Top Law Schools

I'm a 1L at a T6 school with really good grades. I just got an offer from USAO in DC for the summer and I'd definitely be happy with it, but I'm wondering if I can do better and also how prestigious working for a USAO is.

justifytheparadox wrote:I'm a 1L at a T6 school with really good grades. I just got an offer from USAO in DC for the summer and I'd definitely be happy with it, but I'm wondering if I can do better and also how prestigious working for a USAO is.

I'm not sure how helpful 1L summer work is in general. Still, that's not nothing. You got work, in DC, at one of the most competitive offices there.

I worked there this past summer, and over 2/3 of the ~100 interns were from T14 schools, with another 10 or so from GW, so don't feel like you're cheating yourself by going there. That said, 1L jobs DON'T MATTER so long as you are doing something legal and can speak about it during interviews, so do whatever makes you happy.

Anonymous User wrote:I worked there this past summer, and over 2/3 of the ~100 interns were from T14 schools, with another 10 or so from GW, so don't feel like you're cheating yourself by going there. That said, 1L jobs DON'T MATTER so long as you are doing something legal and can speak about it during interviews, so do whatever makes you happy.

I can't speak about the DC USAO, but I know that in Pittsburgh, they tend to favor past 1L interns when hiring AUSAs (this coming from an AUSA in that office). So if you'd like to work in the office a couple years after graduation (most USAO offices don't hire directly from law school), it could give you a leg up.

You're probably not going to get anything better than DC USAO at this point... I'd accept unless you have an outstanding callback you're waiting to do/hear back from...

I worked at the USAO in DC as well this past summer. It was a really great experience, and other than SDNY you can't really get more prestigious (as far as USAO offices go). I was debating between USAO DC & a public interest organization. I talked to a partner I used to work for when I was paralegal, and he advised me to go to with USAO. That said though, and as someone mentioned earlier, it doesn't matter really what you do, as long as it's legal work. And as long as you're able to talk about it in firm interviews, you're fine.

USAOs are all fairly prestigious, particularly in major markets like NYC, Chicago, DC, etc.. One unique thing about DC though is that you are not only doing federal work. At other USAOs, you are only prosecuting federal crimes which are typically higher profile, but in DC, you also do murders, robberies, etc. because everything is automatically federal in DC.

Anonymous User wrote:. . . but in DC, you also do murders, robberies, etc. because everything is automatically federal in DC.

Not exactly accurate, but correct in that USAO-DC does prosecute all local crimes in the Superior Court.

npe wrote:

Anonymous User wrote:. . . but in DC, you also do murders, robberies, etc. because everything is automatically federal in DC.

Not exactly accurate, but correct in that USAO-DC does prosecute all local crimes in the Superior Court.

I was gonna say... it sure would suck if robbing a candy bar from Wal-Mart constituted a federal offense.

sorry to piggyback/hijack, but a general question about USAO's: I know there are certain ones that are really prestigious because they're so competitive (so, DC and NY, etc.) but what about USAO's in smaller markets/medium-sized cities that aren't on the east/west coasts? (specifically, i'm interviewing for one in the south that's not Atlanta, New Orleans, Miami)

I'll double piggyback onto my own post! There is probably no right or wrong answer to this, but I have an interview with USAO SDNY, so hypothetically, which is better: USAO SDNY vs. USAO DC?

I worked at USAO DC this past summer. Everyone I worked with was either (a) at a T14, (b) in the top 5% at a T1, or (c) a 3L somewhere else. I would strongly consider working here if I were you. That being said, 1L summer is relatively meaningless, so if it means you're going to be spending a lot of money on it I wouldn't bother.

Anonymous User wrote:USAOs are all fairly prestigious, particularly in major markets like NYC, Chicago, DC, etc.. One unique thing about DC though is that you are not only doing federal work. At other USAOs, you are only prosecuting federal crimes which are typically higher profile, but in DC, you also do murders, robberies, etc. because everything is automatically federal in DC.

This is somewhat true (although not technically correct as pointed out earlier). You have the choice to select your division, and you can either work in Federal Crimes (traditional federal crimes) or Superior Court (traditional state crimes) in addition to Civil (traditional civil lawsuits).