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First some quick background: I'm a URM at a T-14, on LR, who wants to clerk. I have a job at a solid lit/WC shop in nyc (WH/PW/DPW). My classes thus far have been very heavily clerkship doctrinals.

Grades: I had a bad first semester (B/B+), a good second semester (A/A-), but this third semester which is heavily the "hard" curve clerkship classes I've been brought back to median overall with B+ grades (minus seminars/research). I was hoping last semester would go better, and now that I have another very challenging course load again I don't know how to maximize my chances for clerkships.

At the grade-level, I'm thinking of investing in LEEWS to try and better understand how to consistently write better exams. I'll probably also do more regular outlining/reviews of the course. Is there any advice that helped any current clerks improve their grades? Is there anything outside of grades that you found helpful (such as publishing a note)? Lastly, do median (or somewhat above) students with experience in big law have a better shot at clerkships after a few years, or are the grades a flat-out dealbreaker for major metro areas (although I'd definitely branch out if so)?

Thanks

You need higher grades to be competitive for clerkships, although your URM status will certainly help with judges who value diversity, particularly if you're Black.

Unfortunately, there's no simple advice that anyone can give you to do better on exams that differs from what you've probably heard before. Exams are very professor-dependent. Look at the exams that you did well on versus the exams that you didn't do well on. Notice any patterns? For example, some people are fast typers who can memorize huge volumes of information. These people do better on closed book, three-hour exams with no word limit. Some people, conversely, do better on open book exams where the professor gives you the whole exam period to complete it and where there are strict and tight word limits that require you to be selective about only choosing the best arguments among those that are conceivable. If you are better at one of these compared to the other, then you could try to only pick doctrinal classes where the exam falls into a category that favors you.

Even if your grades don't materially improve, you will probably get a clerkship somewhere if you keep applying broadly year after year. If you expand your applications to include district courts in frequently overlooked parts of the country and/or magistrate judges, your chances increase significantly.

Recommendations also help. For the classes you got an A/A- in, ask the professors if you can be a research assistant for them. Then, do a good job as their research assistant. Now you are in a good position to get good recommendations from those professors. This will materially improve your chances with those judges that consider recommendations closely.

Publishing a note could help marginally because it gives you something to talk about in the interview. Also, in my experience, at least a few judges think it's mandatory and/or expected to write a note if you're on Law Review so they might think it's kind of weird if you don't. That said, I wouldn't publish a note if the only reason you're doing it is to be competitive for clerkships.

Try to get around a 3.5 on graduation and work for a year or two and I definitely think that plus urm and law review will give you a shot for a lot of judges who value diversity.