20 Jul, 2006
Summer Classes
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General, Pre-Law Discussions 
One class, in particular, was a very involved class on a specific UCC article. I realized how involved it was when I came out of the test feeling awful, probably worse than I have felt about any other law school exam.
This in-depth of class is just not conducive to the "everything crammed into 6 weeks" summer schedule. Add to that another class, a law journal, no break between spring finals and summer semester, a full-time job, and a week-long work trip over this period and I simply should not have been taking this sort of schedule.
Why is this important?
I'm not complaining or making excuses for being unprepared, but this is relevant to an incoming law student because I look at this blog as a way for people to learn from both things do right and things do wrong. Most of the time I can speak with more authority on, and you can learn more from my mistakes. I would suggest to someone taking summer classes to choose a schedule more carefully than I did.
Know your school's pass/fail policy
Our school has an option to take classes pass/fail, meaning a student can elect to take a course so that he/she either passes or fails it and that class is not counted toward GPA. That would have saved me not only because I'm worried about my grade on the exam, but because there would have been much less pressure on me throughout the semester. I'm not sure if all other schools have pass/fail policies, but know your school's pass/fail policy so you can use it to your advantage when you need to.
Know your limits
When it comes time to pick your own classes, take into account all other activities. Remember summer classes are really are semester long courses crammed into a few weeks. Save less involved classes or pass/fail classes for times when you know you will be busy.
If I could not take the class pass/fail or if I couldn't find another less involved class to take its place, I should have settled for taking less credits and worried about catching up later. I think I overextended myself these past few weeks and it may have cost me in that class. Keep that in mind if you're tempted to try and load up on the credits over the summer.
Either way, I'm glad the summer semester is over and I can finally relax a little bit. Even though I still have to work, it will feel like vacation!