scheduling time

I registered for my first-round classes yesterday. The scheduling lottery gods were oddly kind to me and I got into both the Evidence and Constitutional Law classes I wanted. At this point I don't have class on Fridays and none of my preferred classes end after 3:00 P.M. I still have to register for two more classes, so my luck may not hold.

I've never picked my classes quite like this before. Up until this point in my academic career, I picked classes largely out of interest. The only scheduling concerns I had were whether they fit with my other classes. Even when I worked during school, which is to say every academic experience I've had prior to law school, I always picked my classes first and arranged my work around my classes.

This time, my own intellectual interest in the class ranked below several other considerations. My ideal class schedule centers around more mundane concerns:

• Time of day. Too early and we won't get morning family time together, not to mention that getting baby and me out the door takes ten times as long as just getting me out the door. Too late and I'll miss Nathaniel's bedtime.
• Final exam. I can't devote 24 hours straight to a take-home exam. I would never have thought of this one myself, but two fellow student mothers warned me about the dangers of take-home exams and children. "You can't give it the time everybody else can," one said, "no matter how much you prepare during the semester. You're at a serious disadvantage."
• Free Fridays. I would take the most boring class out there if it meant having Fridays free.
• Socratic method. Or rather, the lack thereof. I don't mind the Socratic method; in the hands of a skilled practitioner, it's a brilliant method of teaching. However, I know I'm not going to have as much time to prepare and read for classes. I don't want to have to worry about cranky professors when just getting to class with the case read will be a victory.
• 1L friends. There are going to be days when the baby is sick and it's rainy and getting out of bed is a challenge, let alone dragging myself through my long commute to school. I'd rather be in a class with my friends than in a class where nobody knows me. (Speaking of which, are any of you current 1Ls at my school? Please email me if you are; I'd love to meet at least one of my new classmates.)

After balancing all of these important factors, I considered the remaining questions. Was it a subject I wanted to learn? Would I regret leaving law school without this class?

I'm pleased with my schedule so far. Hopefully I'll still be happy once it's finalized.

 

Comments

[Shelley]

One of my good friends in school is a new mother, and for the last two years she's only picked classes on two days of the week. They're marathon days, but they give her five days free!

[LawMom]

I'm not a new mother, but I think your class-picking criteria makes excellent advice for any mom going to law school. As someone who has been in law school both as a childless person and as a mother, you have an important perspective on the realities of juggling law school and a family. I'm so glad you posted this.

[kristine]

Good luck with the perfect schedule. I can see myself making the same tradeoffs if, for instance, we end up in a place where Mr. Angst is in class at night. I'd much rather have a whole day off to spend with him than a handful of hours scrabbled together between my classes and his. Family lasts forever; law school is only three years.

[Denise]

Sounds like a great plan. I'm sure you'll pull it off and your luck will hold! What an interesting semester this will be for you (and, vicariously, for us)! I can't wait to read how you manage it (wonderfully, I'm certain).

[Suzanne]

Ahh, the criteria changes when they get older! *One* 24 hour period for a take home exam, okay. More than one 24 hour period (in a 2 month period) - not okay.

Ideal for me - classes end before 1:30. Then I can pick up my kids from school (and not have to pay a sitter).

Early morning classes a-ok: school (for them) starts at 8. Mine don't start until 8:30. Works perfectly, especially b/c it increases my chances of being home by 2 to pick them up from school!

Also - the socratic method thing works out okay, too. My kids had really erratic bed times when they were babies, and they sucked the energy out of me, too. Now that they're 6 and 8, they're pretty independent in many areas, and when they head to bed with a book at 8, I head to the couch with mine.

It's amazing that it all works out, but it does!!

[transmogriflaw]

Suzanne, interesting. I'm glad to hear it. I won't have an older child by the time I'm out of law school but I'm interested in hearing how it works!

[bitchphd]

You know, thanks for that. It would never have occurred to me that a take-home exam is a disadvantage for student parents, either (or for other students who live in situations where they can't be sure of uninterrupted time. I shall have to reconsider my pedagogy accordingly.

[Claire]

um, so since when is a 24 hour takehome supposed to take 24 hours? Everywhere I've been a 24 hour take-home means you have 24 hours to schedule a 3-hour exam.

[transmogriflaw]

Bitch Ph.D. - Welcome! I'm glad to see that I am not the only one who would not have considered the scheduling implications of a take-home exam.

Claire - 24 hours is, of course, a bit of an exaggeration for 24 hour exams. However, in my experience, not by much. While I've heard that take-home exams are only supposed to be the same as normal exams, just scheduled whenever the student pleases, that has never been my experience. My experience, and that of my classmates, is that take-home exams take a substantial percentage of any 24 hour period, much more than 3 hours. YMMV of course.

[Abby]

Some schools don't use "take home", but they have an honor code that makes you hand them in 3 hours after you checked them out. Much better than having a mindless proctor.

[transmogriflaw]

Abby - Now that would be a fabulous solution.