UNC c/o 2020 applicants (2016-2017) Forum

[tncats]

hallelujah! In via status checker! I would definitely like more money to justify attending over other offers, but this is a huge relief!

Now to decide whether to go to the April admitted student day or to arrange an individual visit.

Congrats!! Where else are you considering?

Thanks! I'm primarily looking at Alabama, UNC, and William & Mary. I really hope UNC can match the other offers so it's an actual choice. Are you set on UNC?

Where do you want to practice post-grad?

Anywhere in the Southeast or maybe mid-Atlantic cities is fine with me. I'm definitely flexible right out of law school. I may try to get back to Nashville at some point in my career, but I'm not worried about it right away.

[idontknowyou]

hallelujah! In via status checker! I would definitely like more money to justify attending over other offers, but this is a huge relief!

Now to decide whether to go to the April admitted student day or to arrange an individual visit.

Congrats!! Where else are you considering?

Thanks! I'm primarily looking at Alabama, UNC, and William & Mary. I really hope UNC can match the other offers so it's an actual choice. Are you set on UNC?

Where do you want to practice post-grad?

Anywhere in the Southeast or maybe mid-Atlantic cities is fine with me. I'm definitely flexible right out of law school. I may try to get back to Nashville at some point in my career, but I'm not worried about it right away.

In that case, I definitely don't know about Alabama. I have a friend that goes there and said its pretty hard to leave the "real-south" out of law school. I'd say you should look at UNC or WM. Honestly, at that point its really about where you think is a good fit for you

[onecallthats all]

Now that I think about it, I haven't really started telling anyone either. Perhaps I'm hoping the ASD will make me fall in love with UNC and I'll get super excited to go there..! I know the facilities at UNC are complete trash, but can someone elaborate about student life/faculty/culture, where people go to eat, likely chance at biglaw? Probably questions for current students or alums, but perspectives who toured or know about this stuff from other students is definitely welcome!!

Double Tar Heel here and current 3L (almost done ). Anyways, the law school facilities definitely leave a lot to be desired. That being said, a lecture hall is a lecture hall. Doesn't matter how comfortable you are, nobody enjoys learning Civil Procedure at 8:45AM. Student life at UNC is pretty active. There's lots of student organizations if you want to get involved. Law students tend to hit the bars on Thursday nights. UNC is a big athletic school, so college athletics plays a large role in the social aspects of UNC. The faculty is probably UNC's strongest selling point. If you're looking for civil rights/public interest then try to get in contact with Prof. Gene Nichol or Prof. Ted Shaw. If you're interested in the financial services industry, try to get in contact with Prof. Lissa Broome. If you're interested in corporate governance or choice of law issues or international arbitration and other similar topics, get in contact with Prof. John Coyle, Prof. Arthur Weisburd, or Prof. Mark Weidemaier. The culture at UNC is definitely public interest heavy, but there are people of all interests. Chances at big law are probably somewhere around 10%, but the most desirable jobs in NC are typically the strong regional firms (Robinson Bradshaw, Wyrick Robbins, Smith Anderson, Parker Poe, Bradley Arrant, Brooks Pierce, etc.) so those don't always count as "biglaw" but are very sought after because of competitive pay and much better work/life balance. Hope this helps.

Thanks for joining the thread, your input is greatly appreciated. I am a but confused that you say only 10% of the class goes into biglaw. LST puts UNC at sending 22% of their grduates into 100+ member law firms. Is that a different interpretation of biglaw? Or do you feel like that is false?

Thanks!

I'm certainly not one to question their numbers. I suppose I would clarify my statement by saying that a fair number of those 100+ member law firms that UNC places in are regional firms (the ones I listed above). Many people would not consider this "big law" because these firms aren't your traditional NY firms. That being said, I wouldn't rely on that number to say that you should bank on big law out of UNC, and if you do get a job at a firm with 100+ attorneys, realize that it is likely a regional firm. Again, I think these regional firms are incredibly desirable, but if your goal is to practice in the big NY/DC firm, or even a branch of a NY/DC firm, that's not where the jobs are.

So my original statement of 10% was speaking mostly to the people working for branches of NY/DC/ATL firms (traditional "big law"). Sorry for the confusion.

No need to apologize! UNC is definitely at the top of my list, mostly in part due to their employment stats! So I definitely just wanted some clarification from somebody who is actually there. I have heard that there is BigLaw and then there is Raleigh BigLaw, so that is probably where the differentiation lies.

So in your opinion, would you say the top 10% ends up in NYC/DC Biglaw and the 10-20% ends up in Raleigh BigLaw?

Thanks again! Your opinion is valued

[hipcatdaddio]

No need to apologize! UNC is definitely at the top of my list, mostly in part due to their employment stats! So I definitely just wanted some clarification from somebody who is actually there. I have heard that there is BigLaw and then there is Raleigh BigLaw, so that is probably where the differentiation lies.

So in your opinion, would you say the top 10% ends up in NYC/DC Biglaw and the 10-20% ends up in Raleigh BigLaw?

Thanks again! Your opinion is valued

I would actually say that many people in the top of the class (top 10%) choose the Raleigh/Charlotte biglaw because the pay is good and the work/life balance is better. That being said, there are certainly some who choose the NY/DC route. In my personal experience, if you're in the Top 1/3 of the class (UNC only publishes grade cut-offs for top 10%, 33%, 50%; unless you're in the Top 10, then you get an individual rank) you can get interviews at the firms across NC as well as the NY/DC/ATL firms that UNC has ties with (they'll be at OCIs).

So it's not as if students view Raleigh/Charlotte biglaw as inferior or less desirable than going to NY, if anything, people choose it because there's more of a chance of being there long-term. Also, people aren't leaving UNC law with $200K of debt, so no need to be on that $180K pay scale or to pay NY COL.

Hope this helps.

[josh9308]

Is there an Admitted Students page or a UNC Class of 2020 on Facebook? I know there is an Admitted Students Page, but I have yet to see a Facebook link.


UNC is one of my final 2 options for law school and I am going to be in need of a roommate.

[mjm1315]

Is there an Admitted Students page or a UNC Class of 2020 on Facebook? I know there is an Admitted Students Page, but I have yet to see a Facebook link.


UNC is one of my final 2 options for law school and I am going to be in need of a roommate.

Not yet...maybe check out the UNC class of 2020 TLS page and ask? Not too many people are on there yet though

[idontknowyou]

Admitted Student's Day impressions: To summarize, they were very positive. First, Dean Brinkley spoke and talked quite openly about how he was committed to hiring a faculty that was committed to students, not simply invested in their own research. I found this to be a very good selling point, especially since out of the countless faculty I interacted with yesterday, I couldn't find a single professor that I found to be arrogant, egocentric. This was certainly refreshing from my own undergraduate experience.

Then there was a panel on "experiential learning." They talked about pro bono work, clinics, and externships. Throughout the rest of the panels of the day a number of current students and alumni talked about the significance of these learning opportunities to their own growth and how they recommended taking full advantage of them. Even if you're not considering public interest work, we were told the pro bono work allowed 1Ls to get practical experience right away, which is nice. Something like 70 percent of students at UNC take part in pro bono work.

Career Development Office (CDO): This was probably the most memorable part. There was a large panel of 7-8 CDO staff (the largest I've seen at any school I've researched or visited thus far) and each one seemed extremely committed to their work. The Director of the CDO (not the dean) was the most passionate person I saw all day. She loved what she did and she genuinely seemed to care that every one of the students taking advantage of their office. I should point out here the fine print - none of these people are going to hold your hand.. That's what high school was for; however, if you need help with finding a job and you put in the work with them, then I'd be hard-pressed to think they couldn't find you a good or even a great one that exceeds your own expectations.

Alumni: Then there was an alumni panel, people working in various different legal markets. There was a mix from public interest, corporate, biglaw, and clerkships. I was especially impressed by the NC Director of the ACLU and his perspective, as well as the student working in big law. Nevertheless, all the students were impressive in their own remark, which really showed a multitude of options of where you can go with your law degree.

Student fair and lunch: Definitely a ton of student orgs (really liked the trial teams) and the lunch with the faculty was definitely a nice touch. I thought Meyers and the bald corporate law professor were very open and fun to talk to (I apologize if one of your students show you this. I swear, I simply don't remember your name)! It went to show how easy it was to talk to these professors and getting to know them. Also, they were definitely huge UNC sports fans so maybe the professors might actually assign less readings on game days. Or simply forgive absences for the 8:45 the day after.

[idontknowyou]

Housing fair was okay.. Most of the places that came were from far and not really good options without a parking pass as a 1L. I'd say research the four or five options that keep getting discussed (e.g., Glen Lennox, Meadowmont, Alta Spring, and on campus grad housing). Also, it was highly recommended staying away from the Undergrad housing options. I walked by Franklin Street and could definitely tell why that was recommended. It was busy, crowded and fun; however, as a 1L I suppose that really depends on how many distractions you really want.

I didn't go to the "introduction to NC residency" discussion.

Financial Aid: Even though I've already figured out my financing (if this is where I go / it's one of my top choices now and the cheapest by a long shot / and I wouldn't need too many loans if I go here), this was probably my most favorite section. Director Chou for financial aid was absolutely hilarious, using a cookie monster video to explain the messy truth - the starbucks coffee you buy is not $5 if you're using students loans to pay for your coffee addiction. It's actually $6.50 after the interest you'd pay on it! Basically, she's very approachable and will be very direct in helping you help yourself and not pile on too much money.

Current Students: they were awesome. They brought a range of people from 1Ls (who didn't even know their class rank yet) to 3Ls (where one of them already had a great job and the other had great prospects). Went to show how UNC was very open about everything. Other schools I've visited simply put 5 3Ls in front of you, all of whom were offered biglaw jobs, which wasn't at all representative of their school job stats. Anyways, every one of the unc students raved about their decision to go to UNC and were very honest about the hard work commitment. Their advice was to get involved by getting your hands dirty and at the end, you would likely be rewarded with a good job. Also, they mentioned how as the economy each year there are better and better job opportunities, which would definitely be rewarding for us.

Tour: This was a huge seller. So I've been repeatedly told how the facilities weren't anything to rave about and that they were "okay." Truth is they were extremely clean and definitely nothing to complain about. They were pretty legit. Okay, yea the big classrooms could need a nice paint job, but overall they were fine. A classroom is a classroom. Either way, what you learn is all that really matters. The library, small classrooms, courtroom, etc. were all renovated and very nice! They definitely exceeded my expectations.

Anyways, this was just a long summary of my experience at the ASD. Overall, I really enjoyed how it was only 9-3, everything you needed to know. Other schools have been two days, filling it with things like mock classes and bs events. This was definitely not that. This was extremely productive and informative the entire time I was there.

[SeanORaff33]

Housing fair was okay.. Most of the places that came were from far and not really good options without a parking pass as a 1L. I'd say research the four or five options that keep getting discussed (e.g., Glen Lennox, Meadowmont, Alta Spring, and on campus grad housing). Also, it was highly recommended staying away from the Undergrad housing options. I walked by Franklin Street and could definitely tell why that was recommended. It was busy, crowded and fun; however, as a 1L I suppose that really depends on how many distractions you really want.

Did they talk at all about international opportunities?

[idontknowyou]

Housing fair was okay.. Most of the places that came were from far and not really good options without a parking pass as a 1L. I'd say research the four or five options that keep getting discussed (e.g., Glen Lennox, Meadowmont, Alta Spring, and on campus grad housing). Also, it was highly recommended staying away from the Undergrad housing options. I walked by Franklin Street and could definitely tell why that was recommended. It was busy, crowded and fun; however, as a 1L I suppose that really depends on how many distractions you really want.

Did they talk at all about international opportunities?

Yea they did. There's apparently quite a few opportunities for studying abroad in Sydney, Germany, UK, and other places throughout Europe. I'm sorry I don't know more. Perhaps a current student does

[Stylnator]

Just withdrew + had $! Hopefully it can help someone else!

[saviangray]

Is there an Admitted Students page or a UNC Class of 2020 on Facebook? I know there is an Admitted Students Page, but I have yet to see a Facebook link.


UNC is one of my final 2 options for law school and I am going to be in need of a roommate.

Hi Josh,

I spoke with one of the deans during the admitted student's day and she said that the law ambassadors would make a Facebook page after the first deposit date - which is this Friday!

[doinkymeep]

Just withdrew + had $! Hopefully it can help someone else!

How did you withdraw? I haven't received a confirmation that my request was processed (but I also just emailed someone without researching this step).

[Stylnator]

Just withdrew + had $! Hopefully it can help someone else!

How did you withdraw? I haven't received a confirmation that my request was processed (but I also just emailed someone without researching this step).

I sent an email to law_admissions@unc.edu but they must not have processed it because I've been getting additional emails for admitted students.

[doinkymeep]

Just withdrew + had $! Hopefully it can help someone else!

How did you withdraw? I haven't received a confirmation that my request was processed (but I also just emailed someone without researching this step).

I sent an email to law_admissions@unc.edu but they must not have processed it because I've been getting additional emails for admitted students.

Ok, thanks! I haven't received any new emails since, so I'm hoping someone has read my message.

[cd1945]

2016 ABA employment report- http://www.law.unc.edu/documents/career ... rt2016.pdf

[SeanORaff33]

2016 ABA employment report- http://www.law.unc.edu/documents/career ... rt2016.pdf

When will NALP go out? These are I retesting numbers. Firms 100+ is up from last year isn't it?

[cd1945]

2016 ABA employment report- http://www.law.unc.edu/documents/career ... rt2016.pdf

When will NALP go out? These are I retesting numbers. Firms 100+ is up from last year isn't it?

Not sure about NALP. According to this preliminary report, UNC saw small gains in overall employment/a slight drop in firms 100+ from last year, assuming the finalized data isn't drastically different.

[idontknowyou]

UNC admitted students Facebook group is up!

[onecallthats all]

Does Reimburse any travel costs? Or will they pay for any nights at a hotel? Please let me know!

[brinicolec]

Not going here but UNC is my alma mater (and THE University of National Champions) so if anyone has any general questions about Chapel Hill, off-campus apartments, etc., feel free to PM me. I lived off-campus my junior and senior year in two different places. Don't really know much about the law school specifically but am very familiar with Chapel Hill and the surrounding area.

[tncats]

Who is the point of contact at the school for scholarship negotiations? I've sent two emails and haven't received a response at all, so I'm worried I'm sending it to the wrong person.

[idontknowyou]

Who is the point of contact at the school for scholarship negotiations? I've sent two emails and haven't received a response at all, so I'm worried I'm sending it to the wrong person.

Maybe send it to Dean Mack? And just send it to the generic admissions website? Where did you send it?

[tncats]

.

[onecallthats all]

Is there an Admitted Students page or a UNC Class of 2020 on Facebook? I know there is an Admitted Students Page, but I have yet to see a Facebook link.


UNC is one of my final 2 options for law school and I am going to be in need of a roommate.

Hi Josh,

I spoke with one of the deans during the admitted student's day and she said that the law ambassadors would make a Facebook page after the first deposit date - which is this Friday!

Does UNC Reimburse any travel costs? Or will they pay for any nights at a hotel? Please let me know!