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Office of Student Affairs

Overview

The Office of Student Affairs (OSA) provides advice and counseling on academic and personal matters for students and acts as a liaison between students, faculty, and other law school administrators. OSA provides important information to students on a variety of issues; acts as a liaison between students, faculty, and other administrators; provides advice and counseling on academic and personal matters; funds student organizations; coordinates student activities; designs programs ranging from orientation to graduation; and hosts workshops on academic and bar-related issues.

OSA’s specific services include:

  • Coordinating student activities such as admit weekend, first-year orientation, and graduation.
  • Hosting workshops designed to enhance students’ understanding of law school procedures and to facilitate a high quality of life for law students.
  • Distributing the Weekly Brief, an electronic newsletter containing important deadlines, events, and notices for students.
  • Overseeing the student organizations and working with the Law Association and Dean’s Office to provide funding through a combination of an annual budget, the Special Fund, and conference funding.
  • Providing short-term counseling and other assistance with academic and personal problems, leaves of absence, and other issues that affect a law student’s life.
  • Acting as the liaison between the Student Disability Resource Center (SDRC) and the Law School, and overseeing the process of providing accommodations to students with disabilities.

Frequently Asked Questions

  1. Where is the Law School's official lost and found office?

    The Law Library is the official keeper of lost and found. Lost and Found is located on the first floor of the Law Library (723-2477).

  2. How can I make long distance calls or faxes on campus?

    Faxes or calls are free to the anywhere in the United States including Alaska, Hawaii, Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands. International and specialty toll calls or faxes like 411, 900 and 976 numbers are placed using a code called a Personal Billing Number or PBN; this provides a personalized invoice for each student's billable long distance calls. The PBN can be ordered on axess.stanford.edu at your My IT Services Site.

    Students and student organizations can use the fax machine on the first floor of the Law Library as well as the machine in room 79N. The number to the fax machine in room 79N is 650-723-0501. The fax number to the machine in the Law Library is 650-724-2983. The Taper Center also has a fax machine for students. The fax number is 650-724-6216.

  3. How can I reserve a room at the Law School and calendar an event?

    There is a strict policy for calendaring events and requesting rooms. Student groups must go through their designated calendar administrators to calendar their events and request rooms. Read more about the event calendar process.

  4. How can I reserve a room outside the Law School?

    Students who wish to reserve spaces outside the Law School should contact Chidel Onuegbu (chidel@law.stanford.edu).

  5. How can I get parking passes for guest speakers?

    The Office of Student Affairs has a limited number of parking passes that organizations can purchase for guest speakers and charge the fee to their organization's accounts. You can also buy individual passes at the Parking and Transportation Department, located at 340 Bonair Siding, 723-9362. Hours of operation are 7:30 to 5:00 PM. An "A" day pass costs $11; a "C" is $4.50.

  6. Is there a nursing room at the Law School?

    Yes, the Law School has a nursing room located in room 191 of the classroom building. Breastfeeding students or their partners may use the room. Contact the Office of Student Affairs for the door code.

  7. Where can I find a scanner?

    Students can use the scanner located on the second floor teaming Room of the law library.

  8. What is the code to get into the building after hours?

    Students can get into the building after hours through the door closest to the Admissions Office and Chidel Onuegbu's Office (room 104A). A door code is required and you can get the code from the Office of Student Affairs (Chidel in room 104A, Cathy Glaze in room 108), Facilities in Room 146 or the Library Reference Desk.

  9. Is there a Notary Public at the Law School?

    Law school related documents (such as bar applications) are notarized at no cost to the student, faculty or staff. There is a $10 fee for notarizing personal or non-law school related documents.

    SLS Notary Public:
    Chidel Onuegbu, chidel@law.stanford.edu, 725-0764, Room 104A

  10. How do I get information about Writing Competitions?

    The Office of Student Affairs receives a great deal of information for writing, moot court and alternative dispute resolution competitions during the year, most of which include money prizes up to $5000 for winners. These competitions span a wide range of topics, from international law to environmental law to minority rights and so on. Stanford students have been successful in the past in winning these types of competitions, and we have collected those applications in a binder currently housed in the first floor information desk of the law library. If you are interested and would like to learn more, please stop by the first floor information desk of the law library. The website lists other writing competitions for law students.

  11. How can I enter the lottery for the Faculty Lunch presentations?

    Ten students are allowed to attend the Wednesday weekly lunch presentation with faculty. If there are more than ten students interested in attending a lunch presentation, priority will be given to the speaking professor's legal assistants, and to those who have not attended a presentation during that academic year. The presentations are all held Wednesday afternoons (12:15 to 1:45 PM) in the Manning Faculty Lounge on the second floor of the breezeway. Lunch starts at 12:15 and the presentation follows at 12:45. Students interested in attending a specific presentation should notify Chidel.

Bar Exam Information

  • State Bar Exam. Most states administer the bar exam twice a year, the last week of February and the last week of July, with applications due approximately 4 months prior to the exam. Beware, though, some states have earlier deadlines. Below you will find a link to a list of all the state bar examiners in the country. Please check the state in which you plan to practice for its rules and deadlines.

    Most law school graduates take the July exam. Most states do not permit anyone to sit for the bar exam who has not actually graduated from law school.

    In addition to registering for the exam, some states (including CA) require you to register as a law student, which, of course, entails an extra fee. Many California law schools urge their students to register as 1Ls because they know their students will practice in California. Since so many of our students do not practice in this state, and since there is no late fee, we wait until your last year to urge you to register. California urges you to register before taking the MPRE.
  • MPRE. Most states (including CA and NY) require the MPRE (Multistate Professional Responsibility Exam). The MPRE is administered in November, March, and August of each year. Applications for the exam are available at http://www.ncbex.org/multistate-tests/mpre/. The cost is $70. This two-hour and five minute exam consists of 60 multiple-choice questions. It is much easier than the regular bar exam.

    BarBri generally offers a free MPRE review course to Stanford Law School students for the November exam.
  • Moral Character Determination. Most states (including CA and NY) require you to apply for a moral character determination. The California application form itself is quite lengthy and calls for a lot of historical information from you. In California, the processing time can range anywhere from 4 - 10 months because it entails checking references going back many years; so, we recommend that you complete the form this semester or soon thereafter. If you delay in filing this application, you run the risk that you may be ineligible to be sworn in next December. New York moral character determinations are done after you take the bar exam.
  • Fingerprinting. Many states (including CA) require fingerprints as part of the bar application. California now requires you to submit fingerprints through the live scan system. You can do this at the Stanford Department of Public Safety, 711 Serra Street, Monday through Friday, by appointment only. To get an appointment, call (650) 723-9633.
  • State Bar Admission Requirements The National Conference of Bar Examiners publishes an annual guide to bar admission requirements in the various states. In addition, the Jurist website, run by the University of Pittsburgh, also contains a list and general bar exam information.
  • Special Requirements for Advanced Degree Students on the New York Bar Exam. The New York State Board of Law Examiners currently requires foreign students who obtain an LLM or JSM in the United States to complete two courses in "basic American law." (See attached list of courses at Stanford Law School that have been pre-approved by NY BOLE.) Please note that if you plan to take the New York bar exam in July 2013 or thereafter, the requirements will be stricter. New York will require that you complete: 3 quarter units of Introduction to American Law (or Constitutional Law); 3 quarter units of professional responsibility/legal ethics; 3 quarter units of legal research, writing and analysis; a minimum of 8 quarter units of subjects tested on New York bar exam; and no more than 8 quarter units of coursework outside the Law School.
  • Further Information. For further information on the California and New York bar exams, contact:

    California State Bar
    Office of Admissions
    1149 South Hill Street
    Los Angeles, CA 90015-2299
    Los Angeles: (213) 765-1500
    San Francisco: (415) 538-2303
    www.calbar.ca.gov/admissions

    New York Bar
    State Board of Law Examiners
    Building 3 – Corporate Plaza
    254 Washington Avenue Extension
    Albany, NY 12203-5195
    (518) 452-8700
    www.nybarexam.org
    • Links to the web sites for other states’ bar examiners can be found at either of the following websites: the American Bar Association Directory of State Bar Admission Offices or the University of Pittsburgh School of Law Bar Exams Info page.
  • Courses tested on the California and New York Bar Exams
  • List of NY bar approved courses
  • Bar Review Companies on Campus - SLSConnect Members Only
  • Checklist for Graduating Students - SLSConnect Members Only

General Information

  • You can get an overview of the states' bar exams and contact information from each state by going to this website.
  • The National Conference of Bar Examiners publishes an annual guide to bar admission requirements in the various states. You can find it by going to this website.

Bar Exam Outlines

Examinations

Law School examinations are conducted in accordance with the University's Honor Code, under procedures described more fully in the Student Handbook. Here are some things you need to know.

If you have any questions about exams or during your exam or are too sick to take an exam, contact either:

Cathy Glaze
Associate Dean for Student Affairs
650 723.6203
cglaze@stanford.edu		 Kim Borg
Registrar
650 725.0145
klborg@stanford.edu

All examinations are graded on a "blind" basis. This means that students cannot contact the instructor during the examination or about the exam at any time before receiving a grade. If questions arise regarding interpretation of the examination, contact the Registrar. The Registrar will contact the instructor, as needed. If you have concerns about the exam at any time, contact Cathy Glaze. Any attempt to contact an instructor about an exam between the regularly scheduled exam date and the date the exam grades are posted may be interpreted as a violation of the Honor Code and/or the Fundamental Standard.

Students are not permitted to access any digital sources during in-class exams. Even if your exam is open book, any source you consult (including your outline) must be in printed or handwritten form. Digital sources are not allowed. Students may not log on to the internet or access other documents on their computer during an examination.

One-Day Take-Home Examinations are handed out and returned on the same day, usually beginning at 8:30 a.m. and ending at 4:30 p.m. The Registrar's Office distributes and collects the take-home exams. One-day take-home examinations are open-book, but students may not discuss a one-day examination among themselves unless the instructor specifically grants permission to do so.

Extended Take-Home Examinations are taken over a much longer period of time. The student picks up the examination from the Registrar no later than the last regularly scheduled day of classes. The examination is due back to the Registrar's Office no earlier than 24 hours following the last scheduled day of examinations for courses open to second- and third-year students. Extended take-home examinations are open-book and instructors must permit full discussion among students about the examination if it is an extended take-home examination.

Failure to sit for an exam. A student who is absent from an examination session without prior permission from the Associate Dean for Student Affairs will receive a failing grade of F or NK for the course.

Advance exam rescheduling is possible where students have a conflicting examination schedule (i.e., examinations occurring at the same time) or a burdensome examination schedule (i.e., three exams in three or fewer consecutive calendar days, a religious conflict on the scheduled exam day, or one-day take home examinations on two consecutive calendar days. In most instances, if a single examination is moved, it will be scheduled for the makeup examination day. Rescheduled examinations will not be given prior to the regularly scheduled examination date. Therefore, if a student needs to reschedule more than one exam, it is possible that he or she will need to take exams after the normally scheduled make-up day.

Exam administration procedures. Stanford Law School has specific exam procedures in addition to those already mentioned. Students are expected to be aware of and to follow all these procedures.

Specific Exam Procedures

Course Evaluations

These files are in Microsoft Excel format.

Key

No in Class: Number of students taking course
No. Resp.: Number of responses
% Resp.: Percentage of students responding
Hrs. Week: Workload. Average hours spent per week on course.
Q1: Readings and lectures were well integrated
Q2: Readings were appropriate and useful
Q3: Lectures were intellectually stimulating
Q4: Course as a whole was intellectually stimulating
Q5: Instructor was accessible and helpful outside class
Q6: Instructor was clear in presenting material
Q7: Overall: Instructor was effective as a teacher

Graduation

Three years of intense learning and hard work culminate in the law school graduation ceremony.

Recorded & Past Events

August 2011

October 2010

September 2009

August 2009

April 2008

February 2008

  • TGIF
    February 15, 2008 from 4:00 pm - 6:00 pm

November 2007

  • TGIF
    November 9, 2007 from 4:30 pm - 6:00 pm

September 2007

August 2007

May 2007

April 2007

March 2007

February 2007

Contact Information

Office of Student Affairs
Stanford Law School Room 104A
Crown Quadrangle
559 Nathan Abbott Way
Stanford, CA 94305-8610
650 725.0764

Student Resources

The Weekly Brief

  • Archive (SLSConnect login required)

Related Links

Related