Duke Law Class of 2016 Forum

[smdpnp]

Nope.

[06102016]

..

[AnaMariana42]

Got my t-shirt today as well! Three sizes too big but the number of mailings with actual stuff in them that Duke sends us is pretty legit

[Audeamus]

Checking in! My scholly letter yesterday has made Duke a serious contender for me!

[DorianGray89]

Are there any current Duke students around to combat the occasional "even the kids who go to Duke don't like Duke" vibe on the boards?

Checking in. I couldn't imagine doing law school anywhere else.

2L here. Don't know of anyone at Duke Law that doesn't like/love Duke. I'm currently doing Duke in DC, and after meeting tons of students from local schools in DC, including GULC, I'm WAY glad I went to Duke as opposed to any of those other schools, specially considering the fact that I want to end up in DC after Duke.

[koolkat13]

Joined: Wed Mar 27, 2013 4:29 pm
Posts: 4




I applied to Duke and Yale around beginning of February the 7th and the 22 to be exact. I’m still waiting to hear back from both schools. Anyone applied to regular admissions around the same time and received any type of decision yet?

[smdpnp]

2L here. Don't know of anyone at Duke Law that doesn't like/love Duke. I'm currently doing Duke in DC, and after meeting tons of students from local schools in DC, including GULC, I'm WAY glad I went to Duke as opposed to any of those other schools, specially considering the fact that I want to end up in DC after Duke.

Interesting! Why did you have this impression? What vibe did you get from the GULC students?

[DorianGray89]

2L here. Don't know of anyone at Duke Law that doesn't like/love Duke. I'm currently doing Duke in DC, and after meeting tons of students from local schools in DC, including GULC, I'm WAY glad I went to Duke as opposed to any of those other schools, specially considering the fact that I want to end up in DC after Duke.

Interesting! Why did you have this impression? What vibe did you get from the GULC students?

It's a relatively easier to get to DC from Duke, than from GULC (not counting top 10-15% of the class, which at GULC is a bigger number of people). A lot of people at GULC want to stay in DC, so there's a lot more competition for the DC interview slots during OCI (which are almost the same amount of interview slots at Duke). Same number of slots, plus more students bidding for DC, plus more students in the class in general, plus more students in the top 10-15% means employers dont have to go too deep into the class to get the same amount of people they would get from a smaller school like duke. (This is not a scientific conclusion - this is my conclusion from speaking with frustrated GULC students who bid only DC during the OCI process).

On the other hand, Duke law students have a variety of geographic interests, a lot of people certainly want to go to NYC or DC, but a lot also want to go back home to CA, Chicago, Texas, Atlanta, or stay in NC.

[amsong]

Joined: Wed Mar 27, 2013 4:29 pm
Posts: 4




I applied to Duke and Yale around beginning of February the 7th and the 22 to be exact. I’m still waiting to hear back from both schools. Anyone applied to regular admissions around the same time and received any type of decision yet?

You're in the wrong place.

[az21833]

checking out guys - just withdrew my application / mordecai scholarship. have some great options, including Duke, but couldn't see myself attending at this stage. wanted to make sure the scholly money trickled down before deposit deadlines. amazing place - you are all going to LOVE it

[06102016]

..

[BigZuck]

Duke ASW is pretty great.

This. Loving me some Duke as well.

[PM2353]

ASW was awesome. But did anyone check out the financial aid counseling afternoon option? Only thing I didn't take advantage of. What was it like. What did they have to say about the debt load and duke

[intlsplitr]

Anyone have pics from ASW? Also, what are you taking away from it (beyond 'it was great')?

I wish I could have joined you. Alas, it's a very long trip...

[megagnarley]

Anyone have pics from ASW? Also, what are you taking away from it (beyond 'it was great')?

I wish I could have joined you. Alas, it's a very long trip...

Would also like to know this. Especially if anyone can compare it to Mich.

[PM2353]

Anyone have pics from ASW? Also, what are you taking away from it (beyond 'it was great')?

I wish I could have joined you. Alas, it's a very long trip...

I'll tell you my impressions of the school. The facility was awesome - classrooms looked really cool, the library was huge, and they had a cafeteria in the law building and there is always places to relax, sit down, and study.

The students were incredibly friendly and they preached that the student body got along great. One student told me that Duke students are laid back and are usually comfortable with other students when searching for employment. The reasoning was that students come from 36 or so different states and everyone is competing for different geographical locations. I pretty much believed it considering how friendly everyone was.

The faculty panel was also really cool. To me professors were incredibly interesting and funny. Their teaching methods made the mock classes really enjoyable. It was some of the most intellectually stimulating lectures I've ever heard.

The dean also spoke very candidly about the legal job crisis and made valid points for attending Duke law school. They also provided a list of all 2L placement and post grad employment. I'm not an expert in legal employment but I think I counted 200 "mostly satisfactory" reported employment results. (All looked like great results, if anyone can analyze it further that would be awesome)

Also, campus was beautiful, the small town vibe was relaxing, and all in all it was just a great experience.

[PM2353]

196 reported out of 225 graduates.
29 students employment unknown.

[whosonfirst]

Checking in after ASW.

Really liked the school. The profs and deans I spoke with were very candid, actually funny, and interesting to talk to and genuinely interested in what you wanted to do. (Or at least more so than at other ASWs)

Students were super friendly. Felt like they showed their love for Duke and each other rather than just talking about it. And the other admitted students I met were pretty great too.

Beautiful campus. Durham is just gorgeous. Way more so than I thought it would be.

I definitely felt the "click" as far as fit goes. Going to try and talk to admissions about aid and then make a final decision!

[PM2353]

Whosonfirt,

I felt the same way at ASW. What did you think about how they viewed the legal market? Do you feel like they were genuine or did you think they were kinda stretching the truth?

I'm asking cause I had such a good time. Didn't wanna be caught drinking the kool aid. ASW was awesome and I really wanna attend after a great event.

[BigZuck]

What were professors/school representatives saying about the legal market? I was there but not sure what you guys are referring to. Are you talking about private conversations with them or something that was said at one of the panels?

[PM2353]

The dean speaking about how it's a great time to be in law school in te beginning. He then rationalized the unemployment of students (being sick, failing the bar, parenthood etc). They also spoke to me personally about how they gave us the names of employers of graduates. They said Duke was still putting out great employment numbers.


Now, whether this is partly fabricated is up for debate. I'm sure they understated the severity of the legal job crisis, but they gave assurance that it was a great time to go to Duke law school. (In the beginning address, they kinda made a back handed comment that the rise in number of law schools were part of the problem)


What did you think BigZuck?

[PM2353]

The students also said how in demand duke students were.

The students also said OCI (I think) was grade blind and that they don't see your grades. I M unfamiliar with this. Can someone explain it to me? It would be very appreciated.

[lawyerwannabe]

The students also said how in demand duke students were.

The students also said OCI (I think) was grade blind and that they don't see your grades. I M unfamiliar with this. Can someone explain it to me? It would be very appreciated.

I think you misunderstood what someone told you (or someone just explained it very poorly) unless you are only describing the process for which interviews are initially granted because . . .

You put your GPA on your resume. Even if you don't for some reason, employers know your GPA because they generally request that you bring your transcript to the interview. However, when you bid on firms for OCI, the interviews you get are determined via lottery. That means your GPA has no influence on whether you get the interview or not (as compared to some schools that do a mix of lottery and preselect - see UVA). What employers do not know is your class rank. All the employers know is what the median is for 1L classes and what the suggested grade distribution is for each class as well. I am sure they have figured out what range of GPAs constitute around top third of the class, etc. but they can never know for certain.

[PM2353]

Thanks Lawyerwannabee

I figured there was more to it. I kinda already knew how grades went but I just wanted to be 100% clear. Thanks for explaining it.

[JVK]

Just deposited elsewhere and withdrew my application (and freed up some money!).

I couldn't make it out to the ASW, but I did drop by an alumni event in Los Angeles and had a great time. It wasn't an easy choice and any of you who do go will be at a school that genuinely prides itself on looking out for its students and its community.