Summer Associates 2014: Thoughts, Anxieties, Experiences... Forum

[09042014]

Outside the law school context, people aren't all in the same pool competing for mostly the same jobs at the same time, though. My friend who's a pediatrician saying she got a new job wherever is different from someone in my law school class posting that they got an offer while I'm still waiting to hear. (Not that I'm not still happy for that person - I am. Though my degree of happiness will probably be tempered by the degree to which that person posts nothing but smug comments about how wonderful their life is, to be honest.)

Like I said, it's not some outrageously obnoxious thing to post, and people shouldn't be devastated by seeing it, but I just don't get why it's necessary to announce it on FB to everyone from your LS.

But then, I don't leap to put my relationship status on FB either.

By the time you are getting perm offers you aren't competing anymore.

[philly33]

Outside the law school context, people aren't all in the same pool competing for mostly the same jobs at the same time, though. My friend who's a pediatrician saying she got a new job wherever is different from someone in my law school class posting that they got an offer while I'm still waiting to hear. (Not that I'm not still happy for that person - I am. Though my degree of happiness will probably be tempered by the degree to which that person posts nothing but smug comments about how wonderful their life is, to be honest.)

Like I said, it's not some outrageously obnoxious thing to post, and people shouldn't be devastated by seeing it, but I just don't get why it's necessary to announce it on FB to everyone from your LS.

But then, I don't leap to put my relationship status on FB either.

I mean college students are competing for the same jobs. Other grad students are as well, biz school, med school, phd's, etc. It just seems that law students are more insecure on the whole.

I agree that I don't really see the need to do it either myself, but law students aren't special snowflakes. Everyone is competing with someone. You're not going to always get what you want. Getting mad at your friend because they got what you wanted and are happy about it seems silly.

[A. Nony Mouse]

Eh, when I was applying for academic jobs, people who were competing for the same jobs didn't walk around telling the people they were competing with that they had interviews/offers, either (you frequently knew personally probably 1/5 of the other applicants for the jobs). And people graduating college at the same time aren't all competing for the same jobs in at all the same way that law students are. I'd be surprised if people in other fields where people are actually going after the same jobs act at all differently.

And yeah, I know they're not literally competing when permanent offers come out. It's just a fraught time for people. Feel free to post away, just realize some people will find your posts braggy. If you're good with that, why do you need to tell people not to be butthurt?

[Anonymous User]

This is interesting and all but can we please get back on topic. I am nervous as balls here and everytime I see a new post I think that someone from my firm is going to say offers went out and I didn't get one.

[jbagelboy]

I don't see full time offer self congratulation nearly as bad as grades or OCI offers because there really isn't direct competition with anyone on your facebook feed. If one of your facebook was friends was no offed by your firm, then that's a different story.

But it's not like butthurt no jerbs were in the running for a Deby's boys offer anyway.

Don't see the difference. The odds of one specific person being why you didn't get an OCI person, or a specific grade are very low. You're still showing off about a specific type of result that some people either wanted and didn't get, or are stressed out about. The issue is your post invokes memories that makes others feel bad for no beneficial outcome to you.

No, the situations are totally different.

Everyone will ultimately know your employment outcome. Like, what's going to happen at the end of 3L? You'll start a job that you're never allowed to talk about? Of course not. If you now have post-grad employment, it's going to come out at some point in the near-term no matter what.

The same is patently untrue about grades. You can literally get through your whole LS career, and job, without any friend finding out what grade you got in any 1 class. Unlike who you work for, there's just no guarantee it's ever going to become public info. Sure people might see honors or some shit at graduation and get a general idea, but posting "I got an A in Contracts!" is sharing something that no one will ever know if you don't post it.

Just because something is not entirely inexcusable doesn't make it necessary or worthwhile. Defending an action by explaining how it's not as bad as other obnoxious actions or wouldn't be as insensitive to as many people is typical law student rational irrationality, missing the bigger picture. I can't speak for others, but I just said I don't understand those people and why or what would compel them to post that information as a Facebook status, not that it's the worst thing they've ever done.

[WokeUpInACar]

But is it really that hard to believe that someone is proud of achieving a major life milestone that has taken years to attain and wants to tell their friends and family about it in the most efficient way possible? I honestly don't understand not understanding that. I can wrap my head around thinking it is insensitive and/or lame, but not having any clue why someone would do it seems absurd to me.

[Druid]

Your job is not a major life milestone smdh. You're going to come back with "for some people it is." But no, people do some incredible work that is a major life milestone when they get the Nobel or when they accomplish their magnum opus. Getting a job is not a milestone and nobody cares what the hell you're doing with your job.

[TheThriller]

Your job is not a major life milestone smdh. You're going to come back with "for some people it is." But no, people do some incredible work that is a major life milestone when they get the Nobel or when they accomplish their magnum opus. Getting a job is not a milestone and nobody cares what the hell you're doing with your job.

For some people, getting a job is a big milestone. Maybe not for you, but for other people it might be. It's all relative.

[Neal Patrick Harris]

Your job is not a major life milestone smdh. You're going to come back with "for some people it is." But no, people do some incredible work that is a major life milestone when they get the Nobel or when they accomplish their magnum opus. Getting a job is not a milestone and nobody cares what the hell you're doing with your job.

For some people, getting a job is a big milestone. Maybe not for you, but for other people it might be. It's all relative.

XD

[El Pollito]

But is it really that hard to believe that someone is proud of achieving a major life milestone that has taken years to attain and wants to tell their friends and family about it in the most efficient way possible? I honestly don't understand not understanding that. I can wrap my head around thinking it is insensitive and/or lame, but not having any clue why someone would do it seems absurd to me.

You really think that's what they are doing?

[WokeUpInACar]

But is it really that hard to believe that someone is proud of achieving a major life milestone that has taken years to attain and wants to tell their friends and family about it in the most efficient way possible? I honestly don't understand not understanding that. I can wrap my head around thinking it is insensitive and/or lame, but not having any clue why someone would do it seems absurd to me.

You really think that's what they are doing?

I mean what I said is pretty near bragging, so yeah.

[rpupkin]

Your job is not a major life milestone smdh. You're going to come back with "for some people it is." But no, people do some incredible work that is a major life milestone when they get the Nobel or when they accomplish their magnum opus. Getting a job is not a milestone and nobody cares what the hell you're doing with your job.

By your standard, 99% of people would never post anything to Facebook, ever. You wouldn't get complaints from me about that. But the bitching here seems directed mostly at FB culture in general. If you don't like reading about trivial life updates, Facebook is not for you.

[Neal Patrick Harris]

Your job is not a major life milestone smdh. You're going to come back with "for some people it is." But no, people do some incredible work that is a major life milestone when they get the Nobel or when they accomplish their magnum opus. Getting a job is not a milestone and nobody cares what the hell you're doing with your job.

You don't have many facebook friends, do you?

[Magnifique1908]

Your job is not a major life milestone smdh. You're going to come back with "for some people it is." But no, people do some incredible work that is a major life milestone when they get the Nobel or when they accomplish their magnum opus. Getting a job is not a milestone and nobody cares what the hell you're doing with your job.

But....for some people it is....lol

Seriously though, if no one cares about what you do, that's cool. But it's not true for everyone. People use social media for different things guys. Not sure why people feel the need to dictate what someone should and should not post on their own page. Geez. Just don't read it, unfriend them, go cry or don't. Too much major energy to something so minor. This is what makes law students weird as hell not posting totally normal achievements, announcements, and other assorted brain vomit on social media.

I keep up with folks on FB. I like seeing what they're doing these days including jobs, families, what they cooked for dinner, whatever. If they post something dumb, I keep scrolling. I also don't friend just anyone (including law students because you guys are just strange lol) and share whatever I want. You all should too.

[Mal Reynolds]

But is it really that hard to believe that someone is proud of achieving a major life milestone that has taken years to attain and wants to tell their friends and family about it in the most efficient way possible? I honestly don't understand not understanding that. I can wrap my head around thinking it is insensitive and/or lame, but not having any clue why someone would do it seems absurd to me.

You really think that's what they are doing?

At this point it sounds like he's making some pedantic walkback. Unless jbagel seriously doesn't understand why anyone would post on Facebook. The answer to that question is obviously law students. But wake ups first post was more of a defense of people posting "major life events" on Facebook and how that's their prerogative.

[fl0w]

Can we get back to that guy that lost his shit to a partner at his 2nd half summer job?

[Druid]

Your job is not a major life milestone smdh. You're going to come back with "for some people it is." But no, people do some incredible work that is a major life milestone when they get the Nobel or when they accomplish their magnum opus. Getting a job is not a milestone and nobody cares what the hell you're doing with your job.

By your standard, 99% of people would never post anything to Facebook, ever. You wouldn't get complaints from me about that. But the bitching here seems directed mostly at FB culture in general. If you don't like reading about trivial life updates, Facebook is not for you.

My post is a very narrow commentary on milestones and has nothing to do with FB. I didn't promulgate a Facebook standard of posting, even if woke up decided he was going to die on Retard Hill.

[TheThriller]

Can we get back to that guy that lost his shit to a partner at his 2nd half summer job?

Quote original post?

[wanderer]

Words of advice to 0L's and Rising 2L's headed into OCI:
1) Bidding small SA classes in non-major markets is fucking dangerous.
2) TX is sweet.....2 shots at offers.

So true. I just found out our summers aren't getting offers. I'm not sure if they know yet. They were a little odd, but certainly not deserving of a 0/2 offer rate. In NYC they would both get offers, if for no other reason than to help the firm maintain a 100% offer rate.

What made them odd?

No one thing. It was a combination of: ignoring several tips on changing clothing choices; regular freak out sessions; crying at work; bringing up odd shit; repeating the same thing over and over in the same conversation; being generally difficult to talk to; forcing conversation with people. I only observed a little bit of this: I really checked out so I didn't really pay attention to the summers this year. (This is between the two of them). But even this post really overblows their odd-ness. It wasn't like they were always weird and always awkward, but it did come up sometimes.

[jbagelboy]

Words of advice to 0L's and Rising 2L's headed into OCI:
1) Bidding small SA classes in non-major markets is fucking dangerous.
2) TX is sweet.....2 shots at offers.

So true. I just found out our summers aren't getting offers. I'm not sure if they know yet. They were a little odd, but certainly not deserving of a 0/2 offer rate. In NYC they would both get offers, if for no other reason than to help the firm maintain a 100% offer rate.

What made them odd?

No one thing. It was a combination of: ignoring several tips on changing clothing choices; regular freak out sessions; crying at work; bringing up odd shit; repeating the same thing over and over in the same conversation; being generally difficult to talk to; forcing conversation with people. I only observed a little bit of this: I really checked out so I didn't really pay attention to the summers this year. (This is between the two of them). But even this post really overblows their odd-ness. It wasn't like they were always weird and always awkward, but it did come up sometimes.

crying at work is bad. I can't imagine.

[wanderer]

crying at work is bad. I can't imagine.

Ya. The office isn't one where a summer should have ever felt the need to cry. Being a summer sucks, but people got the impression that this one would have a mental breakdown under the stress of a normal associate workload (although the 10-week-interview paranoia is admittedly pretty stressful)

[Danger Zone]

Can we get back to that guy that lost his shit to a partner at his 2nd half summer job?

Yeah, still curious why that happened. Was five weeks of day camp really that frustrating?

[Pleasye]

Lol the people defending the fb posters are prob the ones itching to push submit on their already drafted status about their offer.

[jbagelboy]

But is it really that hard to believe that someone is proud of achieving a major life milestone that has taken years to attain and wants to tell their friends and family about it in the most efficient way possible? I honestly don't understand not understanding that. I can wrap my head around thinking it is insensitive and/or lame, but not having any clue why someone would do it seems absurd to me.

You really think that's what they are doing?

At this point it sounds like he's making some pedantic walkback. Unless jbagel seriously doesn't understand why anyone would post on Facebook. The answer to that question is obviously law students. But wake ups first post was more of a defense of people posting "major life events" on Facebook and how that's their prerogative.

As you know (because you're a sharp dude and you're being facetious here) there's a difference between "understanding" from a literal perspective what one incentive could be to take an action, and "understanding" why someone would actually go through with this action. There are twenty reasons I could conceive and "understand" as providing incentives to skip work tomorrow. Doesn't mean I would "understand" the type of person who would actually do it in my position. these semantics are beginning to bore

I know a lot of law students. and I know a shitload more non-law students. And only the bottom dwellers of either camp would feel the need to post an offer from a law firm as their Facebook status, albeit that I could imagine a reason why one of them might want to.

[fl0w]

Can we get back to that guy that lost his shit to a partner at his 2nd half summer job?

Quote original post?

Got into an argument with a partner. Don't know what happened. I just snapped after ten weeks of acting professional.

I really want like a dramatic reenactment of this.