Orientation Part 2 & My First Day!

Last week, I posted about Orientation Day 1, with promises to post about the rest of Orientation and my first day of law school this week. Law school orientation started last Thursday and continued to Friday and then Monday of this week. Classes began on Tuesday, right after orientation. Both Friday and Monday were significantly shorter than Thursday. On Thursday, we got out around 4 p.m., but Friday we got out before lunch, and on Monday, we were let out right after lunch. On Friday, the sessions were about the school part of law school: learning like a lawyer, how to brief cases, and also a little bit about the Socratic method. On Monday, the topics focused more on life as a law student and balancing the fun parts of life with school. We also took our professionalism oath, which means that we are now professionals within the legal career. As I was told many times during orientation, the first day of 1L year is when our legal career would begin.

            The next day, I jumped head first into law school. All of my classes had readings or assignments due the first day, so I spent the weekend preparing for classes. My week is front weighted, as I have four classes on Monday through Wednesday and much less on Thursday and Friday. On Tuesday, I had Torts, Criminal Law, Civil Procedure, and Contracts, which make up the basic 1L first semester curriculum. All of my professors cold called, but I only got cold called once. Luckily, I properly prepared and knew the correct answer. In between every class, I have an hour break. During these breaks, I reviewed material for the next class, which refreshed the material in my mind. Like most law schools, my school has a lunch hour with no classes. During that, I ate lunch with some of my friends. This was one of the best parts of the day because I actually got to get out of the law school building for a bit, socialize, and not have to think about cases and cold calling. At the end of the day, I had to prepare for the next day's classes. Right now, we don’t have our assigned library carrels yet and finding a place to study is challenging. Because of this (and my growling stomach), I decided to head home shortly after class to study and eat. I spent most of my night preparing for the next day’s classes, but did not feel overwhelmed with material to read and cases to brief.

            Overall, I had a great first day! The first day of classes is definitely different from syllabus week in undergrad. I thought it would be overwhelming and stressful. And it was a little, but it was very manageable. During the rest of orientation and the first day, I met more of my classmates and got to know them even better. My law school emphasizes community, and students I did not know said hi to me or introduced themselves to me in the hall. While this was somewhat weird at first, it made me (and my fellow 1Ls) feel a lot more welcomed. With orientation and my first day behind me, I’m ready and excited for the rest of the semester!