ive never been this depressed before in my life Forum

[Anonymous User]

What do people do to stay motivated during this extremely exhausting part of 2L? Ive had 4 callbacks. 1 rejection, silence from the other three. Two of the three I'm waiting to hear back from have extended some offers. I have another CB lined up for next week, but I can't help but feel extremely depressed and unmotivated. I've worked so hard to prepare and do well in these interviews, and it sucks when the hard work does not pay off. I'm sitting here on my bed in the middle of the night and can't sleep - just thinking how horrible and mentally exhausting this whole process is. Every day that I wait with silence from these firms Ive had CBs with, is another day I lose hope and become even more depressed. I've mass-mailed and exhausted the Vault100 list as well. Had a few screeners as a result of that, but still haven't heard back.

Any tips on how to stay mentally stable and healthy during this extremely difficult time for those of that have worked so hard and still don't have offers? How do you cope with the silence?

[EncyclopediaOrange]

Serious suggestion: Does your school have free mental health services? There is no harm or shame in taking advantage of those.

[Anonymous User]

if it makes u feel any better i've been no offered out of law school. wasted a year in some shithole firm and then went unemployed for 2 months. it was terrible in every way imaginable, but i was never really "depressed" because i knew there's more important things in life than this momentary hiccup.

this is all just a blip in the radar a few months later. (but if you really have severe depression peptalk is not going to do. you should seek the health services on campus)

[Anonymous User]

This is an often arbitrary and brutal process that in no way reflects on your self-worth or who you are as a person. You're clearly a dedicated, hard-working person and that is going to take you very far in life, even if it's not totally smooth sailing right now. There are so many paths to happiness in life and the law-- don't let the overwhelming experience of OCI make you feel like this is the only one. Reach out to your friends, family, and/or campus health services to let them know how you're feeling and that you could use their support right now. Don't try to tough this out alone!

[Anonymous User]

What other people said. And, given that you're going to go into this upcoming CB stressed out, it might be best to just try to approach it as relaxed as possible. You said you did research and prep before the other ones, do less of it this time. Maybe (hopefully?) the problem is that you come off too gung-ho... so two birds with one stone, as it were.

[umichman]

What do people do to stay motivated during this extremely exhausting part of 2L? Ive had 4 callbacks. 1 rejection, silence from the other three. Two of the three I'm waiting to hear back from have extended some offers. I have another CB lined up for next week, but I can't help but feel extremely depressed and unmotivated. I've worked so hard to prepare and do well in these interviews, and it sucks when the hard work does not pay off. I'm sitting here on my bed in the middle of the night and can't sleep - just thinking how horrible and mentally exhausting this whole process is. Every day that I wait with silence from these firms Ive had CBs with, is another day I lose hope and become even more depressed. I've mass-mailed and exhausted the Vault100 list as well. Had a few screeners as a result of that, but still haven't heard back.

Any tips on how to stay mentally stable and healthy during this extremely difficult time for those of that have worked so hard and still don't have offers? How do you cope with the silence?

As law students we don't get rejection often until this part of our life. It's tough but almost everyone has to deal with it. Just keep plugging away and everything will work out. Don't lose hope and realize that this is a normal process that is difficult for most students and a lot just don't talk a out it

[zot1]

I think I stayed motivated because I realized that being sad about not getting everything the easy way wasn't going to solve my problems. I got really good at making plans B, C, D, etc.

I really can't emphasize this enough: now it's not the time to give up.

[p1921]

Keep your head up man, you're definitely not the only one going through tough times with this. Sounds like you're on the waitlist for the firms you've had callbacks from, and my guess is you'll get an offer or two from those. Some of the people they've offered will decline and accept elsewhere, leaving the door open for you.

Don't lose hope!

[Londonbear]

I remember going through this similar crisis last year while awaiting callback results. It really sucks when you've heard that others have gotten offers from the same firm and you haven't, and there's not many callbacks left to nail. But all it takes is ONE offer. And silence is better than rejection to be honest, even if it seems horrible just waiting. For me, I just came into the interview thinking I had nothing to lose. I was going to put my best foot forward with the rest of the callbacks, otherwise I'd regret it later on. And you can't let the rest of your interviewers feel that there's anything wrong. You just gotta go in there, enthusiastic and seem like you have offers already lined up. You can also email your OCS and see if they can do anything. Sometimes they can talk to the firms and basically present your case that if you get an offer, you'll take it on the spot. But that means you can't accept any offers or continue with any callbacks.

[Anonymous User]

Reach out to your school's counseling services. There's no shame in talking to someone. I was severely depressed at one point in school and I reached out--one of the better decisions I've ever made.

Lots of people strike out at OCI. I did, and you may still luck out! But regardless, I landed on my feet and so will you. Just focus on the bigger picture: You have what it takes to be where you are and you have the tools to succeed--never doubt that.

[Anonymous User]

Keep on going OP. I've heard of people getting offers in October. I'm in the same boat as you, it sucks. But you have to remain optimistic and know that everything will work out the way it's meant too. You got this.

[immalawyer]

What do people do to stay motivated during this extremely exhausting part of 2L? Ive had 4 callbacks. 1 rejection, silence from the other three. Two of the three I'm waiting to hear back from have extended some offers. I have another CB lined up for next week, but I can't help but feel extremely depressed and unmotivated. I've worked so hard to prepare and do well in these interviews, and it sucks when the hard work does not pay off. I'm sitting here on my bed in the middle of the night and can't sleep - just thinking how horrible and mentally exhausting this whole process is. Every day that I wait with silence from these firms Ive had CBs with, is another day I lose hope and become even more depressed. I've mass-mailed and exhausted the Vault100 list as well. Had a few screeners as a result of that, but still haven't heard back.

Any tips on how to stay mentally stable and healthy during this extremely difficult time for those of that have worked so hard and still don't have offers? How do you cope with the silence?

You got this. Some anecdotal encouragement coming atcha. I had over 30 screeners which resulted in only 5 callbacks. That was the first self-esteem hit I took. On top of that I was on radio silence for about 2 months after my first OCI interview... It was weird and emotionally exhausting. The offers, which I ended up getting a few, didn't start coming in until October. I'm looking at the offer from my current firm from 2L OCI and it is dated very late in October. Did I get offers from my first choice firms? No. But I ended up with a very legitimate job - it turns out to not be a super good fit for me, but it pays market and was very comparable to my first choice firms.

The only way you'll get through this process is to trust that you did the work and that your work will eventually pay off. You seem to be a hard working and motivated person. If you keep up that motivation, you'll come out of this alright. It's also worth noting that just because you didn't get your dream job during 2L OCI, or even out of law school, there are many opportunities to keep fighting for what you want. I had several offers at the end of my 2L summer as well. And I'm sure I could have switched up firms when I graduated. I'm just a stresser and thought it was too risky to apply at other places.

[Anonymous User]

What other people said. And, given that you're going to go into this upcoming CB stressed out, it might be best to just try to approach it as relaxed as possible. You said you did research and prep before the other ones, do less of it this time. Maybe (hopefully?) the problem is that you come off too gung-ho... so two birds with one stone, as it were.

This. You want to be well-prepared but you don't want to come off too high-strung during the interviews. Know that you have prepared enough and go into the interview relaxed, conversational and generally normal. Don't feel like you have to stick to a script and have an agenda in mind. Just let the conversation take it where goes.

[Anonymous User]

OP here. I would like to thank you all so much for your words of encouragement and support. I definitely feel a little more at ease reading your comments. Its really difficult to speak about my situation to others because many people I've spoken to have offers lined up and I hate receiving the sympathy from them because it just does not seem genuine and I end up feeling like a total failure. I'll try to be more relaxed about everything and realize that everything happens for a reason - hopefully an offer comes up at some point. I appreciate you all!

[Anonymous User]

Op,

I feel for you but know that things will get better. Keep hustling. I was just outside the top 10% (think 1-2 people outside) at a T50 school in the early 2010s and I not only didn't get into any T14s transferring (back then it was a little more difficult) but I also struck out at OCI my new T25 school (which was pretty meager). Ended up "networking" by emailing alums and I ended up getting an associate position in a mid law firm. Everything got a lot easier in terms of career prospects.

Don't worry and keep going, if you keep hustling you will definitely get something good!

[Anonymous User]

I'm in a similar boat. I'm a T14 transfer and had 3CBs--all dings. I've sent in over 350 emails, probably been rejected by 60% and getting the silent treatment from the rest, despite sending updated resumes last week. Now I'm emailing states I've never been to...this sucks.