Attending Law School FAQ’s
Here are some of the frequently asked questions we hear about attending law school:
What type of classes will I take?
Every law student, no matter the school, must take the following courses:
Civil Procedure
Torts
Criminal Law
Contracts
Constitutional Law (Broken up into 2 class)
Property Law
Criminal Procedure
Legal Research and Writing
The order of these courses and any other required courses may differ depending on the school you attend. Once you take the required courses, you will be able to take elective course that focus on your desired concentration.
What will my schedule be like in law school?
Each law school is different as to how they offer classes. Some have classes Monday-Friday and times vary with classes starting at 8am and ending by 4pm. Others may only offer classes Monday-Thursday while some law schools have classes as late as 6pm. There are also a few law schools with part-time programs that you only attend at night or during the weekend. Hybrid programs are even offered on a smaller margin but they allow you to be remote and then come on campus for 2-5 weeks out of the semester. Where you end up depends on what time and what days you’ll be in class. If you are going into a full-time program, be prepared to dedicate the majority of your days each week to being in classes or on campus.
How much time do I have to dedicate to work and studying?
Law school requires vigorous studying and lots of focus. You will have 3-4 classes each semester. Each class will assign pages to read from your casebook per class or per week. Expect to spend 30-45 minutes reading and analyzing each case. You can expect to spend at least an hour on each additional reading or assignment. So, if one class has assigned 6 cases for the week, that’s a minimum of 3 hours you will spend on reading. If that same class has you listen to a podcast or read an article as an additional assignment, that’s another hour of work. That would be 4 hours of work for one class. Each week you will want to spend 2-3 hours per class studying pervious and current topics to keep them top of mind in preparation for exams. Combined with assignments, you can expect to spend 6-10 hours of work and studying per class. If you have 3 classes in the semester you can expect to spend a minimum of 30 hours working and studying each week.
Everyone says law school is competitive. Is this true?
Your environment and the school you attend will depend on how competitive law school is. Some schools, especially high-ranked universities, have a more competitive environment than others. In general, yes, law school is competitive because you are graded on a curve and everyone in your class must be ranked. This means that even if everyone scores a 100 on an exam or quiz, the professor still must apply a curve and rank the order of students. Only 10% of the class can have an A. This puts pressure on students, making those with competitive natures even more competitive. At the end of the day, we are humans and some people may not be as nice when competition kicks in.
Be sure to surround yourself with other students you can trust and who won’t try to sabotage or hurt you just to get ahead. Always do the best you can and put your best foot forward. Wherever you land in the ranks is meant to be and will not stop you from getting a job when you graduate. Though some law firms do require you to be at the top of your class and may request your transcript, other law firms or companies do not. They only care that you went to an accredited law school, graduated, and passed the bar.
Can I work while in Law School?
The ABA and most law schools do not allow you to work during your first year of law school. However, do not let this discourage you. There is additional funding outside of loans that you can apply for. Schedule a one-on-one consultation with us and we can go over additional funding options while attending law school.
