Before "coronavirus" became a household term, the Charles Hotel was ground zero for Harvard law students hoping to snag a law firm summer associate gig.

Hundreds of incoming second-year students and law firm partners would descend on the posh Harvard Square hotel in August for a five-day frenzy of 4,000 summer associate screening interviews, while the law school's career services staff roamed the halls counseling nervous candidates and making sure things ran smoothly.