EVENING LAW STUDENT + PARALEGAL = FT ATTORNEY OFFER AT FIRM? Forum

[Anonymous User]

This is just a general question because I want to know: How often do evening law students land FT jobs at their firms? I am thinking about GULC part time right now and then could find a paralegal job in the DC market while in school. Is it possible that I could get a FT associate attorney job offer at the firm prior to graduation while working there as a paralegal? How common (or uncommon) is this?

A second question is: By doing this, couldn't I just literally SKIP the summer associate agony and just get the offer because HR already knows me?

Worst Case Scenario: No offer at the firm I worked as a paralegal at. But I would be (nearly) debt free by graduation within the 3.5 years it takes to finish GULC part time, because I worked all the way through law school. I also would probably do really well in 2L (or 3L) OCI because I would have years of work experience in law.

What do you guys think?

[bdubs]

Is it possible that I could get a FT associate attorney job offer at the firm prior to graduation while working there as a paralegal? How common (or uncommon) is this?

I think this is extremely uncommon in big law offices.

A second question is: By doing this, couldn't I just literally SKIP the summer associate agony and just get the offer because HR already knows me?

Agony?!?!? Summer Associate program is the best 10 weeks of big law work anyone has ever done. Low expectations, high pay, lots of sponsored events, etc...

I also would probably do really well in 2L (or 3L) OCI because I would have years of work experience in law.

No, many law students have experience as paralegals and it doesn't seem to confer any benefits whatsoever during OCI.

[Gorki]

Why not bring it up with the firm before making the investment? If the firm is more personal this miiiiight work out, but I know of people who were legal assistants at smaller firms and were unable to get a 1L or 2L summer gig at said firm (because the attorneys, it turns out, preferred to manage what work they had and really just wanted the person for their ability to do the ministerial stuff). At larger firms I am not sure how it works, as I have heard stories of support staff being treated like shit, to being treated better than most first year associates.

Also think of your long term career goals. Why did you want to become a paralegal and would being an attorney make you feel that much more valuable? I know people with LS debt working in effectively paralegal positions, and regret dropping 3 years of their life into the JD.

[nygrrrl]

If you're a 0L wanting advice from current law students, we've set up a new forum just for you, which you can find here: http://www.top-law-schools.com/forums/viewforum.php?f=4

It's called "Ask a Law Student", and it's a place for 0Ls to ask current law students questions without disturbing the "Students and Graduates" forums. Post all your questions there, including about things like classes, grades, transferring, employment, etc. Please do not continue posting your questions here in the Students and Graduates forums, as doing so might get you banned and/or your thread locked.

Thank you for your understanding.

Moving thread accordingly.

[zomginternets]

This is just a general question because I want to know: How often do evening law students land FT jobs at their firms? I am thinking about GULC part time right now and then could find a paralegal job in the DC market while in school. Is it possible that I could get a FT associate attorney job offer at the firm prior to graduation while working there as a paralegal? How common (or uncommon) is this?

A second question is: By doing this, couldn't I just literally SKIP the summer associate agony and just get the offer because HR already knows me?

Worst Case Scenario: No offer at the firm I worked as a paralegal at. But I would be (nearly) debt free by graduation within the 3.5 years it takes to finish GULC part time, because I worked all the way through law school. I also would probably do really well in 2L (or 3L) OCI because I would have years of work experience in law.

What do you guys think?

This is potentially feasible at a small/mid-sized firm, but you need to get in someone's good books (read: partner or an influential senior associate).

[Renzo]

At a large firm, at almost certainly won't work.

Just about 100% of the non-career paralegals want to be lawyers, and the firm has no intention of hiring them all. Plus, you won't have enough contact with the kinds of people who have the authority to side-step the hiring process and get you a job, so unless you have the grades/school to get the job in any case, your contacts inside the firm aren't going to be able to help you.

On top of that, very few people are going to be so dazzled by your ability to make binders or drop off papers at the courthouse that they feel they MUST hire you as a lawyer. Being a biglaw lawyer and being a biglaw paralegal have close to zero overlap in the skills and knowledge required.

About the only hiring benefit to being a big firm paralegal is that you will get an inside view of what the job and hours are like, so that you will know if it's really something you want to do.

[utlaw2007]

At a large firm, at almost certainly won't work.

Just about 100% of the non-career paralegals want to be lawyers, and the firm has no intention of hiring them all. Plus, you won't have enough contact with the kinds of people who have the authority to side-step the hiring process and get you a job, so unless you have the grades/school to get the job in any case, your contacts inside the firm aren't going to be able to help you.

On top of that, very few people are going to be so dazzled by your ability to make binders or drop off papers at the courthouse that they feel they MUST hire you as a lawyer. Being a biglaw lawyer and being a biglaw paralegal have close to zero overlap in the skills and knowledge required.

About the only hiring benefit to being a big firm paralegal is that you will get an inside view of what the job and hours are like, so that you will know if it's really something you want to do.

This.

[Younger Abstention]

I was able to do this. It's not common, though.