Questions about Windsor Law

[LegallyStressed]

Hi! I recently received an offer from Windsor’s Single JD program and had a few questions. I would appreciate it if any students or alumni are willing to provide any input they have:

1) Do law students have a separate building on campus ? I heard the Ianni law building was under construction and law classes were in different locations all over campus. That sort of puts me off but I’m sure I don’t have the full picture. 

2) Where do law students usually choose to live ? Names of neighborhoods/ streets would be appreciated. Is campus residence a popular choice ? Which option would you recommend, on or off campus ? 

3) For any 3Ls or alumni, what was the  2L OCI recruit process like for you ? Are Toronto big law opportunities restricted to a very small percentage of the class ? Do most people at Windsor seem to be interested in public interest jobs or corporate ? 

4) What is student life like for law students ? Clubs and other opportunities ? What are class/ section sizes like ? I did my undergrad at a commuter school that did tend to lean towards bigger class sizes so I’m hoping for a different experience this time around. 

5) Lastly, for folks that didn’t live in Windsor initially, how are you finding the city? What tips would you have for someone moving there ? 

Thanks in advance !! 

[sageclock]

1) Luckily the law building will be finally completed by the start of next fall. For the past 2 years the building has been under construction, so indeed, all law students had to take classes in random buildings across campus and had to deal with the temporary "law library" in the Leddy basement until the end of this semester. 

2) Some law students opt for on-campus residence, others like to share homes with roommates in Sandwich, and the rest live in apartments somewhere more or less near campus. If you choose to live in an apartment, be warned that (generally) the closer the apartment is to campus, the dodgier it is (sketchy neighbourhoods, unsanitary buildings/units, bad landlords, etc,.). If you don't mind walking or have a vehicle, the best apartments and neighbourhoods are off-campus outside of the university area. I'd avoid living downtown.

3) Oh boy. I don't know if I can type out my entire experience. In a nutshell—it sucked and it was hell. Few law students land summer positions through the OCI recruit, and Windsor Law students aren't an exception. I think this year's recruit has been particularly hard for a lot of schools, but before then, a good handful of Windsor students had been historically landing positions through the recruit. If you have decent grades and get the CSO to help you with your resume and cover letter, it's not hard getting OCI interviews as a Windsor student. What happens from there is a mix of effort and luck! 

4) I don't know if the answer to this question from Windsor Law's current students will be very helpful. My 1L was almost entirely online, and my 2L has been taking classes in random places across campus. Students in my year who proactively participated in both formal and informal activities may have found a larger sense of community, but generally speaking, I think some of the students from our year can agree that we didn't have enough in-person interactions during our last two years to define our environment as particularly collegial. But considering how the incoming 1Ls will all be taking classes in our new law building, I'm sure things will be very different for you! Clubs and school-associated opportunities are very easy to get involved in here. It's not difficult to get leadership roles and get involved in clinic work offered by the school. This is not the case for many law schools, so I suggest to take full advantage of this.  I've been a part of several clubs and school programs throughout law school so far, and it's been really fun. Classes in 1L are relatively intimate. Your grad class will be divided up into 3 sections, so you'll have 40-50 of the same students in each of your core classes (except ILO and A2J). 

5) It's honestly not the nicest city, and it took me awhile to get adjusted to it. I think the only thing I can really say is, find a nice livable place, make good friends, and see them as frequently as you can! I'd maybe also suggest getting a roommate. Going to Detroit is fun every once in awhile too.

 

If you have any more questions about Windsor or the recruit, feel free to message me.

[LegallyStressed]

On 4/27/2023 at 4:53 AM, sageclock said:

1) Luckily the law building will be finally completed by the start of next fall. For the past 2 years the building has been under construction, so indeed, all law students had to take classes in random buildings across campus and had to deal with the temporary "law library" in the Leddy basement until the end of this semester. 

2) Some law students opt for on-campus residence, others like to share homes with roommates in Sandwich, and the rest live in apartments somewhere more or less near campus. If you choose to live in an apartment, be warned that (generally) the closer the apartment is to campus, the dodgier it is (sketchy neighbourhoods, unsanitary buildings/units, bad landlords, etc,.). If you don't mind walking or have a vehicle, the best apartments and neighbourhoods are off-campus outside of the university area. I'd avoid living downtown.

3) Oh boy. I don't know if I can type out my entire experience. In a nutshell—it sucked and it was hell. Few law students land summer positions through the OCI recruit, and Windsor Law students aren't an exception. I think this year's recruit has been particularly hard for a lot of schools, but before then, a good handful of Windsor students had been historically landing positions through the recruit. If you have decent grades and get the CSO to help you with your resume and cover letter, it's not hard getting OCI interviews as a Windsor student. What happens from there is a mix of effort and luck! 

4) I don't know if the answer to this question from Windsor Law's current students will be very helpful. My 1L was almost entirely online, and my 2L has been taking classes in random places across campus. Students in my year who proactively participated in both formal and informal activities may have found a larger sense of community, but generally speaking, I think some of the students from our year can agree that we didn't have enough in-person interactions during our last two years to define our environment as particularly collegial. But considering how the incoming 1Ls will all be taking classes in our new law building, I'm sure things will be very different for you! Clubs and school-associated opportunities are very easy to get involved in here. It's not difficult to get leadership roles and get involved in clinic work offered by the school. This is not the case for many law schools, so I suggest to take full advantage of this.  I've been a part of several clubs and school programs throughout law school so far, and it's been really fun. Classes in 1L are relatively intimate. Your grad class will be divided up into 3 sections, so you'll have 40-50 of the same students in each of your core classes (except ILO and A2J). 

5) It's honestly not the nicest city, and it took me awhile to get adjusted to it. I think the only thing I can really say is, find a nice livable place, make good friends, and see them as frequently as you can! I'd maybe also suggest getting a roommate. Going to Detroit is fun every once in awhile too.

 

If you have any more questions about Windsor or the recruit, feel free to message me.

Thank you so much for taking the time to leave such a detailed reply! I learned a lot. As the cycle comes to an end and I have to finalize my decision, I will definitely reach out to you if I have further questions. 

[Govrap89]

One thing to be wary of, is that the administrators at Windsor Law can be incompetent. But I guess that's true at any law school.

[Lifeguard]

On 4/27/2023 at 4:53 AM, sageclock said:

1) Luckily the law building will be finally completed by the start of next fall. For the past 2 years the building has been under construction, so indeed, all law students had to take classes in random buildings across campus and had to deal with the temporary "law library" in the Leddy basement until the end of this semester. 

2) Some law students opt for on-campus residence, others like to share homes with roommates in Sandwich, and the rest live in apartments somewhere more or less near campus. If you choose to live in an apartment, be warned that (generally) the closer the apartment is to campus, the dodgier it is (sketchy neighbourhoods, unsanitary buildings/units, bad landlords, etc,.). If you don't mind walking or have a vehicle, the best apartments and neighbourhoods are off-campus outside of the university area. I'd avoid living downtown.

3) Oh boy. I don't know if I can type out my entire experience. In a nutshell—it sucked and it was hell. Few law students land summer positions through the OCI recruit, and Windsor Law students aren't an exception. I think this year's recruit has been particularly hard for a lot of schools, but before then, a good handful of Windsor students had been historically landing positions through the recruit. If you have decent grades and get the CSO to help you with your resume and cover letter, it's not hard getting OCI interviews as a Windsor student. What happens from there is a mix of effort and luck! 

4) I don't know if the answer to this question from Windsor Law's current students will be very helpful. My 1L was almost entirely online, and my 2L has been taking classes in random places across campus. Students in my year who proactively participated in both formal and informal activities may have found a larger sense of community, but generally speaking, I think some of the students from our year can agree that we didn't have enough in-person interactions during our last two years to define our environment as particularly collegial. But considering how the incoming 1Ls will all be taking classes in our new law building, I'm sure things will be very different for you! Clubs and school-associated opportunities are very easy to get involved in here. It's not difficult to get leadership roles and get involved in clinic work offered by the school. This is not the case for many law schools, so I suggest to take full advantage of this.  I've been a part of several clubs and school programs throughout law school so far, and it's been really fun. Classes in 1L are relatively intimate. Your grad class will be divided up into 3 sections, so you'll have 40-50 of the same students in each of your core classes (except ILO and A2J). 

5) It's honestly not the nicest city, and it took me awhile to get adjusted to it. I think the only thing I can really say is, find a nice livable place, make good friends, and see them as frequently as you can! I'd maybe also suggest getting a roommate. Going to Detroit is fun every once in awhile too.

 

If you have any more questions about Windsor or the recruit, feel free to message me.

Hey I was wondering what a 1L student can do to have the best chance at getting summer jobs either independently or through the recruiting process? I know good grades play a factor but is there anything else that would help give an edge over other students?

[kkm1]

if you get rejected, will you be able to see it?

I can't access my portal anymore. I am waitlisted but when I click to view my portal status, it won't load or let me go in to see my status.