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April 14, 2004
Courses Not To Take
In the next ten days, I have to pick my classes for next year. Reading the curriculum guide is a phenomenal distraction from the mountain range of work I have to do right now, but it can also be frustrating.
Like Heidi, I'm having difficulty narrowing it down. On my first quick pass, I picked 35 classes to consider for Fall semester. Obviously, there are overlapping time slots, and some of those conflicts may be easy to decide. But I wanted a big, thorough list of classes I would at least consider. Then I put them all in a spreadsheet* with the course title, professor, number of credits, time slot, and whether it has an exam or paper.
In addition to taking "interesting courses with good professors" and taking Professional Responsibility** because I have no choice, I have set up some more specific guidelines to help narrow it down:
Night classes: Fall semester, night classes are fair game, but in the spring, I want to avoid them. Fall may shape up to be Monday-Thursday nights, which would be terrible. But it might be worth it for the options I'm looking at. We have a huge number of unique, specialized classes taught in the evening by adjunct professors. Some schools frown upon the adjunct, but mine, wisely I think, does not. I suspect it's largely because D.C. has such a ridiculous pool of attorneys to draw from. Cheerleading for the adjuncts aside, no night classes second semester. I want to go to bars. And eat dinner at a normal time. And watch TV during prime time.
Mornings: No 9am classes either semester. Period. There's no sufficient justification for functioning that early, especially given that I'm living further from school next year. I'll be doing that for the rest of my life. For fall semester, no morning classes following night classes. That's just brutal. I mean, silly brutal. Don't do it. If class ends at 9pm, I'm not showing up at school until at least noon the next day.
Papers: No more than one course per semester requiring a paper. I hate exams as much as the next person, but two seminar papers in one semester is inviting an ulcer. Big mistake on my part this year, so I'm learning from it. This will actually be difficult, given the number of ridiculously cool seminars being offered next year.
Of course, this whole system could be shot to hell if I get into either the clinic I applied to or the externship program. We find out about the clinics tomorrow night. I've wanted to do this particular clinic since I arrived here, but I'm afraid I won't get in. There are only 18 spots. If I don't get in, I have time for more other courses and a life, so it will be a blessing either way. Despite that win-win analysis, I'm anxious.
Update: I get criticized here for offering trivial advice about picking classes by schedule, particularly because that varies by school. I never recommended that anyone follow my system, or labeled it as advice. I simply said it was how I was picking classes. There's a difference. I would advise people to take classes in subjects that interest them at times that are convenient with professors they like. The above is just how I'm planning on achieving that, given my own interests and preferences. And the criticism doesn't even accurately describe what I said. I didn't say "no morning classes." I said no morning classes immediately following night classes. Again, there's a difference.
* Yes, a spreadsheet. Procrastination brings out my dorkiness. I did the same for ranking firms last summer. Why don't I put the same effort into studying and outlining? A question for the ages.
** This amuses me. What does it say about the profession that we have to take a course in ethics before we can be certified? And how ethical is it if we just study to pass the course and the MPRE, giving the "right" answer instead of the answer we actually believe? Pointless.
Posted by buddha at April 14, 2004 01:11 AM
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» Class selection from The Slithery D
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JuBu and Heidi, among others, are currently engaged in course selection for the next academic term. I wish I could join in. I love playing scheduling games. But my school marches to the beat of its own drummer. "Is the... [Read More]
Tracked on April 16, 2004 12:52 AM
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