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I was lucky enough to get an SA offer at a midlaw firm (about 75 associates, pays about $1000-1100 a week for this summer). The problem, however, is that it is in a secondary market that I'm not sure I want to work in beyond this summer. The city is in the rust belt and there just isn't much going on there. I wanted to start my career in a much bigger market (think Pittsburgh, Indianapolis, Cleveland...yes, those are "much bigger" than the market my SA is in).

So, I accepted the offer because it was the only offer I got. What should be my strategy going forward? Is it acceptable to send out applications to bigger firms this summer before they extend a formal offer (if they do)?

Right now, my plan is to continue to work very hard in school, work extremely hard this summer to make sure I get a full time offer, but perhaps get applications together to send out in July for bigger firms in more desirable markets.

Is this okay?

Take the offer. Continue to search in the market you want to be in, but don't turn down a paying offer.

Also, you may end up loving the firm / people / place. You never know.

kalvano wrote:Take the offer. Continue to search in the market you want to be in, but don't turn down a paying offer.

Also, you may end up loving the firm / people / place. You never know.

OP here. Definitely accepted the offer and was happy/humble to get it.

The focus of my question is on the ethics of looking for bigger firm work while I'm working there this summer. Is that okay so long as they have not extended a formal offer?

Anonymous User wrote:

kalvano wrote:Take the offer. Continue to search in the market you want to be in, but don't turn down a paying offer.

Also, you may end up loving the firm / people / place. You never know.

OP here. Definitely accepted the offer and was happy/humble to get it.

The focus of my question is on the ethics of looking for bigger firm work while I'm working there this summer. Is that okay so long as they have not extended a formal offer?

I don't see why that would be unethical.

You're fine. Look all you want until you've accepted a full-time offer.

Anonymous User wrote:

kalvano wrote:Take the offer. Continue to search in the market you want to be in, but don't turn down a paying offer.

Also, you may end up loving the firm / people / place. You never know.

OP here. Definitely accepted the offer and was happy/humble to get it.

The focus of my question is on the ethics of looking for bigger firm work while I'm working there this summer. Is that okay so long as they have not extended a formal offer?

Until they have extended a permanent offer, you need to operate under the assumption you will not get one and continue to search for something else.

Anonymous User wrote:You're fine. Look all you want until you've accepted a full-time offer.

Continue looking even after you've accepted.

anon168 wrote:

Anonymous User wrote:You're fine. Look all you want until you've accepted a full-time offer.

Continue looking even after you've accepted.

??

Had a friend who did a 2L midlaw SA and turned down their permanent offer because they didn't do the type of law he wanted. He's now living at home with his parents and planning to enlist in the Army. Take it and be happy, even if the geography sucks. But you can still apply elsewhere until their offer deadline comes.

Anonymous User wrote:

anon168 wrote:

Anonymous User wrote:You're fine. Look all you want until you've accepted a full-time offer.

Continue looking even after you've accepted.

??

Once you accept a full time offer, stop looking. It makes you look incredibly bad to renege on a full time offer, and you don't want to make your firm think you might renege by looking for other jobs. They could easily find out if one of those other firms calls your summer firm to find out if they liked you over the summer.

You're allowed to keep looking until you accept the full time offer, although in this economy I wouldn't mess around with a full time offer. I would accept the offer ASAP then start looking to lateral a year or so down the road (although you might have been luck if you put in two or three years). The risk of your firm getting worried about you / losing respect for you / revoking if you hang on to your offer for too long without accepting seems far greater than trading up to a "better" job even if you prefer the other city.

Anonymous User wrote:

anon168 wrote:

Anonymous User wrote:You're fine. Look all you want until you've accepted a full-time offer.

Continue looking even after you've accepted.

??

What do you mean "??" ?

LawIdiot86 wrote:Had a friend who did a 2L midlaw SA and turned down their permanent offer because they didn't do the type of law he wanted. He's now living at home with his parents and planning to enlist in the Army. Take it and be happy, even if the geography sucks. But you can still apply elsewhere until their offer deadline comes.

Where was your friend in terms of class rank, LR, school, etc? That sounds like an awfully horrible outcome, and I'd like to think it was because his grades weren't all that good rather than the market actually being that shitty.