SMU 2012 Forum

[eaper]

Does SMU do phone calls anymore?

Yes.

[emkay625]

Congrats on the scholarship! That's awesome.

[kalvano]

Now that you all are getting definitive answers and they are throwing money into the mix, please don't hesitate to PM with questions, comments, concerns, or vague insults, perhaps even specific ones. There isn't a ton of info about SMU out there, and I am happy to try and help, if I can.

Or feel free to ask here. Either way. I welcome the distraction while I am in my riveting Con Law II course, watching my graduation countdown timer tick away.


One thing I will say is that, as you start to weigh school against school and scholarship offers, do take into account the security that is SMU's "in good standing" stipulation on scholarships. It's very nice to go into exams knowing that you have to intentionally try and do bad to lose your money.

[ClutchCity24]

I will also be around to answer any questions. Feel free to post here or PM me.

Kalvano is correct that the 2.0 stipulations makes life a lot less stressful. Its virtually impossible to lose the scholarship.

[mattviphky]

what did people do for 1l 2l summers?
thanks btw!

[kalvano]

what did people do for 1l 2l summers?
thanks btw!

My 1L summer, I interned at Legal Aid (nice folks doing good work who need the help, and it gets the 30 hours of public service out of the way), and then I interned with a judge in the criminal courts, which was AWESOME. I'm externing with the US Attorneys Office this spring, and I have half my summer filled with an SA position. Still trying to nail down the second half.

[mattviphky]

cool! Is the SA in Dallas? Btw, how is the job hunt if you aren't from TX?

[kalvano]

cool! Is the SA in Dallas? Btw, how is the job hunt if you aren't from TX?

Yes, sadly, it is in Dallas. As to how it is if you aren't from Texas, I can't say. I suppose it depends on grades.

[PrincetonLaw]

30k/yr

[freaknroll]

What kind of numbers have gotten the 76K scholly in years past? Regarding OCI, is it mainly texas biglaw firms that come to interview or is there a mix of out of state offices as well?

[kalvano]

What kind of numbers have gotten the 76K scholly in years past? Regarding OCI, is it mainly texas biglaw firms that come to interview or is there a mix of out of state offices as well?

It's mainly Texas and national Biglaw.

Here is the list I made from this past fall for the Phase I:

1) Akin-Gump – outstanding academic credentials
2) Alston & Bird – top 25%; journal preferred
3) Andrews-Kurth – top 15% required
4) Baker & McKenzie – proven academic success
5) Baker-Botts – top 10% / some flexibility
6) Bickel & Brewer (Dallas and NY) – top 10% required
7) Bracewell & Giuliani – nothing listed
Brown & Fortunato (Amarillo) – top 25%; LR
9) Cantey & Hanger (Dallas, Ft. Worth, Southlake) – top 25%
10) Carrington, Coleman, Sloman, & Blumenthal – top 15% required; LR / journal preferred
11) Carstens & Cahoon – IP boutique, requires hard scienece or engineering undergrad
12) Chamberlain, Hrdlicka, White, Williams & Martin (Houston) – nothing listed
13) Cox Smith Matthews Inc. (San Antonio) – top 33% required, journal / moot or mock pref.
14) Exxon-Mobil (D.C. & Houston – D.C. requires all summer) – top 40%; journal pref.
15) Figari & Davenport – top 25%; LR
16) Fish & Richardson (11 offices) – top 25%; strong writing; patent prosecution requires tech.
17) Fulbright & Jaworski (Dallas) – journal preferred but not required
18) Fulbright & Jaworski (San Antonio) – journal preferred but not required
19) Gardere Wynne Sewell (Dallas and Houston) – nothing listed
20) Gibson, Dunn, & Crutcher (several offices) – outstanding academics; evidence of teamwork
21) Greenburg Traurig – top 15%-20% preferred
22) Harris, Finley, & Bogle (Ft. Worth) – top 25%
23) Hartline Dacus Barger Dreyer (Dallas and Corpus Christi) – top 1/3; LR; moot / mock
24) Haynes & Boone (Dallas, Ft. Worth, Richardson, San Antonio) – top 15% required; LR pref.
25) Hunton & Williams (Dallas, Miami, LA, Atlanta, NY, Richmond) – top 5%, LR pref.
26) Jackson-Walker (Dallas) – top 25%
27) Jackson-Walker (Auston, San Antonio, Ft. Worth) – top 25%
28) K&L Gates – prefer top 15%; LR / journal / m/m preferred
29) Kelly, Hart, & Hallman (Ft. Worth) – nothing listed
30) Locke, Lorde, Bissell, & Liddell – top 15%; extracurriculars highly recommended
31) Looper Reed McGraw – top 30%
32) mckool smith – (Dallas and Austin) – top 25%; LR preferred; engineering undergrad pref.
33) Morgan Lewis & Bockius (several offices) – not interviewing for Dallas / Houston, no reqs.
34) Munsch, Hart, Kopf, & Harr – prefer top 33%
35) Orgain, Bell, & Tucker (Beaumont) – nothing listed
36) Patton Boggs – op 15%; LR preferred
37) Slater & Matsil – nothing listed
38) Thompson & Knight (Dallas) – prefer top 10%-15%, LR
39) Thompson & Knight (Houston) – prefer top 10%-15%. LR
40) Thompson, Coe, Cousins, & Irons – nothing listed
41) US Federal Trade Commission (Dallas) – excellent research and writing skills
42) Vinson & Elkins (Dallas, Houston, Austin) – nothing listed
43) Weil, Gotshal, & Manges – nothing listed
44) Winstead – top 25% required, LR preferred
45) Zelle, Hoffman, Voelbel, & Mason – nothing listed





And here are screenshots from Phase II:

[wskbarrett]

Anybody know anything about this Hatton W. Sumners scholarship? (Other than the info SMU provided via email)

[Flappy Scribbleneck]

Kalvano, what is Phase 1, Phase 2, or where can I learn about this? Would you say an SMU grad within the parameters listed for each firm has a decent shot at all of these jobs?

[kalvano]

Kalvano, what is Phase 1, Phase 2, or where can I learn about this? Would you say an SMU grad within the parameters listed for each firm has a decent shot at all of these jobs?

Phase I is the standard OCI with the big firms, Phase II is the secondary, more local mid-sized firm OCI. The ranges I posted are directly from their Symplicty postings. They tend to lie, and will consider lower ranks than they post, but if you want to assume you are competitive, then you need to be within their ranges.

[nouseforaname123]

Would you say an SMU grad within the parameters listed for each firm has a decent shot at all of these jobs?

The information Kav posted is for on-campus, screening interviews. Employers will generally conduct 13 to 36 screening interviews (the majority of employers do 18 screening interviews). From those screening interviews, depending on how many summer associates the employer plans on hiring, the employer will extend callback invitations. Callbacks are a more formal interview, conducted in the employer's office. Employers make formal job offers after the callback interviews.

To answer your question, to the extent that you have to get a screening interview to start the whole process, yes, those listed requirements generally give you a good shot at a screening interview.

*I did not participate in Phase II, so it may be a little different with those types of employers.

[ucbkenn]

Scholarship today. 26k/year.

[Flappy Scribbleneck]

Scholarship today. 26k/year.

+1

[Flappy Scribbleneck]

Would you say an SMU grad within the parameters listed for each firm has a decent shot at all of these jobs?

The information Kav posted is for on-campus, screening interviews. Employers will generally conduct 13 to 36 screening interviews (the majority of employers do 18 screening interviews). From those screening interviews, depending on how many summer associates the employer plans on hiring, the employer will extend callback invitations. Callbacks are a more formal interview, conducted in the employer's office. Employers make formal job offers after the callback interviews.

To answer your question, to the extent that you have to get a screening interview to start the whole process, yes, those listed requirements generally give you a good shot at a screening interview.

*I did not participate in Phase II, so it may be a little different with those types of employers.

Can I ask why you didn't participate in Phase II - innocent question.

[nouseforaname123]

Can I ask why you didn't participate in Phase II - innocent question.

I landed my SA positions through Phase I.

Phase I begins in mid-August, at the start of your 2L/3E year. Phase II is in October.

On-campus interviews go for two weeks. Generally, at the beginning of September, students will begin doing call back interviews. Job offers then roll in as early as the day after a call back to multiple weeks after a call back.

It is different for each student, but typically, Phase I recruiting for any student lasts between three to six weeks.

[panda87]

Taking a guess y'all will say no but is there any chance at negotiating scholarships for increase of around 5-10k a year? I'm sure the scholarship letter marks their final decision on financial matters but a little boost would be a game changer for me.

[swilson215]

Taking a guess y'all will say no but is there any chance at negotiating scholarships for increase of around 5-10k a year? I'm sure the scholarship letter marks their final decision on financial matters but a little boost would be a game changer for me.

SMU's scholarship offers are generally pretty firm. I don't know of anyone that has successfully negotiated their offers, but you can always try.

[Billy Batts]

Kalvano, what is Phase 1, Phase 2, or where can I learn about this? Would you say an SMU grad within the parameters listed for each firm has a decent shot at all of these jobs?

A good piece of advice is to take a fairly easy course load during your 2L fall semester. That OCI stuff can occupy a lot of time and mental focus. If you do well at Phase I OCI, you may be going on a lot of callback interviews. If you do not do well, you will probably want to go through another round of it all at Phase II. Also, you may decide to do a lot of mass mailings to firms not participating in SMU's OCI, which will take more time and energy.

Also, around a week before Phase I, there will be a Houston interview program. A lot of SMU students only want to end up in Dallas, so if you wouldn't mind working in Houston, that program may allow you to get your foot in the door with a screening interview that you might not be able to land at the same firm through Phase I in Dallas.

My point is that you have to be prepared to put everything else on the back burner while OCI is happening. Getting a job for your 2L summer is the most important part of law school.

[Flappy Scribbleneck]

is there a particular source of info on TLS or otherwise about OCI, interviews, etc, that anyone found particularly useful? I have read most of the stuff on TLS, is it legit for all OCI our just T14, is there more someplace else?

[kalvano]

is there a particular source of info on TLS or otherwise about OCI, interviews, etc, that anyone found particularly useful? I have read most of the stuff on TLS, is it legit for all OCI our just T14, is there more someplace else?

Thesealocust's thread is where it's at.

But you guys don't really need to be worrying about this stuff now. The mechanics of it are pretty easy.

[mattviphky]

Congrats on the scholarship! That's awesome.

thanks em!