Top Law Schools

I will be gunning very hard for a BigLaw 1L SA, but obviously not counting on getting it. Upper T14, but they to this date really haven't given us any info on summer employment. I don't want to get so caught up in chasing an SA that I miss other great opportunities...which frankly I don't even know wtf they are...

So basically I gathered that other than BigLaw there's:
PD/DA: (where do you even go to find these/apply?) do you need to apply early Dec like BigLaw, or do they come later? Actually very interested in PD internship
other gov: ???
Judge internship: Apply later I guess? No clue where to find these either other than symplicity...
In-House: Apply asap I think? Also heard they will post on symplicity around March?
RA: Seem un-competitive and you just find one whenever..?
??? (no idea what else there is or where you look to find it)


I know I'm asking for a lot of info but I really have no idea and it seems like what most people talk about on this site is BigLaw, but there has to be other competitive stuff you need to apply to ASAP too right? Trying to avoid seeing something I really wanted to do and realizing it is too late to have a shot at it...

Thanks!

Anonymous User wrote:In-House: Apply asap I think? Also heard they will post on symplicity around March?

In-house positions can be advertised any time between now and about June, but most seemed to cluster between February - April last year, if I remember correctly.

Only a small number are advertised on Symplicity. There are usually a much larger number posted on various websites. http://lawstudentjobs.net/ is a good site to visit, although they just collect posting they've found elsewhere. Also check all the major job websites - Monster, etc.

Keep in mind that, if you're upper t14, you'll probably get offers elsewhere long before you hear back from the in house positions. Last year, I got a couple of interview requests in late April for positions I'd applied to in early March, but I'd given up and accepted something else by that point. Same thing happened to a couple of friends of mine. No one I know got an in-house position, although probably half the people I know seemed interested, because something else came along first.

You probably do want to apply ASAP, even if the advertisements list deadlines.

i got prestigious fed gov in march. you can get almost everything by applying over winter break

I found that a lot of the better (in terms of pay and substantive work) 1L jobs were advertised and filled late in the year - all the way up through exams (and one after). Some of the best jobs that my peers had were obtained in April or May.

I suggest applying throughout the spring semester (and for judicial internships or 1L SA positions, in Dec/Jan), but don 't freak out if you don't get anything you like by Feb.