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Hi. I've been working at a v20 firm in NYC since October and want to apply to clerk. But I did not take Fed Courts in law school. Will that hurt my clerkship applications or no one cares after you graduate?

I mean it will hurt it, but its not going to completely prevent you from clerking or anything. Just be prepared in interviews to give a reason why you didn't take it (it might not even come up in interviews, but it might so be prepared).

Not all judges care, anyway. I never took it (applied as an alum so it was clear I wasn’t going to) and it never came up. I agree that having an answer to why not makes sense, but it’s definitely not something that should otherwise change your application plans.

I agree—not all judges care. Even still, I wouldn’t let that stop you from sending out apps.

If you've substantively worked with standing, ripeness, or dueling standards of review, that would be worth discussing if a judge brings it up at interview. Not all judges care of course, but I only enrolled in it my 3L year because a judge asked point blank if I planned to take it.