So...I've been soaking up information on biglaw employment/OCI. Come to find out, pretty much everything on my resume is a flight risk red flag for biglaw. (At least, according to that V15 guy in the employment forum.) It's not exactly hippie PI stuff, but it sounds like it's close enough. I thought my several years of WE would be helpful for OCI, but now I'm not so sure.

Are there things I can do to demonstrate my interest in biglaw during 1L? Law review seems pretty important, so I could gun for that. And obviously, getting a corporate 1L summer job. But both of those things seem hard to get. Are there other things I can try to do? Or is this not as big of a problem as I am making it out to be?

On an unrelated note, I've seen some people talk about being a research assistant during the school year. I assume that's something you do in 2L or 3L? Is it hard to get? Is it helpful at all for biglaw?

TYIA You guys are awesome.

I'd take practical courses for your 1L Second Semester elective courses instead of something public interesty. Like taking Business Associations or something.

Try for a small firm, or company for 1L summer, but thats harder.

I'd just have a convincing reason for why you no longer want PI type stuff, and make sure you can deliver it in interviews.

Just be honest as to why you want something else besides PI and they won't be as freaked out as you think.

What if your honest response is "I want moniez so I don't end up a bum on the street"?

What if your honest response is "I want moniez so I don't end up a bum on the street"?

What if your honest response is "I want moniez so I don't end up a bum on the street"?

Ehhhh, I'm not so sure honesty is the best course of action here. I think it's already understood among top law firms that the $$$ is good, but it might be risky to bring that up as a reason you want to do biglaw.

I think it's already understood that people aren't, let's say, telling the whole truth, about their reasons and say things like "quality of work", "good experience", etc. so I think it's a bigger risk to try to be honest about your money aspirations. I'd say you're better off just taking part in this web of deceit that is job recruiting than trying to stand out by being "honest".

After all, did anyone ever write about $$$ in their personal statements to law school and get in?

First, it always makes me happy when this thread comes alive.

Second, while I know we can't report grades from summer practicum courses for OCI purposes, is true for all summer classes? In other words if I take BA this summer and crush it (as surely I will!) does that count at callbacks?

Is there a rule about the practum courses? Grades don't come out until well after OCI. At that point most people are done with OCI. But if you have late callbacks it might make a difference.

I thought it was a rule, it might just be a reality I guess...I'll just tell the firms I crushed it then...I have an honest face so they're sure to take my word for it.

I'm doing a visit on later this month on a Tuesday and will sit in on a class. I was thinking about Environmental Law with Barsa since I have an area of interest that fits under that umbrella. But is there a class that would be better to do?

Other classes in that time slot are

Business Assoc. with Reed (DF mentioned this class a few posts back)
Civil Procedure II with Redish
Corporate Finance with Black
Estates & Trusts with Schanzenbach

Or something else, full schedule here.

I'm doing a visit on later this month on a Tuesday and will sit in on a class. I was thinking about Environmental Law with Barsa since I have an area of interest that fits under that umbrella. But is there a class that would be better to do?

Other classes in that time slot are

Business Assoc. with Reed (DF mentioned this class a few posts back)
Civil Procedure II with Redish
Corporate Finance with Black
Estates & Trusts with Schanzenbach

Or something else, full schedule here.

Thanks! Looks like I'll stick with Enviro, but maybe try to catch some of BA also. I don't know if we're supposed to stay for the whole class or only a few minutes or what.

You should probably just stay in the class for the full 55 minutes. It would be slightly disruptive to leave in the middle and Barsa does a good bit to make the classes interesting anyway. I guess I'll see you in Enviro.

Oh, okay. I'm used to huge classes at my UG where you could sit in the back and no one would notice if you left in the middle.

I guess I'll see you there then. I'll be the guy you don't recognize and looks totally lost, haha.

You can't leave the classroom that enviro is in without walking directly by where the professor lectures from. They are horribly designed classrooms overall, but they look nice when visitors come through.

Are these the classrooms sorta near the courtroom in Rubloff? I remember from sitting in on a class at ASW that it was totally disruptive when someone came in late. But the classroom itself seemed nice. What else is badly designed about it?