Pre-Clerkship Summer Ops, Not Having Summered Last Summer Forum

[Anonymous User]

So I'm clerking out in one of the more regional circuits starting next August. I did not summer anywhere last summer. Is there still any way of getting a 3L summer spot somewhere, and could my clerkship help me with that? I have no burning desire to do public interest work or government work this summer/ever, so my choices are basically somehow getting a firm job for the summer or doing nothing. I did 3L OCI, but only got one interview, with Williams and Connolly, which dinged me. My grades, of course, are quite good.

[luthersloan]

I don't know... Maybe try sending your resume over to Sullivan and Cromwell, they don't care too much about personality in hiring and I know they hire clerks.

[mod edit to protect anonymity]

[Anonymous User]

I don't know [mod forgot to edit that]. Maybe try sending your resume over to Sullivan and Cromwell, they don't care too much about personality in hiring and I know they hire clerks.

Do they care so little about personality as to hire you?

[luthersloan]

We shall see.... We shall see.

[mod edit to protect anonymity]

[Anonymous User]

Try mass-mailing the NYC V10. It might be pretty late in the cycle already, but I e-mailed Skadden in late August and got invited for an interview around early September.

Basically mail the heck out of NYC plus any big cities in the region you'll be clerking in. Say: "I'll be clerking on the X Circuit COA and am looking for a summer associate position so I can get familiar with the area before I start."

[Anonymous User]

Try mass-mailing the NYC V10. It might be pretty late in the cycle already, but I e-mailed Skadden in late August and got invited for an interview around early September.

Basically mail the heck out of NYC plus any big cities in the region you'll be clerking in. Say: "I'll be clerking on the X Circuit COA and am looking for a summer associate position so I can get familiar with the area before I start."

I happen to hate NYC, and any big cities in my circuit aren't quite in the region where I'll actually be clerking. Though I suppose there must be SOME big law in a city of half a million.

[Anonymous User]

.

[zomginternets]

Errr.. shouldn't you concentrate on studying for the bar during 3L summer? I mean obviously its difficult without knowing where you'll be practicing, but won't most firms expect you to be able to start right after your clerkship? I wouldn't think firms would be too impressed to find out that they would have to wait another 6 months for you to study for/pass the bar after your clerkship. (unless you plan on studying for/taking the bar while you're clerking)

[Anonymous User]

Yeah I think I'll study while I'm clerking, minimizing my studying to the point where I'll barely pass. I have no desire to spend money out of my own pocket on bar prep now, esp. when it's not required to clerk.

[Anonymous User]

Try mass-mailing the NYC V10. It might be pretty late in the cycle already, but I e-mailed Skadden in late August and got invited for an interview around early September.

Basically mail the heck out of NYC plus any big cities in the region you'll be clerking in. Say: "I'll be clerking on the X Circuit COA and am looking for a summer associate position so I can get familiar with the area before I start."

I happen to hate NYC, and any big cities in my circuit aren't quite in the region where I'll actually be clerking. Though I suppose there must be SOME big law in a city of half a million.

If you're looking for a 3L SA job, NYC and the surrounding environs are the place to spam.

If you're in flyover territory it doesn't quite matter that it's not exactly in the city you'll be clerking in. Midwesterners, for example, generally see other midwesterners as being "their kind." Just be straightforward and say that you're unfamiliar with the region but you'll be clerking there and want to get familiar.

Also, if there is a city of 500k, there is definitely some big law there. Milwaukee is about that size, for example, and has several home-grown firms.

[Anonymous User]

Do I pretend I actually want to work there in the future? The plan is to end up in a DC boutique. And actually, I checked and it looks like the biggest firms in this city pay a base of 100K, which must translate into pretty small summer salaries.