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So you blew the screening interview out of the water, really made a connection with your interviewer, and you got a callback -- how not to blow it?

Do the same thing you did in the screener.

do not order a bottle of wine to-go at the callback lunch. Otherwise, I'm assuming the screener went well b/c you had a human conversation. Do that again

Your grades etc were obviously judged sufficient. Have normal conversations, be curious and enthusiastic without being fake, and ask thoughtful questions.

Full disclosure: obviously, my opinion is entirely conjecture. Never been on the hiring side, only gone through the process.

All of your interviewers during a callback are not equal. The general callback structure for most of the firms I interviewed with started out with associates, then finished with two or more partners. The partner interviews are the most critical. Make sure that you're on your game for those, especially if the partner is the head of a practice group.

As an example, I had a callback with my top firm in my top city. I felt like I aced the earlier interviews, but I started running ragged just from OCI's pace and my focus during prior interviews that day. My last interview was with two managing partners for the two groups that I expressed interest in. I wouldn't say that I fucked the interview up, only that I wasn't at my best. Ended up getting a rejection.

Not to say that's why I didn't receive an offer -- maybe my earlier interviews sucked -- but I know it didn't help my cause.

I did end up receiving an offer from a firm and an associate showed me the sheet he got from recruiting to rank candidates. Essentially, it was on par with a surveymonkey questionnaire (like five categories, rank 1-10, any other thoughts?). At least at my SA firm,he told me that associate opinions were a borderline non-factor barring a total fuckup during the interview.

Tagged. So pretty much, partners are the most crucial interviewers and do not screw up on that one. Do you guys know what their checklist involves?

First of all, understand that if you get a callback and don't get an offer, it doesn't mean you blew it. It could just reflect that the level of competition at the callback stage is much higher. After all, everyone you're up against at this stage also got a callback. And while it varies from firm to firm, many firms give twice as many, or more, callbacks as offers.

Second, the associate interviews do matter. Partners may be more influential, but when the hiring committee is trying to distinguish among very strong candidates, low scores from the associates can knock you out.

Third, the worst thing you can do is come into an interview with the goal of "not blowing it" or "not screwing up." You'll be more nervous and more cautious than you should be. You were engaging enough to get through the screener and get a callback. Just be yourself (unless yourself is not engaging) and go into each interview with a sense of confidence. Do your best and figure that whatever is going to be is going to be.