s&c Forum

(On Campus Interviews, Summer Associate positions, Firm Reviews, Tips, ...)
Forum rules
Anonymous Posting

Anonymous posting is only appropriate when you are revealing sensitive employment related information about a firm, job, etc. You may anonymously respond on topic to these threads. Unacceptable uses include: harassing another user, joking around, testing the feature, or other things that are more appropriate in the lounge.

Failure to follow these rules will get you outed, warned, or banned.
Anonymous User
Posts: 428125
Joined: Tue Aug 11, 2009 9:32 am

s&c

Post by Anonymous User » Mon Sep 06, 2010 9:52 pm

anyone tell me what callbacks at sullivan are like. what is the turnaround for getting an offer? any other useful info on s&c. thanks!

Anonymous User
Posts: 428125
Joined: Tue Aug 11, 2009 9:32 am

Re: s&c

Post by Anonymous User » Mon Sep 06, 2010 10:06 pm

You'll be escorted to a reception area with a breathtaking view and given a magnetically sealed packet of information containing attractive printouts of attorney bios and schedules on cardstock, information about S&C and your school, and a personalized notepad. There will be food and drink. You'll sit and likely meet with your screening interviewer if they are available that day.

You'll be taken to 4 separate attorneys, likely senior associates and partners. You'll engage in 30 minute interviews (though they can and will run over) where you'll be asked about your background, your interest in NYC / Sullivan, and anything else that they feel like asking about. You'll have a chance to ask questions yourself as well. They are hardly stress interviews, but S&C lives up to its reputation for being a bit more formal. Don't be shocked if you wind up discussing substantive law, particularly from your summer legal experience.

After your interviews, you'll go back to reception and wait to meet with the hiring partner. You'll be called in for a scheduled 15 minute interview. If your first 4 interviewers give you the thumbs up, and if they all had a chance to get their evaluations to the hiring partner, you will be invited to join the 2011 summer class on the spot. If there was a scheduling hitch, you'll be told so and won't get the on the spot offer. Historically 85-95% of the people S&C calls back receive offers. Some people receive offers 1 or 2 business days later if a legitimate scheduling issue precludes the people you interview from transmitting their evaluations to the hiring partner.

If you were a morning interview, you will then have a lunch with 2 junior associates.

After you receive your offer, you may get cookies. You may even get a bonsai tree.
Last edited by Anonymous User on Mon Sep 06, 2010 10:07 pm, edited 1 time in total.

Pablo Ramirez

Bronze
Posts: 161
Joined: Thu Jun 17, 2010 8:01 pm

Re: s&c

Post by Pablo Ramirez » Mon Sep 06, 2010 10:06 pm

Anonymous User wrote:anyone tell me what callbacks at sullivan are like. what is the turnaround for getting an offer? any other useful info on s&c. thanks!
Very quick turnaround. Usually same day or next.

Anonymous User
Posts: 428125
Joined: Tue Aug 11, 2009 9:32 am

Re: s&c

Post by Anonymous User » Mon Sep 06, 2010 10:10 pm

wow, cool..thanks so much!

Anonymous User
Posts: 428125
Joined: Tue Aug 11, 2009 9:32 am

Re: s&c

Post by Anonymous User » Mon Sep 06, 2010 10:11 pm

how do they offer to such a high%? do they invite few back for cb's or have a low yield?

Want to continue reading?

Register now to search topics and post comments!

Absolutely FREE!


Anonymous User
Posts: 428125
Joined: Tue Aug 11, 2009 9:32 am

Re: s&c

Post by Anonymous User » Mon Sep 06, 2010 10:26 pm

Anonymous User wrote:how do they offer to such a high%? do they invite few back for cb's or have a low yield?
It's mostly achieved by inviting fewer people to callbacks, but their yield is slightly higher than your average corporate NYC law firm.

Keep in mind that many firms have 60-70% offer rates already, so jumping to 85-95% or so doesn't actually mean a dramatic reduction in the number of students they see.

Anonymous User
Posts: 428125
Joined: Tue Aug 11, 2009 9:32 am

Re: s&c

Post by Anonymous User » Mon Sep 06, 2010 10:32 pm

Thanks for the great post, #2.

Anonymous User
Posts: 428125
Joined: Tue Aug 11, 2009 9:32 am

Re: s&c

Post by Anonymous User » Mon Sep 06, 2010 11:43 pm

<--- is one of the 15-20% who were rejected from S+C post callback :( :( :(

Anonymous User
Posts: 428125
Joined: Tue Aug 11, 2009 9:32 am

Re: s&c

Post by Anonymous User » Mon Sep 06, 2010 11:50 pm

Anonymous User wrote:<--- is one of the 15-20% who were rejected from S+C post callback :( :( :(
anything in particular go wrong? this is relevant to my interests...

Want to continue reading?

Register for access!

Did I mention it was FREE ?


Anonymous User
Posts: 428125
Joined: Tue Aug 11, 2009 9:32 am

Re: s&c

Post by Anonymous User » Tue Sep 07, 2010 12:01 am

Anonymous User wrote:
Anonymous User wrote:<--- is one of the 15-20% who were rejected from S+C post callback :( :( :(
anything in particular go wrong? this is relevant to my interests...

Nope, interviews flowed well with no awkward silences. Unless I'm aspie, in which case I wouldn't be able to help you anyway haha.

Anonymous User
Posts: 428125
Joined: Tue Aug 11, 2009 9:32 am

Re: s&c

Post by Anonymous User » Tue Sep 07, 2010 12:06 am

Anonymous User wrote:<--- is one of the 15-20% who were rejected from S+C post callback :( :( :(
did the hiring partner tell you at the end of the day or did they just send you a follow up letter / email?
if so to the former, did you ask why?

Anonymous User
Posts: 428125
Joined: Tue Aug 11, 2009 9:32 am

Re: s&c

Post by Anonymous User » Tue Sep 07, 2010 6:08 am

grade? school?

Anonymous User
Posts: 428125
Joined: Tue Aug 11, 2009 9:32 am

Re: s&c

Post by Anonymous User » Tue Sep 14, 2010 8:39 am

anybody have advice for/info about 3L callbacks?

Register now!

Resources to assist law school applicants, students & graduates.

It's still FREE!


User avatar
nealric

Moderator
Posts: 4273
Joined: Fri Sep 25, 2009 9:53 am

Re: s&c

Post by nealric » Tue Sep 14, 2010 10:08 am

An oldie but goodie:

Congratulations!

Based on your reaction to getting the offer, this is probably the best thing that could have ever happened to you. I encourage you to enjoy the summer and take accept their offer as nothing in the world will cure you of your prestige obsession quicker than some time at S&C.

During orientation, they'll give you an S&C shoulderbag and you'll wear it with the S&C logo facing outward so any other commuters in the know can see it and you'll just know that they're either impressed or envious. And that will make you happy and proud. And then you'll try to figure out the best way to ensure that you're sworn in as soon as possible after receiving your bar results because then you'll get the box full of business cards that say "Sullivan & Cromwell LLP" with your actual name underneath. You'll be giddy at the thought of casually passing one (mid-conversation) to some acquaintance from undergrad you've lost touch with.

You'll start working and you'll notice that there are an awful lot of "Farewell" emails and someone will tell you that the farewell emails can only contain 4 names at a time per firm policy because the partners decided sometime in 2004 that emails indicating 6 or 7 people were leaving the firm in a two week period might cause some unhelpful whispering. You'll talk to a midlevel associate who is super-psyched to work at S&C and you'll find out that he (not a lot of shes) lateralled from some firm that frankly you would never have considered working for (too TTT for you). When you get back to your office, this will trouble you a bit, you'll wonder if your own escutcheon is being blemished by the presence of this type of person (i.e., non-elite) at your S&C. But that feeling will pass as you'll find plenty of other like-minded first years who equally relish the prestige as you you head for a drink at Ulysses (shoulderbag logo facing outward).

Then you'll get staffed on your first big deal and you'll work late night after late night and then on the weekend and on to the next weekend and then on to the weekend when you had planned to go to a friend's wedding. And you won't go because the work has to get done and you have dues to pay (or so you'll be told). You'll get a little bit upset about this turn of events, but the arrival of those business cards will soften the blow.

You'll meet more and more laterals from firms that you would never work for (some you've never even heard of). You'll note in the farewell emails that some of the junior and midlevel associates leaving S&C are going to those very same firms. Survival of the fittest you'll say. But late at night, when the air conditioning clicks down from a barely perceptible hissing sound to complete silence, these things will bother you. But you'll tell yourself you're just tired and frustrated and anyway you have work to do.

You'll have lunch with Rodge and he'll tell you that business is good and that he's listening to associates' concerns about quality of life issues. You'll notice that some of the senior associates visibly roll their eyes at each other when this comes up, but you won't mind that much because, really, what other firm's managing partner regulalry has lunch with associates to hear their concerns (and takes notes!)

A few months will pass, a few marathon deals will happen, you'll have to re-schedule a vacation but you'll tell yourself that that is to be expected.

About a year in, a couple of your classmates will crack and start talking about how much the job sucks. They'll very likely have gone to Yale Law School. You'll joke that they couldn't hack it when they leave the firm for a clerkship, or an academic position or to go to a firm in another city.

Things will go on in this pattern and you'll notice the fact that you're working a lot harder than your friends who went to "peer" firms. At first you'll be proud of this and brag about it, but after a while you'll find yourself downplaying it. At least when you have the time to get out and socialize with your law school friends.

Something will happen: a partner will scream at you, a senior associate gunning for partner will blame you for her mistake, the partner will tell you that the trip to Europe your spouse meticulously planned just won't be able to happen (he'll be really sorry and will tell you a funny story about the exotic vacation he missed or cut short). Doesn't matter what, but you'll get really pissed and you'll start to take some of the 4 or 5 calls from headhunters that you'll receive every day at that point (vultures spell blood). They'll give you the names of firms that you laughed on in the days when you posted on the XOXO board, but you'll find yourself looking into them. The headhunter will encourage to just listen to their offer and you'll consider doing so. But you won't leave because then you'd have to give up your business cards. And stop wearing the shoulder bag. And the bonus is only x months away so you'll start thinking about it then.

Until one day you won't be able to take it any more and you'll find yourself arranging to meet with people from a lightly regarded firm for a position in their New York office. And you'll worry that the XOXO crowd will see you.

And you don't believe any of this will happen, but I suggest you print this out and keep it in the top desk of your drawer so late at night when you're feeling sorry for yourself, you can add to the list of reasons to be miserable this fact: someone told you this was going to happen and you thought that person was crazy.

:mrgreen:

User avatar
nealric

Moderator
Posts: 4273
Joined: Fri Sep 25, 2009 9:53 am

Re: s&c

Post by nealric » Tue Sep 14, 2010 11:07 am

I would just like to clarify that the above was a repost of something someone wrote on xoxohth many years ago. It was in jest, and does not represent any of my personal feelings or knowledge about the firm.

270910

Gold
Posts: 2431
Joined: Thu May 21, 2009 9:51 pm

Re: s&c

Post by 270910 » Tue Sep 14, 2010 11:35 am

nealric wrote:I would just like to clarify that the above was a repost of something someone wrote on xoxohth many years ago. It was in jest, and does not represent any of my personal feelings or knowledge about the firm.
I love that post, I love that post so much. It makes me want to hunt down an S&C shoulder bag even though I didn't even interview with them :lol:

Get unlimited access to all forums and topics

Register now!

I'm pretty sure I told you it's FREE...


Post Reply Post Anonymous Reply  

Return to “Legal Employment”