Typical Day for a 1L: "It Depends"

Honestly, I sat down to write this post and had no clue what I was going to say, but here goes nothing. Life as a first-year law student has its ups and downs. I was lucky to be placed in the afternoon section, which basically just means that I can sleep in or catch up on any reading that I put off the night before. I can (unfortunately) speak from experience in saying that when you are sitting in class where your teacher is huge on the Socratic method and you haven’t even read the cases, you will be hardcore stressing for the entire class. Always try and stay ahead of your readings, guys. It will save your sanity later on down the road. When in doubt, just use every lawyer’s favorite answer to almost any question: “It depends.”

Moving on to the more exciting part of the law school experience: the social element. As a new-to-California student, being immersed at last semester’s orientation where it seemed like everyone went to the same four schools in SoCal, I felt a little “on the outside.” If that happens to you, don’t panic. When classes begin and you get to know some of your classmates, you will meet both like-minded people as well as those with whom you don’t really see eye-to-eye on certain things. That’s the beauty of Loyola in my opinion: Diverse views, a mix of personalities and backgrounds, and people all looking toward one goal: getting out…I mean graduation. The friends you make in law school will be the ones you turn to with the things that really matter…like talking about what Corrine from The Bachelor did in this week’s episode. In reality, these will also be the people who will help you when you don’t understand something or give you their notes when you miss class. Basically, these people will each be the Dwight Schrute to your Michael Scott, the Leslie Knope to your Ann Perkins…I think you get the point.

You will also run into some gunners in your classes…it’s inevitable. For those of you who don’t know what a gunner is, please pause here and look up “The Gunner Song” by Harvard Medical School. In my opinion, the best thing you can do is focus on your studies and hang out with friends…but if you decide you want to place a significant amount of focus on trying to outscore them on exams, live your life (and know that I’m silently rooting for you). At Loyola, I have been given the opportunity to hear guest lectures given by people who are currently dominating their fields including Laura Wasser, Thomas Girardi, and actress Ali Sweeney with her team (lawyer, agent, manager, and publicist). I also just want to quickly note that it’s important to not give up the hobbies that are important to you. If you like to play the piano or go to live concerts, like myself, make time for that. Studying is vital for law school, but, at the same time, don’t lose who you are while in school.