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Secrets Law School Doesn't Want First Year Students to Know

Starting law school can be an extremely stressful time. Most students in undergrad become accustomed to attending classes whenever they want. For most students undergrad is a fun relaxed time. You get to law school and there are reading assignments even before the first day of class. It comes as a rude awakening to many that one must show up for class having already read hundreds of pages of case law. Not only that, but one must also be prepared to stand up in front of all their peers and participate in the dreaded Socratic method.

Two days into classes and the Socratic method was the downfall of one of my classmates. I found him on the campus square gripping his withdrawal papers. After just two days, he became so stressed with the reading, preparing for class and the Socratic method that he quit. Unfortunate because he was a nice guy and if he had just stayed a little longer he would have learned two secrets no one tells frightened first year students.

First, it is not really about survival of the fittest - it is really about survival. The old joke asks what do you call the person who ranks last in their graduation class? Answer: An attorney. Now, I'm not trying to say that there is not competition in law school because there is. And, there is a ton of competition for those top ranking slots. If you want to get the nod from one of the big law firms, then it is all about your ranking. It has always been that way and always will be that way. However, there are only so many of those top tier law firm jobs. There are hundreds of law firms, corporations and organizations that need exceptional attorneys and will pay them good money. All one needs to do is to graduate from their school. One still needs to study and work hard, but if a top tier law firm is not your goal, then just graduate.

Just graduating is still hard work, but one can find resources to make it more bearable. That brings us to the really big secret law schools don't want their first year students to know - OUTLINES. At orientation, they tell you how important it is to outline your course work. They tell you to start your outlines early and keep them up to date. That is the truth! A good outline will make your daily life easier and is essential to studying for finals. After about six weeks of trying to figure out how to even begin an outline, I learned a dirty little secret about my institution of legal studies.

Law Crossing Job Bank My law school saved the outlines from top students. That sounds great, right? However, they only shared these outlines with first year students that the law school considered to be "top tier" students. Before the first day of classes, 95% of my classmates, including me, were at a disadvantage. A group of us came together and started acquiring outlines from previous students and shared them with everyone. We still had to work and study hard, but the field had been leveled. The mystery of what a good outline had been revealed. We were now free to make our own great outlines without the stress of the unknown.

Administrators will tell first year students that the key to success is their class outlines. Back then we had to use copy machines. Now days, a simple Google search will yield hundreds of outlines. Former and current law students have set up web sites with free outlines. If you are starting your law school career, then put yourself ahead of the curve and find some outlines