American Institute of Law - My Journey

[AnonJD2027]

Whew I did it! I finally had the courage to stop being a read-only user and registered an account! For years I watched, read and learned from many of the vets around these parts. I've always wanted to go to law school and as a 40 something I decided to finally do it. The American Institute of Law and NWCU Law were my two top choices. Their flexibility, pricing and asynchronous learning options made them both extremely appealing. Ultimately I decided to go with AIL - largely due to their model and setup. Classes run for a year, during which students take one class at a time. As a 1L student, I am enrolled in the following courses:

• Law 100 – Introduction to Law
  
• Law 101 – Contracts
  
• Law 102 – Torts
  
• Law 103 – Criminal Law
  
• Law 104 – Legal Analysis and Writing
  
• Law 105 – First Year Skills Workshop
  

The school is accredited by the CA Bar, but is not ABA accredited.   American Institute of Law is registered by the California Committee of Bar Examiners of the State Bar of California as an unaccredited correspondence law school. Graduates of American Institute of Law are qualified to sit for the California Bar Examination and, upon passage, may become a licensed California attorney and counselor at law, and may practice in federal and state courts.


I started three weeks ago and I'll make an effort to update as I go along.  The first two weeks of class is Intro to Law. The grade is made up of attendance (either on the live lectures or accessing the archived version) and by completing six briefs. I was allll nerves turning in my first brief but the Professor provides a format that is easy enough to follow to make briefing not sooo bad.  I ended up with an A on my assignments and for listening to the archived lectures. Next, was a week of Introduction to Contracts. Not painful at all - simple and to the point giving the basics of contracts, some key definitions and background. At the start of my fourth week, is Introduction to Torts. Again, it is torts basics, key words, etc. 

Thinking about my first impressions a few weeks in:

• the school website is easy to navigate and locating materials are simple
  
• my classmates are almost all older students with all the demands of life and career
  
• the work, reading, etc hasn't been overwhelming - I spend about 10 hours a week working through the content
  
• the school uses BarBri and WestLaw as additional resources (BarBri is great)!
  

Let's talk Money....

Compared to NWCU Law I think the costs are negligible. First year tuition and fees at AIL is $5480. I received a scholarship from the school for $2000, making my 1L year costs around $3480. I split that into monthly payments of $256.92. The school has MANY options to pay based upon your budget - which I appreciate. There are no checks, I simply pay online via their portal monthly with my debit card. 

Books -  I spent a total of $300 for all of my outlines and casebooks. They are all used and older editions which I am completely fine with!

  Cali


JD - American Institute School of Law - Started March 2023
MBA/MPM - ENEB,  2022
BS - Liberal Arts - Excelsior College 2000
AA - Polk State College 1996

[jsd]

Good luck! There's a lot to like about AIL, but since it's just approved by CalBar but not accredited by CalBar, it wasn't on my list of potential schools. I wanted nothing to do with the Baby Bar exam and I appreciated that NWCU had a decent state bar pass rate.

It's nice that AIL has one course at a time setup like that. You can kind of make your own schedule to do it that way at NWCU, but the way they make you submit assignments at NWCU makes it a little impractical (when you submit an assignment, you submit that particular group of assignments all at the same time for all 4 courses you're enrolled in for the year).

[AnonJD2027]

Good luck! There's a lot to like about AIL, but since it's just approved by CalBar but not accredited by CalBar, it wasn't on my list of potential schools. I wanted nothing to do with the Baby Bar exam and I appreciated that NWCU had a decent state bar pass rate.

It's nice that AIL has one course at a time setup like that. You can kind of make your own schedule to do it that way at NWCU, but the way they make you submit assignments at NWCU makes it a little impractical (when you submit an assignment, you submit that particular group of assignments all at the same time for all 4 courses you're enrolled in for the year).

Thank you so much for your sentiments! I am hopeful that the Baby Bar won't be an issue. I know that you will rock NWCU! I will be following your journey as well. 

JD - American Institute School of Law - Started March 2023
MBA/MPM - ENEB,  2022
BS - Liberal Arts - Excelsior College 2000
AA - Polk State College 1996

[AnonJD2027]

*****WEEK FIVE UPDATE*****

Well, we just finished week four and my first week of torts. This week we do Contracts. I've come up with a bit of a rhythm now and it is working thus far. I do the following at the top of each week:

1. Plan - I take a look at the syllabus and calendar to see what is due (readings, topics discussed in class, outline updates, anything due) ... I literally write down in my planner what I have to do, etc.
2. Preview - I take the next 20 mins or so and actually skim over what the material is we are to cover. I don't read verbatim here - just skim so that I can be abreast of whats happening. I make ANKI cards for anything (terms) that are important that I cannot easily recall.
3. View - it is lecture time! I sit through the lecture either live or via the archive. I don't take extensive notes, unless it is something the Prof indicates is a MUST KNOW. Other than that, I pay attention and listen.
4. Review - The next day after class, I typically review the Barbri shorts on the topic in question. They offer full outlines and video reviews of all 1L courses.
5. Practice Test - I teach back! What I mean is my boyfriend is gracious enough to allow me to teach him back what I learned. If it is a concept I cant teach back,, that is something that needs to be on an ANKI card! And then, I repeat!!
6. Repeat

[jsd]

I think I misunderstood the setup previously. So you're not taking one course at a time until it's fully complete, but the schedule has you focusing on one course at a time for specific time period, but that focus changes occasionally. Makes sense.

[AnonJD2027]

Exactly! I am back to Contracts this week.

[MBA2JD]

Update: I am midway through and set to take Midterms next month. In full transparency, I've learned very little. There is one Professor for all of my 1L courses. It is an incredible task to sit through the same Prof for all classes when the Prof style is not a fit. So, while I think this program may be a great fit for some, it is simply not a fit for me. So here were the few moments that were sobering for me:

1. Because my Professor tends to stray off topic 95% of the time, it is increasingly difficult to sort what is applicable for exams and what is not. I looked at my bank statement and realized I am spending money on Quimbee, Casebriefs.co, studicata and Flemings! Why? Because each of these resources have taught the concepts in such a way that I understand how to apply the law. Why am I spending so much on supplements to accommodate for a Prof who is unclear? Crazy!

2. The Baby Bar. Do I need to say more? So, on top of the additional money I am spending on supplements to learn the law, I now have to buy a Baby Bar prep package and pay to take the Baby Bar. It just doesn't make any sense to me. I had no issue with taking it at the beginning, because I truly believed that I would be supported and taking it would be a breeze. On top of the other expenses I named, it just doesn't make sense.

3. I was accepted to NWCU Law where these issues become non issues. I do not have to take the Baby Bar and they provide supplements to support content that students have access to at no additional cost. For me, it is a no-brainer. I will be withdrawing from the program at AIL and enrolling at NWCU Law immediately.

---

I think I misunderstood the setup previously. So you're not taking one course at a time until it's fully complete, but the schedule has you focusing on one course at a time for specific time period, but that focus changes occasionally. Makes sense.

How are things going at NWCU?

[bjcheung77]

AnonJD2027 / MBA2JD, thanks for the update, it's great you've decided that NWCU is a better option than AIL (after some trials and tribulations). BTW, Is there a need to have two accounts? I see you've posted in this thread with two different accounts... You might want to get the admin/webmaster to merge the accounts if needed or to remove one as it can get confusing.

[MBA2JD]

AnonJD2027 / MBA2JD, thanks for the update, it's great you've decided that NWCU is a better option than AIL (after some trials and tribulations).  BTW, Is there a need to have two accounts? I see you've posted in this thread with two different accounts... You might want to get the admin/webmaster to merge the accounts if needed or to remove one as it can get confusing.

Hey there! Yes, I had one previously (and couldn't remember the login) and apparently created another to start this thread. I didn't know we could merge accounts. I will send a request, and thank you!

[MBA2JD]

Update: I am midway through and set to take Midterms next month. In full transparency, I've learned very little.  There is one Professor for all of my 1L courses. It is an incredible task to sit through the same Prof for all classes when the Prof style is not a fit.  So, while I think this program may be a great fit for some, it is simply not a fit for me. So here were the few moments that were sobering for me:

1.  Because my Professor tends to stray off topic 95% of the time, it is increasingly difficult to sort what is applicable for exams and what is not. I looked at my bank statement and realized I am spending money on Quimbee, Casebriefs.co, studicata and Flemings! Why? Because each of these resources  have taught the concepts in such a way that I understand how to apply the law. Why am I spending so much on supplements to accommodate for a Prof who is unclear? Crazy!

2. The Baby Bar. Do I need to say more? So, on top of the additional money I am spending on supplements to learn the law, I now have to buy a Baby Bar prep package and pay to take the Baby Bar. It  just doesn't make any sense to me. I had no issue with taking it at the beginning, because I truly believed that I would be supported and taking it would be a breeze. On top of the other expenses I named, it just doesn't make sense.

3. I was accepted to NWCU Law where these issues become non issues. I do not have to take the Baby Bar and they provide supplements to support content that students have access to at no additional cost. For me, it is a no-brainer. I will be withdrawing from the program at AIL and enrolling at NWCU Law immediately.

---

I think I misunderstood the setup previously. So you're not taking one course at a time until it's fully complete, but the schedule has you focusing on one course at a time for specific time period, but that focus changes occasionally. Makes sense.

How are things going at NWCU?

  @jsd NWCU is going well! I am about 5 months in and am pushing along. The def assignment was long (400 definitions and 400 sentences)... On to knocking out the case briefs then midterms in April!