Advice for 1Ls

If you have assigned seating, choose your seat with care. Your immediate neighbors will turn out to be your strongest allies and first law school friends. They're the ones who can slide a highlighted book into your line of sight if you get called on by the professor and lose the power of speech and thought. They're the ones you'll check in with when you sit down -- was it me or was last night's reading completely incomprehensible? You'll meet eyes with them when the most annoying person in your class raises his hand again. You'll encourage one another when the legal writing assignment is due and everyone's sleep-deprived. They become your benchmark for what the law school experience should feel like.

At my school all the 1Ls were in the same room, same seats, for the whole year. We got the opportunity to know one another quite well, in exasperation and tolerance and the deep affection of shared tribulations. People in my class ended up rooming with people they sat near, forming study groups together, hanging out with their little geographic neighbors. We even had a marriage whose seed was sown by seat proximity.

I was, of course, oblivious to the importance of my seat companions and simply chose my seat based on its location in the room. If I had thought about it at all I would have realized the strategic value of good seatmates, but I just didn't think. It was my great fortune to have been selected as a seatmate by the funniest guy in our class, who turned out to be my study buddy, my sanity check, and my closest friend during law school. He taught me Con Law, he made me laugh daily, he knew all the gossip, and he was my ticket into the cool crowd: a rowdy, hilarious, outdoorsy bunch of guys who let me tag along when they went out to make trouble. Find yourself someone like him, or cross your fingers and hope he finds you.

Comments

[Dave!]

That is very good advice, but it's not that easy (at least at my school). We've barely had a chance to meet and get to know a fraction of the people in our section. Those that I do know, it's because of random proximity during orientation activities. But assigned seating is done on the first day of class, so it's pretty much random anyway. I could choose to sit by the people I met in orientation, but I don't really know them that well, and I certainly don't know that they are "better" seat mates than the other potential folks in the class.

So instead, I chose to sit where I was most comfortable, near the front middle. I don't like to be distracted by note-takers and computer screens in front of me, and I like making eye contact with the prof. So are my neighbors the best fit for me? Who knows, but it's really not like I had that big of a choice. I suspect it's more random than your post suggests. Kind of like the old saying, "What's the best thing you can do to ensure success in this life? Choose your parents wisely." :)

[cmc]

I did NOT choose my seat with care as a 1L. So I wound up spending the whole semester next to a guy who tried to "one up" me every single day. He tried convince me before every class that I was unprepared, and that he was going to ace the class. Then, to make matters worse, he would ask me out.

Not only that but I sat at the END of the row so I had no neighbor on my other side to bail me out. I am still scarred by the experience ten years later.

[Evan]

Your advice makes good sense. But when I was given a choice my 1L year, I didn't really do as you advise, but instead sat near the back of the class on the aisle. I suppose I wanted a clear escape route should one become necessary. Come to think of it, I chose that sort of seat throughout my entire endless education. Not completely in the back, but far enough in the back so that I could keep my eye on pretty much everyone else in the class. Not only did I want a clear escape route, but I never liked that feeling that there was lots of stuff going on behind me--like people choosing their spouses, for God's sake. I don't think that happened in my 1L class. But maybe it did. I wouldn't know, because I was way too hung up on keeping the escape route clear. If my neighbor needed help when called upon, of course I would do what I could to help--but I never used a highlighter. Instead, I drew a box around the important passages with a pen. I still do that. My neighbor wouldn't have been able to make heads or tails of it, I don't think.

The idea that my life would be different had I chosen a different spot for my 1L classes is somewhat troubling. But you're completely right. I'm glad I'm happy about the life I have--it means I must have chosen the right seat.

[FW]

i don't know how i ended up on this old post from august, but i did. thought it was amusing b/c one of my seat buddies turned out to be a great makeout buddy...teehee