Callback Lunches with Junior Associates Forum

[sambeber]

optional lunches.

FTFY.

[Anonymous User]

Bump to ask--

Is it bad to not attend the lunch? If you are trying to do two CBs in one day..? Will it be held against you

Yea the lunch is part of the callback, skipping out on part of the interview, you might as well just skip the entire interview. Think about the message this sends...you are not that interested in the firm, why would they want to give you an offer?

Sorry but I think this is terrible feedback. I was told by multiple practicing attorneys/interviewers that I sought out for OCI advice that honestly you are better off NOT going to lunch, because they are meaningless and no one cares - it doesn't help anyone to get an offer but it can certainly hurt you. These lunches can be like 2 hours long, so its just more time and opportunity to say something off-putting or awkward, in a more casual setting where its 100x more inherently awkward and drawn-out than a traditional interview if you don't mesh or have anything in common. I declined every single lunch invitation and it made zero difference - I did very well during OCI. Do not feel obligated to attend lunches especially if you are being spread thin time-wise - it does not leave a bad impression, and it definitely does NOT equate to skipping a portion of the actual interview. It is optional for a reason, and they mean it - its not some sort of trick to gauge your interest.

[tengorazon]

Lunches are not optional for morning interviews at my firm, and the lunch feedback counts just as much as the feedback from other interviewers. So know the evaluation process before you skip out on lunch. The safe bet is not to skip. Afternoon interviews typically don't include lunch.

[FlightoftheEarls]

Bump to ask--

Is it bad to not attend the lunch? If you are trying to do two CBs in one day..? Will it be held against you

Yea the lunch is part of the callback, skipping out on part of the interview, you might as well just skip the entire interview. Think about the message this sends...you are not that interested in the firm, why would they want to give you an offer?

Sorry but I think this is terrible feedback. I was told by multiple practicing attorneys/interviewers that I sought out for OCI advice that honestly you are better off NOT going to lunch, because they are meaningless and no one cares - it doesn't help anyone to get an offer but it can certainly hurt you. These lunches can be like 2 hours long, so its just more time and opportunity to say something off-putting or awkward, in a more casual setting where its 100x more inherently awkward and drawn-out than a traditional interview if you don't mesh or have anything in common. I declined every single lunch invitation and it made zero difference - I did very well during OCI. Do not feel obligated to attend lunches especially if you are being spread thin time-wise - it does not leave a bad impression, and it definitely does NOT equate to skipping a portion of the actual interview. It is optional for a reason, and they mean it - its not some sort of trick to gauge your interest.

That was not terrible feedback. I would hope you'd understand the logical leap in assuming that just because it worked out for you that skipping lunch would work at every firm and with every person. From my own experience, I know that I received good reviews from each of my interviewers but that it was a glowing review I received from one of the juniors at lunch that set me apart and ultimately landed me the offer at a firm where I eventually summered. This came straight from the mouth of one of my recruiting team friends during the summer.

I certainly wouldn't be so bold as to claim that lunches are vital for every interviewee based on my own experience (unlike your pronouncement), but I can offer evidence that it can make a significant difference at some firms or for some candidates. To say that it's meaningless is a vast overgeneralization.

[Anonymous User]

Bump to ask--

Is it bad to not attend the lunch? If you are trying to do two CBs in one day..? Will it be held against you

Yea the lunch is part of the callback, skipping out on part of the interview, you might as well just skip the entire interview. Think about the message this sends...you are not that interested in the firm, why would they want to give you an offer?

Sorry but I think this is terrible feedback. I was told by multiple practicing attorneys/interviewers that I sought out for OCI advice that honestly you are better off NOT going to lunch, because they are meaningless and no one cares - it doesn't help anyone to get an offer but it can certainly hurt you. These lunches can be like 2 hours long, so its just more time and opportunity to say something off-putting or awkward, in a more casual setting where its 100x more inherently awkward and drawn-out than a traditional interview if you don't mesh or have anything in common. I declined every single lunch invitation and it made zero difference - I did very well during OCI. Do not feel obligated to attend lunches especially if you are being spread thin time-wise - it does not leave a bad impression, and it definitely does NOT equate to skipping a portion of the actual interview. It is optional for a reason, and they mean it - its not some sort of trick to gauge your interest.

That was not terrible feedback. I would hope you'd understand the logical leap in assuming that just because it worked out for you that skipping lunch would work at every firm and with every person. From my own experience, I know that I received good reviews from each of my interviewers but that it was a glowing review I received from one of the juniors at lunch that set me apart and ultimately landed me the offer at a firm where I eventually summered. This came straight from the mouth of one of my recruiting team friends during the summer.

I certainly wouldn't be so bold as to claim that lunches are vital for every interviewee based on my own experience (unlike your pronouncement), but I can offer evidence that it can make a significant difference at some firms or for some candidates. To say that it's meaningless is a vast overgeneralization.

I completely understand that these scenarios vary- I wasn't trying to make quite that bold of a statement. I probably phrased it more strongly than I meant because the earlier advice was incredibly adamant that declining a lunch invitation = a complete lack of interest in the firm and not taking the interview as a whole seriously. I was simply passing on what was told to me and how my experience played out, which was completely opposite to that advice - if the lunch is optional and ESPECIALLY if you are already scheduled pretty tightly, there is no reason to insist to this poster that they need to attend lunch. If the lunch is not optional and attached to a morning interview (I think Willkie does this), then obviously don't skip it. Like I said, I completely understand that lunch interviews can end up being valuable for some candidates, although for me I felt the risks were greater than the potential reward and that more often than not they don't make a difference, but I just wanted to offer the opposite point of view regarding whether someone NEEDS to go to lunch in the first place. If you're comfortable going, then by all means, take full advantage of the lunch component if your schedule allows, but no reason to think that you need to tie yourself into knots over lunch invitations

[AP-375]

OP here: I just finished a callback trip, and was grateful the entire time that I didn't do back-to-back callbacks, although I think it can be done. Some of my afternoon CBs started at 3, and my mornings started at 10:30. You have a fair amount of scheduling control setting these up. With lunch, I was done with my morning CB by 2:30. I think it can be done, but it must be done with ninja proficiency. You must know exactly when you must leave, how you'll get there, and make sure you have enough time to arrive early and stress-free.
Also, I think it is totally ok to let the morning firm know that you're on a schedule. For scheduling purposes, you'll be interfacing with the recruiting coordinator, who I'd imagine will completely understand if you emailed and said: "I'm extremely excited for my interview with your firm. I apologize if this creates any inconvenience, but would it be possible for me to ensure that the lunch concludes by 2:30pm?" He or she will say "Of course", and if it comes up in an interview, the interviewer will not look unfavorably at the fact that you are wanted by another firm.
Just be tactful, grateful, and thoughtful about it, and it can be done.

[bigredforlaw]

TY emails for the junior associates at lunch?

[Anonymous User]

Can we skip lunches?