1L Summer - UNPAID firm job overseas vs. judicial externship Forum

[azukibeanlove]

Hi everyone,

I'm in a bit of a dilemma - I've been offered to work at a firm in its overseas office (Hong Kong) with no pay for this upcoming summer. I have family in HK, but I would still have to pay for my flight. I have to let the firm know in about one week. Should I accept or decline and apply to judicial externships / positions at the PD or DA's office? Please help!

Thanks!

[dood]

...

[azukibeanlove]

Hi everyone,

I'm in a bit of a dilemma - I've been offered to work at a firm in its overseas office (Hong Kong) with no pay for this upcoming summer. I have family in HK, but I would still have to pay for my flight. I have to let the firm know in about one week. Should I take, or should I decline apply to judicial externships / positions at the PD or DA's office? Please help!

Thanks!

wat firm

dla piper.

[RVP11]

Hi everyone,

I'm in a bit of a dilemma - I've been offered to work at a firm in its overseas office (Hong Kong) with no pay for this upcoming summer. I have family in HK, but I would still have to pay for my flight. I have to let the firm know in about one week. Should I take, or should I decline apply to judicial externships / positions at the PD or DA's office? Please help!

Thanks!

wat firm

DLA Piper.

Enjoy!

[Aqualibrium]

I'd go to HK. Judicial exterships are a dime a dozen. IMO, they really aren't that big a deal. The opportunity to get some firm experience, and hang out in Hong Kong is one I wouldn't pass up. Plus it'll be a really interesting thing to talk about on your resume during OCI.

dla piper? Why are you even asking this question lol! GO

[azukibeanlove]

I'd go to HK. Judicial exterships are a dime a dozen. IMO, they really aren't that big a deal. The opportunity to get some firm experience, and hang out in Hong Kong is one I wouldn't pass up. Plus it'll be a really interesting thing to talk about on your resume during OCI.

DLA Piper? Why are you even asking this question lol! GO

Haha, I know, people ask me the same thing. I got really lucky. It's just the no-pay thing... even though judicial externships won't pay either, at least I won't have to pay for flight!

I'll take your advice though. Thanks everyone

[patrickd139]

wat firm

DLA Piper.

Enjoy!

For the love of all things holy, putting dla piper on your resume is worth a fucking plane ticket to Hong Kong.

[dood]

...

[ToTransferOrNot]

wat firm

DLA Piper.

Enjoy!

For the love of all things holy, putting DLA Piper on your resume is worth a fucking plane ticket to Hong Kong.

This.

This is seriously a no-brainer.

[RVP11]

wat firm

DLA Piper.

Enjoy!

For the love of all things holy, putting DLA Piper on your resume is worth a fucking plane ticket to Hong Kong.

So that's basically a +1, right?

[azukibeanlove]

Haha, you guys make me feel like an ungrateful 1L idiot.

And trust me, I know how great this opportunity is, but I keep hearing how judicial externships are better on your resume during OCI's. Not really sure...

[ToTransferOrNot]

Haha, you guys make me feel like an ungrateful 1L idiot.

And trust me, I know how great this opportunity is, but I keep hearing how judicial externships are better on your resume during OCI's. Not really sure....

Edit: You should stop talking to whoever is telling you this. They are trying to sabotage your life.

[azukibeanlove]

Haha, you guys make me feel like an ungrateful 1L idiot.

And trust me, I know how great this opportunity is, but I keep hearing how judicial externships are better on your resume during OCI's. Not really sure....

HAHA point taken.

And the no pay aspect - still worth it?

[ToTransferOrNot]

Your chances of being paid anything 1L summer are low.

Firm experience >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> anything else for OCI. It will give you the ability to talk intelligently about working at a firm. Everyone and their mother works for a judge the summer after 1L year.

Stop thinking about this. Go enjoy Hong Kong for the summer.

[OGR3]

Don't go.

Give them my contact info and I'll go for you.

[patrickd139]

Haha, you guys make me feel like an ungrateful 1L idiot.

And trust me, I know how great this opportunity is, but I keep hearing how judicial externships are better on your resume during OCI's. Not really sure....

HAHA point taken.

And the no pay aspect - still worth it?

I'm going to put a placeholder in here to suggest we're getting trolled.

[patrickd139]

DLA Piper.

Enjoy!

For the love of all things holy, putting DLA Piper on your resume is worth a fucking plane ticket to Hong Kong.

So that's basically a +1, right?

It's a +180. Blame the habit of cost-benefit analysis to back up advice.

[azukibeanlove]

Okay okay thanks everyone.

I didn't think I'd get paid as a 1L summer anywhere either. I just thought that maybe staying in the U.S. for a public sector internship would save me at least plane ticket. But hearing from you guys, I think the decision is clear.

[reasonable_man]

Haha, you guys make me feel like an ungrateful 1L idiot.

And trust me, I know how great this opportunity is, but I keep hearing how judicial externships are better on your resume during OCI's. Not really sure....

Edit: You should stop talking to whoever is telling you this. They are trying to sabotage your life.

I'm in the process of hiring for my firm. I can't even count how many judicial externships Ive seen on the resumes that came across my desk.. However, the number of applicants with biglaw experieince is very small and certainly more interesting to me, personally.

In short, go with the position at DLA..

Why aren't they paying though?

[azukibeanlove]

The person who hired me is an alum of my law school, so this is a side project of his - he is trying his best to send 1L's interested in working abroad to different offices. It's such a great opportunity, and HK is especially GOLDEN for me because I have family there. I jumped when I found out about this opportunity. The biggest issues for me were really just the costs and foregoing judicial internship (and whether that would be detrimental to my resume).

Thank you sooo much for the advice, everyone. Means a lot.

[patrickd139]

The person who hired me is an alum of my law school (Hastings), so this is a side project of his - he is trying his best to send 1L's interested in working abroad to different offices. It's such a great opportunity, and HK is especially GOLDEN for me because I have family there. I jumped when I found out about this opportunity. The biggest issues for me were really just the costs and foregoing judicial internship (and whether that would be detrimental to my resume).

Thank you sooo much for the advice, everyone. Means a lot.

Unless this judicial internship would be a mythical unicorn SCOTUS internship, DLA (even the free, overseas version) is the right answer.

[azukibeanlove]

The person who hired me is an alum of my law school (Hastings), so this is a side project of his - he is trying his best to send 1L's interested in working abroad to different offices. It's such a great opportunity, and HK is especially GOLDEN for me because I have family there. I jumped when I found out about this opportunity. The biggest issues for me were really just the costs and foregoing judicial internship (and whether that would be detrimental to my resume).

Thank you sooo much for the advice, everyone. Means a lot.

Unless this judicial internship would be a mythical unicorn SCOTUS internship, DLA (even the free, overseas version) is the right answer.

LOL. No mythical unicorn here.

[ToTransferOrNot]

Insert meme: Enjoy DLA Piper's Mythical Unicorn Law Practice: It's Not Guided By Reason*!

*Or logic, or whatever the bird law meme is

[FlightoftheEarls]

Why aren't they paying though?

Also curious about this.

[vamedic03]

I'll disagree with all the above posters for the following reasons:

1) I have serious questions about a firm with an unpaid 1L internship and its sketchy that an American firm is operating outside of the NALP guidelines to offer an unpaid internship.

2) Outside of judicial externships, there are lots of other great options for 1L summer - DA's offices, Public Interest organizations, USAO's, etc.

3) 1L summer is your chance to do something that's NOT a firm - if you're interest/set on Big Law, you should take the opportunity your 1L summer to do something that's not BigLaw. Likewise, if you have any inkling that you might want to do public interest / public service down the road, it'd be good to have something legal and NOT biglaw on your resume.

4) Correct me if I'm wrong, but a US to HK ticket is pretty damn expensive ticket; and, a firm has to be really, really friggin' cheap to not only have an unpaid internship but require you to buy the ticket.

Again, I have serious qualms with an American firm offering an unpaid internship.