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I appreciate that federal clerkships are really a crap-shoot in terms of odds. But, I just want to know if it is worth my time applying for the 2015-2016 cycle.

Stats:
T2 2014 grad
Top 5%
EIC of Secondary
Published in outside secondary journal
Offer at boutique commercial litigation firm (I'll be the only non-14 associate).

You're top 5%. It's worth sending out applications.

Many federal judges won't even look at your application because of where you went to law school, but some will. I agree with ph14 that it's worth sending out applications.

By the way, is your T2 located in a relatively non-competitive state or district? If so, that helps a lot, because some judges in your region might have a preference for hiring from a local law school. If your T2 is, say, Loyola in Los Angeles or Cardozo in New York, you're in a tough spot because you're in a competitive clerkship market. You're surrounded by much better local law schools. And top students from all over the country want to clerk in your school's market. But if your T2 is, say, the University of Kentucky, your clerkship prospects look a little brighter. There are probably a few federal judges in the state who like to hire from your school. And, although all clerkships are competitive, the judges in your state aren't being inundated with applications from every student in the top 10% at a T20.

rpupkin wrote:Many federal judges won't even look at your application because of where you went to law school, but some will. I agree with ph14 that it's worth sending out applications.

By the way, is your T2 located in a relatively non-competitive state or district? If so, that helps a lot, because some judges in your region might have a preference for hiring from a local law school. If your T2 is, say, Loyola in Los Angeles or Cardozo in New York, you're in a tough spot because you're in a competitive clerkship market. You're surrounded by much better local law schools. And top students from all over the country want to clerk in your school's market. But if your T2 is, say, the University of Kentucky, your clerkship prospects look a little brighter. There are probably a few federal judges in the state who like to hire from your school. And, although all clerkships are competitive, the judges in your state aren't being inundated with applications from every student in the top 10% at a T20.

I graduated from a competitive jurisdiction (IL). But, I am originally from a neighboring state/jurisdiction which only has T1s/TTTT.