2Ls still w/o summer employment? Forum

[snowoman]

Just want to see how many there are out there... I'm a 2L at a T2 and guess that around 1/2 my class is still jobless. (Including ppl towards the top.) I've got an offer that I'm not excited about, but might have to settle. How about you all? Jobbed... or jobless? And if so, what are you doing about it? Time to get creative!?

[snowoman]

ahh, and there are those crickets we know so well.

[Anonymous User]

I'm a 2l at a T10 in the top 25% of my class without a job, you are not alone. I do have a lot of interviews coming, and a lot of people seem to need last second help, so I would not panic quite yet.

[Anonymous User]

If you would be willing, try DA's offices. I've all of a sudden gotten many interviews out of nowhere from mass mailing DA's offices around the state.

[Anonymous User]

Keep the faith. I am at a T20 very strong grades sent out about 120 tailored cover letters....and nothing, till today!

also there seems to be a lot more movement in jobs in general as many classmates are now starting to land positions.

[Anonymous User]

I was the DA guy above.

I will say that I have been rejected by like 90 of my 200 or so mass mailings and they are really starting to trickle now w/ no rejections today. It seems that of the remaining 100 or so some may actually be holding resumes for later interviewing......?

[phonepro]

I'm a 2l at a T10 in the top 25% of my class without a job, you are not alone. I do have a lot of interviews coming, and a lot of people seem to need last second help, so I would not panic quite yet.

T10, top 25% and you didn't score a SA position during OCI? That makes me petrified.

[prezidentv8]

Herp derp, no employment here yet.

[ktown]

I'm top half at a top 5 law school, lots of work experience and no job. Lots of callbacks during OCI (I interview well, I think, and had several firms call me to apologize for the non offer). Really went after DC market. Solidarity, though. I hear the market is getting better. Maybe there's a glimmer of hope at 3L OCI? If not, at least there are no more debtor's prisons. :/

[Anonymous User]

T10, top 25% and you didn't score a SA position during OCI? That makes me petrified.

You wouldn't believe how much luck factors into the hiring process, especially if you bid on a tough market. I'm a 2L who is top 5% with LR at a T30-40. I pulled a fair yield of callbacks by getting 7/~20 screeners, but then my grandfather ended up going into intensive care the day before my first CB and dying the day before my second. I ended up having to reschedule my third and fourth CBs to attend his funeral, and ended up getting no offers from OCI. When I called partners I met with after being rejected, they told me that either I didn't seem very excited about the position (I wonder why?) or that I was the first one "off the bubble" in March Madness speak, i.e. they took 4 SAs and I was rated #5. That's the downside of the OCI system, where all of the hiring is literally done within about six weeks.

I managed to find a job at a boutiquey/midlaw firm in January, but if that hadn't fallen into place I don't know what I'd be doing.

Good luck to all of you.

[Anonymous User]

top 30%, tier 1-nothing yet

[Anonymous User]

Top 25% top 10 2L back, got a really sick and prestigious gov position, so don't lose hoap!

[General Tso]

I have an offer on the table from a nice firm, but it is unpaid. I got $15/hour last summer, so I am not sure whether to take this or wait for $$. On the other hand, this unpaid firm seems to have a small chance of full-time employment after graduation, so the potential rewards are far greater.

[leobowski]

Top 10%+ LR (published) at a public T2. Nada, zip, zilch. Shut out at OCI and then shut out from paid govt. gigs. Still hopeful but my situation kind of just sucks right now.

[kings84_wr]

For what its worth, I just got an offer from a mid sized 50+ attorney firm today. Persistence is key, i got rejected from tons of firms, in house, and even a few unpaid gov jobs.

[Anonymous User]

Top 10%+ LR (published) at a public T2. Nada, zip, zilch. Shut out at OCI and then shut out from paid govt. gigs. Still hopeful but my situation kind of just sucks right now.

you arent alone. My friend is top 5% from a t1/2 LR. got 1 callback from a 20 person law firm. was promptly rejected the day after the callback.

[ohnowtf]

2l. Top 27% at TTT. LR (unpublished and won't be on editorial board next year).

Employed at 10-15 attorney firm.

Obviously shut out at OCI. I'm very happy to have what I have.

I'm not sure why I have gotten offers and other people who have better grades/resumes have not. I guess I interview well.

[Anonymous User]

I'm not sure why I have gotten offers and other people who have better grades/resumes have not. I guess I interview well.

A lot of it has to do with luck as well.

I'm top 1/3 at a low T2 in a big market. I'll be working at a public interest group this summer making $20/hr. Not ideal, but I definitely feel lucky to have a position.

For those still looking, keep at it. I know a bunch of people who have had interviews/call backs/offers within the last few weeks so people are still hiring.

[Anonymous User]

Just outside top 1/3 at a T2. I have a position lined up with a small firm, and am still interviewing with a couple larger ones/ continuing to send out resumes to other firms in which I have an interest.
The class as a whole seems to be doing pretty well in the sense of at least finding employment even if its not ideal. About what I expected given the school/environment.

[ohnowtf]

I'm not sure why I have gotten offers and other people who have better grades/resumes have not. I guess I interview well.

A lot of it has to do with luck as well.

I'm top 1/3 at a low T2 in a big market. I'll be working at a public interest group this summer making $20/hr. Not ideal, but I definitely feel lucky to have a position.

For those still looking, keep at it. I know a bunch of people who have had interviews/call backs/offers within the last few weeks so people are still hiring.

Yea, there is always luck.

I have noticed an uptick in job postings, so there definitely is still hope for 2l summer placement.

I've also noticed a lot more associate positions being advertised. General consensus in my market is that things are getting better. Lateral hiring has picked up a lot, and firms are finally starting to think about hiring fresh associates.

[Anonymous User]

Top 5%, T25, LR. had an interview the other day with a solo practitioner who was half in shock/half laughing at my oci failure. i don't even know where to apply anymore.

[polaris769]

Above poster- if you are not a flame, you should at least send out apps to K&L Gates- I know that some of their offices are still looking.

[prezidentv8]

i don't even know where to apply anymore.

Kinda my own feeling right now.

[Anonymous User]

Above poster- if you are not a flame, you should at least send out apps to K&L Gates- I know that some of their offices are still looking.

i wish it was a flame, it would be less sad then. thanks for the tip.

[Anonymous User]

I am a 2L in the bottom 20% of my class at a top25. I have a sub 3.0 GPA and I had nothing up until two-three weeks ago when I started getting calls about scheduling interviews from places I'd first contacted in Jan and Feb. I had 5 interviews in the last week and I've received offers from three of the places already (within days of the interviews) and I just accepted an unpaid state gov position. I tried to target places that either didn't ask for a transcript (some Fed and State gov internships), or called up places that didn't have official internships (in house counsel, law firms, etc) - and followed up by sending a resume (minus GPA) if there was interest in an unpaid intern.

There is a lot of unpaid fed and state government stuff that doesn't seem to interview until around March (or later), and my experience with small firms is that most of them won't know if they'll have the workload to warrant an intern until 2 months or less prior to you wanting to start. I know several people who didn't have anything by June of last year and simply started calling up solos and small firms in the area through the phonebook/google - most of them found summer jobs within the first 20-30 people they called, and usually the interest in an intern was related to an attorney taking on a big case in the previous few days before the law student called.

Oh yeah, lots of people at my top25 still don't have jobs yet either. On a related humorous note, the online OCI job board for my school is literally listing jobs with local hotels as summer desk clerks.