0L firm internship or not? Forum

[dkt4]

i can take a firm internship in NY or go on vacation to the middle east/mediterranean. thoughts?

[fathergoose]

FWIW I know a guy who got a paying gig 1L summer simply from having worked there the summer previously. On the other hand, I spent my 0L summer traveling and having fun, and I don't regret it one bit.

[yngblkgifted]

i can take a firm internship in NY or go on vacation to the middle east/mediterranean. thoughts?

Go to the middle east, it will be a once in a lifetime opportunity! (read as: open up a spot for me in the internship)

[dkt4]

yeah i feel like i'm deciding b/t being broke and being stress-free

[yngblkgifted]

yeah i feel like i'm deciding b/t being broke and being stress-free

No way one can be stress-free and broke simultaneously.

[glitter178]

yeah i feel like i'm deciding b/t being broke and being stress-free

No way one can be stress-free and broke simultaneously.

though i agree 100%, i know a lot of people who would vehemently disagree

[nyckid]

I met with a department head of a V15 firm. He said he could get me an internship, but that I'd be better off getting an internship elsewhere (campaign, city gov., etc.). He said as a 0L all I'd be able to do would be to pull things from the firm library.

[yngblkgifted]

yeah i feel like i'm deciding b/t being broke and being stress-free

No way one can be stress-free and broke simultaneously.

though i agree 100%, i know a lot of people who would vehemently disagree

And they are all hippies!

[dkt4]

yeah i feel like i'm deciding b/t being broke and being stress-free

No way one can be stress-free and broke simultaneously.

though i agree 100%, i know a lot of people who would vehemently disagree

And they are all hippies!

there's a chemical in weed called fuckit....

you make a good point though lol.

[rundoxierun]

I met with a department head of a V15 firm. He said he could get me an internship, but that I'd be better off getting an internship elsewhere (campaign, city gov., etc.). He said as a 0L all I'd be able to do would be to pull things from the firm library.

If OP is talking about the internship that I think he/she is. This particular internship also involves a network and the potential for an invite back for 1L summer at some of the firms.

[dkt4]

its probably exactly what you're thinking of heh.

[FantasticMrFox]

Travel!!
I personally would do the internship though because I know I will get lazy and do useless things with the excuse of it being too much of a bother to search for internships after 1L (but since your interning this summer will help with next year, it may benefit you)

Middle East can also have the potential of not being stress-free. (I'm exaggerating here)
I know someone in my school who studied abroad in Alexandria (yes, not so Middle East) and lost both of his legs when a vindictive driver ran over him while decrying America.

[nyckid]

its probably exactly what you're thinking of heh.

I think I'm with you guys now. I worked with kids who were in the IB version of it last summer, seemed like a great program/organization. Could you do it and then go abroad before school starts, or go abroad before the program?

[dkt4]

i'm sort of leaning toward travel, since i've never had the opportunity to do it before...but the internship is pretty awesome too

[TheFactor]

travel...spend the last real summer of your life doing something you really want to do

[JD2014]

I've worked as a paralegal at an NY firm, probably similar to the one you're thinking about working at. We get interns every summer, and it's always good to have someone enthusiastic to dump meaningless work like stuffing envelopes and making photocopies onto, rather than having to cajole a secretary into doing it.

If you show real enthusiasm, you may get bumped up to such tasks as chronning, de-duping and page checking (if you don't know what these are yet, you don't want to know). In short, from an objective standpoint, it would be a complete waste of your time.

However, to a certain extent, success in Biglaw is contingent on demonstrating your ability to throw your life away on tasks that are entirely meaningless but for the ability to bill them to the client at a rate far higher than what you are paid, thus earning a thick profit margin for the partners. From this subjective standpoint, the internship may be well worth it, as prior firm experience is a strong indicator of the above, and is valued in subsequent job interviews for junior associate positions.