Posted by TDot on Feb 14, 2011 in
NotFail Good evening y’all 
As law:/dev/null exhibited the occasional sign of life over the past couple weeks, I had a trio of people ask me the same question: aside from my obvious elation at the ending GPA, how did my individual classes turn out during 2L Fall?
I’ve been meaning to post an entry explaining exactly that… but then realized I never gave y’all a final update on 1L Spring, or any update at all on 1L Summer 
So to properly bolster my reputation of being totally open about my law school grades, I’ve copy/pasted my previous Spring grades entry and revised it with the exam info 
The textual updates are [bracketed], bolded, and preceded by “Update:” for readability.
I’ll post a separate entry on summer school grades some time this week, and then 2L Fall grades after that — I thought about rolling all that info into this one entry, but considering I haven’t managed to string 3 consecutive entries together for awhile now I wanted to make sure I’ve got easily-editable stuff in the queue 
Without further ado…
********************
1L SPRING REVISITED
********************
[Everything below is a copy/paste from this entry except for the updates and the final exam grades. You've been forewarned, so any resulting confusion is your own fault! 
]
====================
CIVIL PROCEDURE II
====================
MDG switched things up from the usual final, giving us a set of multiples but then providing documents from a mock court case to review for the essay. Our objective was to review the documents and craft a letter to the client discussing the numerous FRCP-related concerns that existed.
It was during that portion of the exam that I stopped watching the clock and had time called before I got anywhere near finishing it
CivPro II Final Exam Grades
The multiples were a challenge, with MDG describing them as “nuanced” and mentioning that even a fellow CivPro instructor missed a couple. The highest correct was 15 out of 20 multiples (75%) with the class average at 12 (60%) — high enough to pass the Bar, which is definitely a good thing given the difficulty.
The chart to the right shows how the final exam grades broke down. There was a +19-point curve.
My final grade for the course turned out slightly higher than anticipated, so my guess is I did well on the multiples. But I’m kicking myself for choosing a UNC Board of Governors meeting over an extra credit assignment we were given shortly after midterms though — the extra 5 points would have bumped the final grade to a B, bumping my 1L GPA above a 2.7 (eligible for some NCCU Law merit scholarships).
Lesson learned :headdesk:
[Update: I found out from MDG that I tied for top score on the multiple choice, which let me know I completely bombed the essay -- so I didn't bother picking it up ]
Midterm exam grade: A-
Final exam grade: C
Expected final grade for class: C+
Actual final grade for class: B-
Synopsis: Worse performance than last semester, but given how gratuitously I choked on the essay I’m satisfied with how it turned out. And now I know to do all available extra credit in the future
====================
CONTRACTS II
====================
Not a whole lot to say here: Contracts clearly isn’t my thing.
The downside is that I now have to explain to future employers how I barely passed a core class two semesters in a row.
The upside? I never have to take Contracts again until the bar exam
[Update: This was the first (and thus far only) exam where I've underperformed on the multiples compared to the essay. According to Prof Ks, I got 33 of 50 possible essay points and was comfortably above the class median. But I somehow had the 3rd lowest score on the multiple choice 
Still glad the class is over...]
Midterm exam grade: C-
Final exam grade: C
Expected final grade for class: C-
Actual final grade for class: C
Synopsis: I passed 
====================
CRIMINAL LAW
====================
If my perpetual flailing in Ks killed any briefly-nurtured dreams I had of going the intellectual property route, CrimLaw coupled with 1L Trial Team have convinced me to follow my heart and go the criminal prosecution route professionally. It’s something I had wanted to do for years, but never seriously considered since public employees don’t make much salary-wise.
But based on my grades it seems like the only thing I’ll be qualified to do
The really crazy part? This was my best grade all year, and it was in the one class where I didn’t study for the final exam because I had a UNCASG meeting that weekend
Professor CrimLaw sent me an email making sure I knew that (i) I earned the grade I got but (ii) I shouldn’t make any professional decisions based on one course. He’s got a valid point but I don’t feel like I’m doing that here — I really, truly, and deeply hate Contracts too so technically it’s based on three courses 
[Update: I missed a trio of the multiple choice, and had a few points taken off on the essay. For an ever-so-brief period of time I thought about arguing with Prof CrimLaw over some of the missed points -- including a section where he wrote that I misread the fact pattern, even though myself and every other classmate I spoke to "misread" the same thing -- but I was sufficiently happy/stunned to have at least 1 A-range grade that I didn't bother contesting it.]
Midterm exam grade: A-
Final exam grade: A-
Expected final grade for class: A-
Actual final grade for class: A-
Synopsis: I’m 90% sure Professor CrimLaw isn’t a TDot fan, but I still enjoyed the course. And I’m glad I finally have something other than B’s and C’s populating my transcript
====================
LEGAL RESEARCH & PERSUASION
====================
Along with not watching the clock in the CivPro final, this was my other instance of taking a strong starting grade and pissing it away through truly stunning incompetence.
Note to the pre-Ls: read directions!
Then when you’re done: re-read directions!
Then after that: re-re-read directions!
Trust me
[Update: The professor said my final memo was excellent and would have earned me an A- had it not been days late. Le sigh. #kanyeshrug]
Cumulative grade after midterm: A-
Final memo grade: C-
Expected final grade for class: C
Actual final grade for class: C
Synopsis: It could have been worse I guess. At least the research skills we learned actually turned out to be useful. ::headdesk::
====================
PROPERTY II
====================
This was the only final exam where I didn’t have a gut feeling one way or the other on how it turned out. I’m not sure if it was from the stress of the looming Contracts final two days later or what.
My performance was worse than the midterm, but high enough that I ended up with the exact same grade I got in the Fall.
And I don’t remember any of it already
[Update: The final for Property II was "meh" all around. Lost a few points on the multiples. Lost a few points on the fill-in-the-blanks covering future interests. Lost a few points on the essay. If anyone has any particularly compelling insights to glean from that performance, let me know ]
Midterm exam grade: A- (and in Top 3)
Final exam grade: B
Expected final grade for class: B+
Actual final grade for class: B+
Synopsis: At least I’m consistent
====================
TORTS II
====================
Professor Torts is currently in Costa Rica with our Study Abroad folks, so I won’t know how the final exam turned out for a long while.
But I know enough to know I blew it 
Back on the midterms I ended up with the #1 score out of the class on the multiples-only exam, so to end up with a final grade below even last semester’s I must have quite thoroughly FUBAR’d the final. And I feel fairly certain I did well on the essay, meaning I can only assume I botched the multiples.
Meh. Was never a fan of this class either…
[Update: Didn't do as well on the essay as I thought, completing missing 1 of the issues and losing a point or two on a pair of others. Also didn't do as bad as I thought on the multiples... but someone nailed everything so there was no boost at all in the typical curving of grades ]
Midterm exam grade: A (and in Top 3)
Final exam grade: C+
Expected final grade for class: A-
Actual final grade for class: B-
Synopsis: This was the only bona fide disappointment for the semester, but at least it’s over. I will most definitely not be taking Advanced Torts
====================
FINAL SCORE: SPRING 2010 FINALS
====================
Expected End-of-Semester GPA: 2.756
Actual End-of-Semester GPA: 2.733
Actual End-of-1L GPA: 2.678 (Law school median: 2.000)
*****
So that’s the final word on 1L Spring. Info on 1L Summer coming soon (really! )
Have a great night!
—===—
From the grade-related archives:
Tags: 1L, CivPro, CrimLaw, Exams, Ks, Law Grades, LRP, MDG, NCCU Law, Prof CrimLaw, Prof Ks, Prof Torts, Property, Torts
Posted by TDot on Jan 18, 2011 in
NotFail I did it y’all! 
Ever-so-slightly lower than what I was hoping to get, but high enough to get me where I wanted: 3.333 for the semester, bringing me up to 3.026 overall — and making the NCCU Law Dean’s List!
On a C curve!
For the first time since 2005!
Sorry I’ve been gone y’all, life’s been crazy — a bunch of semi-drafted posts to upload at some point this week including a thorough semester review too. Have a great night!
Tags: Law Grades, NCCU Law, The Curve
Posted by TDot on Jan 5, 2011 in
NotFail …and let’s just say I totally kicked ZombieLaw‘s ass
I’ll have the usual full rundown when the rest of the grades come in, but the deadline isn’t officially until January 12th so it’s gonna be awhile
For now though I’m gonna enjoy in things turning out better than expected
Tags: 2L, Competence FTW, Exams, Law Grades, ZombieLaw
Posted by TDot on Nov 9, 2010 in
NotFail Just got my invitation letter today: I will officially be 1 of 3 Legal Eagles on NCCU Law‘s 2L trial team for the TYLA National Trial Competition!
Teams from North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia and Tennessee will go head-to-head at the regional competition in Charlotte from February 18-20. After that, if somehow by the grace of God we can finagle our way into one of the top 2 spots, we’d be going to nationals from April 6-10 in Houston, Texas.
Guess I really have to start paying attention in Evidence now?
—===—
From the trial team-related archives:
Tags: 2L, Evidence, NCCU Law, Trial Team, TYLA
Posted by TDot on Oct 14, 2010 in
NotFail Despite going to bed early, I never made it to the 8am ConLaw review
My BlackBerry doubles as my alarm clock, and I’ve got this habit of taking it after it goes off and then resetting the alarm for 10-15 minutes later. The problem Wednesday morning was that I apparently grabbed the phone, opened the app, started to change the time…
… and fell asleep with the phone in my hand before I actually finished setting the alarm
I rolled over and noticed the time at 7:45am, faced with the dilemma of either (i) jumping out of bed, skipping breakfast and a shower, throwing on sweats and racing to a review session I would sit through while half-asleep, or (ii) getting up at my leisure, enjoying a hot shower followed by a hot breakfast, dressing like something other than a ragamuffin, and just make up the missed review by studying my butt off for the ensuing 24ish hours.
So I picked Option #2
The tradeoff for frenetically studying yesterday and today is that my already-late research memo for Legal Letters will be getting turned in even further after deadline, giving me a -0- on that assignment and all but ensuring the best I can do in that class is now a C+. But given how thoroughly I (hopefully) dominated this midterm, I figure doing well in 4-credit ConLaw is slightly more important than 2-credit Legal Letters.
The 80-minute exam was comprised of 40 multiple choice questions, basically covering the first 3 chapters of Chemerinsky’s Constitutional Law textbook. Questions ranged from gimmes to real puzzlers, along with a few esoteric ones that folks either studied or didn’t.
After the extensive study marathon, I blazed through the exam in about 30 minutes — earning a raised eyebrow from Madame Prosecutor and at least one 1L-worthy glare from another. But I knew what I knew and knew what I didn’t, so there wasn’t much point in overanalyzing
We’ll see how it shakes out, and hope I can keep it up through finals
Hoping for: A
—===—
From the grade-related archives:
Tags: 2L, ConLaw, Exams, Law Grades, Legal Letters
Posted by TDot on Aug 11, 2010 in
NotFail It was a year ago today — the first day of my 1L Orientation at NCCU Law — that law:/dev/null went live with this brief post welcoming any newcomers who happened to drop by.
And my gosh how much has happened in just a year!
Case in point: a year ago I fled the Turner Law Building as soon as Orientation was done because I felt so totally out of place… yet this week I’ve been at the law school daily helping out (voluntarily!) with 1L Orientation, offering whatever assistance and sage tidbits of almost-but-not-quite-wisdom that I can provide
In keeping with my personality, some numbers to commemorate law:/dev/null‘s 1st birthday:
- THEN: 1 published post — NOW: 291
- THEN: 178 total words written — NOW: ~141,268 (where’s this inspiration when I’m working on a brief??? )
- THEN: 1 [main] page — NOW: 4 total, including our About [TDot] page, the fellow-blawgers-inspired Disclaimer and finally instructions on Subscribing to the RSS feed
- THEN: 2 categories — NOW: 20
- THEN: 0 tags — NOW: 96
- THEN: ~10 fellow bloggers on the blogroll — NOW: 138. If I’m missing you, send me an email to TDot [at] lawdevnull.com!
- THEN: 29 new unique visitors a day, at least half of which were spambots — NOW: 170, of which only 4-6 are spambots thanks to .htaccess controls
- THEN: 0 comments — NOW: 417 comments and 661 pingbacks (and 2,130 attempted spam posts )
- THEN: 0 typos I saw — NOW: “Another one? @#$%. I’ll fix it later…”
I could go on with the shameless quasi-self-promotion but you get the idea
I’ve been blessed to do a lot of pretty cool stuff in my life, but getting law:/dev/null started — and more importantly, having y’all read it and at least pretend that you like it! — undoubtedly takes top honors.
Thanks for being such amazing people and giving me an added incentive to keep going! I’m looking forward to the year ahead, the opportunity to meet even more of y’all, and hopefully even convince a few more to join me at the N.C. Central University School of Law
Have a great night everybody!
Tags: About TDot, Blawg Love, NCCU Law
Posted by TDot on Jun 8, 2010 in
NotFail Pretty much ever since I started law:/dev/null — back when I decided to take a quantity-over-quality approach to these posts — it’s been a challenge thinking of something to write about each night that at least a handful or so of you will actually enjoy reading.
Then this week happened. And I had three (three!) separate topics enqueued. Three! Topics that, I concede, got briefly postponed so I could rant about my missing grades. But topics that I fully intended to resume writing about tonight. (Three of them!)
And then the missing grades materialized. And the bodies started piling up…
So in deference to the requests I’ve already gotten, I figured I’d spill the beans on my grades now rather than knock out those other entries and post grade info on Friday.
That’s how much I 
y’all
We haven’t actually gotten any of the physical exams back yet so I’m not sure how my performance broke down in terms of multiples-vs-essays, but I’ll share my guesses where I can.
Without further ado, here’s the rundown for Spring 2010:
====================
CIVIL PROCEDURE II
====================
MDG switched things up from the usual final, giving us a set of multiples but then providing documents from a mock court case for the essay. Our objective was to review the documents and craft a letter to the client discussing the numerous FRCP-related concerns that existed.
It was during that portion of the exam that I stopped watching the clock and had time called before I got anywhere near finishing it
CivPro II Final Exam Grades
The multiples were a challenge, with MDG describing them as “nuanced” and mentioning that even a fellow CivPro instructor missed a couple. The highest correct was 15 out of 20 multiples (75%) with the class average at 12 (60%) — high enough to pass the Bar, which is definitely a good thing given the difficulty.
The chart to the right shows how the final exam grades broke down. There was a +19-point curve.
My final grade for the course turned out slightly higher than anticipated, so my guess is I did well on the multiples. But I’m kicking myself for choosing a UNC Board of Governors meeting over an extra credit assignment we were given shortly after midterms though — the extra 5 points would have bumped the final grade to a B, bumping my 1L GPA above a 2.7 (eligible for some NCCU merit scholarships).
Lesson learned :headdesk:
Midterm exam grade: A-
Final exam grade: ???
Expected final grade for class: C+
Actual final grade for class: B-
Synopsis: Worse performance than last semester, but given how gratuitously I choked on the essay I’m satisfied with how it turned out. And now I know to do all available extra credit in the future
====================
CONTRACTS II
====================
Not a whole lot to say here: Contracts clearly isn’t my thing.
The downside is that I now have to explain to future employers how I barely passed a core class two semesters in a row.
The upside? I never have to take Contracts again until the bar exam
Midterm exam grade: C-
Final exam grade: ???
Expected final grade for class: C-
Actual final grade for class: C
Synopsis: I passed
====================
CRIMINAL LAW
====================
If my perpetual flailing in Ks killed any briefly-nurtured dreams I had of going the intellectual property route, CrimLaw coupled with 1L Trial Team have convinced me to follow my heart and go the criminal prosecution route professionally. It’s something I had wanted to do for years, but never seriously considered since public employees don’t make much salary-wise.
But based on my grades it seems like the only thing I’ll be qualified to do
The really crazy part? This was my best grade all year, and it was in the one class where I didn’t study for the final exam because I had a UNCASG meeting that weekend
Professor CrimLaw sent me an email making sure I knew that (i) I earned the grade I got but (ii) I shouldn’t make any professional decisions based on one course. He’s got a valid point but I don’t feel like I’m doing that here — I really, truly, and deeply hate Contracts too so technically it’s based on three courses
Midterm exam grade: A-
Final exam grade: ???
Expected final grade for class: A-
Actual final grade for class: A-
Synopsis: I’m 90% sure Professor CrimLaw isn’t a TDot fan, but I still enjoyed the course. And I’m glad I finally have something other than B’s and C’s populating my transcript
====================
LEGAL RESEARCH & PERSUASION
====================
Along with not watching the clock in the CivPro final, this was my other instance of taking a strong starting grade and pissing it away through truly stunning incompetence.
Note to the pre-Ls: read directions!
Then when you’re done: re-read directions!
Then after that: re-re-read directions!
Trust me
Cumulative grade after midterm: A-
Final memo grade: ???
Expected final grade for class: C
Actual final grade for class: C
Synopsis: It could have been worse I guess. At least the research skills we learned actually turned out to be useful. ::headdesk::
====================
PROPERTY II
====================
This was the only final exam where I didn’t have a gut feeling one way or the other on how it turned out. I’m not sure if it was from the stress of the looming Contracts final two days later or what.
My performance was worse than the midterm, but high enough that I ended up with the exact same grade I got in the Fall.
And I don’t remember any of it already
Midterm exam grade: A- (and in Top 3)
Final exam grade: ???
Expected final grade for class: B+
Actual final grade for class: B+
Synopsis: At least I’m consistent
====================
TORTS II
====================
Professor Torts is currently in Costa Rica with our Study Abroad folks, so I won’t know how the final exam turned out for a long while.
But I know enough to know I blew it
Back on the midterms I ended up with the #1 score out of the class on the multiples-only exam, so to end up with a final grade below even last semester’s I must have quite thoroughly FUBAR’d the final. And I feel fairly certain I did well on the essay, meaning I can only assume I botched the multiples.
Meh. Was never a fan of this class either…
Midterm exam grade: A (and in Top 3)
Final exam grade: ???
Expected final grade for class: A-
Actual final grade for class: B-
Synopsis: This was the only bona fide disappointment for the semester, but at least it’s over. I will most definitely not be taking Advanced Torts
====================
FINAL SCORE: SPRING 2010 FINALS
====================
Expected End-of-Semester GPA: 2.756
Actual End-of-Semester GPA: 2.733
Actual End-of-1L GPA: 2.678 (Law school median: 2.000)
*****
So that’s the rundown on the 1L grades.
But one wrinkle added to the mix over the past 24 hours has been NCCU Law‘s strong adherence to the strict-C grading model: we have a policy that any 1Ls who have fallen below a 2.000 at the end of their first year are academically dismissed from the school (hence my reference at the start of this post to “the bodies piling up” once grades came out).
The policy is essentially a trade-off in exchange for the school giving a shot to folks who might not be academically qualified to get into other law schools, providing a level of access that I personally think does wonders for the legal profession (at least in North Carolina) because many of the best lawyers I crossed paths with when I worked for the State Bar were less-than-stellar students as undergraduates.
The 2.0 model forces students to perform. It produces good attorneys. It’s why so many judges in North Carolina are NCCU graduates. And it’s why many of my classmates and I have a huge chip on our shoulder when we listen to trash-talk from students at other law schools.
But the dark side of that 2.0-cutoff is that NCCU Law ranks #2 in the nation for 1L attrition at a public law school (we’re edged out by FIU Law). We’re around #7 among both public and private law schools combined.
1L attrition is the red bar on the right-hand side
Take a look at this PDF chart from NLJ if you need a visual. The picture to the left is North Carolina’s section of the report.
That means roughly 1-in-5 of my colleagues will not be returning this coming August, and I’ve already gotten messages that a couple very close friends who’ve been mentioned here at law:/dev/null are among the casualties 
It kinda kills the buzz from being able to officially declare myself a 2L…
I’m not sure where those folks will end up down the road, but if they happen to read this entry I’m hoping they’ll keep in touch and let me know if I can help. We might not all be destined to be lawyers, but I’m a firm believer we’ll all end up where we’re supposed to end up.
*****
I completely and totally *hate* ending posts on a sour note, so I do want to formally say *CONGRATULATIONS!!* to everyone in the Class of 2012 — both at NCCU Law and elsewhere — who can officially call themselves 2Ls! Good luck to all of you in your summer endeavors, and I hope you’ll keep coming back to law:/dev/null next year now that I get to officially keep chronicling this experience
Have a great night everybody!
—===—
From the grade-related archives:
Tags: 1L, ::headdesk::, Competence FTW, Duke Law, Exams, FIU Law, Law Grades, MDG, NCCU Law, Prof CrimLaw, The Curve
Posted by TDot on May 15, 2010 in
NotFail Only a brief post today folks. Spent the day down in Raleigh watching commencement events for my alma mater N.C. State University — 雅雅 is now a Wolfpack alumna!
This was my first commencement as an alum, and dozens of friends from Student Government and elsewhere crossed the stage today. The Legal Eagles of the NC Central University School of Law also graduated earlier this morning too
I’m über-proud of all of you! Congratulations to the Class of 2010!!
Tags: 雅雅, NC State, NCCU Law, NCSU Wolfpack
Posted by TDot on May 8, 2010 in
NotFail No one’s really sure when the final grades will be posted for 1Ls at the N.C. Central University School of Law. Some 2Ls have told us not to expect anything until June at the earliest, while the professors point us toward the school’s academic calendar requiring grades to be in by May 11 — Tuesday.
Regardless of when those grades come out, I figure I’ll keep up the tradition of post-exam handicapping by giving y’all a rundown of how I think things went I’ve also included the final grade I’m hoping for in the course.
- Civil Procedure II: This was our last final exam and I choked. Or “royally FUBAR’d” to borrow the phrase-ology of a colleague. I felt comfortable about the multiple choice questions, but inexplicably stopped paying attention to the clock and ran out of time before touching 60%ish of the essay… which itself was worth 60%ish of the final exam grade My only hope is that there’s a sizable curve on the exam, because otherwise I may come perilously close to having to retake the course. Hoping for: C+.
- Contracts II: Out of the 18 exams we’ve taken during the 1L year, I’ve never left an exam feeling intellectually drained except with this one. Not to anthropomorphize much, but I felt like I got physically beat by this exam. Summed up my thoughts on it here. I’ll genuinely be content if I just pass. Hoping for: C-.
- Criminal Law I: This was our first exam, and even though we were given 3 hours I had wrapped up after just 1. Not sure if that meant I knew things really well or really didn’t know things at all, but since the midterm turned out well I’m hoping I replicated that performance on the final. Hoping for: A-.
- Legal Research & Persuasion: Not sure what to think here. I had a solid A going into the final memo, which was worth 40% of the final grade. But then this happened. So that memo will likely be a lead weight on my final grade. We’ll see what happens… Hoping for: C.
- Property II: Don’t have a sense for how this exam turned out. It focused on concurrent estates, landlord/tenant items, and easements & covenants. I wasn’t terribly comfortable with the material, but also didn’t feel terribly uncomfortable after the exam. So maybe that’s a good thing. Hoping for: B+.
- Torts II: In talking with my classmates, there seems to be a consensus that the Torts exam wasn’t as difficult as it could have been. I felt the same way. Downside is that means there’s likely not much curve and it’ll be minor nit-picky things that separate the A’s from the B’s from the C’s. But hopefully I’ll be high enough that this class will be a GPA boost. Hoping for: A-.
So it’s looking like I’ll end my Spring semester with a 2.583 GPA… even lower than the 2.618 from last semester
I’m kicking myself particularly because those CivPro and LRP grades were totally avoidable self-inflicted injuries. But at this point what can you do other than pray?
If you’re still taking final exams this coming week, GOOD LUCK!! And I hope all of you have a good night
—===—
Past grade entries:
Tags: 1L, Exams, Law Grades, NCCU Law, The Curve
Posted by TDot on Mar 23, 2010 in
NotFail I promised y’all yesterday to post a review of midterms “some time this week,” so I’m getting it knocked out now — with the March UNCASG meeting this Friday-Sunday, I don’t want to risk getting caught up with something and then find people telling me I can’t keep my promises
Given my uninspiring performance last semester — seriously botching the final exam in Ks and doing poorly on the finals in both CivPro and Property after acing their respective midterms — I changed my study habits going into the midterm exams this semester.
Gone were the hours and hours and hours of studying with outlines as long as Congressional bills. Instead I’d study for no more than 1-2 hours the night before, first skimming through the textbook pages we covered on the syllabus and then my class notes; after that, anything I read that was suitable for flash cards got written down and gone over on the drive to class (or in between exams).
As absolutely bass-ackwards as it probably sounds, that process appears to have been far more effective for me learning the material despite spending less time studying Not sure if it’s a fluke or not; we’ll see in about a month.
Here’s the class-by-class rundown, alphabetically by subject…
====================
CIVIL PROCEDURE II
====================
Last semester in CivPro was focused predominantly on jurisdiction, notice, etc and this semester is covering the Erie Doctrine and the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure. Most of the class (myself included) seemed to be of the opinion that the midterm could have been much harder… but even so, it was sufficiently difficult that the raw class average was 9 of 20 (e.g. a 45/F).
I missed 1 of the multiple choice questions because I apparently misread one of the cases in the textbook but I got the rest, and did fairly well on the essay despite running out of time on part of my Erie analysis.
Expected midterm grade: A-
Actual midterm grade: D+ (raw) / A- (curved)
Synopsis: Can’t complain about the grade, but now there’s so much material to be covered on the final that wasn’t on the midterm that I’m a little worried. We’ll see how it turns out…
====================
CONTRACTS II
====================
This was the last grade to get returned to us, we got it late on Friday afternoon, and there was no feedback written anywhere on it — just the essay score on the essay, and our overall score on an index card.
And I did the exact same @#$%ing thing I did on the finals last semester
After freaking out all weekend over my worst grade to-date in this class, I met with Professor Ks on Monday to go over it. Turns out I only missed 3 multiples (safely above the class average)… the real torpedo to my grade was the essay.
The subject was a breach of contract relating to express and constructive conditions, substantial performance, damages, etc. I hand my essay to Professor Ks to review, and he barely gets past the first paragraph when he goes “I remember this essay, I don’t even have to read the rest. You did a phenomenal job on everything you wrote — you just didn’t talk about constructive conditions at all!”
I take my essay back, certain I had talked about constructive conditions somewhere, and sure enough… nothing. I don’t know if I was just in a zone or what, because unlike last time I even looked back through my essay before turning it in. Constructive conditions were nowhere to be found.
Expected midterm grade: B+
Actual midterm grade: D (raw) / C- (curved)
Synopsis: ::headdesk:: x2
====================
CRIMINAL LAW
====================
The key issue I knew I missed on the essay cost me half a letter grade, but surprisingly I got all the multiples right. w00t.
Someone in the section also got a near-perfect score, so there was essentially no curve to the grades using Professor CrimLaw’s formula.
Expected midterm grade: B
Actual midterm grade: A- (raw) / A- (curved)
Synopsis: Nothing to really say here. Bring on the final exam
====================
LEGAL RESEARCH & PERSUASION
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This class replaced Legal Reasoning & Analysis from last semester, and just like LRA the grade is made up from a bunch of assignments throughout the semester (culminating in a legal memo) instead of just a midterm and a final.
Everything has been straightforward so far… it just also hasn’t counted for much of anything
Expected grade to-date: A
Actual grades to-date: A (exercises), A (BlueBook quiz #1), A- (BlueBook quiz #2)
Synopsis: Still have ~70% of this class to go… ::sigh::
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PROPERTY II
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Property II midterm raw grade distribution
This was our first exam, and honestly I can’t remember what was on it Apparently no one else in the class did either because the grades were pretty bad. I put together a chart of raw scores at the right.
The Traveling Professor historically never curves, but I know at least 1 classmate who also got a grade in the A/A- range so my guess is grades were so bad she had to curve at least a little bit.
Expected midterm grade: A-
Actual midterm grade: A- (curved?)
Synopsis: Love the professor. Love the TAs. Hate the material
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TORTS II
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Torts is proof that lucky guessing can pay off
I knew I got at least 1 multiple wrong right after I turned in the exam, but amazingly I didn’t miss much beyond that. The class average was 7 out of 15 — we had 6 A’s after the curve, 6 B’s, 24 C’s, and 18 in the D/F range. Somehow by the grace of God I had the top score and got to ride the curve.
Expected midterm grade: B-
Actual midterm grade: B- (raw) / A (curved)
Synopsis: This exam was intense. Hopefully the final will be at least somewhat easier.
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FINAL SCORE: SPRING 2010 MIDTERMS
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Expected Semester GPA to-date: 3.311
Actual Semester GPA to-date: 3.511 (Law school median: 2.000)
*****
So that’s the rundown through the first half of 1L Spring Need to avoid a repeat of last semester — doing well midway through and screwing up at the end — but so far I’m feeling pretty good
Heading back to the law school to give a speech for my SBA Treasurer candidacy, then to the gym for a 1L/3L basketball game! Forgot to mention that yesterday — the 1Ls beat the 2Ls in the annual 1L/2L game, on a 3-pointer at the buzzer.
Wish us luck, and have a great night!!
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From the archives:
Tags: 1L, Exams, Law Grades, The Curve
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