Today marked the last day of the CLEO SSI (2009). Throughout the course of this seminar, with the help of the outstanding faculty at NIU, I have learned a lot about the legal profession and how to be successful with the LSAT. I have enjoyed everyone’s company; sharing a doorm with some of the nation’s brightest students was a privilege.

Thank you.

Today was a day of discovery and exploration. Throughout my work history as a manager in high-end wholesale, I have delivered several presentations over the last six years; an experience that came in handy in presenting my oral argument earlier on today. At the same time, I acknowlegde that without Professor Hunter's support, I would have not been able to do a good job. This presentation, was an eye opener, for aspiring attorneys like me, and I am greatful for this opportunity that CLEO provided me with.

This morning, we just took our final exam in Legal Methods with Professor Jones; one of the best professors I have seen in a long time. Not only is Mr. Jones well-versed and knowledgeable, but he is also kind and and humble; an exceptional scholar and role model to aspiring law students like me. I can't say enough about Mr. Jones, but hope to effectively use what I have learned from his class and put it to good to use.

Throughout the day the drill has been on! First, we had an LSAT test from 9 a.m. to 12 p.m., then met with Professor Jones to prepare for his exam on Wednesday. By 3:00pm we were already back in class learning with Professor Hunter how to present, to deliver a legal argument. These next three days are going to be busy.

After a weekend of intensive labor--researching and typing up papers--I finally turned in my first Memorandum, which seems relatively easy at first glance but requires "inward and backward reasoning" using the same set of evidences to push contrasting arguments before reaching a final conclusion in support of the strongest argument. This excercise was fun and I hope that I have done a good job.

Over the weekend, I studied for the LSAT Prep on next Tuesday. I spent considerable amount time typing, drafting, and re-writing key points of my personal statement. Furthermore, I reviewed all the notes that I have taken from Monday through Friday. All in all, this was a hectic weekend, which I think will pay off next week.

This Saturday, unlike any other I have had in a long time is another schoolday. We came to the NIU Law campus earlier on this morning to attend Dr. Robert Webkin's presentation on Cleo's successive plans for participants at various levels; for us it is the JASD, which is a seminary for Juniors towards the LSAT. The rest of the day, I will be working on my Memorandum and Personal Statement; the first is due on Monday and the latter on Tuesday morning. Furthermore, I have to study for the Tuesday LSAT. This weekend is going to be all Fun!

Today, Pr. Hunter returned our LSAT essay exams to help us assess our skill sets and to also review some of the suggestions she made in each copy. Upon receiving my paper, I immediately red Pr. Hunter’s feedbacks and pointers, which I used in the following exam; though differently structured from the former. I think I did well this time, or at least better than the first test I took last week.

This afternoon, I went to Dean Luca's office for a brief encounter, as a follow up to our conversation from yesterday. As an aspiring law student that is interested in Human Rights and Civil Rights, meeting Dean Luna was a privilege and a great opportunity to learn more about the legal profession. Tonight, I will be typing up my first Memorandum; a  potentially demanding project; which is due on next Monday. Over the weekend, I will also be preparing for next Tuesday's LSAT test; a final attempt to assess my skill sets as a CLEO Soph. Institute participant.

 

What a day! As a usual, I started my day at about 6:30 a.m. and went to Annie G's with my friends Josue, Lisette, and Yunuen for an outstanding breakfast. Shortly after, we all headed towards the law school campus for a Pr. Anderson special; to review and practice on LSAT Logical Reasoning programs. However, the best parts of the day was when we met Judge K. Patrick Yarborough, an alumnus of NIU, and other successful legal professionals at the job panel. Indeed, Dean Luna had made the most impression on me given the lengthy conversation I have had with her on Huamn Right laws and Civil Rights; an area in which I aspire to practice in some day.

 

It has been an interresting today. This morning we had class with Professor Anderson from 9 a.m. to 10:45 a.m. analyzing some of the various techniques that are used to answer Logical reasoning questions. It was good starting point to develop my own way of tackling problems of the sort, once provided with a varietyy of options and methods that have proven to be helpful to other applicants. Then, at about 2:00 p.m., we had an exam on tort laws; to differentiate between battery, assault, and negligence; to compare and to contrast some of the cases we have studied and briefed over the last five days. Last but not least, we met with the admission panel at NIU to discuss and to reiterate some of the requirements one must fulfill or consider when aspiring to attend law school.

, then met with Professor Hunter

Today marks the beginning of our second week in Dekalb. Our summer program has been informative, instructive and fun. In just seven days, with the help of the oustanding staff at Northern Illinois University, I have acquired substantial knowledge on the LSAT and different preparation techniques, which I believe would have taken me longer to understand on my own. It has also been a great experience to study and to complete assignments under pressure; short deadlines; to subject one's self to the rigourous schedule that awaits us in law school. Thoughtout this week, I look forward to enhancing my skill sets and further my knowledge.

Today has, for the most part, been a good day. I woke up in the best possible manner, without the use of an alarm clock. After making my bed and cleaning up my room, my roomate suggested that we eat a hearty breakfast before we begin to do our work. We proceeded to ask other students in this progam to accompany us to a well known restaurant, Annie G's. As we were walking to this location we struck up a very deep conversation about a very controversial subject. To my delight this conversation continued on through the duration of our breakfast. The food was extremely good and this intellectually stimulating conversation covered a broad range of interesting topics from traditional gender roles from our own ancestoral countries to class and race relations within the United States. After this great breakfast, we returned to our dorm rooms and I immediately began to do my work. I have doing my work since breakfast. Thus far, I feel good. I have managed to finish the the majority of the work for Professor Anderson's, Brown, and Hunters classes and I am planning on going on an run later this evening.

Sunday. This morning I went out to breakfast with a couple of friends at a local place down by Lincoln Hwy. It was the best breakfast I have had in a long time (with a coffee that's right on point). Throughout the day, I plan to review all the notes that I have taken since Monday and prepare for tomorrow's classes with Professors Anderson and Hunter. I also look forward to watching a nascar race on tv in the next few minutes.

Last night, we went to downtown Dekalb to watch a play called "A Killing of Mocking Bird," which featured Professor Anderson and other interesting characters. Afterwards, we headed back to the dorms for a mini after-party, ordered a second round of dinners; " chicken wings that look like they came off of poulrties on 'roids"; and invited Timur a.k.a Tmoney as a special guest. As usual, T. Money was fun to be around: a class act and a cool classmate. Today is rainy day in the cornfields and we look forward to get some rest.

Last nioght we went to downtown Dekalb

After a long week, this first day off is much appreciated. Last night, we went to a play called "A Killing of Mockingbird," which featured familiar faces like Professor Anderson; It was a blast. After the show, we headed back to the dorms for an 'after-party' and ordered a second round of dinner: jumbo size chicken wings with Timur a.k.a. T-Money as special guest. The latter party went on until about 1 a.m. Today is a day off; it's a rainy day; we will get plenty of rest and enjoy our time in the state of Illinois.

Today was a very exciting day. Because of my efforts yesterday in the library, I earned the privelage of sleeping a complete eight hours. As a result, I woke up completely refreshed and ready to start the day at 7 A.M. After breakfast, the class was treated to an hour of LSAT lecture with Professor Anderson and his personality throughout the lecture definitely further motivated me to see his performance later on today. During lunch I really enjoyed the conversation which I had with my roomate, Ahmado. He has a very unique personality and I consider my priveledged to have him as a roomate. Also during class, I found Professor Hunter's personal statement and LSAT writing workshops to be very informational. She demonstrated how to constructively approach each of these tasks in manner which fulfills our goals of clarity and maximizing our efficiency. This was followed by an assignment by Professor Hunter which required us to use the IRAC method of answereing test questions. As of right now, I feel fantastic and I look forward to this night's performance and this weekend.

Summer Internships and jobs sometimes pay the bills, or give you important skills to be successful in college and law school, but with good planning on your part they can do both! It is time to talk about internships that build experience and why only a summer job at the pool is not cool for Pre law student.

Your undergraduate classes prepare you for success in the law school classroom. CLEO prepares you for success in the admissions process. A good internship/job prepares you to apply your experience in the "real world" and gives scope to the lessons you learn in class.



Many people choose a summer job or internship based on what they already know, and where they are already comfortable. As a Pre law student, you need to choose internships based on what you need to learn. You might be stepping out of your comfort zone - and as a law school applicant now is the time to learn new skills.


You can find summer positions using your local resources like your College Career Center or by researching online. Here are a few good online resources to review:



A strong academic transcript proves that you will be successful in class. A diverse and practical resume demonstrates that you will succeed in Law Clinics and that you will bring "real life" into the classroom.

Edited: 06/04/2009 at 08:54 AM by matthewniziol