1L with offer from GBLS - advice sought Forum

[Anonymous User]

1L in the northeast, got offered a job at Greater Boston Legal Services for the summer. I have to accept or decline by January 4th. Anyone here worked at GBLS? Does it look good on the resume, is it something firm employers are impressed to see? Judging by how easily and quickly I got offered today...I'm guessing probably not.

The work looks interesting and actually useful for building my skills, but it's unpaid (unless I get a fellowship - not banking on that) and I have no interest in becoming a PI lawyer one day.

On the other hand, I haven't exactly got firms lining up at my door either. And if my horrible, sick feelings after my fall exams are any indication...I don't think I rocked a stellar GPA this semester.

Are there any paid legal summer jobs out there? Not SA positions, but just paid positions for 1Ls of any kind. Should I mass-mail alumni who started their own practices, or do solo guys never pay their summer interns?

What would you do if you had accept/decline GBLS by early January?

[ben4847]

Well, if you will get a stipend from your schools public interest people, it may be as much money as you are likely to get anywhere else. Or if you can get credits for the work.

[cantabaout]

this is one of the big name non-profits in boston.

what more can you hope for?

i'm not saying that they look for prestigious people - but the positions are still competitive

[cantabaout]

by the way, does NE give out grades at all? I thought they abolished the grading system.
does the school give out honors to graduates?

[dixiecupdrinking]

I think there are a couple major things to look for in 1L jobs.

One is responsibility. Will you get to write motions from scratch that get submitted to the court? Research dispositive issues in your clients' cases? Interview clients and write up affidavits? Stand up in court? These are the kind of things you can do in PI orgs over the summer that you can't do in a for-profit environment.

The second is exposure to practice areas you might be interested in long term. You don't want to work for an organization like this, but do you maybe want to litigate? You will get some insight into whether you like trial prep, motion practice, and so on, which can be useful both for your own benefit and as interview fodder.

Getting paid is tertiary; if you're gonna make $3k a week in a biglaw firm, okay fine, but otherwise it just seems like a drop in the bucket. On the other hand, I had guaranteed summer funding 1L year, so maybe I'm underestimating this issue.

[Veyron]

Another 1L asking if his 1L job looks good on a resume. If you don't already know that firms don't care what you do 1L summer you're beyond hope.

[lawschoolftw]

Another 1L asking if his 1L job looks good on a resume. If you don't already know that firms don't care what you do 1L summer you're beyond hope.

very, very true. Unless you have a shot at a 1L SA (which is extremely rare) than I would take the job. The most important thing about OCI is being able to talk about what you did you're 1L summer. Very few jobs will carry any prestige weight on their own, it's about being able to talk substantively and intelligently about what you did that summer. Also, not having to stress about a job all of second semester is great. Take it from someone who didn't land a job until late March. Best of luck.

[Grizz]

Another 1L asking if his 1L job looks good on a resume. If you don't already know that firms don't care what you do 1L summer you're beyond hope.

Every year 2Ls say this, every yr. 1Ls doubt it.

[HBK]

All law firms want is something legal related. All you want is something you can talk about during interviews.

[Reaching]

I'm a public interest attorney, and GBLS is known to be one of the best legal services providers in the country. I think a summer at GBLS would be a great experience for any 1L.