bgdddymtty wrote:Thanks for this info, and I'm glad to hear the CS looks to optimize things. I'd imagine that that leads to more job opportunities.
As far as the pre-select part of OGI goes, I'm a bit confused. Do these firms just look at grades and resumes and start extending invitations to students who may have no interest in a given firm? Or do you give other info such as preferred geography, area of the law, etc.?
Also for the lottery part, how does it work? It sort of sounds like you have an unlimited number of "tickets." How many firms can you bid on? Also, since you prioritize those bids, how does that work in concept with the lottery concept? Or is lottery a misnomer, and it's really more like an auction, with your priority being your bid amount?
Pre-Select:
Some firms ask for cover letters, where you can express your interests more explicitly. Other firms just ask for resumes and transcripts to find qualified/good fit candidates and assume that you are interested if you bid on them. You are only allowed to bid on 50 firms (of about 160+ this year), so firms know that you've picked places you're at least somewhat interested in. They find out the details in the screening interview on campus.
Lottery:
Career Services has an algorithm where people get interviews with the firms they have ranked the highest. If there are no remaining interview slots with your #2 bid, then your #3 bid gains more weight relative to other people's #3 bids. This way, there will be less of a chance that you miss out on both your #2 and #3 firms because you have priority in your #3 choice. If somehow you get screwed and don't get interviews with your #1, #2, and #3 bids, you'd be practically guaranteed to get your #4 bid (assuming the firm still has open slots) because the system will put you at the front of the line. This lottery continues until all of the interview slots are filled (or until they go through everyone's entire list).
