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School Range ~ Vandy/UCLA/UT
1st Semester Grades: Pretty much median (.1 above median).
Got an interview this week with a large firm in a secondary market for a summer internship; however, they haven't seen my 1L grades yet.

Is there even a chance here?

Of course there is! What law firms are looking for at this stage is your ability to conduct great research and your writing skills. Hopefully you did a good job in legal writing!

I've been called back for second interviews as a top half guy from a T2, where kids in the top 2% at NW were rejected, just because I knew how to present myself well and was personable.

Concentrate your answers on how good of a researcher, writer, and hard worker you are and you'll definitely have a chance! Getting the interview is MOST of the battle!

There's going to be a swarm of people telling you that you don't have a snowball's chance in Hell.

There's also going to be a few people blowing sunshine up your rear.

In any case, don't let whatever anyone has to say affect your ability to interview. If grades were 100% of what matters, why would employers interview at all? Don't bother with subjective advice from a bunch of people in the same boat as you, who are essentially groping around in the legal dark. Go in there and attempt to knock the socks off of whoever is interviewing you.

Instead of predisposing yourself to look like you suck because you're median, think of how you're going to twist what you have on your resume to make you look awesome.

Nobody here has the answer you're looking for. However, you will have better chances if you do your best at the interview than if you blow the interview. The latter guarantees 0% chance of success. You want more than a 0% chance of success, so go nail the interview.

Anonymous User wrote:School Range ~ Vandy/UCLA/UT
1st Semester Grades: Pretty much median (.1 above median).
Got an interview this week with a large firm in a secondary market for a summer internship; however, they haven't seen my 1L grades yet.

Is there even a chance here?

Congrats on getting the interview! That's the first step. Usually, your GPA gets you the interview and that's about all it does. Since you've already got the interview without your grades, that probably means they aren't too worried about it.

Practice your interviewing skills, learn about the firm with which you are interviewing, sell your skills and experience as a benefit to their practice, and prepare for curveball questions. If you impress with your interpersonal skills, you'll have a great chance of getting the job.

Good Luck!

insidethetwenty wrote:
Congrats on getting the interview! That's the first step. Usually, your GPA gets you the interview and that's about all it does. Since you've already got the interview without your grades, that probably means they aren't too worried about it.

Good Luck!

Firms care about grades. They will interview you w/o grades to meet time restrictions, but they won't decide on you without them.

But since there's nothing you can do about your grades now, just focus on Nailing the Interview. Relax and be personable, that's probably the most important thing.

Yes, you have a chance....but that chance relies completely on your interview, so go nail it and that's the best you can do....getting the interview is a LARGE part of the battle. Good luck!

OP here.

Thanks for the advice, and I think the interview went over pretty well. Got a few laughs and there weren't any awkward silences or anything. Despite being "personable", if grades have a major factor in the firm's decision, I'm probably dead in the water at this point. I met a handful of my peers (all in top 25% or so) who were interviewing for the same position. But hell who knows? Here's to falling through the cracks and getting lucky.

Is .1 above median only "slightly" above median at your school? That'd be about top 35% at a school like UVA.

YouAin'tGonnaKnow wrote:Is .1 above median only "slightly" above median at your school? That'd be about top 35% at a school like UVA.

Well, it sure isn't top 25% which is what I hear to be the cutoff point. Regardless of whether or not I am amongst the top 35%, I'm fairly certain that I stand towards the bottom of the GPA spectrum compared to my peers who interviewed for the same position.