UCLA School of Law

Really the best of both worlds: world-class education and a compus 15 minutes from the ocean. One only need to visit the courtyard on a sunny day (read: pretty much every day) to witness the laid-back collegiality of students outside the classroom. But inside the classroom it’s a very different story: rigorous intellectual debate and field-leading professors who really care. I only applied to one law school. Now – looking back at my law school career – I wouldn’t change that decision for the world.

3L

People here are very nice, very friendly. People can get pretty competitive during reading period and graded memo time, but this does not rise to the level of active sabotage. All of the classes have permanent assigned seating though, so this contributes to the formation of cliques very early in the semester. Our legal writing class is kind of a joke, but the assignments take up the bulk of our homework…but because the class is such a joke, it’s really hard to do the assignments. The faculty is SUPER accomplished, but this also means that you get a VERY different experience depending on what section you get assigned to. The graduate housing is convenient on the one hand, but it sucks havign to make the 1.5 mile walk home at midnight. As for employment, I think UCLA remains, in many ways, a very regional school. I have an externship in Seattle lined up, but I had to do a lot of the leg work myself, and it doesn’t seem like many public interest or private sector employers from outside of California recruit at our school.

1L

Not only is grading not pass/fail (unlike Cal and Stanford), but there is also a mandatory curve that can get very tight around exam time. Other than that, my only gripe is that, for people living in the “on-campus” Weyburn apartments, the shuttle back to the apartments only runs until 7pm. So if you want to stay and work later, you either have to take the shuttle back at 7 and drive up, or you can walk back later. It’s only like a mile and a half, about a 15-20 minute walk, but not fun late at night when you’re completely burnt out after a 10 hour study binge. The lawyering skills department could use a little bit more clarity on some aspects of assignments…for example the fact that they give you incorrect BlueBook citations on the early, nongraded assignments.

1L

Look very closely at employment prospects. Look at several different sources.

2L

Law school isn’t going to be fun for most people, so at least you are somewhere beautiful- which in turn makes people friendly- which in turn makes law school more enjoyable

1L

Students are friendly and professors are generally very accessible. However, it is very difficult to get into bar classes and into clinic courses.

3L

While people are less cutthroat, the administration is just as inept as admins anywhere. Inflexible bureaucrats who tell you with a smile that they can’t break made up rules that might land you a job because they have limits on things like, you know, actual work experience (in my case, via externships).

3L

If you want to practice in LA, you can’t beat UCLA. I knew that I did and I landed the job of my dreams for next summer. The gunner personality is the anomaly here – most people are smart and talented while still being laidback and fun. If you work hard your first year, getting a job is easy. That said, if you are below median I think there is less forgiveness from firms than for the elite east coast schools. I am happy because I was the former, so my experience at UCLA has been incredible. Professors are also acessible and leaders in their field, though some are better than others.

2L