r/LawSchool

Mine were doctrinal and demonstrative lol

It may just be me, but it seems this semester more than ever before I am seeing 2L’s and 3L’s telling 1L’s to skip reading cases and just read summaries to learn the rule and holding. I think this is terrible advice. Reading does so much more than just teach you the rule and holding, it challenges you to synthesize difficult material. It allows you to come up with your own opinion on the issue which may lead to you making an actual argument for change someday in the real world. Like an old professor of mine used to say, all the text around the rule is arguable and that’s where your job security is.

I’m not naturally the most gifted at logical reasoning/ reading comprehension and so I’ve been studying for the lsat for around two years. Ive been able to improve with a lot of time and dedication (144–170) but I’m scared if i get into a competitive t14 I’ll struggle and have to work harder than everybody there because I’m not as naturally intellectual. Does anybody have any thoughts on this? Is it better to excel in a mediocre law school than to be the worst in a t14? I’m also scared of the rigor of a t14 where I might drop out/have severe imposter syndrome vs being in a less competitive environment.

I am 30. Completely starting fresh… new career. In my state, the only full time law programs are offered during the day (rather than at night).

I still have to work, and I have zero law experience. So I prefer to work somewhere that has at least some affiliation with the law. That being said, what are some recommendations for jobs that I can partake in the evening while being a law student?

Note - The job has to pay decently well. I have rent and expenses to pay. I may be trying to find a needle in a haystack.

My raw score was a 60%. Prof gave no context or stats indicating a median, range or quartiles.

I know I probably just need to wait for them to explain what the averages and stuff were, but at face value staring at a 60% with no context is absolutely killing me.

Anyone have similar experiences?? Should I be concerned?

I feel like I have ruined my life. I’m 30 (M) and recently graduated from a tier 2 law school. I graduated at the bottom of my class and have no job prospects so I’ve been doing criminal defense cases from the state. Every hearing is anxiety inducing but I don’t have any other options. I owe almost 30k in credit card debt and have about 300k in student loans. I’m also far away from home but I am not licensed to practice anywhere other than where I’m at.

I regret so much, and I don’t know what to do. Jobs always require experience I don’t have and no one seems to be hiring. I always thought a law degree would be a path toward success but it has been the worse decision I’ve ever made and I’ll likely have to pay debt for the rest of my life. I don’t know what to do. I’ve been experiencing suicide ideation and have been stuck in indecision as well. I just want to be home and not have this debt weighing over my ever decision.

Any idea to convert official pagination to regional one quickly?

Hi, I am currently working on finishing my personal statement and submitting my apps. I really want to hear what the best personal statements are as I am now regretting my choice. A little background is that I grew up homeschooled, went on to do speech and debate, mock trial, and tons of different things. I grew up working on a vegetable farm LOL. I did mock trial in college and now work at a law firm and moved from intern to legal secretary to paralegal in a few months. I am from a mixed hispanic household. I graduated a year early from college. I have a 3.9 GPA but only a 152 LSAT score. The firm I work for is an estate planning and probate firm. My degree was in criminal justice and legal studies. I have always been a very hard worker but I feel like that's the norm for law students. My first idea that I scrapped was around my name.

Because I have a low LSAT I'm very fearful this will not be enough for me to be accepted. No one in my family has ever gone into law so I am kinda at a loss for what to do.

Hi, I got out of high school last year and went to straight to university studying law and arts in australia. I have completed my first year and am awaiting grades from the last exams i did. The past exams made me really stressed to the point i was crying every night (panic attacks. hyperventilating, not sleeping) and regretted choosing law. This was a wake up call for me, it made me wonder if I actually wanted to do law for the rest of my life and I recognised that I havnt liked it throughout the entire year. I have not enjoyed the readings or the cases or learning the law overall, I have some friends at the university but they are “uni friends” rather than actually friends and they have said that they enjoy it sometimes. I have not enjoyed it AT ALL. I’m scared to keep doing this if I can’t handle the pressure and if it will lead to destroying my mental health and sense of worth. I do not know what to do because I barely know my own interests or what I like (other than unproductive things like video games and movies) and i can’t figure that out within 4 months (when I need to go back) and if I go back next year I’m trapped in law due to the student debt. PLEASE tell me ur experiences and what you think I should do.

I finished up midterms ab a week and a half ago, I spent a lot of time prepping and doing practice exams and MCQs and did well enough to be satisfied. However, ever since I have struggled greatly to get back to the level of productivity I was at before. The weekend immediately after I (like seemingly everyone else in my section) took the weekend off reading to just give my brain some rest and reset time. This weekend though getting back into the swing of things has been rough, I’m still getting my readings done and meeting the deadlines I need to, but I’m having a much harder time pushing through then I was before. This past week I found myself relying way more on Quimbee then I would’ve of liked so I’m just curious if anyone else can relate to this feeling or has ever faced this, and if so what can I do to get myself back to where I was?

Standard 3L anxiety of just trying to find something in a rural jurisdiction close to family, doesn't seem like there's even 50 jobs to apply to, let alone the 100s conventional wisdom says you will have to apply for to find anything.

I see a lot of talk about the ways in which the environment of law school (competition, grades, pressure, etc) contributes to increase depression, but I have a lot more trouble finding resources or commentary on the actual content that may also heavily contribute.

I think it’s especially exacerbated right now, but does anyone else feel like in the present context, class itself can contribute significantly to a downward spiral? Con law, international law, environmental law…it feels like the hits keep coming and they don’t stop coming if you know what I mean. And the advice generally is to just disconnect from law school but like, you have to engage with the material, you have to do the reading (or, for the 3Ls here, enough of the reading to make it through a cold call).

Anyone have any advice on how to cope, or resources for emotional burnout? It’s been getting progressively worse throughout law school, and as a 3L I’m just…done. But at the same time I care deeply about these subjects and so want to engage. And I’m someone who has always been able to emotionally detach pretty well (disconnect from emotional arguments to focus on the logical, legal arguments), but that’s feeling almost impossible now.

Already in therapy, but one hour a week of verbal dumping isn’t cutting it at this point. Antidepressants are maxed out, social media extremely limited, avoiding doom scrolling, etc. So really doing everything I can that’s traditionally recommended, and kind of at a loss.

Most of my classes assigned practice take home midterms due next week and the week after and I am so overwhelmed. I don't know how to take an issue spotter test and they didn't give us any tips or tricks or anything so I am just sitting here with this prompt feeling like the dumbest person in the world.

Any advice? Will these get easier? I am so stressed

I know they are just practice but I want to take these seriously

Hey everyone!

Hope your week is going well.

I have a question for those of you who are in 2L/3L or have graduated law school.

For context, I am in 1L and we (like most schools) are marked on a curve - we also do not have 100% exams. I am determined to get A's in my classes, I know it is possible but unlikely. I talked to some upper year friends who told me not to expect any A's and that with my best efforts, I should be content with B/B+. While I understand that a B+ is not inherently a bad grade, I still want to try to get A's.

All of this is just to ask - how did you get A's in law school, specifically in 1L? What do you recommend doing/not doing? Also, help me keep my expectations reasonable; am I aiming too high?

Thanks for your help :)

So yesterday, as I was leaving Costco with my $1.50 hotdog and soda combo, the employee stationed at the exit said, “Come back soon!” I was so overwhelmed that I didn’t know how to respond.

is this happening to anyone else? she’s working really hard to do well in school. she spends pretty much all her time studying. however i don’t think we’ve been intimate once since she’s started law school.

idk what else to say in this post im just curious if anyone is going through something similar or had advice.