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If the interviewers order a drink as well as the other candidates (if a group interview), should you personally refrain from ordering a drink or not?
I was told that you should order a drink and nurse it just to show that you can fit in with them and that not ordering one may raise eyebrows (unless for religious convictions). Then I was told under no circumstances should you order a drink, especially if they know you drove. Is alcohol one of those loose loose situations?

No, absolutely do not order a drink. They aren't going to judge you for not drinking. Who told you that?

various people. I was told if you order a drink you would not be judged as well. That is why I am wondering what is the big deal if you have ONE drink but only take sips from it.

just get water. people will assume it's for some reason, either health. religion, or whatever, and no one will question it

The only time I would would be if it was dinner, all interviewers had already ordered a drink, and i wasn't going back to the office for anything else after dinner. Otherwise definitely no.

so would you say that ordering a drink is a deal-breaker?

You should feel free to order a drink if people from the firm are ordering drinks. If you don't want one, that will almost certainly be fine as well.

I think they just want you to be comfortable. However, you never want to be the most extreme. If they order beers don't get a Long Island Iced Tea.

AReasonableMan wrote:I think they just want you to be comfortable. However, you never want to be the most extreme. If they order beers don't get a Long Island Iced Tea.

lmao

Anonymous User wrote:If the interviewers order a drink as well as the other candidates (if a group interview), should you personally refrain from ordering a drink or not?
I was told that you should order a drink and nurse it just to show that you can fit in with them and that not ordering one may raise eyebrows (unless for religious convictions). Then I was told under no circumstances should you order a drink, especially if they know you drove. Is alcohol one of those loose loose situations?

They may consider spelling lose as loose a deal-breaker. Just order a beer and nurse it. I don't think anyone will frown on you driving after one beer.

Use your common sense

If the attys are drinking you can drink too

If they're not drinking don't order a drink

It's all situational

I've gotten pretty drunk on a CB and got and offer

if someone who is taking you out gets a drink, it's borderline disrespectful to not follow suit

I had 3 beers during a CB and in retrospect I'm 90% sure that is the reason for the ding. 1 would have been fine but 3 no. I didn't do anything stupid but after drinking 3 beers (in less than 45 min) people notice a change in speech etc.

McAvoy wrote:if someone who is taking you out gets a drink, it's borderline disrespectful to not follow suit

Yep. I'd ding you.

Desert Fox wrote:

McAvoy wrote:if someone who is taking you out gets a drink, it's borderline disrespectful to not follow suit

Yep. I'd ding you.

I don't know if it's just a Texas thing or what but there were post-interview events that I definitely would have felt weird at if I didn't drink and I think a candidate not drinking would have been a negative.

I think if you don't drink in general then don't. But if you do and the attorneys are, then by all means have a drink or three if you feel like it.

BigZuck wrote: I don't know if it's just a Texas thing or what but there were post-interview events that I definitely would have felt weird at if I didn't drink and I think a candidate not drinking would have been a negative.

I think if you don't drink in general then don't. But if you do and the attorneys are, then by all means have a drink or three if you feel like it.

That was certainly the feeling I got as well.

I would assume you are either pregnant, mormon/super religious, or a recovering alcoholic. None of those things are inherently bad, but if you for whatever reason don't want to risk those labels I'd get the booze and nurse it.

BVest wrote:

BigZuck wrote: I don't know if it's just a Texas thing or what but there were post-interview events that I definitely would have felt weird at if I didn't drink and I think a candidate not drinking would have been a negative.

I think if you don't drink in general then don't. But if you do and the attorneys are, then by all means have a drink or three if you feel like it.

That was certainly the feeling I got as well.

oh, i thought it was assumed that the normal rules don't apply in Texas. Don't forget to bring your gun to the cb in case you have to kill an animal.

hichvichwoh wrote:

BVest wrote:

BigZuck wrote: I don't know if it's just a Texas thing or what but there were post-interview events that I definitely would have felt weird at if I didn't drink and I think a candidate not drinking would have been a negative.

I think if you don't drink in general then don't. But if you do and the attorneys are, then by all means have a drink or three if you feel like it.

That was certainly the feeling I got as well.

oh, i thought it was assumed that the normal rules don't apply in Texas. Don't forget to bring your gun to the cb in case you have to kill an animal.

Right, right

I actually had a similar feeling at a post-callback thing in SF (where everyone is a dirty gun hating hippy, mind you). Although it wasnt as extreme as some of the TX ones. With some TX firms it seemed like not drinking might have been a ding, whereas at the thing in SF it would have just been kind of strange but fine.

I definitely don't think people should ever feel compelled to drink if they don't want to out of principle or whatever. Maybe I misread the OP but that wasn't the sense I got from them. I thought they were maybe ok with drinking, just not sure if they should or not and what the best course of action would be. Seems totally situation dependent to me.

Have you never been an adult?

The utter lack of social awareness possessed by law students seriously never fails to amaze me

baal hadad wrote:Use your common sense

If the attys are drinking you can drink too

If they're not drinking don't order a drink

It's all situational

FKASunny wrote:Have you never been an adult?

of course you can have a drink .. your interviewers are other human beings

there's nothing wrong with having a drink in a social situation where alcohol is served

maybe i'm a bit biased--because i grew up in the midwest--but if i were interviewing candidates in a setting where most candidates had a drink, i would definitely ding the kid who refrained from drinking--all else being equal. i would suspect (a) the person wants to have a drink but is too timid to actually have one or (b) this person isn't someone i can relate to.

I agree with what everyone has said about this being situational, use your common sense, etc., but I think the idea that you'd ding someone who didn't order a drink is pretty sucky.

A. Nony Mouse wrote:I agree with what everyone has said about this being situational, use your common sense, etc., but I think the idea that you'd ding someone who didn't order a drink is pretty sucky.

Yeah I think / hope that was DF flame.

I have never known anyone who has actually been involved in hiring to so much as comment on, let alone make a decision based on, whether or not someone is drinking unless they make a huge show of not drinking or drink to excess/at inappropriate times.

Stop overthinking things. Sure, someone could ding you for either, but they could also ding you for using bullets rather than paragraphs on your resume. There is no 100% safe anything in job seeking.