Ask a 1L — 2018 Edition

[Ryn 2786]

I've heard that the online selection is also going to be expanded over the summer at some point. So, keep an eye on it. You can always buy online and mark it for pickup at the main York bookstore.

[LivePumpkin 85]

What was your favourite course in 1L and why? What was your least favourite course in 1L and why? 

[BlockedQuebecois 4914]

Sorry, I’m super busy this week. Will respond by sat at the latest! 

[TrqTTs 247]

When you get back, add these to the queue if you're willing!

-Do you have any review of the perspective option you or your close friends took (any to avoid for example)?

-I know there are some volunteering options for 1L's including doing intake or similar at CLASP, do you (or any of your friends) have any experience with 1L EC's or volunteering you could comment on or recommend?

Thank you for taking the time to help inform us BTW.

Edited May 16, 2018 by TrqTTs

[BlockedQuebecois 4914]

Man, Hoju wasn't lying when he said law school was the least busy part of his life. I had all the time in the world for you guys a few months ago! 

Favourite Course

I really enjoyed criminal law. It has engaging fact patterns, interesting results, and, generally speaking, shorter readings. I also found it had the most engaging classroom discussions. Everyone has an opinion on whether or not something is wrong or whether or not a sentence is just, and they're generally not afraid to share it. 

Least Favourite Course

Legal process at Osgoode is brutal. It's usually online lectures delivered every Friday with tiny assignments due every few weeks. It's both boring and exhausting, and if you're me you'll probably routinely forget to listen to the lectures. Civil procedure, which is part of legal process in the winter term, is better, but not by much. 

Perspectives

Some perspectives are more work than others (my friends in tax had a lot of readings, while the social media one had considerably less), but overall I didn't hear any complaints about them. Everyone seemed to enjoy the perspective they were in, and I didn't hear anyone say they wished they'd picked something else. 

Volunteering

There's some discussion of volunteering on page two: 

Besides what was said there, I had friends volunteer with all three of the organizations I mentioned (OBC, CLASP, Parkdale). All seemed to enjoy their placements. OBC seemed like the least amount of work — I think they had two deliverables over the two semesters. Parkdale and CLASP appeared to be once a week, though @ZineZ can correct me if I'm wrong. From what I could tell, at Parkdale 1Ls typically do intake stuff. I honestly don't know what my friends did at CLASP. I assume it was intake and similar tasks? 

 

[Turkeytime 282]

12 hours ago, BlockedQuebecois said:

Besides what was said there, I had friends volunteer with all three of the organizations I mentioned (OBC, CLASP, Parkdale). All seemed to enjoy their placements. OBC seemed like the least amount of work — I think they had two deliverables over the two semesters. Parkdale and CLASP appeared to be once a week, though @ZineZ can correct me if I'm wrong. From what I could tell, at Parkdale 1Ls typically do intake stuff. I honestly don't know what my friends did at CLASP. I assume it was intake and similar tasks? 

 

I volunteered at CLASP and OBC. I almost got no work with OBC because the upper years are given the tasks and then they delegate to the first years. I think that may have changed but I'm not sure. At CLASP, you do intake, which means you answer the phone and take down the caller's information so someone else can later assess what sort of legal help they will need. Not sure what people did as volunteers at Parkdale.

[ZineZ 446]

On the CLASP front - you also do "casework shifts" where you're assigned to a Division Leader and assist them with tasks. The breakdown is 1 hour of intake per week and 2 hours of casework. The casework can vary depending on the DL, caseload and division. You can do everything from transcriptions, helping write narratives, calling doctors, attending court to helping file, away stuff if needed.. 

[Parvati 14]

Random and insignificant question that nobody should rush to answer:

I've received emails from Osgoode students in the past, and I've noticed that their display name always shows up as: Jane Doe 2018/Lawstudents/Osgoode (replacing Jane Doe and 2018 with their name and year they started). Are we stuck with this or can we change it to just our name? I've briefly fiddled around with the mail account and can't really tell. It seems kind of weird/unprofessional if we're stuck with it.

 

Edited May 23, 2018 by Parvati

[Ryn 2786]

1 hour ago, Parvati said:

Random and insignificant question that nobody should rush to answer:

I've received emails from Osgoode students in the past, and I've noticed that their display name always shows up as: Jane Doe 2018/Lawstudents/Osgoode (replacing Jane Doe and 2018 with their name and year they started). Are we stuck with this or can we change it to just our name? I've briefly fiddled around with the mail account and can't really tell. It seems kind of weird/unprofessional if we're stuck with it.

 

That's the way it is, unfortunately, and there's nothing you can do to change it.

It's rumoured that this summer, email will be transitioned to Outlook 365, so that naming scheme may disappear entirely. But as long as email's on the old Lotus Domino system, you can't change your name.

The good news is, it's the way Osgoode has been for about a decade, maybe longer (with the exception of the year being added, which started in 2015), so no one at a firm will think twice about it.

[harveyspecter993 839]

Is the laundry in OC coin or laundry card operated?

[LeoandCharlie 296]

Does anyone know if it is possible to access an archive for the live-stream event Osgoode held today for incoming students?

I was unable to attend due to my work but was hoping to watch a recording of it, if it is available. 

[LivePumpkin 85]

On 2018-02-05 at 11:33 AM, RNGesus said:

In this day and age of CanWide calling, I don't think anyone gives a toss about your area code. As far as I'm concerned, everyone becomes a contact instead of a number anyways.

Hey, you didn’t miss anything tbh... it was general information about financial aid (which can all be found on the website or in the Welcome Day folder) followed by a Q and A. 

[LeoandCharlie 296]

3 hours ago, LivePumpkin said:

Hey, you didn’t miss anything tbh... it was general information about financial aid (which can all be found on the website or in the Welcome Day folder) followed by a Q and A. 

Thank you kindly for noting this to me. Cheers. 

[retakelsat 31]

On 6/25/2018 at 7:58 PM, LeoandCharlie said:

Does anyone know if it is possible to access an archive for the live-stream event Osgoode held today for incoming students?

I was unable to attend due to my work but was hoping to watch a recording of it, if it is available. 

You can email Vicky to get a transcript of the Q&A.

[abasilplant 6]

At the recent welcome day I was told that 1Ls can apply for volunteer positions at CLASP clinics. They said that there is a generic application question that you fill out and then you rank your clinic choices. Does anyone remember what the application question is and the general word limit? 

Also, since (in my understanding) you have to use the same application to apply to several choices, do you just cater your response to your top choice or do you try to make it applicable to everything you are applying to?  

Lastly, can you only be accepted to one clinic? 

TIA! 

[abasilplant 6]

Also, is there a microwave that we will have access to? 

[Hathi 18]

On 7/9/2018 at 11:51 AM, abasilplant said:

At the recent welcome day I was told that 1Ls can apply for volunteer positions at CLASP clinics. They said that there is a generic application question that you fill out and then you rank your clinic choices. Does anyone remember what the application question is and the general word limit? 

Also, since (in my understanding) you have to use the same application to apply to several choices, do you just cater your response to your top choice or do you try to make it applicable to everything you are applying to?  

Lastly, can you only be accepted to one clinic? 

TIA! 

The word limit is quite short, approximately 150 words/2 questions from what I remember. The questions are just that - generic. Think along the lines of "why do you want to volunteer here" and "what relevant experience do you have"

[MootPointx 17]

25 minutes ago, abasilplant said:

Also, is there a microwave that we will have access to? 

Yes! At Oz, there is 1 in the Junior Common Room and 3 in the Kitchen.

Edited July 11, 2018 by MootPointx

[abasilplant 6]

Do we get any sort of student discount on a TTC pass? If so, how much is the discount and when can we get it?

[Ryn 2786]

2 hours ago, abasilplant said:

Do we get any sort of student discount on a TTC pass? If so, how much is the discount and when can we get it?

It's around $117 per month. You need a TTC student ID, which you can get at Sherbourne Station. You will need a printout of your class schedule and a York student card to get one. Once you have it, you can buy the student metropass at vending machines and retail stores around the city and in subway stations.