The Nashville School of Law

I am actually a student at Nashville School of law so I thought it would be fitting for me to right a review. Of course, I am going to 5 star it, because it is a great instiution and I get my law education there, but there are some things that people should know if they are thinking about attending.
THE PRO’S:
1. You can work and go to law school. This is huge. The first two years are like your general education of undergrad. You have two classes on Monday (Contracts, Legal Writing) and two classes on Thursday (Torts and Criminal Law. Second year you have two classes on Monday (Civil Procedure, Evidence) and two on Thursday (Property, Remdies). All schedules are 6:30pm — 10pm, which do fit in with the traditional work week.
2. NSL has great teachers, and most of them teach at Vandy. All are practicing or judges so the contacts you actually make are almost priceless.
3. They teach you TN law. Rather than learning legal theories, you learn Tennessee law as well as Federal. This really helps when it pertains to the bar and when you actually get out and become a real attorney. Legal theories are great, but I personally would want to focus on how to argue the way it really is done… a speech on a legal theory while in court may not go over so well with the judge…
4. Moot court. This really prepares you for a court room and is a requirement for third and fourth year students. You are given real cases and have to prepare for court. This is so helpful, although it isn’t counted as graduation credits: you just have to go or you can’t pass. But you learn how the whole legal process actually transpires — as in, when you need to file, how long you have, etc.
5. The tuition is $ 5,000 a year!!! THAT IS CHEAPER THAN UNDERGRAD!!! For $ 20,000 you have a law school education! *Note this was written in 2010 so prices are subject to change as inflation does tend to happen.
6. Buying books happens once a year and costs you, if you are frugal and get them on the Internet, around 600 bucks. Even if you go to the bookstore, several books were cheaper there than online. Students are also very willing to sell books.
7. Cool people. Your classes typically will have a lot of adults in their 30’s 40’s. BUT this has been changing in the coming year… the social life isn’t exactly like that of a state or private school, but then again you are actually able to afford being able to go…
CONS:
1. It is un-​accreditted. This means you can only practice in Tennessee without hassle. You can apply to go to other states whose law allows you to re-​take the bar, but there are some states that do not even allow that. If you were going to plan and move, this is not the school for you. Every state requires you take their bar before you practice, and personally going through it once in one state will probably destroy me, BUT if you were forced to move or relocate and went to an accreddited school, atleast you would know you were elligable to study and take the bar of that state and be a practicing attorney.
Positive: you can practice federal law and also can waive to practice in Washington, D.C.
2. It can get tiring. Working a full day and coming to lectures and the homework and reading can get tiring, but overall, it is managable and worth it. Some classmates drive all the way from Chattanooga and Knoxville!
3. The grading scale is rough. 95 – 100 is an A and most of the teachers count one multiple choice as 3 – 5 points. The chances of getting an A are pretty slim and sometimes a an okay grade isn’t really okay… take a 74 for example-​that would be a D.
95 – 100 = A
85 – 94 = B
75 – 84 = C
65 – 74 = D
Under 64 = you suck and fail.
To stay enrolled, your GPA must be at 2.25 which is basically a Cish/​Bish. Kind of hard, but not by any means, un-​doeable. I nor my friends have had a problem… maybe I should knock on wood…
4. No Internet Printing. NSL has six computers for students, but you are not allowed to access the Internet at the library. When I first started you could, but apparently an older lawyer was coming and using the computers to view porn and they put a restriction on it. (That is considered unreliable heresay and I obtained the evidence from an unreliable source. lol) You can bring your own laptop and pray that you get a decent wireless signal, but printing is only done for west law and lexus nexus which reallly sucks — but the printing of cases costs you nothing.
5. Rather than going 3 years, you go for 4 because you are slowly going through it so you are able to work full time.
6. Un-​accreditted instiutions DO NOT FREEZE your student loans so you have to pay them and are unable to take out students loans to help with any of the costs… five grand isn’t that bad… but it is hard especially if you are having to pay on under grad loans… you can get your loans DEFERRED which is what I did, but don’t make the mistake of thinking that they freeze as it can hurt your credit.
HOPE THIS HELPS AND GOOD LUCK TO YOU!