Aboursi's Blog - Come on, What Else Are You Gonna Do? Forum
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aboursi
- Posts: 8
- Joined: Fri Feb 02, 2007 11:44 pm
Aboursi's Blog - Come on, What Else Are You Gonna Do?
I wrote a message and someone suggested I get a blog, mostly I think to keep me off of the civilized forums. Accordingly I will simply repost that message, go to sleep and rethink this blog thing. Law school Admissions blog, like I need a forum for my thoughts, but hey this way maybe my loved ones wont be quite as sick of my talking about Law School admissions, and can get back to being sick of me for the regular reasons loved ones find one another intolerable. So future readers Here we go!
Last edited by aboursi on Wed Feb 28, 2007 3:41 am, edited 1 time in total.
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aboursi
- Posts: 8
- Joined: Fri Feb 02, 2007 11:44 pm
THE PROCESS!!!!
I've decided that the very first course in my legal education is coming to a close, and honestly I'm exhausted. At first it seems simple, take the LSAT, daunting but we've all taken many many tests. Choosing the right schools, first who will take me? who won't? who don't I want? How far of a reach is a reach?, whats this a waiver eh? why not? I kind of like this school, oh no such a board said that's terrible. huh what? Cousin who went there? all right onto the forms.
Most of these questions are all the same Where did you go to college? (you have my transcript) When did you take the LSAT? (you have my LSDAS report) Have you ever been convicted of felony (fair enough),do you travel often? (I shit you not). Just enough to lull you into a false sense of security. And all of a sudden like a complex character in a Clancy novel bam it hits you and the monotony is interrupted with something totally personal like, what was the socioeconomic makeup of the town you grew up in. Neatly placed between "Have you ever served in the military?" and what honors or awards have you received.
Then there are the series of simple one word questions. Are you the first person in your family to go to college? What is the highest level of education your parents completed. Oh and the optional racial makeup questions.
Sure there are the long form questions designed to appear a bit more qualitative, but the tone is the same the doctor when he asks a how your day is, or when a TV cop asks a suspect, whether he wants a cigarette, it is a disarming tactic.
Until this Percocet fueled rant I have been fine but today sitting in the E.R. (Broke two fingers, somebody slammed a door on them at Case Western, I wish I was making this up, funny, and apt) it occurred to me, that we have all been quantified. Quantified in a way that few people outside of psychiatric hospitals have, and it's okay. I understand the practicality of it there are far too few spots, for far too many applicants, but, we've given strangers the most intimate details of our lives, given ourselves a class, a race, a personality, academic record, and 1-3 pages meant to sum up our worth as people, and asked, in some cases begged (and for that matter paid for the privilege, some of us THOUSANDS of dollars) to please be considered good enough to maybe please accrue as much as a quarter of a million dollars in debt, to work as hard as we can, to claw our way past our peers, to neglect our friends and our loved ones to maybe...maybe, have the chance...possibly to join one of the most socially reviled professions in the world. (How can one of the only professions with a set in stone ethical code be viewed as the most deceptive and corrupt?!!!!)
Please make no mistake, I am absolutely happy with the decisions I have made thus far, and tomorrow, I'll get back to the quiet waiting game. Adcoms have a much tougher job then we do, they have to take those tiny pieces of data and try to figure out not only who we are, but how that will reflect on them, and their institution, multiplied by a thousand. I'll compose new essays for those schools that want them, I'll scout out those that have accepted me, I'll wait patiently by the mailbox for those schools that haven't yet seen fit to get around to me, and maybe I'll even get the chance to weigh a couple of my dream programs against each-other, let them woo me for a change, and I'll daydream, the whole time about first year law classes, clinics, and eventually being able to comfortably call myself an attorney.
But tonight, just tonight I would like to ask everybody else who has taken a look at the absurdity of the process we have all gone through and say.
WHAT THE FUCK!!!
Thank you all for what I hope is a patient ear, and a sense of humor.
P.S.
The Chayefsky Allusion fortunate, though accidental.
Most of these questions are all the same Where did you go to college? (you have my transcript) When did you take the LSAT? (you have my LSDAS report) Have you ever been convicted of felony (fair enough),do you travel often? (I shit you not). Just enough to lull you into a false sense of security. And all of a sudden like a complex character in a Clancy novel bam it hits you and the monotony is interrupted with something totally personal like, what was the socioeconomic makeup of the town you grew up in. Neatly placed between "Have you ever served in the military?" and what honors or awards have you received.
Then there are the series of simple one word questions. Are you the first person in your family to go to college? What is the highest level of education your parents completed. Oh and the optional racial makeup questions.
Sure there are the long form questions designed to appear a bit more qualitative, but the tone is the same the doctor when he asks a how your day is, or when a TV cop asks a suspect, whether he wants a cigarette, it is a disarming tactic.
Until this Percocet fueled rant I have been fine but today sitting in the E.R. (Broke two fingers, somebody slammed a door on them at Case Western, I wish I was making this up, funny, and apt) it occurred to me, that we have all been quantified. Quantified in a way that few people outside of psychiatric hospitals have, and it's okay. I understand the practicality of it there are far too few spots, for far too many applicants, but, we've given strangers the most intimate details of our lives, given ourselves a class, a race, a personality, academic record, and 1-3 pages meant to sum up our worth as people, and asked, in some cases begged (and for that matter paid for the privilege, some of us THOUSANDS of dollars) to please be considered good enough to maybe please accrue as much as a quarter of a million dollars in debt, to work as hard as we can, to claw our way past our peers, to neglect our friends and our loved ones to maybe...maybe, have the chance...possibly to join one of the most socially reviled professions in the world. (How can one of the only professions with a set in stone ethical code be viewed as the most deceptive and corrupt?!!!!)
Please make no mistake, I am absolutely happy with the decisions I have made thus far, and tomorrow, I'll get back to the quiet waiting game. Adcoms have a much tougher job then we do, they have to take those tiny pieces of data and try to figure out not only who we are, but how that will reflect on them, and their institution, multiplied by a thousand. I'll compose new essays for those schools that want them, I'll scout out those that have accepted me, I'll wait patiently by the mailbox for those schools that haven't yet seen fit to get around to me, and maybe I'll even get the chance to weigh a couple of my dream programs against each-other, let them woo me for a change, and I'll daydream, the whole time about first year law classes, clinics, and eventually being able to comfortably call myself an attorney.
But tonight, just tonight I would like to ask everybody else who has taken a look at the absurdity of the process we have all gone through and say.
WHAT THE FUCK!!!
Thank you all for what I hope is a patient ear, and a sense of humor.
P.S.
The Chayefsky Allusion fortunate, though accidental.
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aboursi
- Posts: 8
- Joined: Fri Feb 02, 2007 11:44 pm
Alexis Blog - It Begins
Well, now that I've introduced myself to this process with the least possible decorum, but... I imagine a great deal of candor, I should probably drop a little background. So Lets get with the bullet points.
Air Force Brat
High-School Dropout
GED
Triple Degree Seeker UG
BS - Popular Culture Studies
BA - Film Studies
BFA - Photography
Fluent German, French, and Hebrew
(I like language, I attempted Japanese, no dice)
I've been working with Planned Parenthood, in public policy for the last year.
I'll Finish my MA in Bioethics/Ethics in May
I spent a good chunk of my life living abroad, various places, Lyon, London, Tokyo, as well as countless cities in the US (Taos, Boulder, Minneapolis, San Francisco, New York, Toledo, Austin, Cleveland)
The only thing I have truly feared in life is Boredom.
For the last year and a half, I Have lived in a small house, in a small suburb, in the Midwest, with a wonderful S/O of five years, and two small cats. It's a change... different, but a positive different.
Now the numbers... LSAT 162, GPA 2.5, and the problems become clear, yes, that 2 is not a typo.
Now to the schools; I won't bother with you all with those that already dinged me, or those that I've turned down just those that remain. There has actually been relatively little activity, I have heard from 8 schools total All applications went complete pretty early, except Texas. I have clearly gone with the pray and spray method of application.
Well that was intolerable, I promise all future posts will be, well they'll be, you know, not like this one.
And... so it begins, I can't believe I have a fucking blog.
Air Force Brat
High-School Dropout
GED
Triple Degree Seeker UG
BS - Popular Culture Studies
BA - Film Studies
BFA - Photography
Fluent German, French, and Hebrew
(I like language, I attempted Japanese, no dice)
I've been working with Planned Parenthood, in public policy for the last year.
I'll Finish my MA in Bioethics/Ethics in May
I spent a good chunk of my life living abroad, various places, Lyon, London, Tokyo, as well as countless cities in the US (Taos, Boulder, Minneapolis, San Francisco, New York, Toledo, Austin, Cleveland)
The only thing I have truly feared in life is Boredom.
For the last year and a half, I Have lived in a small house, in a small suburb, in the Midwest, with a wonderful S/O of five years, and two small cats. It's a change... different, but a positive different.
Now the numbers... LSAT 162, GPA 2.5, and the problems become clear, yes, that 2 is not a typo.
Now to the schools; I won't bother with you all with those that already dinged me, or those that I've turned down just those that remain. There has actually been relatively little activity, I have heard from 8 schools total All applications went complete pretty early, except Texas. I have clearly gone with the pray and spray method of application.
Well that was intolerable, I promise all future posts will be, well they'll be, you know, not like this one.
And... so it begins, I can't believe I have a fucking blog.
Last edited by aboursi on Tue Mar 06, 2007 3:41 pm, edited 4 times in total.
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aboursi
- Posts: 8
- Joined: Fri Feb 02, 2007 11:44 pm
Idealism
Seagull 48 posted something on his/her blog that really made me think. How many of us are really thinking about what we feel we will do with this thing, vs. what we can do? and whether or not those are really different.
In all aspects of life we are trained to be cool. And for future law students, med students, grad students etc..., really anybody who's trying to enact change in a "traditional" way, cool means being hyper aware of a flawed system. It means assuming that that T14 is way out of reach, but its flawed anyway. That BigLaw is out because such and such a school wont send you in the right direction. That even attempting to pursue these things must be done with the understanding that it's, all horse-shit.
We are told that there are three law students, the wide eyed idealist, whose naivete will be the end of him/her, the brilliant cynic whose savvy will get him/her far in life, but will ultimately lead to martinis with Valium chasers to keep him/her company at night, and finally the clever materialist, who will do well because of his/her win at all costs attitude but ultimately will add nothing to society. Admit it give or take these are the models. We choose or people chose for us but this is how it gets summed up.
But you know what we all want to do well, and most of us want to do good, but right now we're all just wanting, we're all just attempting to be a part of what i believe to be the most noble profession, wait... calling that there is, that of advocate. Sure there are all kinds of lawyers, and not everyone with a JD wants to practice law, but we all want to serve others, to serve this great experiment that is society.
So I'm coming out of the closet, I'm saying the words, My name is Alexis and I am an idealist. I think the system can and does work, I just think more honest people need to work in it. And.... hey wait a minute, I'm honest, I'm a people and I need a job, so I am going to go be a lawyer.
In admissions news nothing arrived, again, but UC Hastings, and UC Boulder contacted to remind me that they have truly great programs, and that it would be in my best interest to attend their fine institutions for my JD. It's so nice of them to reassure me that we are on the same page.
In all aspects of life we are trained to be cool. And for future law students, med students, grad students etc..., really anybody who's trying to enact change in a "traditional" way, cool means being hyper aware of a flawed system. It means assuming that that T14 is way out of reach, but its flawed anyway. That BigLaw is out because such and such a school wont send you in the right direction. That even attempting to pursue these things must be done with the understanding that it's, all horse-shit.
We are told that there are three law students, the wide eyed idealist, whose naivete will be the end of him/her, the brilliant cynic whose savvy will get him/her far in life, but will ultimately lead to martinis with Valium chasers to keep him/her company at night, and finally the clever materialist, who will do well because of his/her win at all costs attitude but ultimately will add nothing to society. Admit it give or take these are the models. We choose or people chose for us but this is how it gets summed up.
But you know what we all want to do well, and most of us want to do good, but right now we're all just wanting, we're all just attempting to be a part of what i believe to be the most noble profession, wait... calling that there is, that of advocate. Sure there are all kinds of lawyers, and not everyone with a JD wants to practice law, but we all want to serve others, to serve this great experiment that is society.
So I'm coming out of the closet, I'm saying the words, My name is Alexis and I am an idealist. I think the system can and does work, I just think more honest people need to work in it. And.... hey wait a minute, I'm honest, I'm a people and I need a job, so I am going to go be a lawyer.
In admissions news nothing arrived, again, but UC Hastings, and UC Boulder contacted to remind me that they have truly great programs, and that it would be in my best interest to attend their fine institutions for my JD. It's so nice of them to reassure me that we are on the same page.
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aboursi
- Posts: 8
- Joined: Fri Feb 02, 2007 11:44 pm
This one I hope you'll all appreciate.
Today the mailman brought me lots of goodies, brought them straight to the door, saying stating that he was happy to be bringing me good news, firstly a ding from UC Boulder (no love from the home town 
) but secondly a big, stiff official looking envelope from GW, where I had previously been turned down in an interesting manner. Heart pounding brain not working, I reached for the pull tab and caught a quick glance at the address, and well just bad things.
You see while relocating we used my S/O's parents house as a permanent address, we had to "house hunt' from out of town. Accordingly our mailman knows that some mail, that still goes there should come here. He also at this point knows a bit about my law school "quest", for obvious reasons. My name is Alexis, my girlfriends little sisters name by chance is "officially" Alexis as well (She goes by her middle name). She attended GW undergrad. This large, cardboard, envelope, is her diploma. This is a very confusing day. I, a long time ex smoker am now going to the gas station, buying one cigarette, and getting over it.
But man, Just a stick in the eye.
) but secondly a big, stiff official looking envelope from GW, where I had previously been turned down in an interesting manner. Heart pounding brain not working, I reached for the pull tab and caught a quick glance at the address, and well just bad things. You see while relocating we used my S/O's parents house as a permanent address, we had to "house hunt' from out of town. Accordingly our mailman knows that some mail, that still goes there should come here. He also at this point knows a bit about my law school "quest", for obvious reasons. My name is Alexis, my girlfriends little sisters name by chance is "officially" Alexis as well (She goes by her middle name). She attended GW undergrad. This large, cardboard, envelope, is her diploma. This is a very confusing day. I, a long time ex smoker am now going to the gas station, buying one cigarette, and getting over it.
But man, Just a stick in the eye.
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aboursi
- Posts: 8
- Joined: Fri Feb 02, 2007 11:44 pm
Eventful Day
Today has been another eventful day, A university that will currently go unnamed sent me a letter dated January 29th, scolding me for not returning their financial aid verification forms, because I had not updated my address. This is a school I want to attend, a school that I really want to attend. This document included a student id# etc. I phoned, very cautiously, and was told that the trouble is they have the wrong address on file, you see this is one of the few schools I applied to during my first attempt, they sent it initially to my old address and it was forwarded, here.
I asked if this, means, that I was admitted. She said that she wouldn't know anything about that, and that her area was financial aid. I was told that i could now check my aid package online, with, a password that I don't have and that, she can't give me. I phoned the office of admissions, left voice mail, this... on a Friday, at 2:00.
In other news GULC sent a letter explaining that despite my earlier denial that I am being re-considered for their part time program.
I asked if this, means, that I was admitted. She said that she wouldn't know anything about that, and that her area was financial aid. I was told that i could now check my aid package online, with, a password that I don't have and that, she can't give me. I phoned the office of admissions, left voice mail, this... on a Friday, at 2:00.
In other news GULC sent a letter explaining that despite my earlier denial that I am being re-considered for their part time program.
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aboursi
- Posts: 8
- Joined: Fri Feb 02, 2007 11:44 pm
Dah, Dah, Dah!!!
More non-news today, Deferred at Chicago, and at Akron, though Akron phoned to give me the news, and actually asked me to apply PT? don't quite know what to think. Whittier offered me some money, which is nice I suppose and Costa Mesa begins to sound pretty good, in 9 degree weather? I went complete a Loyola, LA today, something I assumed had happened long ago which has me a bit concerned. Also I perfected my Lasagna recipe, the key oddly enough...Cocoa. seriously give it a try.
Also thinking of retaking the LSAT, took it once cold two years ago and then again, after reading a test book, and taking a couple of practice tests, because I'm an idiot. After spending some time on this board I've realized just how unprepared I was. I might give myself a "paper chase" style boot camp study period, and take the June test, could help with those schools where I have been wait listed or deferred.
Also thinking of retaking the LSAT, took it once cold two years ago and then again, after reading a test book, and taking a couple of practice tests, because I'm an idiot. After spending some time on this board I've realized just how unprepared I was. I might give myself a "paper chase" style boot camp study period, and take the June test, could help with those schools where I have been wait listed or deferred.
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aboursi
- Posts: 8
- Joined: Fri Feb 02, 2007 11:44 pm
Wait List Blues
I can now add Loyola New Orleans to the growing list of quality schools, who have gone with the "wait and see" approach. It's a shame, I love New Orleans, and looked forward to "doing some good" while in law school. I wont lie, I haven't been since Katrina, but it's one of the few American cities, that I haven't lived in, with which I share a special bond. No better city in the world for a French Jew, with an almost perverse love of great food, and great jazz.
