Grades
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Grade Reform, Law Schools
University of Chicago Reminds Students Not To Be Tools About Grades
Continuing our discussion of "elite law school problems," let's talk about grades. If your law school is ranked poorly, waiting for your grades has made you stressed all January. But if you go to a top-ranked law school, it really shouldn't be that stressful, right? Sadly, there are a lot of people at top law schools who are doing it wrong.... -
Bar Exams, Deaths, Election 2012, Election Law, Gay Marriage, Law Schools, Morning Docket, New Jersey, Police, Romance and Dating
Morning Docket: 01.04.12
* Ken Cuccinelli, Virginia’s Attorney General, wants Rick Perry’s election law suit to be dismissed, because really, what’s the point? Standing or not, Perry got completely hosed in Iowa. [Bloomberg] * What’s next for Stephen Glass? When all else fails, hire a high-profile appellate team to do your dirty work for you. He could write […]
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Is The Future Of Law Distributed? Lessons From The Tech Adoption Curve
The rise of remote work has dramatically reshaped the relationship between Lawyers and Law Firms, see how Scale LLP has taken the steps to get… -
Law Professors, Law Schools, Screw-Ups
Stop Reusing Your Old Exams, You LAZY Law School Professors!
How hard is it to write an exam for a course you've taught all semester? On a scale of one to ten -- ten involving programing a rocket ship, one somewhere around putting on pants in the morning -- where does formulating a law school exam rate? A two? During this finals period alone, we've got students from three law schools, including two law schools in the top ten, alleging that their professors couldn't be bothered to come up with fresh exams for this year's students....
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Grade Reform, Law Professors, Law Schools, Ridiculousness, Texas
Fight the Power: Is There a Way Around the Curve?
We get it, law students: the curve sucks. Because the law school curve affects important things like class rank, law review eligibility, and employment opportunities, it can make or break your life. But can you fight it? A student at the University of Texas School of Law is trying -- albeit unsuccessfully -- to fight the powers that be.... -
Bar Exams, Law Schools
Is Not Getting Your Grades A Big Deal? The Georgia Bar Thinks So
Yesterday, we brought you a story about the plight of UGA Law students who were still jonesing for their grades. After having received a number of comments, emails, tweets, and Facebook messages, it seems like the moral of the story for rising 2Ls and 3Ls at UGA Law (and at every other law school) is […] -
Bar Exams, Law Professors, Law School Deans, Law Schools
Did Uga Eat The Grades At UGA Law?
Well, it’s the middle of June, and it seems that some law students are still waiting for their grades. As we know from past discussion of the issue, this is a fairly common practice. The only problem with it is that it keeps law students fiending for their last grade like a crack addict searching […] -
Grade Reform, Law Schools
Notre Dame Goes for Two
It’s been a rough year in South Bend. A promising new head football coach led the Fighting Irish to a disappointing 7-5 regular season. The #5-ranked basketball team forgot to show up during March Madness (but at least the women’s team exceeded expectations). It was a year that many Irish fans would like to rewrite. […] -
Grade Reform, Law Schools
How Many Inflated 'A-pluses' Do You Need To Get A Job In D.C.?
We’ve seen it in California; we’ve seen it in New York. Now it looks like Puff the Magic Grade-Inflating Dragon is heading for Washington, D.C. Yes sir, a school in the D.C. market has decided that the reason its students can’t get jobs has nothing to do with the quality of education or services the […] - Sponsored
The Business Case For AI At Your Law Firm
ChatGPT ushers in the age of generative AI – even for law firms. -
Grade Reform, Law Professors, Law Schools, Screw-Ups
Professor Discovers 2010 Grading Errors; Mistake Is Fixed in April 2011
You know, given the fact that most law school professors act like they are doing you a favor by grading your exams, it’s a wonder this kind of thing doesn’t happen more often. Of course, since it doesn’t happen more often, this is a noteworthy occurrence. A criminal law professor out in California figured out […] -
Law Professors, Law Schools, Tim Wu
Columbia Reassures 1Ls By Sharing Professors' Dirty Transcript Secrets
We all know that in this legal economy, 1L grades are critically important. There aren’t enough good jobs to go around, and coming out of your first semester with a strong transcript can really help. This is why some law students flip out over changes (real or perceived) to grading policies or curves. But getting […] -
Law Schools, Money, Non-Sequiturs, Sports, Student Loans
Non-Sequiturs: 02.09.11
* Hey Elie, check this out: “Money Tips for Young Lawyers.” The top tip: “Get on top of student loans.” [Alpha Consumer / U.S. News & World Report] * What matters more, experience or grades? [Lawyerist] * Who should use a legal recruiter — and who shouldn’t? Recruiter Dan Binstock explains. [The Careerist] * Sports […] -
Grade Reform, Law Professors, Law School Deans, Law Schools
Are Some NYU Law Professors Allowed to Submit Grades Later Than Others?
We are well into February, and there are still law students who haven’t received all of their grades from first semester. Why? I have no earthly idea. We’ve talked about this problem before: we get that professors really hate spending the time it takes to grade a bunch of exams. It’s boring. It’s arbitrary. It’s […] -
Education / Schools, Grade Reform, Law Schools
Law School Grading Controversies: Open Thread
We have a message for law school deans and administrators everywhere. To paraphrase Chris Crocker, “Leave… the grades… alone!” Stories about changes to law school grading schemes aren’t much fun for us to write. But every time you deans tinker ever so slightly with your law school’s curve, we here at Above the Law get […]
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Is The Future Of Law Distributed? Lessons From The Tech Adoption Curve
The rise of remote work has dramatically reshaped the relationship between Lawyers and Law Firms, see how Scale LLP has taken the steps to get…
Sponsored
The Business Case For AI At Your Law Firm
ChatGPT ushers in the age of generative AI – even for law firms.
Sponsored
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Legal AI: 3 Steps Law Firms Should Take Now
If 2023 introduced legal professionals to generative AI, then 2024 will be when law firms start adapting to utilize it. Things are moving fast, so…
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Generative AI In Legal Work — What’s Fact And What’s Fiction?
Zach Warren from the Thomson Reuters Institute discusses the potential and the pitfalls.
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Facebook, Law Schools, Social Networking Websites, Technology
Posting Your 1L Grades on Facebook Makes You A ...?
What kind of world are we living in where people post their 1L grades on Facebook? I guess that after years of status updates about your latest biological function, you can fool yourself into thinking that people actually care about your Civ Pro grade. The world is full of navel-gazers. Companion question: What kind of […] -
Law Schools, Rankings
Is Law School Prestige Wildly Overrated?
I don’t know how I missed this last week, but a study reported in the WSJ Law Blog claims that law school prestige is overrated. Significantly overrated. The ABA Journal — which picked up the story this morning — summarizes the work of a professor from UCLA and a professor from Brooklyn Law: [UCLA law […] -
Grade Reform, Law Professors, Law Schools
Grading Shenanigans at Harvard Law School? Spring Evidence Students Confronted 'Irregularities'
It’s nearly August. But at Harvard Law School, administrators are still trying to sort out what happened with Professor Bruce Hay’s spring Evidence course. Not that grades matter all that much at HLS. The most important part of an HLS student’s transcript is the part at the top that says “Harvard Law School.” Heck, the […] -
Grade Reform, Law Schools, Loyola Law School, Television, Videos
Stephen Colbert Rips Loyola-L.A.'s 'Foolproof Plan to Get Their Graduates Better Jobs'
Loyola Law School (Los Angeles) hoped to quietly jump on the grade-inflation bandwagon in order to help make its students more competitive in the legal marketplace. The school bumped letter grades up a notch, so that a C- became a C, a B became a B+, and an A+ became an A+you’reasuperamazinggunnerrockstar. But the quiet […] -
Law Schools, New Jersey, Reality TV, Television
Real Ex-Law Student of New Jersey: Albie Manzo
New Jersey is taking over the world of reality television programming. Though it would surely be sheer torture to be locked in a room with a bunch of Jersey folk, their ridiculous antics and outsized attitudes make for great entertainment when confined to the small screen. The Real Housewives of New Jersey is by far […] -
Grade Reform, Law Schools
Tulane: The Latest School to Adopt Grade Reform
By this point, you know the drill with grade reform: A) Law school experiences embarrassing employment outcomes. B) Administration refuses to admit legal education is ridiculously overpriced given the soft job market. C) Students demand immediate administrative action to help students find work. D) Administration has precisely zero ideas on how to help students get […] -
UCLA Law: Surprisingly Chipper About Grade Delay
The law school perspective on grading is wrong. At many law schools, professors look at grades as the least important part of their job. Sadly, it’s actually the most important part of their job. Grades are the only thing law students can’t get from an outline. Grades are VASTLY more important to a student’s earning […]