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I'm sure this has been addressed somewhere but I didn't see the thread for it, but does anyone have information on the prospects for 3L's looking to participate in EIW/OCI? I'm at a T6 and have an SA position at a V100 firm, but depending on how the summer goes I'm curious as to what options may be open to me in the fall. Thanks in advance for any feedback.

I think consensus is that there are a handful of firms that consistently recruit 3Ls who want to "trade up," but they don't take people in significant numbers. The ones I have heard of are all big v20ish NYC firms like Cravath, SullCrom, etc... Those firms tend to have 1) relatively large summer classes and 2) some variation in the number of SAs who go on to clerk. That basically means they almost always have some need unless the economy gets really shitty.

I've heard that their standards are slightly less stringent for 3Ls than for rising 2Ls, but I think you still need to do well during 2L year to have a shot. Also, it seemed like having an offer from your SA firm is almost a pre-req.

bdubs wrote:I think consensus is that there are a handful of firms that consistently recruit 3Ls who want to "trade up," but they don't take people in significant numbers. The ones I have heard of are all big v20ish NYC firms like Cravath, SullCrom, etc... Those firms tend to have 1) relatively large summer classes and 2) some variation in the number of SAs who go on to clerk. That basically means they almost always have some need unless the economy gets really shitty.

I've heard that their standards are slightly less stringent for 3Ls than for rising 2Ls, but I think you still need to do well during 2L year to have a shot. Also, it seemed like having an offer from your SA firm is almost a pre-req.

All of this, but like any other recruiting process, if you're interested in moving firms, don't rely on OCI/EIW. That's not a good mindset to have. Not only do very few firms come, you'll likely not get many firms out of bidding, so networking/mailing in applications is going to greatly improve your prospects.

I did this, changing firms after my 2L summer at T6 3L OCI. I made a '3L who traded up - taking questions' thread here that will answer lots of your questions: http://www.top-law-schools.com/forums/v ... 3&t=195544

That thread tells you the process that I think is helpful (and it does start early - you need to be raising your grades and bulking up your resume during 2L), but the one thing I will say is that it is very unpredictable. Basically you put yourself in the best position you can and hope for the best, but, for example, c/o 2012 saw some decent 3L hiring, but my year, c/o 2013, 3L hiring was downright barren. No amount of raising your grades, building your resume, or honing your narrative for why you want to work for the firm can make up for there being very few spots, so you can't count on anything.

OP here, thanks everyone, especially for linking this thread, exactly the kind of information I was looking for.