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I am at a t20 with grades below median. I am a rising 2L. I am from middle of nowhere midwest but attend school at WUSTL. Anyway, I somehow got a preselect at the largest firm in my state. The firm typically comes to WUSTL and I am the only kid from the state where the firm is located in my class. A lot of my friends and peers with better grades also got interviews. Anyway, I am trying to think how to set myself apart from those kids.

Here are my strong selling points:
- I had a 1L SA at a 100+ person firm that lasted for 12 weeks. Still no word of re-offer though)
- On secondary journal
- Only kid from city and state where firm is located.

Anyone have any advice?

Be yourself, be chill, and be diplomatic with asshole partners and fratty associates. All they want to see is whether they can be in the same office with you 60+ hours a week. You've got this.

Anonymous User wrote:I am at a t20 with grades below median. I am a rising 2L. I am from middle of nowhere midwest but attend school at WUSTL. Anyway, I somehow got a preselect at the largest firm in my state. The firm typically comes to WUSTL and I am the only kid from the state where the firm is located in my class. A lot of my friends and peers with better grades also got interviews. Anyway, I am trying to think how to set myself apart from those kids.

Here are my strong selling points:
- I had a 1L SA at a 100+ person firm that lasted for 12 weeks. Still no word of re-offer though)
- On secondary journal
- Only kid from city and state where firm is located.

Anyone have any advice?

You're fighting an uphill battle. Why aren't you at a t14? Why aren't you above median? Why weren't you at a bigger firm 1L? Why aren't you on main journal? You might as well just give up.

Prepare for the "explain your grades" question. Do not bring it up yourself, but have a solid answer for it. Good answers are not defensive and do not give excuses (unless you had a something major happen, like a death in the family). Be calm, but self reflective. Identify something concrete and explain what you have done to correct it. If you have an upward trend, this helps. If you don't, maybe draw some skills from the summer that you plan on applying in class this year.

Know the firm. Be able to explain your interest and why you will be a good fit. Being from the area will help, so that should be a point you find a way to make. Do some digging to find out what the office you are interviewing does. Show interest in the practice areas. Get enough of an idea about them so that you can ask intelligent questions.

Figure out what you learned this summer. Sell that. This doesn't mean that you claim to have learned some substantive area of the law. Rather, show that you figured out some of what it is to practice in a larger law firm. Demonstrate that you understand how to ask clarifying questions about assignments, or how to write for different audiences, or how to deal with ambiguity.

Listen. I probably should have put this first. Listen to your interviewer and observe their tone and demeanor. Don't jump in to answer too quickly. Think about the question they are asking and try to pick up on information they are giving you. A good interview is a conversation, not a staccato barrage of questions followed by answers.

Be conversational, but not too informal. One of the purposes of an interview is to get a sense of what it would be like to work with you.

Don't be mentally competing with your classmates. Yes, interviews are a zero sum game, but you don't "win" by beating the other person. You "win" by showing why you are a good fit.

Breezin wrote:

Anonymous User wrote:I am at a t20 with grades below median. I am a rising 2L. I am from middle of nowhere midwest but attend school at WUSTL. Anyway, I somehow got a preselect at the largest firm in my state. The firm typically comes to WUSTL and I am the only kid from the state where the firm is located in my class. A lot of my friends and peers with better grades also got interviews. Anyway, I am trying to think how to set myself apart from those kids.

Here are my strong selling points:
- I had a 1L SA at a 100+ person firm that lasted for 12 weeks. Still no word of re-offer though)
- On secondary journal
- Only kid from city and state where firm is located.

Anyone have any advice?

You're fighting an uphill battle. Why aren't you at a t14? Why aren't you above median? Why weren't you at a bigger firm 1L? Why aren't you on main journal? You might as well just give up.

Shut up.
OP - ties are very important in hiring. Make sure they know you want to return to your home state. Your ties are a huge advantage over kids without ties. Just be friendly and engaging. Do not be nervous or act like you don't deserve the interview- you have to be confident.

Also sell your 1L SA experience, not everyone will have that either.

OP - be confident and take pride in what you've accomplished so far. You grew up in a small town, worked your ass off during college, got into a top 20 school, landed a 1L SA, got onto journal -- and now you landed an interview with the biggest law firm in the state. Just remember that YOU made all of this happen. Do not sweat what your classmates have done, where they went to undergrad, who their dad is, etc. Think about what you have built for yourself already. No matter what happens with this particular interview you should feel extremely proud and confident of the path you're forging. You don't need to prove yourself any more than your classmates. Emphasize ties, be confident, if it's your #1 choice be honest about it, and you'll kill it.

sunynp wrote:

Breezin wrote:

Anonymous User wrote:I am at a t20 with grades below median. I am a rising 2L. I am from middle of nowhere midwest but attend school at WUSTL. Anyway, I somehow got a preselect at the largest firm in my state. The firm typically comes to WUSTL and I am the only kid from the state where the firm is located in my class. A lot of my friends and peers with better grades also got interviews. Anyway, I am trying to think how to set myself apart from those kids.

Here are my strong selling points:
- I had a 1L SA at a 100+ person firm that lasted for 12 weeks. Still no word of re-offer though)
- On secondary journal
- Only kid from city and state where firm is located.

Anyone have any advice?

You're fighting an uphill battle. Why aren't you at a t14? Why aren't you above median? Why weren't you at a bigger firm 1L? Why aren't you on main journal? You might as well just give up.

Shut up.
OP - ties are very important in hiring. Make sure they know you want to return to your home state. Your ties are a huge advantage over kids without ties. Just be friendly and engaging. Do not be nervous or act like you don't deserve the interview- you have to be confident.

Also sell your 1L SA experience, not everyone will have that either.

This.

Just remember not to put the pussy on a pedestal.

I really appreciate all of the advice.

My grades are trending up. I tanked first semester and (I know no excuses) but I had no idea how to take an exam. I studied my ass off and knew the material but I was a math major and clearly had no idea how to write an exam.