Last semester of 3Lol: I just can't anymore. Forum

[georgej]

classes are fine. it's the extracurricular LR/Moot Court/etc. bullshit that's fucking me.

My commute is 1.5 hours each way. Class is useless. That's fucking me.

Im definitely with you on being sick of commuting. Its like half as far to my after graduation office as it is to school, so thay fact alone has me pumped to be done and working.

But otherwise 3L is chill except for extracurriculars, but even they arent really bad. I booked a bar trip this weekend tho and thats what im really looking forward to.

[Young Marino]

classes are fine. it's the extracurricular LR/Moot Court/etc. bullshit that's fucking me.

My commute is 1.5 hours each way. Class is useless. That's fucking me.

Im definitely with you on being sick of commuting. Its like half as far to my after graduation office as it is to school, so thay fact alone has me pumped to be done and working.

But otherwise 3L is chill except for extracurriculars, but even they arent really bad. I booked a bar trip this weekend tho and thats what im really looking forward to.

Nice. Where you going? I need to do that. The wife and I were thinking about Colombia but something in the Caribbean may suffice.

[Young Marino]

And yea bro work is a measly 25 min drive away so to be adding an hr on to that just listen to a prof ramble on makes the work that much more desirable. I should take solace in the fact that I will likely not have the opportunity to go golfing on Monday mornings for a long time after this so there is that.

[NoDayButToday]

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[georgej]

classes are fine. it's the extracurricular LR/Moot Court/etc. bullshit that's fucking me.

My commute is 1.5 hours each way. Class is useless. That's fucking me.

Im definitely with you on being sick of commuting. Its like half as far to my after graduation office as it is to school, so thay fact alone has me pumped to be done and working.

But otherwise 3L is chill except for extracurriculars, but even they arent really bad. I booked a bar trip this weekend tho and thats what im really looking forward to.

Nice. Where you going? I need to do that. The wife and I were thinking about Colombia but something in the Caribbean may suffice.

Just going to Maine for a week to chill on a lake by the coast, trying to save that $ for other stuff.

[Young Marino]

Lol my commute is 4.5 hours in each direction (twice weekly). Not sure if I'll miss it or not. I enjoy living in two cities and love the sense of adventure, but the experience has for sure taken its toll.

4.5 hours? Are you kidding me? You sir are a trooper.

[Young Marino]

classes are fine. it's the extracurricular LR/Moot Court/etc. bullshit that's fucking me.

My commute is 1.5 hours each way. Class is useless. That's fucking me.

Im definitely with you on being sick of commuting. Its like half as far to my after graduation office as it is to school, so thay fact alone has me pumped to be done and working.

But otherwise 3L is chill except for extracurriculars, but even they arent really bad. I booked a bar trip this weekend tho and thats what im really looking forward to.

Nice. Where you going? I need to do that. The wife and I were thinking about Colombia but something in the Caribbean may suffice.

Just going to Maine for a week to chill on a lake by the coast, trying to save that $ for other stuff.

I like it. Maybe I should take a similar approach and just bum out in the Florida Keys for a week. Save money and still get the beauty of the islands.

[Young Marino]

Lol my commute is 4.5 hours in each direction (twice weekly). Not sure if I'll miss it or not. I enjoy living in two cities and love the sense of adventure, but the experience has for sure taken its toll.

I guesstimated that my commute was 1.5 hours but I was wrong. Took me 3 hours to get home yesterday. You know my struggle bro.

[Futuregohan14]

I fucking loved 3L. Almost every day of it, except meeting some bullshit administrative requirements and waking up on a saturday at some ungodly hour to take the stupid MPRE. Y'all saying you hope its over and shit just don't know

Look man it's great that you felt so good about 3L but, as several others in this thread have made clear, your experience/perspective is not universal. You speak for yourself and yourself alone with regard to this topic, like it or not.

I'm excited for practice, but I'm also really loving law school and I'm going to miss it. I won't really miss exams, paper-writing, homework, or journal work, but I will miss the class lectures and discussions, the profs, and the students.

This is the kind of thing that taught me that folks are just different, and that's alright. People want different things and enjoy different experiences. I couldn't imagine missing lectures and discussions in law school. That's just unfathomable to me, but for you (and many/most of my peers, it seems) it just is what it is. As for friends/professors, I don't have a large social network at law school and I'm not close to many professors so that's not a big loss either. The few folks I am close to are folks I'd stay in contact with regardless.

Honestly, the thing I will miss most after graduation are the non-lawschool friendships I made in this city which I'll have to (largely) leave behind. I don't really like this city at all, but I'm going to hate leaving those people behind.

In anycase, I'm glad somebody out there enjoys the experience more than me.

Even if your school doesn't have a program like this, many places offer student discounts, and there are also tons of local-interest websites that talk about free/cheap fun things to do wherever you're living. Or this might be a good time to pick up a new hobby if you have that much time, or start reading for fun again.

Make the most of this free time. Life is too short to waste it and you're paying too much to be a student to waste that status.

I'm using the free time to start bar prep early (reading outlines now for basics, gonna buy Barbri in a week or two). Figured I may as well.

Haha, you guys need to pick more interesting classes/profs! What all are y'all taking? Is it too late to switch at this point? I know most schools have early add/drop, but if you still have mobility, I would switch.

Some people just don't rate school, man. It isn't for everybody. I won't speak for those guys, but for me there is no "pick more interesting classes/profs". I don't want ANY classes/profs. I simply do not want to be a student, which means my potential enjoyment of school is necessarily VERY limited. I can only cope by finding more fun outside of school (non-law school friends, events, etc) and prepping for the future (bar prep, outside reading material related to my preferred practice area, planning my bar trip, etc), so that's what I do.

And even in those "interesting" classes, all of the below applies:

I'm in a class that I find very interesting and I still hate sitting through lecture and jumping through hoops with exams/papers. The substance doesn't make up for having to be in class for hours, listen to strivers/gunners ask inane questions, then pump out some paper or exam based on what the professor wants to hear.

If you love lectures and are going to miss them upon graduation, then you don't have this problem, but I don't love lectures. To each their own, though.

[Futuregohan14]

Schools with weaker bar passage rates often offer bar prep courses in the second semester of 3L, to help improve their numbers. If your school isn't offering something like that you don't have anything to worry about.

And doing bar prep during 3L is utterly pointless (outside of maybe a law school prep course you're getting credit for, or perhaps if you know you're going to work full-time most of the summer as well).

I know it is EXTREMELY early and I'm probably being too hard on myself, but I feel I need as much prep as possible to ensure I safely get over this last hurdle (which scares the shit out of me because it is the last thing between me and the career I've spent nearly a quarter century building for - perhaps an irrational fear, but a fear that nonetheless has me overcautious). Maybe it could be pointless, but the little bit of studying I'm doing now feels way more important than anything I'm doing in school at the moment and I just feel a gnawing need to make at least SOME of this dead 3LOL time semi-productive.

Lol my commute is 4.5 hours in each direction (twice weekly). Not sure if I'll miss it or not. I enjoy living in two cities and love the sense of adventure, but the experience has for sure taken its toll.

I guesstimated that my commute was 1.5 hours but I was wrong. Took me 3 hours to get home yesterday. You know my struggle bro.

My commute was part of what got me convinced to start bar prep early. I realized that I spend over 2 hours a day standing on a train and do nothing much but daydream and listen to music. Figured it'd be better to download some MBE outlines and read them on the train at least.

Im definitely with you on being sick of commuting. Its like half as far to my after graduation office as it is to school, so thay fact alone has me pumped to be done and working.

But otherwise 3L is chill except for extracurriculars, but even they arent really bad. I booked a bar trip this weekend tho and thats what im really looking forward to.

Nice. Where you going? I need to do that. The wife and I were thinking about Colombia but something in the Caribbean may suffice.

Just going to Maine for a week to chill on a lake by the coast, trying to save that $ for other stuff.

I like it. Maybe I should take a similar approach and just bum out in the Florida Keys for a week. Save money and still get the beauty of the islands.

I'm planning to head to the islands as well for my bar trip (Caribbean). It'll be a fun outing but also some family reunion-type stuff. Always nice to be home. The mere thought of the trip has been crucial to getting me through this school year, especially with all the snow dropping recently.
I'm slightly biased (always want folks to visit since I'm proud of my home), but I highly recommend the Caribbean if you can swing it. The Keys are cool and might save some cash, but they're "Caribbean-Lite" - nothing beats the authentic Caribbean experience IMO. Just my 2 cents.

[notgreat]

Dude enjoy 3L. Go out a lot and party. Hook up with a lot of people and try to find the future SO. Once work starts life begins to suck, at least in bl.

[jbagelboy]

Dude enjoy 3L. Go out a lot and party. Hook up with a lot of people and try to find the future SO. Once work starts life begins to suck, at least in bl.

Exactly.

Use protection though. This isn't college and HPV is real.

[Young Marino]

Dude enjoy 3L. Go out a lot and party. Hook up with a lot of people and try to find the future SO. Once work starts life begins to suck, at least in bl.

Exactly.

Use protection though. This isn't college and HPV is real.

[Young Marino]

Coming off a pretty crazy weekend just makes me not want to be here. I decided to lay off the bar prep this week and just go into super idgaf mode. For this week only.

[bacillusanthracis]

I know it is EXTREMELY early and I'm probably being too hard on myself, but I feel I need as much prep as possible to ensure I safely get over this last hurdle (which scares the shit out of me because it is the last thing between me and the career I've spent nearly a quarter century building for - perhaps an irrational fear, but a fear that nonetheless has me overcautious). Maybe it could be pointless, but the little bit of studying I'm doing now feels way more important than anything I'm doing in school at the moment and I just feel a gnawing need to make at least SOME of this dead 3LOL time semi-productive.

I'm right there with you. I'm writing essays and killing myself on Adaptibar. Every year, from every school there are those jaw dropping moments when you find out that Stud Law School Boy/Girl failed the bar. That ain't gonna be me. If I fail it'll suck, but it won't be because I thought I could just show up, take the test, and begin planning my November party celebration as a new lawyer. To me, bar prep should be a time for refining, not going, "Oh fuck, wait, there's an exception for when a grantor doesn't sign a deed?" Or some other obscure horse shit rule that's not really the law in many places, but can cost you on the bar.

Whatever. It's almost over and I have these brief moments of euphoria when it hits me. The idea of never darkening the doors of this place again feels like the end of a three year prison sentence.

[A. Nony Mouse]

To me, bar prep should be a time for refining, not going, "Oh fuck, wait, there's an exception for when a grantor doesn't sign a deed?"

Oh goodness. That's exactly what bar prep is for.

[BigZuck]

To me, bar prep should be a time for refining, not going, "Oh fuck, wait, there's an exception for when a grantor doesn't sign a deed?"

Oh goodness. That's exactly what bar prep is for.

Yup also it doesn't matter if you know every single dumb exception to every single dumb law. You've just got to learn bar exam. Getting bogged down in stuff ain't gonna get you anywhere.

[Young Marino]

To me, bar prep should be a time for refining, not going, "Oh fuck, wait, there's an exception for when a grantor doesn't sign a deed?"

Oh goodness. That's exactly what bar prep is for.

Yup also it doesn't matter if you know every single dumb exception to every single dumb law. You've just got to learn bar exam. Getting bogged down in stuff ain't gonna get you anywhere.

Totally agree with sentiment. I feel I make more progress when I actually do practice questions and not get so bogged down in lectures or outlines. There's definitely a pattern to this.

[A. Nony Mouse]

Seriously though. DO NOT STUDY FOR THE BAR YET. Thats what your prep course is for. Damn.

[notgreat]

Bro, chill the fuck out. It is too early to be studying for the bar. Drink a beer and watch sports or whatever you like to do. If you start as soon as classes end you will have plenty of time.

[runinthefront]

Seriously though. DO NOT STUDY FOR THE BAR YET. Thats what your prep course is for. Damn.

I rep for a bar prep company at my school, and I've been told that some schools have bar prep classes for 3Ls (for credit) and/or encourage students to study for the bar early, which ends up helping the students pass.

From what my boss said, this is virtually unheard of at many schools (e.g., the T14/T1 schools she's in charge of), but it's been a really good thing for other schools. The bar prep company I rep for actually produces "early start" material for students who want to start prep early.

[Young Marino]

Seriously though. DO NOT STUDY FOR THE BAR YET. Thats what your prep course is for. Damn.

Well thanks for the advice Nony. Classes end in 6 weeks and I'm extremely tempted to lay off the prep til then. Just don't feel like being at school longer than I have to.

[AT9]

I'd be curious to see a breakdown by school rank of students who feels like third year is #3LOL vs. an extension of 2L. I go to a T50 school and 3L very much feels like 2L, even though I have an offer. Most of the classes here are curved and require a lot of work, plus lots of people are still hunting for jobs. And because I'm at a lower ranked school, I feel extra pressure to not let my grades slip. Those factors, combined with 10-20+ hours of LR work each week, make 3L pretty miserable.

The people I know at top schools seem to enjoy 3L more because (1) more people already have jobs, (2) rankings matter less with a more prestigious degree, and (3) I assume the grading policies are less absurd at most T14s. For 0Ls: here's one more reason to retake.

[lavarman84]

I'd be curious to see a breakdown by school rank of students who feels like third year is #3LOL vs. an extension of 2L. I go to a T50 school and 3L very much feels like 2L, even though I have an offer. Most of the classes here are curved and require a lot of work, plus lots of people are still hunting for jobs. And because I'm at a lower ranked school, I feel extra pressure to not let my grades slip. Those factors, combined with 10-20+ hours of LR work each week, make 3L pretty miserable.

The people I know at top schools seem to enjoy 3L more because (1) more people already have jobs, (2) rankings matter less with a more prestigious degree, and (3) I assume the grading policies are less absurd at most T14s. For 0Ls: here's one more reason to retake.

Are you on E-Board or something? I barely did LR work during the fall, and I am not doing any in the spring. My classes are curved, though, which sucks.

[cannibal ox]

2L was 2LOL so 3L is just an extension of that.

I couldn't tell you how many people are still gunning for grades or exactly who doesn't have a job locked down because I actively avoid gunners (or anyone who still cares about school, really), and job status is still kept pretty hush-hush.

I don't know if my lowly T15 qualifies as a "top school" though.