The Official OCI Megathread: Drama Welcome! Forum

[rahulg91]

I tried to find info on this, but couldn't.

I am "mass" mailing about 20 firms (in my large target market and also smaller backup market.)

Do I just start the email with Dear Ms. Recruiter and then include my cover letter in the body of the email? Attaching the resume?

Or I am supposed to attach a fancy cover letter with nice formatting etc?

I've been sending applications to recruiters with (1) cover letter (2) transcript (3) resume and (4) writing sample. And yeah to your question, I usually do fancy pdf resume+cover letter combo with formatting. It only takes a minute.

I just saw someone in another thread talking about sending applications straight to random partners and associates, is this credited? WTF? I feel like getting random applications would be annoying AF, but I'm not sure.

If you are including the cover letter as an attachment, do you also include it in body of email? Or just a quick blurb in body?

I do quick blurb in body "hey this is who i am, here's my shit, sincerely, me"

[Anonymous User]

I just saw someone in another thread talking about sending applications straight to random partners and associates, is this credited? WTF? I feel like getting random applications would be annoying AF, but I'm not sure.

Pretty sure sending random full apps to partners and associates you've never spoken to before will either get your app a) forwarded to recruiting anyway or b) completely ignored. If you email a partner/associate expressing interest in the firm and they respond, then is the time to send them your stuff (apart from possibly sending your resume in the initial opening email "for their convenience")

[acijku2]

I tried to find info on this, but couldn't.

I am "mass" mailing about 20 firms (in my large target market and also smaller backup market.)

Do I just start the email with Dear Ms. Recruiter and then include my cover letter in the body of the email? Attaching the resume?

Or I am supposed to attach a fancy cover letter with nice formatting etc?

I've been sending applications to recruiters with (1) cover letter (2) transcript (3) resume and (4) writing sample. And yeah to your question, I usually do fancy pdf resume+cover letter combo with formatting. It only takes a minute.

I just saw someone in another thread talking about sending applications straight to random partners and associates, is this credited? WTF? I feel like getting random applications would be annoying AF, but I'm not sure.

If you are including the cover letter as an attachment, do you also include it in body of email? Or just a quick blurb in body?

I do quick blurb in body "hey this is who i am, here's my shit, sincerely, me"

\

In your quick blurb do you include rank and law review? What do you put as the subject of the email?

[TTtop13pct]

searched the forum but couldn't find any good posts regarding the cover letters that some firms require with the symplicity bidding. Any good posts about how to write such a cover letter?

[papercut]

searched the forum but couldn't find any good posts regarding the cover letters that some firms require with the symplicity bidding. Any good posts about how to write such a cover letter?

I used this one as a starting point: http://www.top-law-schools.com/forums/v ... 9#p4444133

Mine is much shorter, as I didn't talk about my 1L summer experiences at all.

The firms that provided more info about their cover letter made it seem like they pretty much wanted to know if you're leaning transactional or litigation, and which office(s) you're interested in.

[papercut]

In your quick blurb do you include rank and law review? What do you put as the subject of the email?

I did include LR, and would have included rank if my school ranked. For the subject, I just went with "Summer Program Application."

[isuperserial]

Question: How much does Law Review matter? Lots of firms have "preferred top 33%, Law Review/Moot Court preferred". I'm below that on grades (just a little better than top 40%), but I do have Law Review.

Can I expect law review to make much of a difference if I don't quite have the grades? Not sure if anyone has an answer to this, I understand OCI is quite difficult to predict.

[LawFirmInterviews]

Question: How much does Law Review matter? Lots of firms have "preferred top 33%, Law Review/Moot Court preferred". I'm below that on grades (just a little better than top 40%), but I do have Law Review.

Can I expect law review to make much of a difference if I don't quite have the grades? Not sure if anyone has an answer to this, I understand OCI is quite difficult to predict.

Here's the simple answer: Law Review matters. I'm 3rd year at a T15 litigation New York. PM me for more advice.

[chuckbass]

Question: How much does Law Review matter? Lots of firms have "preferred top 33%, Law Review/Moot Court preferred". I'm below that on grades (just a little better than top 40%), but I do have Law Review.

Can I expect law review to make much of a difference if I don't quite have the grades? Not sure if anyone has an answer to this, I understand OCI is quite difficult to predict.

Here's the simple answer: Law Review matters. I'm 3rd year at a T15 litigation New York. PM me for more advice.

What's a T15?

Honestly not sure if trolling based on that and post history.

[ManoftheHour]

Question: How much does Law Review matter? Lots of firms have "preferred top 33%, Law Review/Moot Court preferred". I'm below that on grades (just a little better than top 40%), but I do have Law Review.

Can I expect law review to make much of a difference if I don't quite have the grades? Not sure if anyone has an answer to this, I understand OCI is quite difficult to predict.

I think it matters. Here's an anecdote since from what I recall, we go to similarly ranked schools. Two rising 3Ls at my school performed similarly at OCI last year. One dude got only 1 A in his entire 1L year (which would probably put him top 50% but not quite top 1/3) but he made LR and the other dude was top 20% but missed LR. I mean, don't get me wrong. They both sweated bullets until the very end, but finally got one offer each.

The point is, own it. So you didn't have the best grades, but you're still top half. And LR is kinda a big deal. I missed it and I feel like it's my greatest professional failure thus far.

[ManoftheHour]

What's a T15?

Honestly not sure if trolling based on that and post history.

Yeah, that guy sounds TTT. I think it is somehow well devised spam of some sort. Did you try PMing him?

[LawFirmInterviews]

Question: How much does Law Review matter? Lots of firms have "preferred top 33%, Law Review/Moot Court preferred". I'm below that on grades (just a little better than top 40%), but I do have Law Review.

Can I expect law review to make much of a difference if I don't quite have the grades? Not sure if anyone has an answer to this, I understand OCI is quite difficult to predict.

Here's the simple answer: Law Review matters. I'm 3rd year at a T15 litigation New York. PM me for more advice.

What's a T15?

Honestly not sure if trolling based on that and post history.

Oops, posted too quick. V15... and i guess a slightly less troll-y answer would be that it depends on 1. where you go to school. 2. where are you in the class (top 40% i know). 3. what markets you are targeting. 4. what practices. 5. market conditions for those markets and practices. If you can come up with these things i can give you a much better answer.

[chuckbass]

Question: How much does Law Review matter? Lots of firms have "preferred top 33%, Law Review/Moot Court preferred". I'm below that on grades (just a little better than top 40%), but I do have Law Review.

Can I expect law review to make much of a difference if I don't quite have the grades? Not sure if anyone has an answer to this, I understand OCI is quite difficult to predict.

Here's the simple answer: Law Review matters. I'm 3rd year at a T15 litigation New York. PM me for more advice.

What's a T15?

Honestly not sure if trolling based on that and post history.

Oops, posted too quick. V15... and i guess a slightly less troll-y answer would be that it depends on 1. where you go to school. 2. where are you in the class (top 40% i know). 3. what markets you are targeting. 4. what practices. 5. market conditions for those markets and practices. If you can come up with these things i can give you a much better answer.

The fact that you made an account tonight and posted T15 in a bunch of threads is more why I was thinking troll fwiw.

[LawFirmInterviews]

Question: How much does Law Review matter? Lots of firms have "preferred top 33%, Law Review/Moot Court preferred". I'm below that on grades (just a little better than top 40%), but I do have Law Review.

Can I expect law review to make much of a difference if I don't quite have the grades? Not sure if anyone has an answer to this, I understand OCI is quite difficult to predict.

Here's the simple answer: Law Review matters. I'm 3rd year at a T15 litigation New York. PM me for more advice.

What's a T15?

Honestly not sure if trolling based on that and post history.

Oops, posted too quick. V15... and i guess a slightly less troll-y answer would be that it depends on 1. where you go to school. 2. where are you in the class (top 40% i know). 3. what markets you are targeting. 4. what practices. 5. market conditions for those markets and practices. If you can come up with these things i can give you a much better answer.

The fact that you made an account tonight and posted T15 in a bunch of threads is more why I was thinking troll fwiw.

yah totally understandable. Happy to be of service though if anyone has any questions. I'm a 3rd year so still have a relatively fresh perspective of OCI as well as a junior's perception of top big law in NYC.

[ManoftheHour]

yah totally understandable. Happy to be of service though if anyone has any questions. I'm a 3rd year so still have a relatively fresh perspective of OCI as well as a junior's perception of top big law in NYC.

In that case, any general advice for a regional T-30ish student, top 20%, but no law review? I'm mass mailing my home markets right now. Would NYC firms even look at my resume?

[LawFirmInterviews]

yah totally understandable. Happy to be of service though if anyone has any questions. I'm a 3rd year so still have a relatively fresh perspective of OCI as well as a junior's perception of top big law in NYC.

In that case, any general advice for a regional T-30ish student, top 20%, but no law review? I'm mass mailing my home markets right now. Would NYC firms even look at my resume?

Depends on the firm. There are a couple hundred vault ranked law firms in NYC that hire outside of the NYC area market, a lot of them in a up market cannot be choosers. It is possible that t30 is good enough for some of these. However, it really depends on where you are exactly. A T30 in the NYC area (even rutgers), is going to have a much better shot than T30 that is not in the tri-state area. You seem to imply that you are not in the NYC area, which makes me think it you'll have a hard time breaking the NYC market even with your grades if market compensation is what you're looking for. Paradoxically, once you drop out of the top of market compensation range, you'll have a lot of smaller firms that cannot be very choosy in their hiring, and will pay well but look at candidates from any well-regarded school. You might also get bites from V50 and below in NYC if you demonstrate more than average knowledge of their practices and/or leverage any kind of networking you might have done previously.

Hustling local offices of big NYC firms and transferring later on is another way you can do it. If you laid down some ground work earlier on by establishing relationships with NY partners of V100 firms, even if just cursory, that might come in handy now.

PM me if you would like to tell me specifically what school you're at and what practices you're looking at breaking in through.

[isuperserial]

Question: How much does Law Review matter? Lots of firms have "preferred top 33%, Law Review/Moot Court preferred". I'm below that on grades (just a little better than top 40%), but I do have Law Review.

Can I expect law review to make much of a difference if I don't quite have the grades? Not sure if anyone has an answer to this, I understand OCI is quite difficult to predict.

I think it matters. Here's an anecdote since from what I recall, we go to similarly ranked schools. Two rising 3Ls at my school performed similarly at OCI last year. One dude got only 1 A in his entire 1L year (which would probably put him top 50% but not quite top 1/3) but he made LR and the other dude was top 20% but missed LR. I mean, don't get me wrong. They both sweated bullets until the very end, but finally got one offer each.

The point is, own it. So you didn't have the best grades, but you're still top half. And LR is kinda a big deal. I missed it and I feel like it's my greatest professional failure thus far.

Sounds like good advice. For what it's worth for anyone else who wants to chip in, I'm at a T1 that has send ~25% to Biglaw over the past three years, and I'm shooting for Chicago, if possible. Pretty standard work experience.

[Anonymous User]

I've been mass mailing all weekend after getting my interview schedule on Friday. So many targeted cover letters. I think I'm going crazy.

[thebobs1987]

Question: How much does Law Review matter? Lots of firms have "preferred top 33%, Law Review/Moot Court preferred". I'm below that on grades (just a little better than top 40%), but I do have Law Review.

Can I expect law review to make much of a difference if I don't quite have the grades? Not sure if anyone has an answer to this, I understand OCI is quite difficult to predict.

I think it matters. Here's an anecdote since from what I recall, we go to similarly ranked schools. Two rising 3Ls at my school performed similarly at OCI last year. One dude got only 1 A in his entire 1L year (which would probably put him top 50% but not quite top 1/3) but he made LR and the other dude was top 20% but missed LR. I mean, don't get me wrong. They both sweated bullets until the very end, but finally got one offer each.

The point is, own it. So you didn't have the best grades, but you're still top half. And LR is kinda a big deal. I missed it and I feel like it's my greatest professional failure thus far.

Sounds like good advice. For what it's worth for anyone else who wants to chip in, I'm at a T1 that has send ~25% to Biglaw over the past three years, and I'm shooting for Chicago, if possible. Pretty standard work experience.

If you're at UIUC then LR will definitely help, but grades will matter the most. Bid everything, but based on earlier years you probably won't get more than 5 or 6 interviews. Firms that tend to be less focused on grades and care about LR would probably be Morgan Lewis, Schiff Hardin, mcguirewoods, Burke Warren, Troutman Sanders if they are interviewing, and Vedder Price.

[ManoftheHour]

How dumb is it to bid high on mid sized firms in a market in which you do have extensive ties to? Good idea/bad idea? My school sends 15-20% to big law so I'm not feeling that hot on the large firms, especially ones in a market in which I do not have ties to.

[LawFirmInterviews]

How dumb is it to bid high on mid sized firms in a market in which you do have extensive ties to? Good idea/bad idea?

Depends on the market, how many bids you have, how many slots the mid-sized firms are giving vs. the larger or smaller firms.

Every year a larger law firm intending to hire a lot of students at a given school might allocate sixty interview slots to that school, while another similarly large firm planning to hire fewer students at the same school might have only thirty or forty. Say you are at a school with less than 300 students, it would be a waste to high-bid a large, New York firm of middling selectiveness coming to your school with 60 slots. Because they will probably have interview slots sitting empty in the end, that you can just snatch up by signing up later.

This is the basic consideration, but of course, if you're targeting some secondary market's mid-size firms from an out-of-state NON-T6 school, I'd be very very careful. It is unlikely you'll strike gold through OCI, and more likely that you would hit by networking like crazy.

[Traynor Brah]

If you have a cb in nyc but will be in town for a few days afterward (and are scheduling w/ lawyers travel) , is it an ok thing to ask them to get your flight back when you're done in town?

[beepboopbeep]

IMO no. Risks coming off as using the CB for a vacation.

What I'd do (and did last year, over a weekend) is schedule a CB on whatever day, only get a flight in, schedule another a couple days later, have that one do the flight out. Saves both firms money and you get basically the same result. If that's your only NY cb it's another story though.

[Traynor Brah]

Yeah that's kind of what I was thinking, thanks

[whats an updog]

doing some more mass mailing and noticed that for 2 cover letters, although i had the firm names correct, the city was wrong. oh well, 2 out of like 60+ isn't bad i guess.