Feeling Extremely Down Forum

[Anonymous User]

Anyone else feel sick to their stomachs about how OCI is turning out?

OCI for me is essentially over - I've had 16 screeners, 2 rejections, 1 CB. I'm not "BigLaw or bust" in the sense that I wouldn't enjoy doing anything else (in fact I'd probably love prosecution), however I am paying an insane amount in tuition and living expenses and I just don't know what my options are if I strikeout (which looks more and more likely as each day goes by and the phone doesn't ring). BigLaw has kind of been my employment focus and now I feel like I have to start thinking about switching gears.

Anyone else feel this way? This might as well just turn into a support group for the miserable.

[kaiser]

How long ago was OCI?

[Anonymous User]

Anyone else feel sick to their stomachs about how OCI is turning out?

OCI for me is essentially over - I've had 16 screeners, 2 rejections, 1 CB. I'm not "BigLaw or bust" in the sense that I wouldn't enjoy doing anything else (in fact I'd probably love prosecution), however I am paying an insane amount in tuition and living expenses and I just don't know what my options are if I strikeout (which looks more and more likely as each day goes by and the phone doesn't ring). BigLaw has kind of been my employment focus and now I feel like I have to start thinking about switching gears.

Anyone else feel this way? This might as well just turn into a support group for the miserable.

what school you go to?

[ResIpsa21]

If you've had 16 screeners and only 2 rejections / 1 callback, doesn't that mean you've got 13 firms left to hear back from? And you've got that callback to think about! Certainly doesn't seem like it's time for you to feel down just yet...

[Anonymous User]

I'm in a very similar situation to you. Even if I end up getting something out of OCI, I have come to the conclusion that law school is a stupid decision without a huge scholarship and I can't believe I was stupid enough to risk my financial future on a 50% shot at biglaw.

[JollyGreenGiant]

Anyone else feel sick to their stomachs about how OCI is turning out?

OCI for me is essentially over - I've had 16 screeners, 2 rejections, 1 CB. I'm not "BigLaw or bust" in the sense that I wouldn't enjoy doing anything else (in fact I'd probably love prosecution), however I am paying an insane amount in tuition and living expenses and I just don't know what my options are if I strikeout (which looks more and more likely as each day goes by and the phone doesn't ring). BigLaw has kind of been my employment focus and now I feel like I have to start thinking about switching gears.

Anyone else feel this way? This might as well just turn into a support group for the miserable.

I'm with you, man. And I haven't even done OCI yet....

[Anonymous User]

How long ago was OCI?

Started last Wednesday, 16 interviews between then and yesterday. Many of the firms I interviewed with last week and this week have made at least some CBs. I have 3 interviews in secondary markets next week, but I don't have particularly high hopes for them.

what school you go to?

NU.

If you've had 16 screeners and only 2 rejections / 1 callback, doesn't that mean you've got 13 firms left to hear back from? And you've got that callback to think about! Certainly doesn't seem like it's time for you to feel down just yet...

Yeah, I understand it may be a little early to panic, but the whole 180k debt load is starting to weigh heavier on me.

I'm in a very similar situation to you. Even if I end up getting something out of OCI, I have come to the conclusion that law school is a stupid decision without a huge scholarship and I can't believe I was stupid enough to risk my financial future on a 50% shot at biglaw.

I honestly would not recommend going to law school to a single person.

[crazyblink653]

How long ago was OCI?

Started last Wednesday, 16 interviews between then and yesterday. Many of the firms I interviewed with last week and this week have made at least some CBs. I have 3 interviews in secondary markets next week, but I don't have particularly high hopes for them.

what school you go to?

NU.

If you've had 16 screeners and only 2 rejections / 1 callback, doesn't that mean you've got 13 firms left to hear back from? And you've got that callback to think about! Certainly doesn't seem like it's time for you to feel down just yet...

Yeah, I understand it may be a little early to panic, but the whole 180k debt load is starting to weigh heavier on me.

I'm in a very similar situation to you. Even if I end up getting something out of OCI, I have come to the conclusion that law school is a stupid decision without a huge scholarship and I can't believe I was stupid enough to risk my financial future on a 50% shot at biglaw.

I honestly would not recommend going to law school to a single person.

what are your stats? it's possible you may be flirting with their GPA cutoffs and they may just be waiting to see how their other screening interviews go before deciding on offering you a CB.

[Anonymous User]

what are your stats? it's possible you may be flirting with their GPA cutoffs and they may just be waiting to see how their other screening interviews go before deciding on offering you a CB.

i am a transfer.

[Anonymous User]

a northwestern law student not being able to find employment....that is extremely discouraging

[Anonymous User]

a northwestern law student not being able to find employment....that is extremely discouraging

There are a decent number of Harvard Law students not able to find stuff through OCI. Welcome to today's legal market.

[Heartford]

a TRANSFER northwestern law student not being able to find employment.... with two rejections so far...that is extremely discouraging

ftfy

[Anonymous User]

a TRANSFER northwestern law student not being able to find employment....that is extremely discouraging

ftfy

At my school, transfers killed OCI. A very large percentage of last year's transfer class here worked at V10s over this summer. They absolutely did better than the class as a whole. This isn't a transfer thing.

[Anonymous User]

a TRANSFER northwestern law student not being able to find employment....that is extremely discouraging

ftfy

At my school, transfers killed OCI. A very large percentage of last year's transfer class here worked at V10s over this summer. They absolutely did better than the class as a whole. This isn't a transfer thing.

FWIW I'm a transfer at a T-10, and we (as in the majority of my transfer class) seem to be having some trouble this year...

[Anonymous User]

I feel the same dude, OCI just started this week but suffice it to say I have no cb's and I'm more than half way through my interviews, I'm at T10, also amazed at how stupid going to law school is

[Anonymous User]

a TRANSFER northwestern law student not being able to find employment....that is extremely discouraging

ftfy

At my school, transfers killed OCI. A very large percentage of last year's transfer class here worked at V10s over this summer. They absolutely did better than the class as a whole. This isn't a transfer thing.

FWIW I'm a transfer at a T-10, and we (as in the majority of my transfer class) seem to be having some trouble this year...

I feel like an absolute fool for transferring right now, if this is the way it is going to go throughout. The point of paying tens of thousands extra wasn't just for a name on a degree or firm facetime so that the firms could just humor me and move on. I'm really not a bad interviewer. A number of my mass mailing screeners turned into immediate callbacks. So why should my OCI rate be so divergent?

[Anonymous User]

a TRANSFER northwestern law student not being able to find employment....that is extremely discouraging

ftfy

At my school, transfers killed OCI. A very large percentage of last year's transfer class here worked at V10s over this summer. They absolutely did better than the class as a whole. This isn't a transfer thing.

FWIW I'm a transfer at a T-10, and we (as in the majority of my transfer class) seem to be having some trouble this year...

Maybe it's a school-to-school thing then. I don't think it's unheard of here at my CCN school for a third to half of the transfers to get V10 of V15.

[Anonymous User]

Maybe it's a school-to-school thing then. I don't think it's unheard of here at my CCN school for a third to half of the transfers to get V10 of V15.

Fingers crossed that you are right. The V15 firms I've been interviewing with don't seem to even be taking me all that seriously.

[Anonymous User]

I feel like an absolute fool for transferring right now, if this is the way it is going to go throughout. The point of paying tens of thousands extra wasn't just for a name on a degree or firm facetime so that the firms could just humor me and move on.

OP here - exactly how I feel.

From what I've heard, NU transfers are all over the place. Some are very successful and others struggle. I'm not sure what the reasons are for the disparity, but it sucks.

I think thesealocust's thread explains it best - OCI is just horrible.

[Karneval03]

Hang in there! This is an unnerving process (being judged repeatedly based on #s and a 20 minute conversation is not fun!). It is easy to get sucked in and think BigLaw is the be all and end all but it is not. Think of your legal education in a longer term perspective - it will pay off in the long run and is likely to be more rewarding and intellectually challenging than what you would be able to do without a law degree. Plus it still sounds like you have a lot of pending decisions so who knows.

[Anonymous User]

Too early to be extremely down. I ultimately ended up with 4 offers (2 V10) but only had a couple of callbacks this time last year. What market are you applying to? If it's not NYC don't even start expecting callbacks before a week or two.

[Anonymous User]

Too early to be extremely down. I ultimately ended up with 4 offers (2 V10) but only had a couple of callbacks this time last year. What market are you applying to? If it's not NYC don't even start expecting callbacks before a week or two.

How long did it take for most of the NYC callbacks to come in? Were they all very quick to make calls? I'd just like to get an idea of whether or not I should even bother holding out hope for a call from a firm that has already been calling over the past day or 2.

Btw, I'm all NYC so this is even more unsettling and nerve-wracking

[Anonymous User]

Too early to be extremely down. I ultimately ended up with 4 offers (2 V10) but only had a couple of callbacks this time last year. What market are you applying to? If it's not NYC don't even start expecting callbacks before a week or two.

Chicago. I've been hoping this is a possible explanation, but who knows. I do know that many of the firms I've interviewed with have extended CBs to at least some students.

[Anonymous User]

Too early to be extremely down. I ultimately ended up with 4 offers (2 V10) but only had a couple of callbacks this time last year. What market are you applying to? If it's not NYC don't even start expecting callbacks before a week or two.

I'm a T10 transfer, as well, so this thread is incredibly discouraging, considering the huge investment...for those not getting immediate bites, do you think it's related to the quality of the school you transferred from? i know it's still early on to be super worried, but i was told before transferring that transfers tend to do really well at OCI. i hope this wasn't misguided advice..

[Anonymous User]

Too early to be extremely down. I ultimately ended up with 4 offers (2 V10) but only had a couple of callbacks this time last year. What market are you applying to? If it's not NYC don't even start expecting callbacks before a week or two.

I'm a T10 transfer, as well, so this thread is incredibly discouraging, considering the huge investment...for those not getting immediate bites, do you think it's related to the quality of the school you transferred from? i know it's still early on to be super worried, but i was told before transferring that transfers tend to do really well at OCI. i hope this wasn't misguided advice..

I come from a very strong T25 where a number of the best firms already do some form of recruiting (albeit to a lesser extent than at my new school). You would think that, given their familiarity with my old school, and their willingness to at least hire some people from there, they would be fine with that aspect of my application. Hasn't made one bit of difference, as I'm getting nothing but silence or rejections from those firms.