Williams & Connolly non-SA Hiring Forum

[Anonymous User]

Given the state of pre-OCI this year and W&C's commitment to traditional OCI, I'm a bit nervous about my offers lapsing before I have the chance to interview. If I SA at a different firm (and then clerk), is there still a chance at W&C?

Of course, I may like the firm I summer at -- I mostly don't want to permanently close the door if I'm still interested a few years from now.

[Anonymous User]

Yes. W&C hired a lot of clerks this cycle, at least.

[Anonymous User]

Yes, while many other firms have pulled back on post-clerkship hiring, W&C still leans super heavily on it. When I was interviewing, a member of the Hiring Committee explicitly told me that there is no hiring advantage for people who did an SA there vs other post-clerkship candidates. So if you are qualified for W&C (clerkship lined up, grades, school, litigation interest, DC ties, have the right personality, etc), then not being an SA will not hurt your chances later on.

[Anonymous User]

I was interviewing from a clerkship in late 2019/early 2020 and received an offer from WC despite not having summered there. And I've known several others to join post-clerkship in the last several years who hadn't summered there.

[Anonymous User]

What exactly counts as Williams & Connolly qualified for post-clerkship hiring. Would it just be around top 10% at T6 plus random Circuit clerkship as the median hire and then go from there (i.e. if you drop from T6 then you need a better clerkship/grades and if you're in HYS maybe you don't need a circuit clerkship etc...)

[Anonymous User]

Yes, while many other firms have pulled back on post-clerkship hiring, W&C still leans super heavily on it. When I was interviewing, a member of the Hiring Committee explicitly told me that there is no hiring advantage for people who did an SA there vs other post-clerkship candidates. So if you are qualified for W&C (clerkship lined up, grades, school, litigation interest, DC ties, have the right personality, etc), then not being an SA will not hurt your chances later on.

what exactly is the right personality?

[Anonymous User]

What exactly counts as Williams & Connolly qualified for post-clerkship hiring. Would it just be around top 10% at T6 plus random Circuit clerkship as the median hire and then go from there (i.e. if you drop from T6 then you need a better clerkship/grades and if you're in HYS maybe you don't need a circuit clerkship etc...)

I don't know what is typical, but as a data point, I was top ~10% at HYS with two circuit clerkships and an additional year of government appellate experience and received an offer.

[Anonymous User]

What type of clerkship bonuses do they offer?

[Anonymous User]

What type of clerkship bonuses do they offer?

75k for two