Orientation

Kindly plan to arrive at Albany Law School no later than 8:30 a.m. on Monday to register and receive your Orientation packet. Upon registration you will be officially confirmed as a first-year law student (1L).

The main program and introductions, will begin at 8:45 a.m. in the Dean Alexander Moot Court Room (DAMC). Current Albany Law students who are serving as Albany Law Student Section Advisors will guide you to the DAMC, which is on the 4th floor.

SUGGESTED ATTIRE

Appropriate dress during Orientation is business casual (no t- shirts, jeans, or sneakers, please). We suggest business attire as there will be a swearing-in ceremony and your class photo.

FOOD ACCOMMODATIONS

If you have any special dietary needs (gluten allergy, milk allergy, vegan, etc.), please email the Student Affairs Office at studentaffairs@albanylaw.edu so that we can ensure there is a menu option available for you. Please be sure to notify us in advance so we can make these arrangements.

PARKING

You may park in the parking lot immediately adjacent to the law school off of Holland Avenue. This lot is reserved for 3L students, but as an exception, you may use it during Orientation.

For the school year, you will need a parking permit, which you may apply for via Canvas. Permits will be issued. After completing the Permit Application on Canvas, please stop by the Business Office Suite on the second floor of the 2000 building to pay for your permit and pick up your parking hang tag.

You will need to present a picture ID and current vehicle registration. Only vehicles registered in the name of the applying student, the student’s parent, guardian, or spouse are eligible for a permit.

STUDENT IDS

All members of the Albany Law School Community must have a valid law school photo identification card. You are encouraged to stop by the Business Office Suite (2nd floor of the 2000 building) to have your photo taken for your identification card. The office will be open daily from 9 a.m.-3:30 p.m. All incoming students are required to complete this process.

HOUSING

If you are still looking for housing, please note that the Student Affairs Office maintains a Housing Listserv that is open to all faculty, staff and students. The listserv can be used to advertise an apartment, to find a roommate, or to look for a sublet or an apartment. The Student Affairs Office will email housing information from local landlords as it becomes available. If you would like to be added to the Housing Listserv, please email studentaffairs@albanylaw.edu from your law school email address. Once you have been added to the Listserv, you can email the group at housing@albanylaw.edu.

PREPARING FOR ORIENTATION

As you begin to prepare for Orientation, please keep in mind that it is important that you check your Albany Law School email address frequently as updates will now be sent to this email.

TASK LIST AND REQUIRED PRESENTATIONS

The Task List identifies important documents and presentations that will provide essential information on a wide range of administrative matters, including parking, accessing your email, and student policies for all incoming students. Please use the task list to be sure you have completed all necessary items to make the start of law school easier. Some of the tasks will be in person, on canvas or on the Self-Service for Students Menu on the portal landing page.

As an incoming student, you are required to view each presentation and complete each required agreement prior to the start of Orientation/classes.

ORIENTATION ASSIGNMENTS & READING

You must read and prepare several assignments for the Orientation Course which is found on the Canvas Platform. You can access Canvas through the Albany Law School portal: https://my.albanylaw.edu.

PREPARING FOR WEEK 1 OF LAW SCHOOL

On the law school portal, you will also find information about the various law school departments/offices, your reading assignments for the first week of school, and forms you may need throughout your time at Albany Law School.

COURSE SCHEDULE & 1L ACADEMIC SECTION

As a first-year student, your course schedule is preset.  You will be able to view your schedule using self-service.  Please sign in to the portal with your Albany Law credentials.  https://my.albanylaw.edu

The self-service menu is located on the bottom right.

BOOKSTORE

To “welcome” you, The Bookstore, is offering you a 30% coupon for a one (1) time use on certain full-price clothing, supplies or gift items. You must “sign-up” using the provided link on the postcard (enclosed) in order to obtain the 30% discount. The 30% discount cannot be combined with other offers and expires 30 days from the date of activation so don’t “activate” too soon.
To activate the coupon code, click here: www.dayonewelcome.com.

To order your textbooks for in-store pick-up or home delivery, go to The Bookstore’s website at www.thebookstorealbanyny.com. You will need your course schedule to locate your textbooks and an I.D. at the time of your in-store pickup. We also ask that you have your online order confirmation number (72800000) which can can locate your order.

NAME COACH

All students are required to record the pronunciation of their names using NameCoach. To do so, you can click Name Coach Roster on the left sidebar of the New Student Orientation Course and click record.

FIRST WEEK OF CLASSES - ASSIGNMENTS

To prepare for class the first day, read and brief each case in the assigned readings (you will learn how to brief cases during the sample classes at Orientation). Your professor will also expect you to have your assigned text books in class. Your reading assignments for the first week will be posted on the Student Affairs page of the Portal.

ACADEMIC ACCOMMODATIONS

Please contact academicaffairs@albanylaw.edu at your earliest opportunity if you have a disability or English is your second language and you intend to request accommodations during the academic year. Our law school community is inclusive of all our students and provides appropriate support to them. You can start the accommodation process now by submitting a Request for Academic Accommodations Form and/or English as a Second Language Form, which can be found on the Portal (Student Affairs page). If you would like your accommodation in place by the first day of classes, you must return your documentation to the Academic and Student Affairs Office or email it to academicaffairs@albanylaw.edu.

SEATING ACCOMMODATIONS

You will have assigned seats for all of your 1L classes. If you have a documented disability or a physical impairment that requires a special seating accommodation, please email studentaffairs@albanylaw.edu with Seating Accommodation in the subject line. You will receive an email with directions to access the seating assignments in preparation for classes.

FACULTY ADVISOR

At Albany Law School, Faculty Advisors assist students throughout their academic careers. On the first day of Orientation, you will have the opportunity to have lunch with your assigned Faculty Advisor. We hope that you will take advantage of this opportunity to work directly with a faculty mentor in planning the rest of your law school experience.

FIRST-YEAR SEMINAR

Your 1-credit hour first year seminar class will be taken in the fall.  The Registrar’s Office will contact you.