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Am I just completely missing something?

I have been mass-mailing, going to networking events etc.

And yet a large amount of my classmates have done NOTHING ]since OCI ended.

I feel like I am taking on a ton of stress, ignoring a fair amount of school work and journal work in exchange for mass-mailing and networking.

I really really really hope this effort and time pay off in the end.

Anonymous User wrote:Am I just completely missing something?

I have been mass-mailing, going to networking events etc.

And yet a large amount of my classmates have done NOTHING ]since OCI ended.

I feel like I am taking on a ton of stress, ignoring a fair amount of school work and journal work in exchange for mass-mailing and networking.

I really really really hope this effort and time pay off in the end.

there are probably lots of people who are freaking out on the inside but keeping it hidden.

There's probably even more people who haven't even considered how fucked they could be. After all, they did manage to think law school was a good idea in the first place. They're basically self-selected for having irrational optimism about their odds of success.

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OP here.

Yeah, I agree with a lot of what has been said.

I've been hustling my ass off, telling people how hard it is to even get an interview.

But, I feel like my words fall on deaf ears. A lot of my class mates cite to their career counselor who say that "many" firms post opening for 2L Law Clerk/SA positions in January and on into spring. Even if that is true, with how many of us do not have a 2L position, even the new openings will be super competitive.

I guess I should stop wasting my breath on trying to convince them how hard it is out there, and how it will take a lot of effort.

Oh well.

a lot of people who are really stressed out don't look like they're stressed out

I feel like I keep my stress hidden pretty well. I spent the period immediately after OCI stressed out of my mind, but you wouldn't have noticed had you seen me. It's not "cool" to freak out, I would guess a decent portion of your colleagues are pretty nervous but just not showing it.

Anonymous User wrote:Am I just completely missing something?

I have been mass-mailing, going to networking events etc.

And yet a large amount of my classmates have done NOTHING ]since OCI ended.

I feel like I am taking on a ton of stress, ignoring a fair amount of school work and journal work in exchange for mass-mailing and networking.

I really really really hope this effort and time pay off in the end.

Don't worry about the competition. Focus on what you gotta do to get the job. Don't ignore your school work if it will result in you getting bad grades. December is approaching. Firm jobs are mostly gone by now. Focus less on mass-mailing and more on making connections. Look for opportunities that you wouldn't have considered previously. Understand that there will be limited hiring overall in December and January. Don't get discouraged. Be prepared to send applications for local school-year spring clerkships in your area.

Fucked as a 2L? Possibly. I'm a 3L and it amazes me how many 3Ls aren't doing anything. I just can't understand how people can just float by like that. Granted, some are probably working, but haven't received results because of the market. That's one thing. But still. I know many who just haven't started applying yet.

brotherdarkness wrote:

dixiecupdrinking wrote:There's probably even more people who haven't even considered how fucked they could be.

My naiveté continues to surprise me because I was flabbergasted at how often I found this to be true.

This.

Almost no one really, truly appreciates how dire their situation is if they don't get a job from OCI. You're all in the same boat after that and getting a job is a matter of sheer luck and hustling.

Most everyone thinks things will work out and keeps that optimistic (read: lazy) attitude until the end of 3L when graduation is approaching and they don't have a job lined up.

hiima3L wrote:You're all in the same boat after that and getting a job is a matter of sheer luck and hustling.

Most everyone thinks things will work out and keeps that optimistic (read: lazy) attitude until the end of 3L when graduation is approaching and they don't have a job lined up.

Isn't this (luck and hustle) true before OCI as well?

I've noticed this attitude in a lot of my classmates as well. There are some hustling and just not talking about it much, others who are interested in different summer jobs (that haven't picked up as much yet), but a lot of them have said they aren't applying yet and don't understand why others are applying and interviewing now.

Talking about how much you are gunning applying for jobs is pretty douchey. But not gunning for jobs is retarded.

Well some of my classmates are just applying for positions on Symplicity, and banking on that turning into something.

But I remember as a 1L how competitive it was to get a job through Symplicity. But I'm not entirely sure on whether 2Ls will have better luck.

hiima3L wrote:

brotherdarkness wrote:

dixiecupdrinking wrote:There's probably even more people who haven't even considered how fucked they could be.

My naiveté continues to surprise me because I was flabbergasted at how often I found this to be true.

This.

Almost no one really, truly appreciates how dire their situation is if they don't get a job from OCI. You're all in the same boat after that and getting a job is a matter of sheer luck and hustling.

Most everyone thinks things will work out and keeps that optimistic (read: lazy) attitude until the end of 3L when graduation is approaching and they don't have a job lined up.

I know a few people from TTT's that as the end of 3L approached switched into the whole "I'll wait and enjoy a small vacation, take the bar, and THEN everyone will hire me when I finally start applying after I passed the bar"

I've stopped applying simply because I'm not interested in working anywhere I haven't yet applied to

Anonymous User wrote:I've stopped applying simply because I'm not interested in working anywhere I haven't yet applied to

I've definitely slowed down my applications because of this. I haven't sent out as many new applications, but I am continuing to follow up with past applications and keep looking for new places I might be interested in (or new positions posted).

Anonymous User wrote:

hiima3L wrote:You're all in the same boat after that and getting a job is a matter of sheer luck and hustling.

Most everyone thinks things will work out and keeps that optimistic (read: lazy) attitude until the end of 3L when graduation is approaching and they don't have a job lined up.

Isn't this (luck and hustle) true before OCI as well?

I've noticed this attitude in a lot of my classmates as well. There are some hustling and just not talking about it much, others who are interested in different summer jobs (that haven't picked up as much yet), but a lot of them have said they aren't applying yet and don't understand why others are applying and interviewing now.

I assume every 1L busts their ass knowing that the rest of their career is more or less dependent on 1L grades, but yes, there are relative degrees of luck and hustling before OCI.

It's just after OCI, the line is drawn. You can tell who has no need to hustle and who should be worried about their future. But more importantly, people react to these situations very different. Some let it show, some don't, some bullshit about it all in public.

Anonymous User wrote:Am I just completely missing something?

I have been mass-mailing, going to networking events etc.

And yet a large amount of my classmates have done NOTHING ]since OCI ended.

I feel like I am taking on a ton of stress, ignoring a fair amount of school work and journal work in exchange for mass-mailing and networking.

I really really really hope this effort and time pay off in the end.

I'm in a position where I really can't get a job with my shitty median GPA so I'm not sacrificing any more school work this semester for the job search.

Anonymous User wrote:

Anonymous User wrote:Am I just completely missing something?

I have been mass-mailing, going to networking events etc.

And yet a large amount of my classmates have done NOTHING ]since OCI ended.

I feel like I am taking on a ton of stress, ignoring a fair amount of school work and journal work in exchange for mass-mailing and networking.

I really really really hope this effort and time pay off in the end.

I'm in a position where I really can't get a job with my shitty median GPA so I'm not sacrificing any more school work this semester for the job search.

I assure you that your GPA is going to have little effect on getting a job at this point, except for maybe clerking, which would require a 4.0 for the next 2 years.

hiima3L wrote:

Anonymous User wrote:

Anonymous User wrote:Am I just completely missing something?

I have been mass-mailing, going to networking events etc.

And yet a large amount of my classmates have done NOTHING ]since OCI ended.

I feel like I am taking on a ton of stress, ignoring a fair amount of school work and journal work in exchange for mass-mailing and networking.

I really really really hope this effort and time pay off in the end.

I'm in a position where I really can't get a job with my shitty median GPA so I'm not sacrificing any more school work this semester for the job search.

I assure you that your GPA is going to have little effect on getting a job at this point, except for maybe clerking, which would require a 4.0 for the next 2 years.

This is probably true. Unless you are at median and a 2L, then maybe you can get to a top 1/3 rd at graduation and apply to jobs as the top 1/3 rd post graduation.This should be a reasonable goal, but if you don't get the grades this semester to make it happen, then you should focus on finding a job, not increasing your gpa from 3.1 to 3.2.