3.52 @ NYU Bidlist NYC/LA Forum

[Anonymous User]

3.52 @ NYU, which should be somewhere around top 20-25%. Mostly bidding NYC/LA (I lived there for 3 years before law school and want to go back) and a couple firms in my home market. Mostly leaning corporate (M&A, Dodd/Frank) or tax, but would be willing to do litigation in LA because I know there isn't much corporate work there. I worked three years out of college in an irrelevant field to law, but have a couple plus factors (semi-diversity and a couple things on my resume that I don't want to disclose here). Also FWIW, I am a pretty good interviewer and have always been comfortable in interview situations. Mostly curious if there is anything I'm missing or if things are in a decent order (I tried to balance number of bids and selectivity). Also, should I move LA firms further down. Ideally I would go to LA, but I'm not sure how competitive it is to get screeners @ LA firms.

1. Skadden (NYC)
2. clifford chance (NYC)
3. Fenwick and West Tax (SV)
4. Skadden (LA)
5. Kirkland (NYC)
6. MoFo (LA)
7. Sidley Austin (NYC)
8. Bingham McCutchen (NYC)
9. Paul Hastings (LA)
10. O'Melveny (Century City)
11. Gibson Dunn (LA)
12. Covington & Burling (NYC)
13. Latham (LA)
14. Shearman & Sterling (NYC)
15. White & Case (NYC)
16. Milbank (NYC)
17. Cahill (NYC)
18. Mayer Brown (LA)
19. Paul Weiss (NYC)
20. Debevoise (NYC)
21. Cleary (NYC)
22. Chadbourne & Park (NYC)
23. Davis Polk (NYC)
24. Jones Day (NYC)
25. Simpson Thacher (NYC)
26. Willkie Farr (NYC)
27. Proskauer Rose (LA)
28. Linklaters (NYC)
29. Akin Gump (LA)
30. Sullivan & Cromwell (LA)
31. Irell & Manella (LA)
32. Munger, Tolles & Olson (LA)
33. Sidley Austin (LA)
34. Arnold & Porter (LA)
35. Sheppard Mullin (Century City)
36. Stroock (NYC)
37. Mannatt Phelps (LA)
38. Dechert (NYC)
39. Cravath (NYC)
40. Quinn Emanuel (LA)
41. Cadwalader (NYC)
42. Perkins Coie (LA)
43. Schulte Roth and Zabel (NYC)
44-46. Home market firms.

[dixiecupdrinking]

Looks pretty good to me. If Sidley shares interview spots for all offices, I would definitely move them up (I bid them in the 20s or so and didn't get an interview last year, but that was for NYC). I would probably move Jones Day up. I think you can move DPW and STB down, they have tons of interview slots and are quite selective and I believe it's possible to get interviews there into the 40s. Depends on how crestfallen you'd be if you didn't get those interviews though.

I don't have any idea about LA, sorry. My hunch is that there isn't much competition for those screeners.

[Old Gregg]

With a 3.52 at NYU you'll have a decent shot at one of the firms that specializes in Dodd Frank shit: Davis Polk. Try your best to interview with them.

[itbdvorm]

With a 3.52 at NYU you'll have a decent shot at one of the firms that specializes in Dodd Frank shit: Davis Polk. Try your best to interview with them.

Agree with the above.

Also, not sure what your rationale is, but if you want LA I would move Latham and Gibson up (the two premiere LA corp practices) and drop OMM/PH a bit

edit - and CC #2? that seems really odd to me

[Anonymous User]

With a 3.52 at NYU you'll have a decent shot at one of the firms that specializes in Dodd Frank shit: Davis Polk. Try your best to interview with them.

Agree with the above.

Also, not sure what your rationale is, but if you want LA I would move Latham and Gibson up (the two premiere LA corp practices) and drop OMM/PH a bit

edit - and CC #2? that seems really odd to me

OP Here: Mostly just based on number of interviews available. Latham/GDC have twice the number of screener slots as OMM/PH. CC doesn't have many slots and I feel fairly confident about getting an offer from them due to personal connections, so I wanted to make sure I snagged the screener without having to resort to getting an interview through back channels.

Also, I have a pre-EIW callback interview at Weil after getting turned down for a 1L SA position, which is why it's not on this list.

[legalmindedfella]

Anecdotally, OP, I've heard Shearman goes away far quicker than the bid number you've put it at. Similar Jones Day NYC. (Popular targets/reaches, from a wide range of GPAs). I'd move both up significantly if you have interest. Mostly looks like a good list, though I'm no expert.

[Old Gregg]

Firms that are reaches for everyone will be easy to get at lower bid numbers. Firms that are more target-ish for most of the class but still elite and safe will be the most highly sought out firms, next to firms that are not that selective but are doing somewhat well.

[dixiecupdrinking]

Firms that are more target-ish for most of the class but still elite and safe will be the most highly sought out firms

FWIW, at least at NYU, firms that usually fall in this category include Kirkland, Ropes, Jones Day, Sidley, Skadden, Latham. They're "reaches" but not out of the question for people around median so they get snapped up quickly.

I just found an excel spreadsheet with my bidlist in order from EIW 2011. I don't want to post it on here but if anyone from NYU wants to PM me with specific questions I can give you one person's experience about whether bidding a firm at a particular spot resulted or didn't result in an interview.

[Anonymous User]

just FYI 3.52 is more like top 30%....cutoff for top 25% was 3.58

[Anonymous User]

just FYI 3.52 is more like top 30%....cutoff for top 25% was 3.58

Pretty sure its not that high. I have heard alternately anywhere from 3.48-3.53 being the cutoff for top 25%...

[Anonymous User]

just FYI 3.52 is more like top 30%....cutoff for top 25% was 3.58

That's for 3L's and Latin honors (cum laude). After 1L, top 25% is about 3.47-3.5.

[apparentlynew]

That's for 3L's and Latin honors (cum laude). After 1L, top 25% is about 3.47-3.5.

Is the median approximately 3.3, like Wikipedia says?

Also, can you say where you saw the quartile information you're referring to? If not, I understand.

Thanks!

[Anonymous User]

OP here: Before I submit my final list I wanted to know of there were any glaring issues:

1. Skadden (NYC)
2. Fenwick Tax Group (SV)
3. Bingham McCutchen (NYC)
4. Shearman & Sterling (NYC)
5. Skadden (LA)
6. Latham (LA)
7. GDC (LA)
8. Covington & Burling (NYC)
9. OMM (Century City)
10. clifford chance (NYC)
11. Cahill (NYC)
12. Fried Frank (NYC)
13. Milbank (NYC)
14. Paul Hastings (LA)
15. Jones Day (NYC)
16. Kirkland (LA)
17. Paul Weiss (NYC)
18. Debevoise (NYC)
19. Chadbourne & Parke (NYC)
20. Willkie (NYC)
21. Cleary (NYC)
22. Sidley (LA)
23. Davis Polk (NYC)
24. Proskauer (LA)
25. STB (LA)
26. Sullivan & Cromwell (LA)
27. Linklaters (NYC)
28. Akin Gump (LA)
29. Irell (LA)
30. MTO (LA)
31. Arnold & Porter (LA)
32. Sheppard Mullin (Century City)
33. Stroock (NYC)
34. Dechert (NYC)
35. Cravath (NYC)
36. Jenner & Block (NYC)
37. Quinn Emanuel (LA)
38. SRZ (NYC)
39. Ropes & Gray (NYC)
40. Orrick (NYC)
41. MoFo (LA)
42. Perkins Coie (LA)
43. Mayer Brown (LA)
44. Cadwalader (NYC)
45. White and Case (NYC)
46. Wilmer Hale (NYC)
47-48. Home Market firms
49. Manatt Phelps (LA)