Questions on Boston SA Market Forum

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Questions on Boston SA Market

Post by Anonymous User » Sat Feb 09, 2013 2:17 pm

Pretty much snowed in for the weekend and though I would finally contribute something to TLS. I've been seeing a lot of activity on threads for the Boston schools so figured I would see if there were any questions on the SA market or (very, very generally) the job market.

For Background:
I worked in the Boston market my 1L summer and will be doing an SA at one of the three firms that would argue they are tops in the Boston market. I networked, probably excessively, during my 1L year so I am pretty familiar with most of the major players in the market. I attend one of HYS and have no real ties to that market beyond summering here after 1L year.

Shoot

2013applicant

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Re: Questions on Boston SA Market

Post by 2013applicant » Sat Feb 09, 2013 2:23 pm

What are your favorite menu items from the Boston Market?

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lawhopeful10

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Re: Questions on Boston SA Market

Post by lawhopeful10 » Sat Feb 09, 2013 2:32 pm

Any general networking advice you would give, ill be trying to crack the Atlanta market from UGA and would appreciate any advice.

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Re: Questions on Boston SA Market

Post by Anonymous User » Sat Feb 09, 2013 2:54 pm

lawhopeful10 wrote:Any general networking advice you would give, ill be trying to crack the Atlanta market from UGA and would appreciate any advice.
Most of the stuff is pretty basic. Check with your school's office of career services and the ATL bar to learn about events to which law students are invited. When you go to events actually try to talk to people and keep notes on the back of their business card after the event. Within a few days send them an e-mail thanking them for speaking with you and mentioning something you talked about in your conversation. During 2L interview season you will likely run into either people who know them or the actual person themselves and the fact that you know someone will give you a talking point and show some interest in the firm. Despite how busy they are, people will remember speaking with you (or at least that you e-mailed them).

In general, though, the ATL market is tough. I applied to a few ATL firms and got a biglaw offer but had nowhere near the success I had in other markets.

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Re: Questions on Boston SA Market

Post by Anonymous User » Sat Feb 09, 2013 4:33 pm

There is no "cracking the ATL market" from UGA, as that is your primary market. The only thing you have to do is get top 10% and LR, although there were a couple of kids from my year who were on LR and struck out in ATL.

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2013applicant

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Re: Questions on Boston SA Market

Post by 2013applicant » Sat Feb 09, 2013 4:37 pm

2013applicant wrote:What are your favorite menu items from the Boston Market?
Please respond.

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Re: Questions on Boston SA Market

Post by spyke123 » Sat Feb 09, 2013 4:42 pm

any reason for your decision to work in Boston if you have no ties? (especially if you go YS)

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Re: Questions on Boston SA Market

Post by spyke123 » Sat Feb 09, 2013 4:45 pm

also, how competitive would you say the boston market is/how responsive were the local firms to people without ties?

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Re: Questions on Boston SA Market

Post by 2013applicant » Sat Feb 09, 2013 4:47 pm

spyke123 wrote:also, how competitive would you say the boston market is/how responsive were the local firms to people without ties?
It really depends what time of the day you go. If you hit the lunch or dinner rush it's going to be pretty competitive to get in and out in a short amount of time.

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Re: Questions on Boston SA Market

Post by paintbynumbers » Sat Feb 09, 2013 4:48 pm

Boston Market mac n cheese= the best

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Re: Questions on Boston SA Market

Post by KaNa1986 » Sat Feb 09, 2013 6:00 pm

I heard that Boston firms are very grade conscious and very competitive. At top what % of one's class at HYS would make that person competitive for a SA position at one of the top three firms in Boston?

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Re: Questions on Boston SA Market

Post by bernaldiaz » Sat Feb 09, 2013 6:22 pm

Since you are using the anon feature, maybe you could give a few more specifics. I know I'd really appreciate them :D Could you specify which HYS you are at? I imagine Harvard may be a little different than YS in the Boston market. Do you have extensive ties to the Boston area? What type of opportunities did you find for 1L summer in Boston?

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Re: Questions on Boston SA Market

Post by Anonymous User » Sat Feb 09, 2013 6:25 pm

I'm a 2L at a t14 and grew up/went to undergrad in New England. During this past OCI, I targeted Boston firms and had a handful of callbacks but no offers from those firms. I ended up accepting an SA from a V15 New York firm, but for a variety of reasons (mainly dislike of NYC cost of living and billable hours expectations) I would prefer to work at a Boston firm.

(a) This might be beyond your expertise, but how realistic would it be for me to land a post-graduation job at a Boston firm during 3L OCI? I should have the grades and ties to be competitive, but I'm not sure how much 3L hiring Boston firms do, especially Ropes/Wilmer/Goodwin.

(b) If I want to eventually lateral in to the Boston market in 2-4 years, what practice areas would probably be in most demand?

(c) More generally, I got the sense that Boston firms were a little more cautious with hiring for 2013 SAs than they were for 2012 SAs. Was this something you felt as well, or am I just rationalizing my inability to get a Boston offer?

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Re: Questions on Boston SA Market

Post by Anonymous User » Sat Feb 09, 2013 7:30 pm

spyke123 wrote:any reason for your decision to work in Boston if you have no ties? (especially if you go YS)
Basically, I come into interviewing process knowing that I wouldn't be going to NYC and really planning on going to DC. During DC callbacks I realized I didn't love the city as much as I thought and, since I was leaning toward corporate work, there weren't a ton of firms that met my interests. Ultimately, I decide I didn't have a strong preference between Boston and DC so I just really chose based on firm more so than city. Ended up really liking the people at the firm I ultimately chose and they have a strong corporate practice so it seemed like a good choice.

In terms of Boston as a city, there are definite ups and downs. People definitely aren't as warm and friendly as they are other places but they are generally reasonably nice. Cost of living is somewhat high but not ridiculous. Lots of nice green spaces, great schools, decent transportation, etc. Checked all the boxes for requirements I wanted a city to meet.
spyke123 wrote:also, how competitive would you say the boston market is/how responsive were the local firms to people without ties?
The Boston market is pretty competitive and ties are important for a certain class of people. The big national players (Ropes/Wilmer/Goodwin/Bingham/etc) dont care much about ties but the more local firms do. Of course, to get in with the big national players you need either very, very good grades or a truly elite law school on your resume. I pretty much struck out with the smaller Boston based firms despite having quite a few options among the firms considered "more selective." If you aren't at a top-5 school and don't have very, very good grades you will probably struggle. Granted I have only seen class lists from the top 4 or so Boston firms, but what I have seen BU/BC/Suffolk and the like were not all that well represented.

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Re: Questions on Boston SA Market

Post by Anonymous User » Sat Feb 09, 2013 7:34 pm

bernaldiaz wrote:Since you are using the anon feature, maybe you could give a few more specifics. I know I'd really appreciate them :D Could you specify which HYS you are at? I imagine Harvard may be a little different than YS in the Boston market. Do you have extensive ties to the Boston area? What type of opportunities did you find for 1L summer in Boston?
Ehh.. None of HYS is treated that different in Boston. All three place well with people who want to be here. Like I said earlier, I had no ties to the Boston area. I worked for a non-profit during my 1L summer but the opportunities run the entire gamut. Law firms, NGOs, gov't, start-ups, big local companies (e.g. State Street) all hire 1Ls.

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Re: Questions on Boston SA Market

Post by Anonymous User » Sat Feb 09, 2013 7:36 pm

KaNa1986 wrote:I heard that Boston firms are very grade conscious and very competitive. At top what % of one's class at HYS would make that person competitive for a SA position at one of the top three firms in Boston?
Varies by the rest of your resume and interpersonal skills. If you have a decent to good resume and good interviewing skills you can get in from pretty much any rank at HYS. I am somewhere in the bottom half of the class and got offers from 3 of the top 4.

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Re: Questions on Boston SA Market

Post by Anonymous User » Sat Feb 09, 2013 7:43 pm

Anonymous User wrote:I'm a 2L at a t14 and grew up/went to undergrad in New England. During this past OCI, I targeted Boston firms and had a handful of callbacks but no offers from those firms. I ended up accepting an SA from a V15 New York firm, but for a variety of reasons (mainly dislike of NYC cost of living and billable hours expectations) I would prefer to work at a Boston firm.

(a) This might be beyond your expertise, but how realistic would it be for me to land a post-graduation job at a Boston firm during 3L OCI? I should have the grades and ties to be competitive, but I'm not sure how much 3L hiring Boston firms do, especially Ropes/Wilmer/Goodwin.

(b) If I want to eventually lateral in to the Boston market in 2-4 years, what practice areas would probably be in most demand?

(c) More generally, I got the sense that Boston firms were a little more cautious with hiring for 2013 SAs than they were for 2012 SAs. Was this something you felt as well, or am I just rationalizing my inability to get a Boston offer?
a) I dont think anyone can say with certainty but unless something drastic happens you shouldn't expect much summer hiring. With the exception of maybe Goodwin, summer classes are down pretty much across the board and from what I have heard you shouldn't expect that to change.

b) Absolutely no clue. IP and healthcare stuff most likely but I have zero expertise to answer for sure.

c) Boston firms were definitely more cautious for 2013. The top firms were pretty competitive even for HYS candidates (at least relative to how it used to be).

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