Should I only apply to competitive districts? Forum

[Anonymous User]

With a COA clerkship in hand, a 3.9, and LR, I think your odds are pretty good, especially if you’re also applying to EDNY. Make sure also to apply to the new and pending appointees—the worst part of SDNY is the timeline and clerking for a new judge helps with that (though on the other hand they tend to have the worst hours).

[Anonymous User]

Different poster. I clerked for a semi-feeder COA judge and am now clerking for a sdny judge that isn’t one of the two you mentioned. I am not sure what a “median” SDNY judge is but a 3.9 from Columbia with 2 years of big law is a pretty common applicant

Damn so how do you all pick to interview. Is it just like whichever of the 3.9 CLS + 2 years biglaw applicant happens to catch your eye for some other reason.

Original poster. Just other gold stars—COA clerkships, strength of transcript, LR, connections and recs, career interests, life story and diversity, even higher than 3.9 grades, etc. Fwiw my judge was an “above-median” SDNY judge but not one you listed.

So if I'm in a similar position to OP but have LR and COA clerkship in non-2/9/DC and not a feeder or semi-feeder, what can I do to get SDNY—just spray and pray at this point?

How far along in school are you? Assuming it's not your 3L spring now:

- Take classes with professors connected to SDNY judges ("name" professors, former clerks/AUSAs from the district, etc.). Go to office hours. Crush your exam/paper and get a strong LOR or phone call from a professor the judge knows.
- If you are not on CLR (or even if you are), get a note published
- If you are on CLR, run for a senior position on the administrative board
- Try to boost your GPA even higher, into the 3.95 range
- Spray and pray. Apply to the whole court, keep applying over multiple cycles, nail your interviews. Talking to former clerks ahead of your interview can go a long way.

Am in 3L spring, unfortunately.

Hmmm yeah, unless you're currently enrolled in a class with a "needle-mover" professor, you've pretty much done what you can in school. You can start this fall with bulking up the work experience section of your resume. If you're going to a firm, try to network with partners and associates who have clerked on the court. I have no idea whether this is true for SDNY judges, but many judges who prefer work experience rely heavily on references from their clerk alumni network and other attorneys they know/trust.

[Anonymous User]

With a COA clerkship in hand, a 3.9, and LR, I think your odds are pretty good, especially if you’re also applying to EDNY. Make sure also to apply to the new and pending appointees—the worst part of SDNY is the timeline and clerking for a new judge helps with that (though on the other hand they tend to have the worst hours).

"Inaugural class" clerk here. This is not always true--in my experience, the first few months of the job (which were the judge's first few months on the bench) were as cushy a legal job as I've ever had. Then it gets a lot busier once your judge has their first set of ripe motions, and your first run with the 6-month CJRA list may be brutal depending on what got transferred to your judge. But even if the hours are bad while the judge figures out how to manage the civil docket, the good news hours-wise for "new judge" clerks is that the new judges' criminal dockets often take a year or so to become fully populated. Although I appreciated that my criminal docket was quiet enough to let me focus on civil motions for most of my clerkship, my one complaint about the new-judge experience is that it was less useful to me an aspiring AUSA than it ideally would have been.

[Anonymous User]

Hey everyone, I am a 2L looking to apply on plan in a few months. I am hoping you all can help me develop my application strategy by giving some good realistic assessment of my chances, though I know this is inherently not a precise science. Posting in this thread since it is sort of the same concept.

Low T14 (Northwestern/GULC/UCLA)
Top 10% (~3.9)
Main LR, no e-board
Three solid if unspectacular letters of reference lined up (professors I RA'd for, etc.) Not anticipating anyone making calls for me
4 years prior work experience in interesting but nonprestigious field (arts)
2L SA in biglaw for next summer
Judicial internship with SDNY/EDNY/DDC
Non-padded 2L schedule (Admin, Evidence, etc.)

My dream clerkships would be DDC/SDNY/EDNY/2nd Cir./9th Cir./DC Cir. Willing to apply to COAs in more random areas. Any sense of my overall level of competitiveness as an applicant for those (and other) opportunities? Should I really be blanketing districts across the country?

[Anonymous User]

Hey everyone, I am a 2L looking to apply on plan in a few months. I am hoping you all can help me develop my application strategy by giving some good realistic assessment of my chances, though I know this is inherently not a precise science. Posting in this thread since it is sort of the same concept.

Low T14 (Northwestern/GULC/UCLA)
Top 10% (~3.9)
Main LR, no e-board
Three solid if unspectacular letters of reference lined up (professors I RA'd for, etc.) Not anticipating anyone making calls for me
4 years prior work experience in interesting but nonprestigious field (arts)
2L SA in biglaw for next summer
Judicial internship with SDNY/EDNY/DDC
Non-padded 2L schedule (Admin, Evidence, etc.)

My dream clerkships would be DDC/SDNY/EDNY/2nd Cir./9th Cir./DC Cir. Willing to apply to COAs in more random areas. Any sense of my overall level of competitiveness as an applicant for those (and other) opportunities? Should I really be blanketing districts across the country?

3.9 from those schools is way less than OP's 3.9 from CLS/NYU which is about top 2.5%. I think you need to apply more broadly than your listed districts and circuits or there is a real chance you will strike out. If you're of the opinion that it is those districts or nothing then just apply to only them and if you strike out, just apply again.

[Anonymous User]

Hey everyone, I am a 2L looking to apply on plan in a few months. I am hoping you all can help me develop my application strategy by giving some good realistic assessment of my chances, though I know this is inherently not a precise science. Posting in this thread since it is sort of the same concept.

Low T14 (Northwestern/GULC/UCLA)
Top 10% (~3.9)
Main LR, no e-board
Three solid if unspectacular letters of reference lined up (professors I RA'd for, etc.) Not anticipating anyone making calls for me
4 years prior work experience in interesting but nonprestigious field (arts)
2L SA in biglaw for next summer
Judicial internship with SDNY/EDNY/DDC
Non-padded 2L schedule (Admin, Evidence, etc.)

My dream clerkships would be DDC/SDNY/EDNY/2nd Cir./9th Cir./DC Cir. Willing to apply to COAs in more random areas. Any sense of my overall level of competitiveness as an applicant for those (and other) opportunities? Should I really be blanketing districts across the country?

I would frankly expect you to strike out if you only apply to those districts on plan with no calls or exceptional softs. You are competitive but there is nothing special about your application based on what you said.

[Anonymous User]

Hey everyone, I am a 2L looking to apply on plan in a few months. I am hoping you all can help me develop my application strategy by giving some good realistic assessment of my chances, though I know this is inherently not a precise science. Posting in this thread since it is sort of the same concept.

Low T14 (Northwestern/GULC/UCLA)
Top 10% (~3.9)
Main LR, no e-board
Three solid if unspectacular letters of reference lined up (professors I RA'd for, etc.) Not anticipating anyone making calls for me
4 years prior work experience in interesting but nonprestigious field (arts)
2L SA in biglaw for next summer
Judicial internship with SDNY/EDNY/DDC
Non-padded 2L schedule (Admin, Evidence, etc.)

My dream clerkships would be DDC/SDNY/EDNY/2nd Cir./9th Cir./DC Cir. Willing to apply to COAs in more random areas. Any sense of my overall level of competitiveness as an applicant for those (and other) opportunities? Should I really be blanketing districts across the country?

this is fine if you don't really need to clerk. I'd give you a 50% shot of getting a clerkship

[Anonymous User]

Yeah I went to one of the schools you listed and knew people with comparable/higher GPAs who struck out focusing on NY/DC districts, so I don’t think you can just apply to those and get something (though of course you could get lucky). If you’re fine with not clerking for a specific year/right out of law school, I think it’s fine to have a narrow focus. I’m not sure why you’re not applying to CDCA/NDIL if you’re are UCLA/Northwestern though - your professors/school contacts are more likely to be helpful in getting you an interview.

[Anonymous User]

I'm OP, thanks everyone for good fair assessment. I'll do some thinking about whether the opportunity of clerking is worth going somewhere I have no ties for a year to me, or ways I can get my application to pop a little more.

[Anonymous User]

Inspired by some comments on here: Having seen hiring from the judge’s side (twice, both for highly selective judges), I think people underrate how helpful having atypical interests is to getting off the pile. People who want to do NYC biglaw with uncertain long-term goals are a dime a dozen. Being an AUSA gunner is a little more distinctive—at least you know what you want to do with your life. But the one who plans to hang a shingle in Little Rock? They stand out and show ambition and self-knowledge—plus long-term they’ll expand the judge’s network in interesting directions. I think this is part of why Chicago and YLS do so well, as they seem to encourage off-kilter career paths more, and CLS and NYU do so poorly.

[Anonymous User]

Inspired by some comments on here: Having seen hiring from the judge’s side (twice, both for highly selective judges), I think people underrate how helpful having atypical interests is to getting off the pile. People who want to do NYC biglaw with uncertain long-term goals are a dime a dozen. Being an AUSA gunner is a little more distinctive—at least you know what you want to do with your life. But the one who plans to hang a shingle in Little Rock? They stand out and show ambition and self-knowledge—plus long-term they’ll expand the judge’s network in interesting directions. I think this is part of why Chicago and YLS do so well, as they seem to encourage off-kilter career paths more, and CLS and NYU do so poorly.

If you have one of these unique-ish interests, would you recommend putting that in your cover letter.

[Anonymous User]

Inspired by some comments on here: Having seen hiring from the judge’s side (twice, both for highly selective judges), I think people underrate how helpful having atypical interests is to getting off the pile. People who want to do NYC biglaw with uncertain long-term goals are a dime a dozen. Being an AUSA gunner is a little more distinctive—at least you know what you want to do with your life. But the one who plans to hang a shingle in Little Rock? They stand out and show ambition and self-knowledge—plus long-term they’ll expand the judge’s network in interesting directions. I think this is part of why Chicago and YLS do so well, as they seem to encourage off-kilter career paths more, and CLS and NYU do so poorly.

If you have one of these unique-ish interests, would you recommend putting that in your cover letter.

I outperformed in terms of clerkship hiring, and a big part of it was that I had a niche interest within the law.

[Anonymous User]

Inspired by some comments on here: Having seen hiring from the judge’s side (twice, both for highly selective judges), I think people underrate how helpful having atypical interests is to getting off the pile. People who want to do NYC biglaw with uncertain long-term goals are a dime a dozen. Being an AUSA gunner is a little more distinctive—at least you know what you want to do with your life. But the one who plans to hang a shingle in Little Rock? They stand out and show ambition and self-knowledge—plus long-term they’ll expand the judge’s network in interesting directions. I think this is part of why Chicago and YLS do so well, as they seem to encourage off-kilter career paths more, and CLS and NYU do so poorly.

Does this extend to non traditional post clerkship paths? Say - career in bankruptcy law. My guess is that saying you want to do transactional would actually hurt applicants in some chambers

[Anonymous User]

Inspired by some comments on here: Having seen hiring from the judge’s side (twice, both for highly selective judges), I think people underrate how helpful having atypical interests is to getting off the pile. People who want to do NYC biglaw with uncertain long-term goals are a dime a dozen. Being an AUSA gunner is a little more distinctive—at least you know what you want to do with your life. But the one who plans to hang a shingle in Little Rock? They stand out and show ambition and self-knowledge—plus long-term they’ll expand the judge’s network in interesting directions. I think this is part of why Chicago and YLS do so well, as they seem to encourage off-kilter career paths more, and CLS and NYU do so poorly.

Does this extend to non traditional post clerkship paths? Say - career in bankruptcy law. My guess is that saying you want to do transactional would actually hurt applicants in some chambers

Not the previous poster, but in my chambers, applicants who exhibit proficiency and enthusiasm in areas beyond generic constitutional and administrative law would probably receive some special consideration. This is particularly true for complex fields such as securities and corporate law, which many clerks (and even some judges) find challenging. However, it is important that your career objectives are linked to litigation, unless you have an extraordinary tale to tell.

[Anonymous User]

Inspired by some comments on here: Having seen hiring from the judge’s side (twice, both for highly selective judges), I think people underrate how helpful having atypical interests is to getting off the pile. People who want to do NYC biglaw with uncertain long-term goals are a dime a dozen. Being an AUSA gunner is a little more distinctive—at least you know what you want to do with your life. But the one who plans to hang a shingle in Little Rock? They stand out and show ambition and self-knowledge—plus long-term they’ll expand the judge’s network in interesting directions. I think this is part of why Chicago and YLS do so well, as they seem to encourage off-kilter career paths more, and CLS and NYU do so poorly.

Does this extend to non traditional post clerkship paths? Say - career in bankruptcy law. My guess is that saying you want to do transactional would actually hurt applicants in some chambers

Not the previous poster, but in my chambers, applicants who exhibit proficiency and enthusiasm in areas beyond generic constitutional and administrative law would probably receive some special consideration. This is particularly true for complex fields such as securities and corporate law, which many clerks (and even some judges) find challenging. However, it is important that your career objectives are linked to litigation, unless you have an extraordinary tale to tell.

Can my extraordinary tale be that I don't actually want to do corporate work but realized too late

[Anonymous User]

Hey everyone, I am a 2L looking to apply on plan in a few months. I am hoping you all can help me develop my application strategy by giving some good realistic assessment of my chances, though I know this is inherently not a precise science. Posting in this thread since it is sort of the same concept.

Low T14 (Northwestern/GULC/UCLA)
Top 10% (~3.9)
Main LR, no e-board
Three solid if unspectacular letters of reference lined up (professors I RA'd for, etc.) Not anticipating anyone making calls for me
4 years prior work experience in interesting but nonprestigious field (arts)
2L SA in biglaw for next summer
Judicial internship with SDNY/EDNY/DDC
Non-padded 2L schedule (Admin, Evidence, etc.)

My dream clerkships would be DDC/SDNY/EDNY/2nd Cir./9th Cir./DC Cir. Willing to apply to COAs in more random areas. Any sense of my overall level of competitiveness as an applicant for those (and other) opportunities? Should I really be blanketing districts across the country?

I'll offer a data point because this is almost exactly me, with the exception of applying to SDNY/EDNY (did not want to clerk in NYC, though I did apply to all of the 2nd Cir judges). Otherwise, I applied all over and got a handful of interviews at the D.Md./D.N.J./E.D.Va. level and one COA interview in a flyover city. I would say I got 5-6 interviews in total, but I wound up accepting the first district court offer I got, which I essentially got based on my interests section. I was rejected by the COA judge. My clerkship was also in a district that would likely require you to blanket the country. I would suggest blanketing district courts across the country because it was the best experience of my professional life, and I'm now in a situation with a lot of former clerks from those more prestigious districts/COAs on your list.

[Anonymous User]

Hey everyone, I am a 2L looking to apply on plan in a few months. I am hoping you all can help me develop my application strategy by giving some good realistic assessment of my chances, though I know this is inherently not a precise science. Posting in this thread since it is sort of the same concept.

Low T14 (Northwestern/GULC/UCLA)
Top 10% (~3.9)
Main LR, no e-board
Three solid if unspectacular letters of reference lined up (professors I RA'd for, etc.) Not anticipating anyone making calls for me
4 years prior work experience in interesting but nonprestigious field (arts)
2L SA in biglaw for next summer
Judicial internship with SDNY/EDNY/DDC
Non-padded 2L schedule (Admin, Evidence, etc.)

My dream clerkships would be DDC/SDNY/EDNY/2nd Cir./9th Cir./DC Cir. Willing to apply to COAs in more random areas. Any sense of my overall level of competitiveness as an applicant for those (and other) opportunities? Should I really be blanketing districts across the country?

I'll offer a data point because this is almost exactly me, with the exception of applying to SDNY/EDNY (did not want to clerk in NYC, though I did apply to all of the 2nd Cir judges). Otherwise, I applied all over and got a handful of interviews at the D.Md./D.N.J./E.D.Va. level and one COA interview in a flyover city. I would say I got 5-6 interviews in total, but I wound up accepting the first district court offer I got, which I essentially got based on my interests section. I was rejected by the COA judge. My clerkship was also in a district that would likely require you to blanket the country. I would suggest blanketing district courts across the country because it was the best experience of my professional life, and I'm now in a situation with a lot of former clerks from those more prestigious districts/COAs on your list.

OP here, thanks for the feedback and glad you had such a good experience. Worth remembering that clerking sounds great regardless of preffftige. By "situation" you mean like AUSA/lit boutique/DOJ etc.?

[Anonymous User]

Hey everyone, I am a 2L looking to apply on plan in a few months. I am hoping you all can help me develop my application strategy by giving some good realistic assessment of my chances, though I know this is inherently not a precise science. Posting in this thread since it is sort of the same concept.

Low T14 (Northwestern/GULC/UCLA)
Top 10% (~3.9)
Main LR, no e-board
Three solid if unspectacular letters of reference lined up (professors I RA'd for, etc.) Not anticipating anyone making calls for me
4 years prior work experience in interesting but nonprestigious field (arts)
2L SA in biglaw for next summer
Judicial internship with SDNY/EDNY/DDC
Non-padded 2L schedule (Admin, Evidence, etc.)

My dream clerkships would be DDC/SDNY/EDNY/2nd Cir./9th Cir./DC Cir. Willing to apply to COAs in more random areas. Any sense of my overall level of competitiveness as an applicant for those (and other) opportunities? Should I really be blanketing districts across the country?

I'll offer a data point because this is almost exactly me, with the exception of applying to SDNY/EDNY (did not want to clerk in NYC, though I did apply to all of the 2nd Cir judges). Otherwise, I applied all over and got a handful of interviews at the D.Md./D.N.J./E.D.Va. level and one COA interview in a flyover city. I would say I got 5-6 interviews in total, but I wound up accepting the first district court offer I got, which I essentially got based on my interests section. I was rejected by the COA judge. My clerkship was also in a district that would likely require you to blanket the country. I would suggest blanketing district courts across the country because it was the best experience of my professional life, and I'm now in a situation with a lot of former clerks from those more prestigious districts/COAs on your list.

OP here, thanks for the feedback and glad you had such a good experience. Worth remembering that clerking sounds great regardless of preffftige. By "situation" you mean like AUSA/lit boutique/DOJ etc.?

As another data point, I had higher grades with very good LORs and extras at the same tier of schools.

I applied to 100 judges on plan without an interview.

But, with a lot of effort, I now have a district and circuit clerkship lined up—
not at any of the districts or circuits OP mentions. You NEED to have professors call for you, otherwise your app will probably not even be seen, let alone considered seriously.

That’s not to say you shouldn’t aim as high as you want, but the process is difficult. If the goal is to clerk full stop, then you should apply anywhere and everywhere.

There are fantastic judges outside of the “prestigious” courts, and there are plenty of bad judges in the “prestigious” courts.

You should consider what your goals are with clerking, expand your range of courts, and figure out if any of your profs or school have connections to particular judges and have people call those judges for you.

[Anonymous User]

Hey everyone, I am a 2L looking to apply on plan in a few months. I am hoping you all can help me develop my application strategy by giving some good realistic assessment of my chances, though I know this is inherently not a precise science. Posting in this thread since it is sort of the same concept.

Low T14 (Northwestern/GULC/UCLA)
Top 10% (~3.9)
Main LR, no e-board
Three solid if unspectacular letters of reference lined up (professors I RA'd for, etc.) Not anticipating anyone making calls for me
4 years prior work experience in interesting but nonprestigious field (arts)
2L SA in biglaw for next summer
Judicial internship with SDNY/EDNY/DDC
Non-padded 2L schedule (Admin, Evidence, etc.)

My dream clerkships would be DDC/SDNY/EDNY/2nd Cir./9th Cir./DC Cir. Willing to apply to COAs in more random areas. Any sense of my overall level of competitiveness as an applicant for those (and other) opportunities? Should I really be blanketing districts across the country?

I'll offer a data point because this is almost exactly me, with the exception of applying to SDNY/EDNY (did not want to clerk in NYC, though I did apply to all of the 2nd Cir judges). Otherwise, I applied all over and got a handful of interviews at the D.Md./D.N.J./E.D.Va. level and one COA interview in a flyover city. I would say I got 5-6 interviews in total, but I wound up accepting the first district court offer I got, which I essentially got based on my interests section. I was rejected by the COA judge. My clerkship was also in a district that would likely require you to blanket the country. I would suggest blanketing district courts across the country because it was the best experience of my professional life, and I'm now in a situation with a lot of former clerks from those more prestigious districts/COAs on your list.

OP here, thanks for the feedback and glad you had such a good experience. Worth remembering that clerking sounds great regardless of preffftige. By "situation" you mean like AUSA/lit boutique/DOJ etc.?

As another data point, I had higher grades with very good LORs and extras at the same tier of schools.

I applied to 100 judges on plan without an interview.

But, with a lot of effort, I now have a district and circuit clerkship lined up—
not at any of the districts or circuits OP mentions. You NEED to have professors call for you, otherwise your app will probably not even be seen, let alone considered seriously.

That’s not to say you shouldn’t aim as high as you want, but the process is difficult. If the goal is to clerk full stop, then you should apply anywhere and everywhere.

There are fantastic judges outside of the “prestigious” courts, and there are plenty of bad judges in the “prestigious” courts.

You should consider what your goals are with clerking, expand your range of courts, and figure out if any of your profs or school have connections to particular judges and have people call those judges for you.

Do you really need someone to call for you? I have to imagine lots of people even in like SDNY/DDC get pulled off the pile without a phone call, no?

[Anonymous User]

Hey everyone, I am a 2L looking to apply on plan in a few months. I am hoping you all can help me develop my application strategy by giving some good realistic assessment of my chances, though I know this is inherently not a precise science. Posting in this thread since it is sort of the same concept.

Low T14 (Northwestern/GULC/UCLA)
Top 10% (~3.9)
Main LR, no e-board
Three solid if unspectacular letters of reference lined up (professors I RA'd for, etc.) Not anticipating anyone making calls for me
4 years prior work experience in interesting but nonprestigious field (arts)
2L SA in biglaw for next summer
Judicial internship with SDNY/EDNY/DDC
Non-padded 2L schedule (Admin, Evidence, etc.)

My dream clerkships would be DDC/SDNY/EDNY/2nd Cir./9th Cir./DC Cir. Willing to apply to COAs in more random areas. Any sense of my overall level of competitiveness as an applicant for those (and other) opportunities? Should I really be blanketing districts across the country?

I'll offer a data point because this is almost exactly me, with the exception of applying to SDNY/EDNY (did not want to clerk in NYC, though I did apply to all of the 2nd Cir judges). Otherwise, I applied all over and got a handful of interviews at the D.Md./D.N.J./E.D.Va. level and one COA interview in a flyover city. I would say I got 5-6 interviews in total, but I wound up accepting the first district court offer I got, which I essentially got based on my interests section. I was rejected by the COA judge. My clerkship was also in a district that would likely require you to blanket the country. I would suggest blanketing district courts across the country because it was the best experience of my professional life, and I'm now in a situation with a lot of former clerks from those more prestigious districts/COAs on your list.

OP here, thanks for the feedback and glad you had such a good experience. Worth remembering that clerking sounds great regardless of preffftige. By "situation" you mean like AUSA/lit boutique/DOJ etc.?

As another data point, I had higher grades with very good LORs and extras at the same tier of schools.

I applied to 100 judges on plan without an interview.

But, with a lot of effort, I now have a district and circuit clerkship lined up—
not at any of the districts or circuits OP mentions. You NEED to have professors call for you, otherwise your app will probably not even be seen, let alone considered seriously.

That’s not to say you shouldn’t aim as high as you want, but the process is difficult. If the goal is to clerk full stop, then you should apply anywhere and everywhere.

There are fantastic judges outside of the “prestigious” courts, and there are plenty of bad judges in the “prestigious” courts.

You should consider what your goals are with clerking, expand your range of courts, and figure out if any of your profs or school have connections to particular judges and have people call those judges for you.

Do you really need someone to call for you? I have to imagine lots of people even in like SDNY/DDC get pulled off the pile without a phone call, no?

For on-plan judges, yes. You are one of literally hundreds of applicants on the first day of applications.

I got a COA clerkship by applying off-plan. So, my application was presumably the only one that came in that day. Judge called my Professors, interviewed me, and then I got the gig.

Months later, I applied to ~75 district court judges on the first day of the plan. Nothing. This, despite ~3.95 from M/V/P/D, LORs from fancy professors, interesting experience, and a fancy SA. I ended up landing a district court clerkship by having... you guessed it... a call placed on my behalf.

I am sure the next poster will tell us why I am wrong. Perhaps his or her chambers disregard calls. But just think about what you would do if you received literally hundreds of applications in one day. You'd want an easy way of filtering them. And a professor's call does that.

[Anonymous User]

I didn’t have people call. But I was like top 10-15% at H and ended up in a somewhat lackluster district (for a prestigious judge though). Some judges don’t care much about calls, like mine.

[Anonymous User]

Hey everyone, I am a 2L looking to apply on plan in a few months. I am hoping you all can help me develop my application strategy by giving some good realistic assessment of my chances, though I know this is inherently not a precise science. Posting in this thread since it is sort of the same concept.

Low T14 (Northwestern/GULC/UCLA)
Top 10% (~3.9)
Main LR, no e-board
Three solid if unspectacular letters of reference lined up (professors I RA'd for, etc.) Not anticipating anyone making calls for me
4 years prior work experience in interesting but nonprestigious field (arts)
2L SA in biglaw for next summer
Judicial internship with SDNY/EDNY/DDC
Non-padded 2L schedule (Admin, Evidence, etc.)

My dream clerkships would be DDC/SDNY/EDNY/2nd Cir./9th Cir./DC Cir. Willing to apply to COAs in more random areas. Any sense of my overall level of competitiveness as an applicant for those (and other) opportunities? Should I really be blanketing districts across the country?

I'll offer a data point because this is almost exactly me, with the exception of applying to SDNY/EDNY (did not want to clerk in NYC, though I did apply to all of the 2nd Cir judges). Otherwise, I applied all over and got a handful of interviews at the D.Md./D.N.J./E.D.Va. level and one COA interview in a flyover city. I would say I got 5-6 interviews in total, but I wound up accepting the first district court offer I got, which I essentially got based on my interests section. I was rejected by the COA judge. My clerkship was also in a district that would likely require you to blanket the country. I would suggest blanketing district courts across the country because it was the best experience of my professional life, and I'm now in a situation with a lot of former clerks from those more prestigious districts/COAs on your list.

OP here, thanks for the feedback and glad you had such a good experience. Worth remembering that clerking sounds great regardless of preffftige. By "situation" you mean like AUSA/lit boutique/DOJ etc.?

As another data point, I had higher grades with very good LORs and extras at the same tier of schools.

I applied to 100 judges on plan without an interview.

But, with a lot of effort, I now have a district and circuit clerkship lined up—
not at any of the districts or circuits OP mentions. You NEED to have professors call for you, otherwise your app will probably not even be seen, let alone considered seriously.

That’s not to say you shouldn’t aim as high as you want, but the process is difficult. If the goal is to clerk full stop, then you should apply anywhere and everywhere.

There are fantastic judges outside of the “prestigious” courts, and there are plenty of bad judges in the “prestigious” courts.

You should consider what your goals are with clerking, expand your range of courts, and figure out if any of your profs or school have connections to particular judges and have people call those judges for you.

Do you really need someone to call for you? I have to imagine lots of people even in like SDNY/DDC get pulled off the pile without a phone call, no?

Different anon, but I think you underestimate how *many* applicants look just like the people described in this part of the thread. Yes, people can and do get pulled off the pile without calls, but if you look like all the other applicants it will entirely be luck of the draw, which isn’t going to be in your favor given the applicant pools we’re talking about. Federal judges interview maybe 4 to at most 10 applicants per spot (and I think the latter number is high). Do you want to rely on being one of the say top 8-12 applicants in a pool of 200 strong T14 grads who share your qualifications?

Having ranted, I’ll back off a little and admit that I got a clerkship without profs making calls, even with arguably worse stats than above (similar GPA, worse school), BUT I had a different kind of connection and some other relatively uncommon achievements that look good on a clerking application. So I think the real challenge is just standing out from the crowd, and there are ways to do that besides prof calls, but prof calls are a good way to do it, especially if you otherwise look like all the other T14 applicants.

ETA: I also applied off-plan which I think is a huge bonus. Both judges I clerked for hated the whole hiring process and if someone applied early and looked good, they were happy to lock someone down and call it a day. I’m sure there are other judges who want to evaluate the entire pool before making a decision, to get the “best” clerk possible; I think my judges felt like a clerk is a temporary hire who can only do so much damage in a year and isn’t likely to be terrible even if they’re not the absolute top candidates ever. So, again, this is all incredibly variable.

[Anonymous User]

I got two circuit courts and one district court interview without a call on plan, but I noticed that two of the three judges mentioned something on my resume that was unique and personal to them (one was a specific firm the judge liked and the other was RA work with a professor he liked, but who did not call for me). The third circuit judge as far as I can tell didn't pick me for any specific reason but he also interviewed like 10 people per spot. Off plan, I got two more circuit judge interviews and one district judge interview. Among those three. One circuit judge specifically noted that I had RA'd for a Professor she was familiar with (but who did not call for me). And another circuit judge mentioned an A I got in a class with a Professor he liked. The third judge, a district judge, from what I can tell did not see anything special about me. Make of this what you will. Stats were double Kent at Columbia and I applied very broadly.

[Anonymous User]

Hey everyone, I am a 2L looking to apply on plan in a few months. I am hoping you all can help me develop my application strategy by giving some good realistic assessment of my chances, though I know this is inherently not a precise science. Posting in this thread since it is sort of the same concept.

Low T14 (Northwestern/GULC/UCLA)
Top 10% (~3.9)
Main LR, no e-board
Three solid if unspectacular letters of reference lined up (professors I RA'd for, etc.) Not anticipating anyone making calls for me
4 years prior work experience in interesting but nonprestigious field (arts)
2L SA in biglaw for next summer
Judicial internship with SDNY/EDNY/DDC
Non-padded 2L schedule (Admin, Evidence, etc.)

My dream clerkships would be DDC/SDNY/EDNY/2nd Cir./9th Cir./DC Cir. Willing to apply to COAs in more random areas. Any sense of my overall level of competitiveness as an applicant for those (and other) opportunities? Should I really be blanketing districts across the country?

I'll offer a data point because this is almost exactly me, with the exception of applying to SDNY/EDNY (did not want to clerk in NYC, though I did apply to all of the 2nd Cir judges). Otherwise, I applied all over and got a handful of interviews at the D.Md./D.N.J./E.D.Va. level and one COA interview in a flyover city. I would say I got 5-6 interviews in total, but I wound up accepting the first district court offer I got, which I essentially got based on my interests section. I was rejected by the COA judge. My clerkship was also in a district that would likely require you to blanket the country. I would suggest blanketing district courts across the country because it was the best experience of my professional life, and I'm now in a situation with a lot of former clerks from those more prestigious districts/COAs on your list.

OP here, thanks for the feedback and glad you had such a good experience. Worth remembering that clerking sounds great regardless of preffftige. By "situation" you mean like AUSA/lit boutique/DOJ etc.?

As another data point, I had higher grades with very good LORs and extras at the same tier of schools.

I applied to 100 judges on plan without an interview.

But, with a lot of effort, I now have a district and circuit clerkship lined up—
not at any of the districts or circuits OP mentions. You NEED to have professors call for you, otherwise your app will probably not even be seen, let alone considered seriously.

That’s not to say you shouldn’t aim as high as you want, but the process is difficult. If the goal is to clerk full stop, then you should apply anywhere and everywhere.

There are fantastic judges outside of the “prestigious” courts, and there are plenty of bad judges in the “prestigious” courts.

You should consider what your goals are with clerking, expand your range of courts, and figure out if any of your profs or school have connections to particular judges and have people call those judges for you.

Do you really need someone to call for you? I have to imagine lots of people even in like SDNY/DDC get pulled off the pile without a phone call, no?

You asked for advice. I gave it. Best of luck with your apps.

[Anonymous User]

Hey everyone, I am a 2L looking to apply on plan in a few months. I am hoping you all can help me develop my application strategy by giving some good realistic assessment of my chances, though I know this is inherently not a precise science. Posting in this thread since it is sort of the same concept.

Low T14 (Northwestern/GULC/UCLA)
Top 10% (~3.9)
Main LR, no e-board
Three solid if unspectacular letters of reference lined up (professors I RA'd for, etc.) Not anticipating anyone making calls for me
4 years prior work experience in interesting but nonprestigious field (arts)
2L SA in biglaw for next summer
Judicial internship with SDNY/EDNY/DDC
Non-padded 2L schedule (Admin, Evidence, etc.)

My dream clerkships would be DDC/SDNY/EDNY/2nd Cir./9th Cir./DC Cir. Willing to apply to COAs in more random areas. Any sense of my overall level of competitiveness as an applicant for those (and other) opportunities? Should I really be blanketing districts across the country?

I'll offer a data point because this is almost exactly me, with the exception of applying to SDNY/EDNY (did not want to clerk in NYC, though I did apply to all of the 2nd Cir judges). Otherwise, I applied all over and got a handful of interviews at the D.Md./D.N.J./E.D.Va. level and one COA interview in a flyover city. I would say I got 5-6 interviews in total, but I wound up accepting the first district court offer I got, which I essentially got based on my interests section. I was rejected by the COA judge. My clerkship was also in a district that would likely require you to blanket the country. I would suggest blanketing district courts across the country because it was the best experience of my professional life, and I'm now in a situation with a lot of former clerks from those more prestigious districts/COAs on your list.

OP here, thanks for the feedback and glad you had such a good experience. Worth remembering that clerking sounds great regardless of preffftige. By "situation" you mean like AUSA/lit boutique/DOJ etc.?

As another data point, I had higher grades with very good LORs and extras at the same tier of schools.

I applied to 100 judges on plan without an interview.

But, with a lot of effort, I now have a district and circuit clerkship lined up—
not at any of the districts or circuits OP mentions. You NEED to have professors call for you, otherwise your app will probably not even be seen, let alone considered seriously.

That’s not to say you shouldn’t aim as high as you want, but the process is difficult. If the goal is to clerk full stop, then you should apply anywhere and everywhere.

There are fantastic judges outside of the “prestigious” courts, and there are plenty of bad judges in the “prestigious” courts.

You should consider what your goals are with clerking, expand your range of courts, and figure out if any of your profs or school have connections to particular judges and have people call those judges for you.

Do you really need someone to call for you? I have to imagine lots of people even in like SDNY/DDC get pulled off the pile without a phone call, no?

You'll get anecdotes about judges that don't care about calls, but most of the clerks on SDNY, DDC, NDCA, etc. probably had a connection they leveraged to get an interview. It's just how it works for the super competitive districts because they get the most applications.