder for a Boaltie to get a job in SF than it is in NYC.

[lava]

Really, this speaks to more to my concern that Boalt students are all Cali residents wanting to stay in cali.  Im a resident now, but Im from the east coast and i cant say that Im super excited about being with a billion Cali residents who want to stay on the west coast. (I mean, it also kinda sucks to lose all your friends from school.)  From your exp., exactly what percentage of Boalt students are from Cali?  I somehow cant find this statistic...Thanks again.

[LittleRussianPrincess, Esq.]

Really, this speaks to more to my concern that Boalt students are all Cali residents wanting to stay in cali.  Im a resident now, but Im from the east coast and i cant say that Im super excited about being with a billion Cali residents who want to stay on the west coast. (I mean, it also kinda sucks to lose all your friends from school.)  From your exp., exactly what percentage of Boalt students are from Cali?  I somehow cant find this statistic...Thanks again.

A good number of people in my class, probably 30%, are originally from CA.  By 2L year, most of the class officially becomes California residents, for tuition purposes.  I am not really sure why you think it's such a bad thing that others want to stay here.  Most people here, whether they are from CA or not, want to practice in CA, whether immediately after LS or after 3-5 years in DC, NYC, Chi.  That, however, doesn't really bother me.  It's not interfered with my professional or social goals.  Could you be more specific about what it is that you think might bother you about these people?

[lava]

What bothers me is not the people, but the fact that you lose all you connections and networking with classmates if they are really closely tied to cali (which they would be esp if they are all from cali originally) and plan to stay there.  networking is pretty important in the legal world, as you know...