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I got an interview with a judge in the EDNY (central islip location), without grades. I go to Brooklyn Law. I didn't realize that the location was in central islip until after I said yes to go on the interview. This is over a 1.5hr commute. The other EDNY location is literally blocks from my apartment. Anyway, my school says that if you are offered a position with a judge, you MUST accept it, and my advisor told me I shouldn't go on the interview if I am unsure about commuting to LI.

I really don't want to travel that far for an internship. I feel like it's so soon and I'll have plenty of opportunities in the city or in brooklyn.

Any thoughts? How prestigious is a federal judicial internship.. is it worth it or should I cancel the interview? There is also a chance i'll get an interview with a judge closer to me as well.

I doubt many BLS students are getting these types of interviews. It's very prestigious - although perhaps not as prestigious as an externship in the city, it's still among the most prestigious summer jobs in the country. I'd make the commute.

But the career services people are right, don't interview if you don't want the job, the legal community isn't that big and rejecting a judge is a very bad idea.

If you're not willing to accept the internship, cancel the interview.

Also probably not worth it to commute 3 hours unless the judge has a habit of hiring prior interns as clerks.

ogurty wrote:I doubt many BLS students are getting these types of interviews. It's very prestigious - although perhaps not as prestigious as an externship in the city, it's still among the most prestigious summer jobs in the country. I'd make the commute.

But the career services people are right, don't interview if you don't want the job, the legal community isn't that big and rejecting a judge is a very bad idea.

I would make the commute too, fwiw. This type of opportunity may not come up again.

FWIW, interning with a federal judge can be fun and all, but I wouldn't sweat passing on the opportunity if it's going to involve an intense commute. There's no shame in working for a magistrate, bankruptcy, state, or any other judge closer to you during the summer. It's not going to make a difference when it comes to firm hiring, and it probably won't even make a difference if you're applying for clerkships. Also, I assume you're a 1L from the OP, so keep in mind that you could try to hook up a semester-long internship with one of the closer federal judges during one of your remaining four years in school. It's not like the opportunity won't come again.

Thanks everyone for the advice.

I decided to go on the interview. Is there any tips on interviewing with a judge?