how in depth to study resume? Forum

[Anonymous User]

For interviews, I know I have to be able to explain each point on my resume .. but how much? Some of this stuff is from a while ago. I've been stressing over memorizing the details about every assignment I listed. Do I really need to know the case law involved in each? If I say I wrote a memo on x amendment, do I need to memorize the analysis? I really don't remember the facts and analysis of all these assignments and it's making me nervous and screwing up my interview confidence to try and stress over memorizing it all.

[run26.2]

If you list some specific area of law, you are obviously more likely to get asked about it. Why are you being so specific? Is it for something like a summer associateship you did years ago? For those, you can describe the assignment without mentioning the legal issue. But if you're applying for a practice group where you have particular experience, you might want to include some of the regimes, issues, etc. Either way, you should be prepared to talk about the law in some of the areas in which you've worked, and the most recent ones are fresh in your memory.

[papermateflair]

I can't even remember the stuff I did during my summer associate job or 1L internships - when I was updating my resume, I just removed any details (instead of "drafted brief on x and y issues" I changed it to "drafted brief" before eventually, with the passage of time, removing the internships completely). You're not going to be able to remember every case or argument, so don't set yourself up to fail - especially if it's not related to the job you currently have. If it's related to the job you have/the job you're trying to get, then you should be able to discuss the issue broadly.

[nealric]

For interviews, I know I have to be able to explain each point on my resume .. but how much? Some of this stuff is from a while ago. I've been stressing over memorizing the details about every assignment I listed. Do I really need to know the case law involved in each? If I say I wrote a memo on x amendment, do I need to memorize the analysis? I really don't remember the facts and analysis of all these assignments and it's making me nervous and screwing up my interview confidence to try and stress over memorizing it all.

Nobody is going to expect you to rattle off case cites and analysis from every matter you've worked on. But if it's on your resume, you should be able to discuss it intelligently. By that, I mean talk about what you did on the matter, what it involved, and tie it to how that experience could be helpful in the new role you are interviewing for.