Tips for callbacks Forum

[Anonymous User]

So here's the deal...

I've had 4 callbacks thus far. 2 have already officially dinged me. The other 2 I haven't heard from, but suspect will definitely result in a dings given the time thats passed since my callbacks.

By some miracle I received another callback next week after a phone screening interview. Its a firm that's significantly more prestigious then firms I've had callbacks with so far. (I go to a higher ranked TT, so they don't even interview on campus at my school).

I suspect I'm doing so poorly in my callbacks because I come across as either too nervous or too eager. There was one callback specifically where I had a really difficult time trying to keep a conversation with one of the attorneys. Does anyone have any tips?


Thanks

[jchiles]

Just be yourself and let the chips fall where they may.

[Anonymous User]

Think of it as a conversation and not an interview. You have nothing to be nervous about, you're just trying to get to know them and the firm. I think being enthusiastic about the job really helps... not in a creepy overeager way, but in a way that you seem excited to start working. Obviously, you should also have a list of good questions to ask if the conversation goes a little dead (like what cases they're on, what the culture is like at the firm, etc.) This also sounds obvious but when they answer a question, make sure you're actually responding to what they said and continuing the conversation after that instead of just being like, "great."

[Anonymous User]

I did poorly on screeners relative to my numbers but had 50% at callbacks.

Most important thing for me was not to wait until "do you have any questions for me?" to ask questions but do it in the middle of the conversation when deemed appropriate. Also as mentioned previously use however they responded to build off the conversation and ask a follow up question.

[MyNameIsFlynn!]

Just be yourself and let the chips fall where they may.

But don't just be yourself if yourself is awkward and not conversational

[juliuscasear90]

Thank you emails the night of. I know you'll be exhausted and don't think it matters but your interviewers have seen a million people just like you wearing suits exactly like you and with resumes just like you. After awhile, we all start to blur together. So how do we differentiate ourselves? How do we refresh their memories about our conversation and personality? A quick 3 sentence thank you email can easily differentiate you from the mass of candidates and leave a positive impression in the mind of your interviewer. It may seem like a small triviality, but don't forget the small things add up and because partners can often have jam packed schedules and lots of things going on it may tip the scales in your favor. Also don't forget the nature of your situation either, if your at a callback you already passed the litmus test of the firms vetting process (grades, school, rank etc.) -- now they want to know is this somebody I'd like to work with? Is this someone I'd like to grab a beer with? The more you connect with your interviewer the more memorable you become. Your interviewer will then turn from someone whos merely neutral toward you into your advocate. That should be your goal of your thank you email--will this message convey my thanks and gratitude, remind them of my personability and strong conversational skills, and help foster the possibility that they will advocate for me on their review and/or during recruiting committee discussion? If so, you may be on your way to an offer.

[n1o2c3a4c5h6e7t]

To preface, I converted nearly all of my callbacks to offers.

Don't ask basic questions. Attorneys love to answer well-formulated questions that evince a more-than-cursory knowledge about the firm/interviewer. Questions like "what is the culture like in X practice group?" are very lazy. If all else fails, ask questions about the interviewer. Attorneys love to talk about themselves. We are a narcissistic bunch. It's okay to wait until the "so what questions can I answer?" to ask questions (this was almost always the case for me), but feel free to interrupt your interviewer mid-sentence to ask questions on whatever is being discussed. The best thing you can do is to reference someone with whom you have talked (summer associate, attorney) at the firm to preface a detailed question.

Be friendly, enthusiastic, and smile; have good anecdotes to almost-certain questions; and be able to talk about anything on your resume. At one NY firm (perhaps obvious?), multiple partners asked me detailed questions about a memo I had written at my summer job. I hardly remembered it, but managed to string together coherent answers. It's better to be prepared.

To be honest though, I think a large part of callback success depends on the school which you attend. T14 students do much better than others, and you will need to develop better narratives because your school is nothing the firm will want to showcase. I know many people much more personable than me from slightly lower-ranked schools who struggled.

I never sent thank-you emails at any stage of the oci/callback process.

[BizBro]

Know your resume in and out. You should have answers for all the basic questions you know you'll receive at this point from your many screeners and call backs. I found that I had almost a 100% CB to offer conversion rate after I royally screwed my first CB. Learned from that along the way though.

What I found most helpful is to think of the CB as a conversation. I noticed if I kept answer the interviewer's questions and waiting for another question, it was not going well. If they ask you X question, answer it, and if possible, add your own question to the end of it. I.E. if it's a young associate, you can ask them what their favorite class was after you guys are talking about that topic already. Also, look at the interviewers' bios before hand and formulate 1-3 back up questions you can ask them near the end. I found having one or two go-to questions really helped.

As mentioned in this thread, the more you can get the interviewer to talk about themselves or their view point on a certain topic, the better off you'll be. If you can't think of anything, just ask the interviwer to tell you more about their practice. I found it's real easy when they ask you about what you're interested in, to answer and then ask them, "did you know you always wanted to be a litigator" or whatever it is that they do.

They'll just remember having a pleasant conversation with you if you had articulate answers when they asked you things. Also, smile for god's sake. You don't have to have it plastered on your face the entire time, but every now and then. Also, chuckle or laugh when appropriate. Good luck.

[I never sent any thank you notes or anything either. I'm at CCN with shitty shitty grades (bottom 1/3 to bottom 1/4), if that helps give context.