Reddit reviews 1L of a Ride: A Well-Traveled Professor's Roadmap to Success in the First Year of Law School

1L of a Ride is what I'd recommend, but in reality - nothing is going to be out there that's truly going to help you. It's a learning curve right the beginning for how to read the cases, and then you'll develop your own strategies. The rest of the tips are just fluff that apply to going back to school for any program.

I found it much harder. As others have said, it's a ridiculous amount of work to keep up with - think hundreds of pages a reading a week. I did well in UG, and this 1L year has been a kick in the teeth. I knew going in that it would be hard - spent time lurking here and on other forums - but it's a whole different level.

The traditional saying is that in undergrad, professors expect you to know the facts and regurgitate them on exams. In law school, knowing the facts (in this case, the law itself) isn't enough to get a decent grade. You have to be able to apply the facts/law + analyze in order to get a decent grade. On an exam, probably 25% of the grade is based on knowing the law. The rest is your analysis of the facts that the professor presents in an exam, and how the law applies to the facts. To get a better idea, go here and take a look at the "Torts" sample exam questions and answers.

Course-load wise - don't think that because you took 18 credit hours in UG that you can do the same in LS and not die. I took 13 credits first semester, and it was much more work than an 18 credit semester.

1L year - you should not under any circumstances work. I took a 6 hour a week student job helping in one of the clinics, and it's been a giant pain in the ass. Take loans - you are competing against every other person in your class so don't shoot yourself in the foot by wasting hours a week working. Keep your living expenses under control to keep borrowing down.

I'd suggest reading 1L of a Ride to get a better idea. Your school's library probably has it. Check out /r/lawschooladmissions and /r/lsat for test prep. If you're looking at applying for Fall 2018 that ship has sailed. If you're thinking about Fall 2019, you should start studying now for the LSAT and plan to take it in September (and again in November if you decide you want to retake).

Sounds like a scam. There is no "proven strategy to ace 1L" other than study more and more effectively than your peers and be skilled at taking law school exams. This guy is just going to tell you shit like that.

Waste of time, not helpful, and definitely not worth a high price tag.

If you REALLY NEED to gun super hard before law school starts, read something like Getting to Maybe or this book: http://www.amazon.com/1L-Ride-Well-Traveled-Professors-Roadmap/dp/0314283056/ref=pd_bxgy_14_img_3?ie=UTF8&refRID=1QC6VB60RSA1YWJPWNEG.

But honestly, you don't really need to start studying before 1L starts. You just need to be willing to put in the time and energy and thought into classes and reading assignments when law school starts.