Law Preview

I first heard about Law Preview (www.lawpreview.com) while reading "Law School Confidential" (a book I would recommend to all 0L's and anyone who is considering attending law school). It's basically a mini law school boot-camp that provides an overview of the subjects taught in the first year of law school. It takes place over the course of six days and they have classes all summer at various law schools across the country. Now, like anything else that has to do with law school and law school prep, this course isn't cheap. However, some super sleuthing allowed me to come across a need-based scholarship that would cover most of the cost of the class. Aside from filing out the application and providing supporting documentation, the only requirement is that once you become an attorney, you "pay it forward" and provide legal assistance to three needy people, free of charge. How great is that?!?!

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After reviewing the website, reading the testimonials, and even emailing one of the students that attended the course, I became convinced that it would be something that would definitely give me an edge. I feel as though I need all the help I can get and I want to have a certain level of confidence once the "games" begin. Not to mention, if you attend the course, you get discounts on your first semester books AND free study aids.

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So a couple of months ago, I sent in my application for the scholarship and imagine my delight a couple of days ago, when I received an email saying that I was chosen for the scholarship! I'm sure it's going to be a hectic week, full of lots of work, but I'm really excited to attend and will definitely make the most of the information I receive.

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I will definitely provide a play-by-play of the course. I think it will be interesting!

Twiddlin' my Thumbs

The waiting is EXCRUCIATING! I continue to count the days (64...argh!). I have most of the major details handled....and so I wait. I wait for my schedule, because I am highly interested in knowing which section I'll be assigned to. I've sort of decided in my head which section I want...and may even "ask" for that particular section, if it isn't selected for me. I know, it sounds ridiculous, but I am interested in being taught by a couple of professors that stood out to me on the couple of visits I made to my institution. I figure, I'm paying a ridiculous amount of money to be educated, so I should at least have the right to request a section. Besides, it's for a valid reason...I'm not trying to be paired up with a buddy or anything like that.

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I wait to apply for my GRADplus loan because I still need to get my child care cost figured out. I have to submit additional paperwork and my distance from the school is posing a problem in that regard. The hope and plan is to have it all taken care of by Aug 1.

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I wait to put in my letter of resignation from my current job. My boss is located in a completely different state than where I work, so I don't see this person on a regular basis, as a matter of fact, I've only seen this person once since beginning this job last year. The situation is really different than anything I've experienced in my working career, and getting someone to replace me won't be simple, for various reasons. That being the case, I will try to provide at least one month's notice.

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Aside from waiting, I've been taking care of all the odds and ends. I actually had to get inoculated. Apparently, you must have at least two Measles/Mumps/Rubella shots on record in order to register for classes....well, Milla only had one on file. So- I had to face my fear of needles, twice over since the nurse was nice enough to recommend I also get a tetanus shot. My arm was sore for like three days...horrible!

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I also took an opportunity to speak with some of my friends/ex-coworkers regarding their experience in law school. It was really just to pick their brains to see what they felt worked for them in law school as far as study habits, and how they were able to make the most of their experience. They know me, my work habits, and my abilities, and so their confidence in my ability to do well in law school was extremely encouraging.

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64 days can't seem to pass quickly enough,

And so the waiting continues....

Daughter Enrolled in School....CHECK

As a parent of a school aged child, the most important item that has to be taken care of where she is concerned, is getting her enrolled in school AND finding additional child care. Here's the deal, my plan is to treat law school as if it were an actual job. Right now, I clock in at 8am and clock out at 4:30 pm. My daughter's regular school day runs from 8:20 until about 3:20, so to cover the time before and after her school day when I need to be at work, she participates in a before & after school program, which allows me to drop her off as early as 7am and pick her up as late as 6 pm. The school she will be attending seems to work on a similar school schedule and luckily, it has a similar before & after school program. I was able to get on the waiting list (in the top 5). I also found what seems to be a decent home day care that is down the street from her school, in the event the waiting list doesn't work out in my favor. The best part of all is that our home, her school, and the back-up daycare are all on the same street, just a couple blocks away from one another! A mother's dream....lol!

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My daughter is actually excited about moving and starting a new school. She's already decided how she's going to say goodbye to her friends, and she even informed her current teacher about her upcoming move a couple weeks ago. I'm glad I won't have to deal with any tantrums or general anxiety about our move...one less thing to worry about...thank God!

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I'm sure some are probably wondering about the cost of the above-mentioned child care options. Well, as always, child care isn't cheap. It's probably going to cost about $200 + a month, depending on which route I choose, but I think it's great that my school will allow me to add my child care costs to my cost of attendance.

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At this point, things are moving right along and I'm to the point where I am counting the days, 86 to be exact. I'm still as excited as ever!

Place to Live?...CHECK!

So, it seems that each step thus far in the process of preparing for law school comes with its own set of issues. This week, I had to deal with the complications that came with securing a place to live. After making a visit a couple of weeks ago, I was settled on our future home. This time I even submitted my application BEFORE leaving town (didn’t want to make that mistake twice). I emailed the woman who showed me the property to make sure she had everything she needed to process my application and it looked as though things were moving along pretty smoothly. That is, until I received the lease agreement. The rental amount on the lease was 25 bucks more than what she initially told me. So after an email and two phone calls, she tells me that her owner assigned all of the units that rented for the price we discussed and the more expensive units were all she had available. I respond by telling her to remove my application because I wasn’t interested. I mean, I’m on a budget and the most irresponsible thing I could do is accept a price that was outside of my budget. Besides, I had other options.

About an hour later I get a phone call from the owner of the property. She was interested in what happened to make me withdraw my application. I told her the situation, I found information on the internet that quoted a specific price, emailed her property manager who confirmed the specific price, viewed the property with the manager who once again confirmed the specific price, but then I end up with a lease locking me in with a different price, which I didn’t plan on paying. The owner was really nice in explaining that basically her property manager screwed up. The price on the lease is apparently what the unit rents for presently, and the price I was quoted might have been a winter special. Regardless, I wasn’t going to pay more than what she verbally quoted me, on more than one occasion. The owner apologized for her manager’s mistake and agreed to change the paperwork to the verbal quote. Problem solved!

This is definitely a situation that has some characteristics of a hypothetical that could be used in a contracts class, LOL! Tokyo Kiss got me thinking about it after the whole “unsigned check in the mail” debacle. What if I really wanted the unit for the price quoted? Would I have a cause of action to get the unit at the price verbally quoted? What if I signed the lease without paying attention to the altered rent amount? Ok, I’m going to stop now, LOL!

All the Pieces are Coming Together!

I hope everyone had a wonderful Easter holiday!

I spent a portion of my holiday looking for a place to live during my time in law school. Since I have a child, I have to take so much more into consideration when looking for housing, such as neighborhood schools, whether the location is kid-friendly, and the overall size of our home. We are both particular about our space, lol! Luckily, College Town has extremely affordable housing, so finding a nice duplex, townhouse or condo in a nice neighborhood, with a decent school nearby wasn’t too hard to come by. My daughter endured an almost two hour car ride to and from College Town, as well as a directionally challenged mother who did her best to navigate in an unfamiliar town. By the end, I was decided on our future home, which had all of the things we needed to live comfortably for the next three years. So begins the application process for that and spending more money….YAY!

Approximately two weeks ago, I attended the Admitted Students Reception. My intention was to put my seat deposit down while I was there. It would have been the smart thing to do. It definitely would’ve saved $.42 cents on postage, but for some reason I decided against it. Even though when asked, I was telling everyone I spoke to I was 99.89% sure I would be attending, the .11% of doubt was enough for me to leave without securing my seat. I realize now that I was extremely nervous about everything. Putting the seat deposit down would make all of this FINAL! I would be a law student. That realization was absolutely overwhelming and for two days I was nervous wreck!

I didn’t understand why I was reacting in such a way because going to law school is something I’d been working so hard for and now it was all coming together. I had accomplished another goal. I’d been accepted, all I had to do was say, “Yes, Take my money. I want the seat!” So after two days of fretting and sorting through all of the nervousness, I wrote the check, put it in the envelope, and stuck it in the mailbox…but something still wasn’t right. Did I sign the check?

OMG! Are you kidding me! So, I examine the carbon sheet in my checkbook…and all signs pointed to an unsigned check. Apparently something subconscious was going on, but I was in no way amused. I call the school, let them know there’s a possibility that they’ll receive an unsigned check and I’ll be putting a signed one in the mail- ASAP!

That .11% of doubt cost me $.84, 2 envelopes and a little bit of embarrassment. One of the admissions folks tried to convince me she sends checks out unsigned “all the time.” I doubt it, but I’m glad she tried to make me feel better about the situation.

Admitted Student Reception

At the end of March, I attended an Admitted Students Reception at the school I am now 100% sure I’ll be attending this fall. For the most part, I had a really nice time speaking to the student, the professors, and other students that are attending the school. I only had one somewhat negative experience and it was with the first person I spoke with. When I arrived, I chose survey the event, walking around first before I approached someone or allowed myself to be approached. After that, I walked up to a guy that at first glance seemed approachable. I introduced myself, and maybe said one or two more words before he diverted his attention to someone else and carried on what seemed like a two minute conversation. He then offered me a half-assed apology after the conversation with the third person, at which point I’m sure I just walked away….I pray that these types are few and far between. We shall see.

The rest of the people I spoke to were not rude at all. They were actually really nice and went out of there way to answer my questions and engage in conversation. I have to admit that I spent the majority of my time speaking to a group of African-American students. I think one thing any minority looks for is someone that resembles them. It’s a sign that maybe they won’t be uncomfortable and hopefully there will be someone they can relate to during this whole process. I did speak to non-minority students and they were equally helpful in making me feel comfortable. At this point, I’m anxious to see my classmates this fall. I CAN'T WAIT!

A Gift and a Curse....

My job! While the economy continues on a ridiculously scary downward spiral (the unemployment rate is 8.1% WTH?!?!), I have to be extremely grateful about the fact that I have a job. Not only do I have a job, I have one that pays well, doesn't require much effort on my part, and is secure at least until I go to law school. Though that is the case, I am literally counting the days until it's all over, mostly because I'm sooooooo bored! I have entirely too much free time, which allows my mind to wander and I end up thinking up these crazy scenarios regarding law school. Some of it is helpful because it allows me to make certain plans regarding my legal education, but on the other hand, my brain usually doesn't know when to stop, so I have to create a distraction....like WORK!

Meanwhile, the situation with the economy has got me wondering about its chances of rebounding by the time I graduate law school. I don't want to dwell on it too much, but I'd be a fool to completely ignore it. I have decided that after dealing with and overcoming so much in order to get to the part where I could say "I'm going to law school," I'm going to move forward with my dream. I'm sure competition will be intense and the work will be hard, but it is true that anything worth having is worth the hard work. I just need to be wise in my decisions and take any and every opportunity presented during my journey in law school.

Which brings me to my question to those who are in law school now. What are your thoughts about the state of the economy, job outlook, and how is it affecting choices you're making about your education?