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Hello everybody, I didn't do very well during OCI and currently have no callbacks. So I have been sending out a lot of mails, and one smaller (mid-size?) firm who does corporate work contacted me for a screener interview.

However, the position seems to be a temporary position (intern) instead of associate, and the pay is based on hours rather than fixed weekly salary.

So I was wondering, what are your thoughts on doing an internship that might not necessarily lead to employment during the 2L summer? Should I just do it for the experience and contacts? The firm does seem to do interesting work.

If anyone has any experience with this type of situation I would really appreciate your advice.
Thanks.

It's much worse than a summer associate position, and much better than being unemployed.

swampman wrote:It's much worse than a summer associate position, and much better than being unemployed.

Unfortunate but true.

zot1 wrote:

swampman wrote:It's much worse than a summer associate position, and much better than being unemployed.

Unfortunate but true.

Is it really?

(In reference to the being much better than being unemployed)

Above anon here - not being arrogantly snarky, as I'm facing that real possibility myself as well.

Anonymous User wrote:

zot1 wrote:

swampman wrote:It's much worse than a summer associate position, and much better than being unemployed.

Unfortunate but true.

Is it really?

(In reference to the being much better than being unemployed)

Yes. If you still want to get a law job after you graduate, you have to do something legal for your 2L summer. Doing nothing legal for your 2L summer is a death sentence.

Anonymous User wrote:

zot1 wrote:

swampman wrote:It's much worse than a summer associate position, and much better than being unemployed.

Unfortunate but true.

Is it really?

(In reference to the being much better than being unemployed)

You could end up doing an unpaid non-legal internship.

OP here, thanks for all the replies.
Do any of you know how bad it might be? If anyone has had any experience in this type of situation I would really appreciate it.

Anonymous User wrote:OP here, thanks for all the replies.
Do any of you know how bad it might be? If anyone has had any experience in this type of situation I would really appreciate it.

If your goal is big law, you need to keep mass mailing like your life depends on it. 3LOL OCI is a shit show (see: the Vale).

If your goal is some sort of firm, taking this position might not be so bad but you would likely want to look into a part-time position for the fall with another firm that might end up hiring you. I'll warn you, this is still hard to do.

If your heart is not dead set on working in the private sector, you could do a government position that might set you up for a post-grad government position. But this is a rough path because there are not many openings and a lot of guessing about what will happen until the last minute.

I'm not necessarily gunning for big law, just want to find a job (of course it would be much better if I could get a job that pays enough so that I can at least start paying off my debt of around 100K).

So if I'm not necessarily gunning for big law, do you mean that during this 2L semester I should intern at a firm, hopefully to get some experience?

Thanks for any help, this process is extremely emotionally draining.

Anonymous User wrote:I'm not necessarily gunning for big law, just want to find a job (of course it would be much better if I could get a job that pays enough so that I can at least start paying off my debt of around 100K).

So if I'm not necessarily gunning for big law, do you mean that during this 2L semester I should intern at a firm, hopefully to get some experience?

Thanks for any help, this process is extremely emotionally draining.

Not necessarily now. I sort of meant third year. But you could start looking now for a firm that needs part-time help as sometimes, and I caution this happens very few times, those firms might keep you post-grad if they liked you and have the space. But this is what I know from a few classmates who did this. I also know classmates who didn't who got a job before graduation or after bar results.

You can always take the internship position while you keep your eyes out for something else. Also, I received interviews at larger law firms into September. Keep mass mailing and following up everywhere. There is still time left.

OP, striking out at OCI sucks, but working a paid 2L summer law clerk gig is not a bad thing. There are many paths to a successful career, and while OCI is the most common way, it is not the exclusive way. I was a law clerk at a small firm my 2L summer after I struck out at OCI, clerked for a state supreme court judge after law school, and landed a mid-law gig for post-clerkship in part due to the connections I had made my 2L summer. In law school, OCI seems like the end-all be all. It's a blow, certainly, but it's not a career-ender. Take the gig, enjoy the pay, put your nose to the grindstone and impress the people you work with, and hustle like crazy for that post-law school employment. Best of luck.


Edited because a previous iteration of this post declared that I worked for a state supreme court "judgment."

Just as another data point: I took a job at a mid-sized firm for by 2L summer--I was specifically called a "clerk" and it was clear that there was basically no chance that the position would lead to permanent employment. But the firm practiced in my areas of interest so I took the job (not that I had other options). I ended up doing very well my last two years of law school grades-wise, clerking (for a judge), then landing a gig in biglaw. No one has looked twice at my resume line about my 2L summer along the way. They get it (i.e. that it was not the type of position that would lead to a permanent gig) and seem satisfied that I did something substantive my 2L year.

emciosn wrote:Just as another data point: I took a job at a mid-sized firm for by 2L summer--I was specifically called a "clerk" and it was clear that there was basically no chance that the position would lead to permanent employment. But the firm practiced in my areas of interest so I took the job (not that I had other options). I ended up doing very well my last two years of law school grades-wise, clerking (for a judge), then landing a gig in biglaw. No one has looked twice at my resume line about my 2L summer along the way. They get it (i.e. that it was not the type of position that would lead to a permanent gig) and seem satisfied that I did something substantive my 2L year.

Oh yeah, I totally forgot the clerkship route. This is most definitely another viable path so something worth looking at.