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Re: TLS Collected Wisdom on Success in Law School

Posted: Mon Apr 29, 2013 9:43 pm
by ph5354a
Everyone says not to do any 0L prep. Does that include not reading each and every one of these posts?

Tagged.

Re: TLS Collected Wisdom on Success in Law School

Posted: Mon Apr 29, 2013 9:49 pm
by moonman157
Tagging like I've never tagged a threat before. Thanks for all the info!

Re: TLS Collected Wisdom on Success in Law School

Posted: Sun Jun 02, 2013 7:51 pm
by sf_39
Great collection of info.

Obviously each guide has it's own flair, but at least from reading most of them and the NYU article on the TLS main page, there seems to be a lot of common elements in a lot of these.

EX: aim for the exam, don't crazy note take/read the casebook, get inside your prof's head, outline early, take practice exams etc.

Re: TLS Collected Wisdom on Success in Law School

Posted: Fri Jul 19, 2013 3:09 pm
by rambleon65
Sweet stuff

Re: TLS Collected Wisdom on Success in Law School

Posted: Fri Aug 09, 2013 11:48 am
by szb5058
YES!

Re: TLS Collected Wisdom on Success in Law School

Posted: Mon Aug 26, 2013 3:41 pm
by Easy-E
sf_39 wrote:Great collection of info.

Obviously each guide has it's own flair, but at least from reading most of them and the NYU article on the TLS main page, there seems to be a lot of common elements in a lot of these.

EX: aim for the exam, don't crazy note take/read the casebook, get inside your prof's head, outline early, take practice exams etc.

Seems to be what I'm getting from most of them, and based on the past exams I'm seeing, it makes sense.

Re: TLS Collected Wisdom on Success in Law School

Posted: Tue Oct 15, 2013 5:11 pm
by DPW_Yes
Wow. So much information. Not sure if all of it will be useful.

Re: TLS Collected Wisdom on Success in Law School

Posted: Thu Dec 05, 2013 4:15 pm
by Instinctive
Can't wait to read these.

Re: TLS Collected Wisdom on Success in Law School

Posted: Tue Dec 17, 2013 10:06 am
by AthenaKT
Tagged. This is great. Thanks!

Re: TLS Collected Wisdom on Success in Law School

Posted: Thu Dec 19, 2013 11:17 pm
by softey
1) Get old outlines.
2) Get secondary sources.
3) Compare relevant black letter law, using old outlines and syllabus as guideposts. Reduce all rules to elements. (If your teacher has slides, use those too. But still reduce.)
4) Organize rules in rule, subrule, subsubrule, etc., hierarchy.
5) Jot down the essential facts from cases discussed in class next to rules. I put in parenthesis. Get these essential facts from old outlines and online. No more than a few words.
6) Reduce, reduce, reduce. Make a system of abbreviations; reduce margins; reduce font; remove excess words; etc. The key is to go over this thing many times and reduce to bare bones.
7) Practice writing out the rule statements over and over (and over). Also practice using analogies from the case jots. In other words, understand the rules through the essential facts.

That's all you need, I promise. Do not start this process earlier than 1.5 months before exams. If you like going to class, just go to listen. DO NOT feel stressed to take notes. You don't need to know everything. You need to rack up points my mastering application of basic rules.

If you want all this in one phrase: REDUCE TO ELEMENTS.

Good luck.

Re: TLS Collected Wisdom on Success in Law School

Posted: Thu Dec 26, 2013 1:21 am
by doctoroflaw91
I've only just finished my first semester of law school, but I've found a couple of things that worked well for me:
1) Avoid advice from other 1Ls. Seriously. The first month or so of law school, I allowed my fellow 1Ls to dictate my study habits, and it stressed me out to no end. Talking to 2Ls and 3Ls that are genuine and helpful is far more useful and reassuring than talking to other 1Ls that are just as lost as you are.

2) Have a routine and stick to it. Lots of people give up all of their hobbies unrelated to law school when the rubber hits the road with studying. I found that having a routine that included exercise (yoga and gym time) and another hobby (for me, singing) was important. Exercising required waking up a little earlier (about 45 minutes or so), but it was well worth it for maintaining my physique and my stress levels.

3) Exams are crazy, but not that crazy I think the scariest part of my first semester was the anticipation of final exams. The reality? Exam- studying is hard work, but if you do your readings and pay attention during the semester, the pre-exam period is simply about reviewing what you already know. I found that working an occasional practice test throughout the semester was helpful as well, because as I studied, I already knew which issues to pay attention to. Ask your law school's library as to whether your professors have old exams on file at the beginning of the semester, so that you have some idea about what your professors are looking for. As for exam studying, have a schedule and stick to it. I made sure not to neglect sleep, good nutrition, and exercise during exam period, and I had more than enough time to prepare.

4) Talk to your professors. I realize that there are mixed opinions on office hours, etc. but I found them to be very helpful. I had some professors that would "hide the ball" more than others, and often would reveal more insights in office hours rather than in class. Plus, if you plan on asking a prof for a letter of recommendation at some point, it's important that you distinguish yourself from others from the onset.

5) Get ahold of old outlines early Some people seemed to have an idea of how to outline without help, and some didn't. Having another student's old outline will help your figure out which concepts your professor tends to focus on.

Re: TLS Collected Wisdom on Success in Law School

Posted: Tue Dec 31, 2013 4:20 am
by Mr. Carter
This thread inspired me to post a guide to law school success on a separate thread. I know there are a bunch of these out there, but I hope mine helps contribute to the collective wisdom on TLS.

It can be found here:
http://www.top-law-schools.com/forums/v ... 3&t=222099

Re: TLS Collected Wisdom on Success in Law School

Posted: Tue Dec 31, 2013 4:33 am
by IgosduIkana
Thanks so much

Re: TLS Collected Wisdom on Success in Law School

Posted: Tue Dec 31, 2013 4:12 pm
by Mr. Carter
Thanks for adding my guide Scribe!

Re: TLS Collected Wisdom on Success in Law School

Posted: Tue Dec 31, 2013 4:58 pm
by Balthy
Tag.. And thanks!

Re: TLS Collected Wisdom on Success in Law School

Posted: Wed Jan 08, 2014 9:35 pm
by BLUERUFiO
Tagged. Heads up, reddit has an outline bank that you can be a part of: http://www.reddit.com/r/lawschool

Re: TLS Collected Wisdom on Success in Law School

Posted: Thu Jan 09, 2014 9:53 pm
by PepperJack
The key is f the hyperfocus on dissents and the law, and focus on taking tests. Focusing on the facts they use always gets more points than some archaic common law rule nobody has used since 1900.

The one who writes a good exam, but misapplies a few laws or forgets some elements here and there always does much better than the person who word vomits laws.

Re: TLS Collected Wisdom on Success in Law School

Posted: Thu Jan 09, 2014 9:59 pm
by PepperJack
doctoroflaw91 wrote:I've only just finished my first semester of law school, but I've found a couple of things that worked well for me:
1) Avoid advice from other 1Ls. Seriously. The first month or so of law school, I allowed my fellow 1Ls to dictate my study habits, and it stressed me out to no end. Talking to 2Ls and 3Ls that are genuine and helpful is far more useful and reassuring than talking to other 1Ls that are just as lost as you are.

2) Have a routine and stick to it. Lots of people give up all of their hobbies unrelated to law school when the rubber hits the road with studying. I found that having a routine that included exercise (yoga and gym time) and another hobby (for me, singing) was important. Exercising required waking up a little earlier (about 45 minutes or so), but it was well worth it for maintaining my physique and my stress levels.

3) Exams are crazy, but not that crazy I think the scariest part of my first semester was the anticipation of final exams. The reality? Exam- studying is hard work, but if you do your readings and pay attention during the semester, the pre-exam period is simply about reviewing what you already know. I found that working an occasional practice test throughout the semester was helpful as well, because as I studied, I already knew which issues to pay attention to. Ask your law school's library as to whether your professors have old exams on file at the beginning of the semester, so that you have some idea about what your professors are looking for. As for exam studying, have a schedule and stick to it. I made sure not to neglect sleep, good nutrition, and exercise during exam period, and I had more than enough time to prepare.

4) Talk to your professors. I realize that there are mixed opinions on office hours, etc. but I found them to be very helpful. I had some professors that would "hide the ball" more than others, and often would reveal more insights in office hours rather than in class. Plus, if you plan on asking a prof for a letter of recommendation at some point, it's important that you distinguish yourself from others from the onset.

5) Get ahold of old outlines early Some people seemed to have an idea of how to outline without help, and some didn't. Having another student's old outline will help your figure out which concepts your professor tends to focus on.
IDK. Some 1L's will have much better advice than some 2L's and 3L's. The strategies don't really change except that people lose the work ethic. I don't know how your grades panned out, but hearing multiple perspectives on things generally leads to a better end result than ignoring other perspectives unless the other perspectives are panicky.

And yeah, one key is to be outlining from day one. This is part of why briefs are useless if you can understand the cases without breaking them down. All that really matters is the issue and the rule, and maybe 1 key fact. You should always be outlining, and shortening stuff down when you realize you either remember it or can't use it on a test. All that matters is the test. You're not going to be doing anything with practical use with anything you read.

Old outlines are generally useless if they're not from your professor. Your time would be better served just using Emmanuel and making an outline from that than some one size fits all outline that was written for TTTT students as well.

Re: TLS Collected Wisdom on Success in Law School

Posted: Sun Jan 26, 2014 11:17 pm
by PennLaw16
Just finished my first semester and want to give a thumbs up to Lazy's guide. I didn't actually read it until about 20 minutes ago (to see if anyone else had said what I was going to say), but it's on the money.

I got pretty freaked out 1L fall because I thought lots of my classmates were working much harder than I was (which they were) and consulting a ton of supplements (which they were). At one point, I genuinely believed I didn't belong in law school. I was afraid I just didn't have the work ethic to succeed next to some of these people who were living in the library for 8 hours a day, months before exams.

I did every page of assigned reading and attended just about every class (missed like 3 total). I paid close attention in class, which is severely underrated on TLS for some reason. I used other people's outlines, didn't start studying until Thanksgiving, and didn't start taking practice exams until reading period. Never went to office hours, never raised my hand in class, no study group. Outside of doing the reading, I didn't do any studying during the semester (until Thanksgiving). I put a premium on just making sure that I fully understood everything my professors discussed in class. I didn't use a single supplement and honestly couldn't even name one. I've heard the name Glennon, but I don't know what class it's for or even what it really is. As far as learning how to take an exam, I just tried to model my answer style after the past sample answers. Each class had a few, so I chose the one that was most natural for me.

Pretty sure I'm #1 in my section. If not, I'm by default tied for #2. I guess everyone learns differently, but I think some people make success in law school much too complicated. When people talk about the tricks of law school, they usually say that everyone understands the law, but taking the exam and separating yourself is the hard part. That hasn't been my experience. My experience is that a lot of people flat-out don't understand the things that were taught, and/or don't know how/when to apply them. IMO the vast majority of people at my school -- and probably most T14s -- would be better off ditching the supplements and rigorous study habits and focusing their attention on assigned readings and class notes.

Re: TLS Collected Wisdom on Success in Law School

Posted: Sun Feb 02, 2014 4:50 pm
by nutellabunny
Thank you!

Re: TLS Collected Wisdom on Success in Law School

Posted: Mon Feb 17, 2014 10:48 pm
by jbagelboy
PennLaw16 wrote:Just finished my first semester and want to give a thumbs up to Lazy's guide. I didn't actually read it until about 20 minutes ago (to see if anyone else had said what I was going to say), but it's on the money.

I got pretty freaked out 1L fall because I thought lots of my classmates were working much harder than I was (which they were) and consulting a ton of supplements (which they were). At one point, I genuinely believed I didn't belong in law school. I was afraid I just didn't have the work ethic to succeed next to some of these people who were living in the library for 8 hours a day, months before exams.

I did every page of assigned reading and attended just about every class (missed like 3 total). I paid close attention in class, which is severely underrated on TLS for some reason. I used other people's outlines, didn't start studying until Thanksgiving, and didn't start taking practice exams until reading period. Never went to office hours, never raised my hand in class, no study group. Outside of doing the reading, I didn't do any studying during the semester (until Thanksgiving). I put a premium on just making sure that I fully understood everything my professors discussed in class. I didn't use a single supplement and honestly couldn't even name one. I've heard the name Glennon, but I don't know what class it's for or even what it really is. As far as learning how to take an exam, I just tried to model my answer style after the past sample answers. Each class had a few, so I chose the one that was most natural for me.

Pretty sure I'm #1 in my section. If not, I'm by default tied for #2. I guess everyone learns differently, but I think some people make success in law school much too complicated. When people talk about the tricks of law school, they usually say that everyone understands the law, but taking the exam and separating yourself is the hard part. That hasn't been my experience. My experience is that a lot of people flat-out don't understand the things that were taught, and/or don't know how/when to apply them. IMO the vast majority of people at my school -- and probably most T14s -- would be better off ditching the supplements and rigorous study habits and focusing their attention on assigned readings and class notes.
While this is a bit braggy, Agree with the no need for 8 hour library crams months bfore exams.

Just want to point out, this works for some classes and not others. I did have a study group, but I didnt use supplements first semester and created my own outlines off class & casebook notes, paid a lot of attention to professor style. Paid off in two classes. Did not in the other: professor gave an exam that did not resemble class material whatsoever, and my keen insight into this profs ways of thinking and cold-call logic were far less valuable than a solid supplement. Overall, still a good result, but profs have no obligation to test what they teach so this is far from foolproof.

Re: TLS Collected Wisdom on Success in Law School

Posted: Fri Jun 27, 2014 10:02 pm
by racejudicata15
tooting my own horn here, but I realized that by posting in the "ask a law student" thread, I ended up attracting a lot of 0Ls. Though I am very happy to help them, I am also willing to answer questions from rising 2Ls. Here's my thread ("Top 5 Student at T14 Taking Questions") in case you are interested:
http://www.top-law-schools.com/forums/v ... 4&t=231753

The thread basically addresses the same sort of issues as in this thread.

Re: TLS Collected Wisdom on Success in Law School

Posted: Thu Jul 31, 2014 3:48 pm
by LAWYER2
FWIW, I listed all the helpful law school resources in my blog. Everything from past exam links to flash card programs.

http://www.thecadillaclawyer.com/?page_id=65

Re: TLS Collected Wisdom on Success in Law School

Posted: Thu Jul 31, 2014 7:00 pm
by SowhatsNU
Thanks!!

I'm starting in two weeks and I'm sure all this advice will be indispensable!

Re: TLS Collected Wisdom on Success in Law School

Posted: Thu Jul 31, 2014 7:08 pm
by dd235
Tagging this as well.