There’s a lot to love at New York Law School: our experiential learning programs, our world-class faculty, and our deep connection to New York City. But every student gets something individual out of their time at NYLS, and we wanted to get a sense of our students’ unique, best experiences.
We sat down with New York Law School students in our Day Division and NYLS Pro Evening Division to find out their favorite aspect of NYLS.
Q: What’s the best thing about your New York Law School experience?
Elly Bergen ’23: There are many things that I love about being an NYLS student. It’s hard to round down, but perhaps the best part has been the community. To wake up every day and look forward to being with my peers is something that I really value, and the environment that I’m in is extremely collaborative which is so important. And there is an amalgam of diverse ideas and diverse students which I thrive in, and I really appreciate that environment.
Darryl Bobb ’24 Evening: One of the best things that I’ve experienced through the Evening Division has to be the sense of camaraderie me and my colleagues have. I think a strong part of that has to be because we balance academia, we balance our careers, and we balance our personal lives. I feel like everyone knows that we have to work together, and we’re all just trying to get through this. I think our professors know that, too, because I’ve never before had professors that go above and beyond to try and help you in whatever goal you may have. I’ve never before had a professor say “hey, you can call me on the weekends if you’re having issues,” because most of our work is done during the weekend because we work during the day and we go to school at night. They say “hey, if you have an issue, text me, call me, email me. We can set up a Zoom.” So that’s just a breath of fresh air, because in undergrad, I can count on one hand how many times that’s happened to me. I really feel like the professors are really pushing you to achieve, so I really love that about the Evening Division.
Sarah Raymond ’23: Two of the best parts about being an NYLS student are the accessibility of the faculty and the location of the School itself and how much opportunity surrounds it. When I was applying to jobs for the summer of 2022; it’s a really long process applying for these summer jobs, you have to send out hundreds of applications and network with people, all while doing your extracurriculars and taking your courses. It was tough to manage all my time, and I had multiple advisors that I knew I could go to if I needed any help sending out applications or getting in touch with anyone. And they were always accessible and always willing to help me, and I knew they had a lot of other students to tend to as well, but they always made time for me. I don’t really think I could have done it without them. I secured a great job with an international trade firm for the coming summer and I’m really excited about that.
Another really great part about being an NYLS student is the location of the School, because there’s so much opportunity here. We’re just a couple steps away from Wall Street, SDNY, and the New York Supreme Court, and so there’s a lot of places to be and a lot of opportunities for internships and post-grad jobs. I just know that whatever path I choose to take and however I go off in my career, there will be a place for me here and a fit for me here, and I intend on staying here for as long as I can. I’m really glad that New York Law School was able to be there for me for the beginning of my life in New York.
Michael Lucatorto ’24: The best part of being an NYLS student, in my view, would have to be the food. No! Apart from the food, which is really awesome, I love the individualized attention you get from professors. I feel like professors aren’t just these big people standing up in rooms in front of me, they’re actual colleagues who are engaging me in the study of law. And they want to work with you and further their research and further your understanding of the law. I’ve really appreciated that at every time the School has felt open to me and open to my ideas. I’ve never felt restrained by my studies or my classes at all. If I want to go off the wandering path, they encourage me to do that.
Caitlin McGuire ’25 Evening: The best thing about the NYLS Evening Division is my classmates. Everyone is coming from such varied professional and personal backgrounds, and so all of our classroom discussions are so much richer because of everyone’s experiences. In addition, everyone says that law school is really competitive, but I’ve found that my classmates are extremely helpful and extremely kind and compassionate. You know, if someone is out sick, everyone else offers to share notes or catch them up. It’s just a really warm and caring community, and it’s a small community, so you really get to know each other very well.