Concord Law School

I am sharing my experience and OPINION. I WAS a first year law student that started April 1st, 2016. Oh the irony of that date. I am posting this to inform others of my disappointment with Concord as I learn about more and more of my fellow classmates being dismissed due to a C- grade, it seems this is the majority of my class (so far maybe 3-4 that actually moved on to take the FYLSE). I am not afraid to go public with my disappointment with Concord, this is outrageous that they would do this to a class and their students that they are supposed to be getting to the exam. Upon speaking with other schools, my grades would have been well above passing along with my classmates. What a way to protect your FYLSE pass rate, by eliminating those of us that you think wont pass that exam, that is what it looks like from here. That is unfair to it's core. Telling us that a C- is failing with the State Bar, when other schools say differently, a mere 2.0 gets them to the exam, even with lower grades, and they have notice to improve, not just dismissal and thank you for your 10k. Shame on you Concord. I am just glad I learned this before proceeding any further. The one instructor that teaches the subjects does not even practice in California and can not answer any of your questions, its a joke. AVOID.

I finished my JD in 2008. As an adult, with a family and a business, I always wanted to go to law school, but life derailed my ambitions, and I had always seen law school as one of those things "I should have done.." Working in the telecom industry, I figured that the time had come (in 2003) to look into whether it would be possible to do an on-line degree. I was excited, my husband suspicious. I let him vet the program and he decided it would be a good opportunity, and (back then) the price seemed right! The books are the same that all law schools use, and many of the professors were also professors in brick and mortar schools. For the most part, they were great. A couple were not. But that is probably the case with all schools. I found that school was always responsive, as were the professors. The best were the friends and study mates that I found along the way. Some of us met at the end of the first year, studying in LA with Bracci for the FYLSE> Others, I met at graduation. Many are still my friends and we visit when we can. They were an amazing group. Unlike other law schools, we were all older, with careers and previous degrees that law was building on. Most other law schools are filled with recent or relatively recent college grads, who have no idea what the work world is about. I have taught as a fill in for a friend at a local, prestigious law school, and I know what they students there are like, smart, but not like the students at Concord. Law school is hard, on-line school is hard, and you are on your own, no one to coddle you to finish your work or graduate. But it is an amazing opportunity. As for the technology, I imagine it is much more sophisticated now than 10 years ago, when I was there. Back then, however, it was pretty great, on-line classes, teachers picking on you to answer, but then the opportunity to view the lectures on your own time, if you had conflicts because of your kids soccer game or a business meeting. Great.

After reading the reviews, I had to speak up! I am in my 1st year, so i'm speaking from that perspective. The value of this online education is directly related to the time you dedicate to it. The format is very easy to follow, but only if you have the time. Like any Law school, it is hard. You must dedicate your time. The format is in Modules: 1,2,3 etc. If you follow the format, read the material, watch the video, attend the class, and take the quiz, you WILL get it! There really is no way to fail if you do the program exactly as it is set up! It is TIME consuming, and you must have it to succeed. I did great the first few Modules, as I dedicated the time to it. However, I am working full time, and more hours than I was supposed to. This has caused me to lag in my studies! Through no fault of Concord, i am unable to keep up! It is about time and dedication. If you are not working full time, and are only working 20 hours a week, or less, you can do it. If you are working full time, you wont be able to do it. Regardless if you manage your time. Not if you have any family or life at all..Its all about dedication, and working part time or less. I WOULD RECOMMEND CONCORD TO ANYONE. But you must have the TIME!

One of the most frustrating features of this program was the administrative level of communication, or lack of same. I found once I had posted a question it took several days if not longer to receive a response if at all. The posting of semester grades was unacceptable. It was my experience that semester grades were not posted in a timely manner. The grades from a previous semester consistently were not posted until at least two/three weeks into the current semester. Clearly this created registration/financial aid issues. If you waited for your grades to register you were locked out of the Concord portal. This exasperated an already frustrating scenario. It also resulted in my beginning the current semester two/three weeks behind the pace set by the Concord Administration. The series of on line lectures for the Constitutional Law course were a taped voice only,there was no visual component to the lesson. Lack of visual input created a poor learning environment. Unfortunately many of the pre-taped videos were older and of a lesser quality. At no point did I experience a live face to face video conference/discussion with a professor. Based upon this experience I have pursued other options.

Concord Law is divided into three basic learning environments, (1) Prerecorded video lectures, (2) live online lectures, and (3) self-study. CLS use of technology to advance learning is extremely poor. (1) prerecorded lectures is simply a video of a lecturing professor. No visual learning aides are utilized. (2) Live online lectures allows only the instructor to speak, the student must type their answer, similar to a text message. The instructors rarely use the available online presentation board. The ability to lecture and engage a classroom is nearly non-existent. I actually had instructors who would ring a bell and scream into the microphone. The instructors either remain tightly scripted to their notes, or they spend the entire class telling war stories. The instructors also control all written questions and can elect to not even acknowledge a student's question. The live sessions rarely add to the student's knowledge. CLS has added a new feature for actual video conference, including the ability for student to speak VOIP, but the experience is rather poor. As for the self-study, you are on your own. Instructors respond only by internal email, which logs each email, and does not support replies. Therefore, the student emails their question, the instructor provides a rhetorical answer, and the student has to cut and paste the original email in order to raise any additional questions. Poor email construction and prone to failures. CLS FYLSE failure rate is 75%, the BAR exam is 85% The failure rates relate directly to the inability of CLS to clearly breakdown concepts and challenge the student's learning. If you want to pass either State Exams, do not the follow CLS methods, they are very ineffective. The majority of their JD students either fail out of the program or drop down in the executive JD program, which does not require any state exams, as it does not allow the earner to be eligible to take the State Bar Exams. Their academic advisers are terrible. My 1st year stated that achieving excellence in law school was not realistic and that I should embrace just passing. She also stated that the model essay writings were perfect for passing the FYLSE and that I should copy them word for word. My 2nd year adviser stated that the model essay answers were terrible as a method for passing the exams. When a instructor refused to take the time to review my legal writings with me, so that I might improve; she only stated that I should consider filing a complaint. The JD program is not a part-time program, but a full-time program. Though you read the same legal resources as traditional law schools, the lack of support from the instructors and the institution renders CLS ineffective. CLS also refuses to follow the general flow of all their texts. Preferring to jump back in forth in the text, because they feel that the concepts are presented out of order. The truth is that the concepts are perfectly in order and follow a very logical flow from simple conceptual understanding to more in depth learning. Approaching the part-time instructors is useless. Their answers are general in nature, rhetorical, and ineffective in clarifying the subject matter. I once able to have one of my instructors call me concerning my questions. He called me from his cell phone on the way to work in rush hour traffic. The conversation was useless as he could not reference anything that I was presenting, and he was focused on arriving to his full-time job on time. Real professional. The weekend review sessions for the state exams are ineffective. If you want to pass the state exams, pay a professional to either tutor you or attend a reputable preparation program. The CLS questions and essays are very general in nature and do not prepare the test taker for the more difficult state exams. Student inclusion and student participation is very low. One student does all the responding, while everyone else logs in and then either falls asleep or walks away from their computer. If you join CLS, be prepared to be on your own.

I am so happy to be a student at Concord Law. I am an ESL student and for me to score high in LSAT is almost impossible. Because of that I waste thousands of dollars applying law schools each year without any success for about 10 years. Concord Law gave me a case study exam which is very easy in my point of view. This is my first year and the course is not so intense as I have expected. I am happy to have the same privilege to take the bar exam like any other law students after my graduation. At the same time, I don't have to struggle to pay my student loan afterwards since the tuition is inexpensive.

I expected Law School to be hard. It is. I expected it to be expensive. It is, but Concord is less expensive than most brick-and-mortar (b&m) schools. The required books are the same than at many b&m law schools. The taped lectures are by some very well-known law professors and experts in their respective fields. The faculty students interact with at the live chats are very knowledgeable and approachable. Usually the faculty will respond to student's queries within a couple of days. Once when a Prof took a week in responding he apologized and said he had delayed responding because he was doing research in order to make sure he got the right answer for me. And his reply was thorough. Concord Law School prepares students very well for the First Year Law Students Exam. The School supplies multiple choice questions and essay questions and provides feedback on how well we do. Students get to interact on line, form study groups, communicate by email (yahoo groups, for instance, facebook as well) and establish an academic community. Downside? No face-to-face interaction. Skype helps, but it is just not the same. I miss that, although I have managed to meet some of my classmates in person. We are restricted from discussing our exam questions in the aftermath of them. This is an Honor Code restriction, The reasoning goes that because students start at different times in the year and advance at different speeds, we never know who has taken an exam and who has not. Anyway, that is the way it is. Some of the taped lectures' sound quality is not the best. Not every lecture is updated as frequently as the law changes. I have seen some complaints related to financial aid...I cannot comment on this as I have not had any problems on that score, but I am aware that some classmates have. In conclusion, my time at Concord has been most satisfactory. I am pleased with the quality of the teaching and I am constantly amazed at the talent and variety of experience of classmates--biologists, engineers, medical doctors, business entrepreneurs, computer programers, realtors, artists, writers, nurses, paralegals, anthropologists--and so many more.

This school is all about the money and does not care if they ruin your life. I had to make a decision to continue the last three months of 1L or withdraw for personal health reasons and family health concerns. I spoke with financial aid to ascertain I had passed the magical date for returning of student loans if I withdrew. They stated that I would owe them nothing, and that they would not have to return any of the student loan. I informed them that if they had to, I would continue, even though it would be a hardship. They knew I detrimentally relied on the information they provided. Relieved, I withdrew to help care for my family after a member's medically-induced coma and near-death experiences. The nightmare begins, because they returned $3K of the student loan and demand money. I am paying my student loan and can not pay them as well. I can not return to school because I owe them money....the money they claimed I would not owe. Northwest California is the better way to go...more one on one interaction with the professors....quick replies to email...and at two-thirds the price. Don't let them lie to you. Get anything they say in writing. They will ruin your life...and they don't care.

Concord is one of the most expensive online schools, yet you get nothing for what you pay. Faculties are not good at all. Grading is not good, or fair. My essay was graded each time by a different TA, and confusing comments are received. Always same grades, even if you address all issues, and they comment that you have addressed all the issues. The Faculty is horrible. They get few students of their own circle, interact with them and get them good grades at the end. I received Criminal Law A, Tort B and contract C in my Final, my grade was B, C, C- when it was posted. Faculty, sometimes are expensive , stuck up attorneys, who make you feel stupid, and put you down, any time you ask or email a question. Financial Aid, make you cry and scream. Mistakes, after mistakes, lies after lies. You don't receive any support at this school. I am trying to pass FYLSE by the help of Flemings materials, and I think, I will be successful. Meanwhile, what do we get? The stuck up detached school, posts there that or, only GPA:over 3 would pass FYLSE.... It is a huge mistake to start with them. I had a great GPA(over 3.5) when I applied to them, I worked very hard, I receive stuck up Professors, confused, scattered TAs, and very unorganized Financial Aid, taking over 10,000 USD every year, holing your book and educational assistance up at school and mislead you that you would receive the money anyday. Overall, a system of dictatorship, hypocrisy, control and stuck up , phoney instructors, all playing a game they care about the students, they never do. They even control the Web sides and post numerous dependent websites and filter students comments. They posted the GPA in correlation to passing FYLSE to show that it is students fault if they don't pass, hey look good students pass, some one need to ask what happened to 7 years after that Data? why aren't you posting that? They are so phoney, they are so Hippocratic, they are rip off, and never think of student, just phoney to take your money... Students...! don't go there, if you care .... ask few people before you do....

Instructors discuss cases not assigned. Test on material not assigned. I'm ready to leave as soon as I have started. They need to be more organized and give more support. I can see the writing on the wall and this certainly is not for anyone with a full-time or even a part-time job. This is a 10 hour a day course. Don't spend the money unless you REALLY and I MEAN REALLY have that much time to devote.

Overall, it has potential. The idea of study law online is an intriguing one and has potential in the future. However, the programme as it stands does need some improvements. The archived lectures, while at times interesting, skip and it's frustrating not being able to ask the lecturer a question directly. A few of them are audio only, which, for me is unacceptable. Furthermore, the live lectures, while at times interesting, are subject to some audio issues and use audio and IM only- no video. Sadly, for a programme that relies on technology so heavily for its commercial and academic success, the school should upgrade the system. I will say that the faculty are exceptionally helpful and approachable. For that, I gave them a 10.

I chose an online law school because I could not attend a traditional one, could not invest that much time away from home. With online I was able to do the lectures on my schedule and keep up with long nights and weekends. Law School online is hard, and one must be willing to put in the time. I just read a review from a person in the EJD program at Concord claims little support, and that he is unsure of the benefit. Why then is he in the program? This is graduate school, and it seems too many of these people are looking for something easy. It is really hard to believe most of these post. I had lots going on in my life, so it took me four years to complete the EJD, and I feel good about the accomplishment. I'm using the degree in a limited practice of law. If one checks around, there are opportunities if you can pass the exams.

I earned my MBA online, and as an experienced online student I can say Concord is a quality program. Being an online student requires a ton of discipline, and if you expect the professors to hold your hand through the process of earning your degree, it is definitely not for you. But if you need good mentorship and educational discourse, then it's the best way to "virtually" earn your degree and still work in the "real" world. I recomment it highly.

I would have to agree with the above poster. It seems that after they get your money it's hard to get help from them. The advisiors never check on their students. They often change the program, then when there is a problem they say well this is what was in the catalog. I enjoyed the live classes that's why I gave them a 10 on technology. They have this rule that says you must login every 21 days.After the first year I had a lot of problems with them. It seems to be a money thing with them.

i agree with the other reviewer that there is a strong focus on passing certain tests..HELLO, what good is the degree if you don't pass the BAR exam..my experience has been dramatically different than his/hers. The texts are great.. The video classes were fine, although they were , at times, out of sync with the other homework..however, this was a minor inconvenience. i believe you get out of it what you put into it. the feedback was excellent and timely..i've yet to wait more than a few days for an answer to my question. generally, they wouldn't tell me to 'not worry abput it' but to investigate it myself instead of just giving me the answer. i know of many concord graduates that are doing just fine with their degrees. It is pricey, i'll admit, but they haven't steered me wrong yet..so, i'm going to continue on and trust the system...

Am working on their Executive JD program, meaning I study a modifed verson of the JD track and could earn a degree of uncertain value after 3 years (instead of 4). I started in the JD track and, as the pace got faster, transferred to the EJD. The time required is unrealistic for full-time adults. Represented as 15-20 hours per week, it realistically requires 30-35 hours per week on average to properly complete assignments. Being a Kaplan school, Concord's main thrust is teaching how to take the Bar Exam. There is far less interest in discussing concepts or teaching content. More than once online replies to my questions have been "Don't waste your time on that." In the EJD track, teaching support is nearly absent. Quality of feedback is significantly worse, and time for feedback takes much longer. Finally, curriculum materials are often out of date, and video lectures are out of synch with reading assignments making the learning experience more difficult (listening to a lecture on cases not read and not assigned for many weeks in the future). In my opinion, and based on 12-months experience, I find Concord to have misrepresented their program, to deliver a shoddy product which is not being maintained in a timely manner, and to provide support services of uncertain and unpredictable quality. Being among the more expensive distance learning options, they disappoint. And, shamelessly, they keep increasing their tuition by 5% or more each semester, pushing them close to $10,000 per year. Too much, frankly, for the program they deliver. Distance learning degrees are not yet recognized by higher learning accreditation authorities, their credits cannot be transferred, and their degree is not ABA recognized. In other words, all you might possibly get is knowledge, but their program is rigidly focused on passing a test which is of uncertain value to its students -- with very little interest in actually teaching anything. Disappointing, to say the least. I won't be paying them any more for two more years of this silly dance. I have the texts, I will get as much by reading them on my own.