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2L at T25, KJD. School just offered me last-minute placement at a Fortune 500 company in the area. I really like my schedule this fall (no class on Thursday/Friday), so I don't want to shake it up unless the experience will be very valuable.

I still have some interviews to go through for firms but striking out seems like the most likely outcome. If I don't land a firm this fall, then I'll have to look more closely at my options, but I would keep my interest in firms open and pursue other opportunities in the corporate world - maybe even outside of JD required jobs.

So, will an externship like this help me and make me more competitive for firms since I don't have any work experience?

If I don't continue pursuing law, will an externship with a corporation make me a more attractive applicant for entry level positions in a field other than law?

Or would it be totally meaningless and a waste of time to do something like this?

As always, this is completely anecdotal . . .

I spent my 1L summer with a Fortune Global 150 company's legal department - it's been nothing but great for my interviews with law firms. Fortune 500 companies are law firms' clients, so I sold my experience as having worked in a potential client's legal department. Things you can learn:

- What happens in a client's legal department
- What a client is looking for when they look to outside counsel
- REAL legal experience (I drafted, redlined, negotiated directly with other Fortune 500 companies, and more)
- How a Fortune 500 company works
- REAL work experience
- etc.

Looking back, I see it as one of the few ways to get no-B.S. legal experience. A company isn't going to wine-and-dine you like a firm will - they have REAL work that needs done.

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Interned at a ~F500 company this past summer, it was a very enjoyable experience. They didn't work me hard, but they did a good job of "mentoring" me and making it a real learning experience. During OCI, it always came up (obviously) and is an experience that's very easy to sell. In that sense, it makes you a better interviewer b/c you'll have real things to talk about (not just class experience) that would give you a leg up on other applicants. I assume it would give you a foot in the door were you trying to apply for a position with this company, but keep in mind that positions don't open up all that often; they're small legal departments and people tend to stick around. I also don't think it's going to help with "non-legal" positions, except to the extent that you might be able to network at the company. I think it's a solid line on the resume that many others don't have, and to the extent you can use the opportunity to make connections with lawyers/ non-lawyers at the company, can be a good networking opportunity.