Weird 1L SA Situation
Posted: Mon Jul 28, 2014 3:53 pm
I am a 1L SA from a lower t-14 in a large secondary market ie. ATL, MIA, HOU etc. It is a 150-200 person firm that is big and well respected in one state. The firm I am at has a weird policy in that they do not extend offers to SAs until December or January. I have gotten nothing but excellent feedback and have been told by my supervisor that he has been getting great feedback from everyone I have worked under. I also have had multiple people make it sound like I have a verbal offer in that they are asking me what plans are for next summer, how interested I am in returning, how they want to work with me in the future, that they really liked me etc. etc. I tried to get recruiting to just give me the damn offer already in a meeting with the recruiting partner but they told me to just keep up what I am doing and to keep them updated on my status throughout OCI and that they will know more about full time availability in December/January.
So my questions are:
1. What do I tell other firms? I do not want to come off as if I got no offered but I also cannot represent that I have one until I have one in hand.
2. Is it bad taste for me to tell the firm I am at where I am interviewing and to update them when I (hopefully) get call backs to hurry them along? I really like this firm and although they are slightly below my region's market, I would take them over all but maybe 5-10 places I applied because the partner track is very clear here and I think I would have a good shot at being a big fish in a little (not really that small but comparatively) pond. They seem to follow the 7-8 years and you make partner model unless someone truly sucks.
3. I hate prestige whores and this may sound totally dickish, but they generally do not get people from t-14 schools. It is mainly people from the top of the class at regional schools. I am 99% sure that my school's reputation is the reason I got a 1L SA with them as they usually never hire 1Ls and my grades were barely above median. Is there a way I can somehow leverage this and throw around some names of some Vault firms I am interviewing with, while stressing how much I like their firm and how I would more than likely return, to maybe speed them up in making an offer? I mean they did ask me to keep them updated on OCI/my interviews and callbacks. I feel like that is a pretty douche move but I really want to try to lock something down before OCI, would be a huge weight off my shoulders to be playing with house money.
So my questions are:
1. What do I tell other firms? I do not want to come off as if I got no offered but I also cannot represent that I have one until I have one in hand.
2. Is it bad taste for me to tell the firm I am at where I am interviewing and to update them when I (hopefully) get call backs to hurry them along? I really like this firm and although they are slightly below my region's market, I would take them over all but maybe 5-10 places I applied because the partner track is very clear here and I think I would have a good shot at being a big fish in a little (not really that small but comparatively) pond. They seem to follow the 7-8 years and you make partner model unless someone truly sucks.
3. I hate prestige whores and this may sound totally dickish, but they generally do not get people from t-14 schools. It is mainly people from the top of the class at regional schools. I am 99% sure that my school's reputation is the reason I got a 1L SA with them as they usually never hire 1Ls and my grades were barely above median. Is there a way I can somehow leverage this and throw around some names of some Vault firms I am interviewing with, while stressing how much I like their firm and how I would more than likely return, to maybe speed them up in making an offer? I mean they did ask me to keep them updated on OCI/my interviews and callbacks. I feel like that is a pretty douche move but I really want to try to lock something down before OCI, would be a huge weight off my shoulders to be playing with house money.