Osgoode Student AMA

[omigone]

Hey everyone! With all the recent acceptances coming in, I thought it might be useful to start an AMA for those considering coming to Osgoode this fall. I'm a current student at Osgoode and I'm procrastinating my readings. 

AMA and I'll do my best to answer.

[Jmwilla]

Hey there! Recently admitted as a BC resident. What is the culture like at Osgoode? Is there camaraderie amongst students? Thanks in advance. 

[VitalGiraffe]

Do you think class will be in-person next semester?

Edited January 20, 2022 by VitalGiraffe

[AnonymousAnon]

2 minutes ago, Jmwilla said:

Hey there! Recently admitted as a BC resident. What is the culture like at Osgoode? Is there camaraderie amongst students? Thanks in advance. 

Hey

I'm a recent Osgoode grad and I will say it entirely depends. I think it depends on your personality, the kind of bonds you're willing/wanting to make with other students, and it will also be largely impacted by whether you're online or not.

I've come across some wonderful people in law school who were very supportive and helpful in so so many ways. But I've also seen some "drama" and the "ugly" side of law students as well.

Feel free to DM me if you have more questions. 

[99problems]

5 minutes ago, VitalGiraffe said:

Do you think class will be in-person next semester?

A couple of weeks ago, Osgoode sent us an email stating that the classes will be remote until January 31. From that point, it said, it would be in accordance with the government mandate. As you know, Ontario has relaxed the restrictions, beginning on January 31. So I suppose the classes will go back to being in person

[VitalGiraffe]

I have a couple more questions, some of which I've DMed OZ students about already. It would be nice to have more takes though.

• Thoughts on the joint JD/MBA?
• Which clinics would you recommend?
• Experiences with one of the 'streams'?
• Best food nearby?

Edited January 20, 2022 by VitalGiraffe

[omigone]

I'll forego answering any questions others have answered already!

37 minutes ago, VitalGiraffe said:

I have a couple more questions, some of which I've DMed OZ students about already. It would be nice to have more takes though.

• Thoughts on the joint JD/MBA?
• Which clinics would you recommend?
• Experiences with one of the 'streams'?
• Best food nearby?

I'm in the JD/MBA. I think you really get what you put into this program. Schulich has a lot of great clubs/ECs and a large alumni network to leverage for business jobs. I worked in a business job before joining a firm my next summer. You also have the option of having another shot at the 1L recruit, which could prove useful. That being said, if you have a business or commerce background, you may not get out very much from the program. You'll be able to get credits for most of the first year courses and spend your time in mainly electives. Happy to answer more specific Q's about the program. Overall, not coming from a business program, I've really enjoyed it and plan to use the MBA to transition to non-legal careers down the line. 

Personally, I've really enjoyed my time at CLASP - that's the community legal services program and I hope to join the innocence project at some point.

No clue on streams - but I don't think I could pull this off with the joint program eating into my credits. 

Best food - You've got your standard fare such as subways/timmies on campus. I really like Aroma which is not too far from Osgoode. Inside Osgoode there's a little cafe with great meal options and a lot of law students will end up buying food there. 

Happy to elaborate on any of this 

59 minutes ago, VitalGiraffe said:

Do you think class will be in-person next semester?

Probably, but I'd expect anything. If there is another variant that becomes highly infectious or a strike affecting York which tends to happen periodically, in-person classes could be affected. 

Honestly as someone who has done most of law school online, I don't really mind it. The zoom fatigue can be horrible, but the flexibility you gain in time by not commuting or otherwise having to shuffle between physical buildings is nice. I do miss hanging out with people on campus, as I find the people to be really great at Osgoode. 

tl;dr: probably, but don't count on it 100%.

[99problems]

4 hours ago, VitalGiraffe said:

I have a couple more questions, some of which I've DMed OZ students about already. It would be nice to have more takes though.

• Thoughts on the joint JD/MBA?
• Which clinics would you recommend?
• Experiences with one of the 'streams'?
• Best food nearby?

• Joint Program

The thoughts on the JD/MBA seem to differ significantly person by person. Here's what I think: being in a JD/MBA program generally helps with your job search through the OCIs. That said, there are so many students who find a position in big law through the OCIs without being in the joint program. I don't think it is worth it if you do not plan to go into business law. You should also consider the extra tuition and the additional one year of school.

• Clinics

I recommend the clinic whose area of work aligns with your interest. If you don't really care about the kind of work that a clinic does, just apply broadly as it is a competitive process.

• Streams

I toyed with the idea of declaring a stream but decided that it is not something that I want. It doesn't add anything specific to you, except an indication of the stream in your transcript. You may argue that it shows interest in a particular area and as such useful in your applications. But you can demonstrate your interest just as well by picking related courses (or other things) without limiting your options. If you declare a stream, your course selection option will become very limited.

• Food

There is a place in York called Yorklane (https://www.yorklanesmall.com/). There are many restaurants there and also a food court. Osgoode's bistro is meh at the best. There also is a café nearby for graduate students (it's not like they check your student card or anything), it's called Et Al. 

[ProudCrocodile]

Do you recommend living in Osgoode Chambers? Or is living off-campus a better option?

[omigone]

13 hours ago, ProudCrocodile said:

Do you recommend living in Osgoode Chambers? Or is living off-campus a better option?

This completely depends on your personal preferences. Lots of first year students end up living on Passy and love it. The rent is relatively cheap compared to the Toronto real estate market (about $1000 for a bachelor) and it provides a great opportunity to bond with other law students. 

The flip side to this is that you'll be living on York campus, which is pretty barren for things to do and quite far from the city (although accessible by about a 20-40 min subway ride to downtown, depending on where you are). If you have a car, this is much easier. Also, Passy is notorious for your usual residence shenanigans (fire alarms pulled constantly etc.) and I've heard of some flooding happening in the building this year. The other thing about Passy is that it can be particularly stressful around exam time, as 1Ls tend to stress and feed off each others stress.

While it may look like I'm putting more negatives than positives, it really can be useful to live on Passy in 1L, especially since you will likely be in-person. You can save yourself the commute to classes in 1L, which is huge because you will be in class every day between the hours of 8:30am-5:30pm. If you value your sleep and hate commuting, it might be the right option, keeping in mind all the cons mentioned above.

Personally, I live in downtown Toronto close to the subway line, which allows me to enjoy the city when I'm not in class and allows me to get to class fairly easily and reliably. It could be a good option to live in Passy for 1L and then move to Toronto for your later years. If you plan on living and practicing in Toronto, you'll have tons of time to see the city in other years. 

Edited January 21, 2022 by omigone

[99problems]

On 1/20/2022 at 2:03 PM, VitalGiraffe said:

Do you think class will be in-person next semester?

Osgoode returns to in-person on Feb 7

[Turtles]

7 hours ago, not not a lawyer said:

Osgoode returns to in-person on Feb 7

The earliest Osgoode will return to in-person is Feb. 7. 

Fixed that for you. The date continues to be pushed forward in 2-12 week increments since April 2020.  

[99problems]

2 hours ago, Turtles said:

The earliest Osgoode will return to in-person is Feb. 7. 

Fixed that for you. The date continues to be pushed forward in 2-12 week increments since April 2020.  

If another variant doesn't suddenly appear, I doubt this date will be pushed forward.

[theroaringbadger]

Does anyone have any insight/comments on the ESJ and/or the MES/JD

[MasterChief]

What was your 1L schedule like? 8:30-5:30 everyday or did it vary depending on what classes you selected? 

I live near Oakville and I’m considering the commute

[OntheVerge]

1L schedule varies day by day and depends on what 1L section you're placed in. I believe my section had 2 early morning classes a week but nothing went into the evening until 2L. Since a lot of the upper year courses are taught by practitioners, there are more evening classes in 2L and 3L. I had a few seminars that went from 6:30 - 9:30 p.m. 

But I know two people who lived in Oakville all 3 years and did the commute. The only extra stress they had was during finals if there was a morning final in December. Traffic, bad roads, accidents, etc. was all extra stress. I think one person mentioned they had to leave their house at 6:00 a.m. just to be sure they wouldn't be late for a final. But it is doable.

[MasterChief]

On 2/18/2022 at 2:43 PM, OntheVerge said:

1L schedule varies day by day and depends on what 1L section you're placed in. I believe my section had 2 early morning classes a week but nothing went into the evening until 2L. Since a lot of the upper year courses are taught by practitioners, there are more evening classes in 2L and 3L. I had a few seminars that went from 6:30 - 9:30 p.m. 

But I know two people who lived in Oakville all 3 years and did the commute. The only extra stress they had was during finals if there was a morning final in December. Traffic, bad roads, accidents, etc. was all extra stress. I think one person mentioned they had to leave their house at 6:00 a.m. just to be sure they wouldn't be late for a final. But it is doable.

Thanks a bunch for this response, I know a few people here are looking for 1L schedules

It seems like it won’t be a typical 9-5 everyday, which is great since I won’t be travelling during rush hour 

[Ratchet-and-Clank]

Do you have any regrets or did at one point but maybe you don’t necessarily consider it a regret now (for those on here that have graduated or in upper year) 

[OntheVerge]

One piece of advice that I found very helpful was to find the sweet spot of extracurricular activities you want to do in 1L. Too many commitments and you'll burn out by 2L and 3L and drop a lot of those activities, which is when you need the networking, contacts, and experience on your CV for finding articling and jobs post-bar. Too few and you won't have any networking or contacts or experience to make use of when needed.

Most people advise 2-3 extracurriculars in 1L. I did more because I went into law school without a clear idea of what area of law I was interested in, so I wanted to get as much exposure as possible. I chose a lot of "one-off" events, like non-competitive moots, joining clubs, and so on. By the time 2L rolled around, I had a better idea of where I wanted to put my focus without the burn out a lot of my peers had by choosing 5-10 things that all had semester long commitments. 

So, pick and choose, see what interests you, and be careful how much of a commitment an extracurricular will take of your time, especially in 1L when you'll be figuring out a lot of new stuff and adjusting to law school.

The other piece of advice I have is to not buy into the mob's dislike of the ethics course at the start of the semester. People get SO angry about this course which is just baffling. I'm not sure if it's the timing, as in the idea of dealing with ethics as a lawyer is too abstract of an idea for people who haven't taken a law course yet, or if people are so eager to get to the "good stuff" that they're putting up mental blocks on why this course is important. People not only treated it like a joke, but got so bizarrely mad about it. My advice is to avoid that mob mentality and take it seriously. You'll wish you had once you're further into your academic career, and particularly once you're in your actual career. And for more short term benefit, it's easy to get an A on the course if you try (since almost no one else does), which looks great on your transcript and helps bump up your first term GPA. 

 

[Propertylawnotmything]

Sorry for joining the chat so late, but I recently read online that law school upper years would usually pass down their summaries to lower year students. Does Osgoode have similar traditions?

 

 

[LMP]

8 minutes ago, Asianinbanking said:

Sorry for joining the chat so late, but I recently read online that law school upper years would usually pass down their summaries to lower year students. Does Osgoode have similar traditions?

 

 

Idk if I'd call it a tradition. There's an online database where summaries are stored. 

[Propertylawnotmything]

18 hours ago, LMP said:

Idk if I'd call it a tradition. There's an online database where summaries are stored. 

Ah thanks!!! That is amazing 

18 hours ago, LMP said:

Idk if I'd call it a tradition. There's an online database where summaries are stored. 

I found it after a quick google search, so neat. Thanks again!

[99problems]

1 hour ago, Asianinbanking said:

Ah thanks!!! That is amazing 

I found it after a quick google search, so neat. Thanks again!

The summary database for 1L courses is accessible without a password. For 2L and 3L courses, however, a password is required. You can obtain the password by submitting one of your own summaries, or simply asks your friends; there is always someone you has the password.

[Propertylawnotmything]

On 3/12/2022 at 10:33 AM, 99problems said:

The summary database for 1L courses is accessible without a password. For 2L and 3L courses, however, a password is required. You can obtain the password by submitting one of your own summaries, or simply asks your friends; there is always someone you has the password.

ohh good to know, thank you so much for the tip!

 

[99problems]

On 3/12/2022 at 10:33 AM, 99problems said:

The summary database for 1L courses is accessible without a password. For 2L and 3L courses, however, a password is required. You can obtain the password by submitting one of your own summaries, or simply asks your friends; there is always someone you has the password.

someone you know*