Too Late to Hustle More Interviews? Forum

[Anonymous User]

Alright TLS, I am starting to get worried. I have done six callbacks so far, been rejected by one firm, and am waiting to hear from the other five (CB's ranging from yesterday back as far as late August). Many of the firms at which I had CB's have very small summer classes. I'm starting to think I could be one of the people that ends up oh-fer-six in this process. So, now that it's September 15th, is it too late to hustle more interviews? I sent out about 50 mass mails in late July, resulting in two screeners & one of my still-alive callbacks. There are a few other V100 / NLJ250 firms that I could mail (I focused on firms with their main offices in my primary market but didn't hit the satellites of other firms). Is it too late to get another couple callbacks?

anon in case anyone later asks about my current CB's.

[Anonymous User]

I was in a similar boat. Early this week, I checked in with a bunch of firms I had mass mailed in July, sent out resumes to firms outside the Vault rankings, and started hitting up my contacts. Ended up with a CB-equivalent interview and a screener so far - both V50 firms. It's late in the game, but hustling works.

[Anonymous User]

i am also in a similar boat, and landed 2 more interviews this week (pretty much same sitch as above poster--1 cb-style + 1 screener). i would definitely recommend reaching out to alumni at firms you haven't heard back from, as they can sometimes push recruiting into action.

[Anonymous User]

It's not too late. Firms are finishing up OCI and some of their offers are getting rejected, so they're conducting more interviews. I have a V20 interview on Tuesday that came from mass mail that I sent a week or two ago.

[Anonymous User]

Absolutely not too late. By "hustling" a bit, I ended up with another V50 screener and a V20 CB just in the past 3 days

[Anonymous User]

Absolutely not too late. By "hustling" a bit, I ended up with another V50 screener and a V20 CB just in the past 3 days

I have been mailing but people are not getting back to me. Do you have good grades?

[IrwinM.Fletcher]

Absolutely not too late. By "hustling" a bit, I ended up with another V50 screener and a V20 CB just in the past 3 days

I have been mailing but people are not getting back to me. Do you have good grades?

You absolutely have got to follow up with phone calls.

ETA: And have good grades.

[Anonymous User]

You should absolutely be mailing, following-up, etc., because firms are still looking. I've gotten two CB offers from firms I didn't bid at OCI but resume-dropped/mass mailed--this week. I've already accepted an offer, so if I'm turning down these slots, that means they're going to somebody, and that somebody could be you.

[Anonymous User]

Absolutely not too late. By "hustling" a bit, I ended up with another V50 screener and a V20 CB just in the past 3 days

I have been mailing but people are not getting back to me. Do you have good grades?

Well yeah, my grades are pretty solid but not sterling. Just follow up and show your persistence. Make calls, send update emails, etc.

[Anonymous User]

You should absolutely be mailing, following-up, etc., because firms are still looking. I've gotten two CB offers from firms I didn't bid at OCI but resume-dropped/mass mailed--this week. I've already accepted an offer, so if I'm turning down these slots, that means they're going to somebody, and that somebody could be you.

Different poster, but same results. I've gotten 3 callbacks and 2 screeners from firms I mass mailed all today! You just have to keep at it, even if you feel like you're not making any progress. I had gotten nothing but rejections for the past 2 weeks, so it was exhilarating to hear some good news. I also regularly called firms I mass mailed, even if I didn't have anything to tell them besides the fact that I was still interested in them.

[Anonymous User]

Absolutely not too late. By "hustling" a bit, I ended up with another V50 screener and a V20 CB just in the past 3 days

I have been mailing but people are not getting back to me. Do you have good grades?

Well yeah, my grades are pretty solid but not sterling. Just follow up and show your persistence. Make calls, send update emails, etc.

Hey,
so whats the best way to go about this? I mass mailed a ton of firms in july, and havent heard back from a majority of them. That said, should I send them a follow up email or call? I would prefer to call, since it would save time, but what would I say? I feel like if I call and say "Hi, my name is XX, and I reched out to you earlier in the summer with my transcript+resume..." I feel as though they are just going to give me a stock answer saying "we will definitely reach out to you if we want to invite you for an interview".

any ideas?

[Anonymous User]

Absolutely not too late. By "hustling" a bit, I ended up with another V50 screener and a V20 CB just in the past 3 days

I have been mailing but people are not getting back to me. Do you have good grades?

Well yeah, my grades are pretty solid but not sterling. Just follow up and show your persistence. Make calls, send update emails, etc.

Hey,
so whats the best way to go about this? I mass mailed a ton of firms in july, and havent heard back from a majority of them. That said, should I send them a follow up email or call? I would prefer to call, since it would save time, but what would I say? I feel like if I call and say "Hi, my name is XX, and I reched out to you earlier in the summer with my transcript+resume..." I feel as though they are just going to give me a stock answer saying "we will definitely reach out to you if we want to invite you for an interview".

any ideas?

There is no secret that you are missing here. Sounds like you know exactly what to say. Just call them. You are probably right about what they will respond. I guarantee, if you don't call them, they won't respond at all! Law schools need to teach some basic sales classes...

[Anonymous User]

You should absolutely be mailing, following-up, etc., because firms are still looking. I've gotten two CB offers from firms I didn't bid at OCI but resume-dropped/mass mailed--this week. I've already accepted an offer, so if I'm turning down these slots, that means they're going to somebody, and that somebody could be you.

Different poster, but same results. I've gotten 3 callbacks and 2 screeners from firms I mass mailed all today! You just have to keep at it, even if you feel like you're not making any progress. I had gotten nothing but rejections for the past 2 weeks, so it was exhilarating to hear some good news. I also regularly called firms I mass mailed, even if I didn't have anything to tell them besides the fact that I was still interested in them.

What are your grades like? Did you get the interviews when you called?

[Anonymous User]

Well yeah, my grades are pretty solid but not sterling. Just follow up and show your persistence. Make calls, send update emails, etc.

Hey,
so whats the best way to go about this? I mass mailed a ton of firms in july, and havent heard back from a majority of them. That said, should I send them a follow up email or call? I would prefer to call, since it would save time, but what would I say? I feel like if I call and say "Hi, my name is XX, and I reched out to you earlier in the summer with my transcript+resume..." I feel as though they are just going to give me a stock answer saying "we will definitely reach out to you if we want to invite you for an interview".

any ideas?

There is no secret that you are missing here. Sounds like you know exactly what to say. Just call them. You are probably right about what they will respond. I guarantee, if you don't call them, they won't respond at all! Law schools need to teach some basic sales classes...

I think you misunderstood the question. I know I am better off contacting. The question is, is it more effective to call or email?

[Anonymous User]

Well yeah, my grades are pretty solid but not sterling. Just follow up and show your persistence. Make calls, send update emails, etc.

Hey,
so whats the best way to go about this? I mass mailed a ton of firms in july, and havent heard back from a majority of them. That said, should I send them a follow up email or call? I would prefer to call, since it would save time, but what would I say? I feel like if I call and say "Hi, my name is XX, and I reched out to you earlier in the summer with my transcript+resume..." I feel as though they are just going to give me a stock answer saying "we will definitely reach out to you if we want to invite you for an interview".

any ideas?

There is no secret that you are missing here. Sounds like you know exactly what to say. Just call them. You are probably right about what they will respond. I guarantee, if you don't call them, they won't respond at all! Law schools need to teach some basic sales classes...

I think you misunderstood the question. I know I am better off contacting. The question is, is it more effective to call or email?

A confident call can go a long way. If you aren't confidant or comfortable calling, you will probably be better off emailing.

[Anonymous User]

Please excuse my lack of experience in the calling spectrum of things, but...

Who are you calling and how do you get their number? On many recruiting sites, I just see e-mail addresses, if anything at all.

And, when you do call, what exactly do you say? "Hi my name is ____ from [school name] and I [dropped off my resume at your hospitality suite/sent you an application in August] and haven't heard from you. I just want you to know that I'm still interested?"

[Anonymous User]

Please excuse my lack of experience in the calling spectrum of things, but...

Who are you calling and how do you get their number? On many recruiting sites, I just see e-mail addresses, if anything at all.

And, when you do call, what exactly do you say? "Hi my name is ____ from [school name] and I [dropped off my resume at your hospitality suite/sent you an application in August] and haven't heard from you. I just want you to know that I'm still interested?"

Just call the firm's general line and ask to be put through to recruiting. Whoever answers, just explain that you dropped off your resume, express your interest in the firm, and say that you would appreciate an update on the status of your application. Nothing fancy, but it gets your name/resume fresh in their heads.

[Anonymous User]

For those who are sending e-mails, do you include a cover letter?

[Anonymous User]

You should absolutely be mailing, following-up, etc., because firms are still looking. I've gotten two CB offers from firms I didn't bid at OCI but resume-dropped/mass mailed--this week. I've already accepted an offer, so if I'm turning down these slots, that means they're going to somebody, and that somebody could be you.

Different poster, but same results. I've gotten 3 callbacks and 2 screeners from firms I mass mailed all today! You just have to keep at it, even if you feel like you're not making any progress. I had gotten nothing but rejections for the past 2 weeks, so it was exhilarating to hear some good news. I also regularly called firms I mass mailed, even if I didn't have anything to tell them besides the fact that I was still interested in them.

What are your grades like? Did you get the interviews when you called?

T25, top 5%. Besides grades, I would consider my resume below average (vanilla white guy). Didn't get the interviews just because I called, but I feel like it helped a lot. However, I did get two screeners upgraded straight to callbacks after I got a callback in the same area. All three CBs are in the same city, which is fairly far from my school.

I definitely think regularly calling and checking in helped me get interviews though. I have literally no ties to this city (or state). When the recruiter asked me, I joked about how I knew someone about 150 miles away, then seriously talked about some things I liked about the firm and how I hoped my lack of ties wouldn't prevent me from being seriously considered as an SA here. I called every firm I applied to roughly every 7-14 days, even if I had nothing new to say.

IMO, the worst piece of advice floating around TLS is don't check in after you apply unless you have something good to say. You should absolutely check back, if anything just to let the firm know you didn't paper every NALP firm. Also, I received a rejection from a V50 because they ended up not having a summer program in my top choice city. I called them up because I thought the interview went well and asked if I didn't get a CB because I flunked the interview or because my top city wasn't having a program. I asked if they would consider me for other locations since it turns out I didn't flunk the interview. They said yes and I'll find out if I got a CB with them by next Friday.

Please excuse my lack of experience in the calling spectrum of things, but...

Who are you calling and how do you get their number? On many recruiting sites, I just see e-mail addresses, if anything at all.

And, when you do call, what exactly do you say? "Hi my name is ____ from [school name] and I [dropped off my resume at your hospitality suite/sent you an application in August] and haven't heard from you. I just want you to know that I'm still interested?"

Use the NALP form or just call the front desk and ask for the recruiting coordinator. What you wrote was pretty much exactly what I said. I tried to work in some casual conversation, but it's not rocket science. I also try very hard to be appreciative and thank the receptionist/recruiter as much as possible without being obsequious. Attorneys can be assholes to staff, so being sincerely nice is a big plus and may give the recruiter/staffperson a reason to go to bat for you -- at least at the screener stage.

For those who are sending e-mails, do you include a cover letter?

Not unless they require it. Even if I don't, I'll put a little blurb with something I like about the firm and what practice areas I'm interested in.

edit: The sentences in this post are stilted as shit, sorry but I'm tired.

[bathtubgin]

When/if you get dinged by all your CB's, might not be a bad idea to begin registering with the temp agencies like HireCounsel. They do have some projects for recent grads available, like this one:

http://www.hirecounsel.com/jobs_search_ ... hp?id=1069

[Omerta]

When/if you get dinged by all your CB's, might not be a bad idea to begin registering with the temp agencies like HireCounsel. They do have some projects for recent grads available, like this one:

http://www.hirecounsel.com/jobs_search_ ... hp?id=1069

I've always been more of an Elder Law fan.

[snailio]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lu8To4CwPfg


It's not ova

[itbdvorm]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JU9TouRnO84

[Anonymous User]

How do you approach a firm when you only dropped off your resume at a hospitality suite?

[whywhywhy]

The way to go is to say you're going to be in [their town] at [time] and was wondering if there was an opportunity to interview that week. I've gotten at least two CB-equivalents this way. You'll pay your own travel expenses, but...