BigLaw Associate & Army Reserve JAG: AMA Forum

[blink]

This board was super helpful back in the day, so I figured I'd be happy to answer some questions if folks have any.

[MrLions]

How’d you get around to asking the firm if you could join the reserves? When did you do your military training? Thanks!

[blink]

How’d you get around to asking the firm if you could join the reserves? When did you do your military training? Thanks!

Didn't need to! I was already in the reserves when I was doing OCI, so the firms knew what they were getting into. I went to JAOBC once I was already at the firm--I took leave.

[rgwen]

Prior active duty, current reservist here. Do you think being a reservist hurt you at OCI? I know I can handle juggling both commitments as I do it in banking at the moment. However, I'm concerned about heading into interviews and employers thinking the commitment would be too much or that you would bail. Did you undersell it or run with it during interviews?

[blink]

Prior active duty, current reservist here. Do you think being a reservist hurt you at OCI? I know I can handle juggling both commitments as I do it in banking at the moment. However, I'm concerned about heading into interviews and employers thinking the commitment would be too much or that you would bail. Did you undersell it or run with it during interviews?

Great question. I definitely got a sense that some firms weren't keen on having someone with outside obligations. But I think that's probably balanced by the fact that a lot of firms view servicemembers/vets as having a lot of desirable characteristics. All in all I'd say that my performance at OCI was probably true to what my grades/school would've predicted. And while I didn't undersell it, I did use the phrase "one weekend a month and two weeks a year" a lot. If I were you, I'd stress the fact that I'd done it before in banking and my work ethic/discipline will allow me to manage just fine.

[rgwen]

Okay, that definitely makes sense. I agree that clarifying the level of commitment required could ease some fears. When I was recruiting for banking, I also let them know that I no longer had a service commitment and could also bail if it began to overwhelm my work life.

[rc8]

How was law school while in the reserves? Was it hard to balance drill and school work? Did annual training interfere with summer internships?

[Barrred]

Have you done any mobilizations/deployments as a Reserve JAG? Do you think it’s feasible in biglaw, and how long do you think the firm would put up with it before they found a creative way to push you out, USERRA notwithstanding?