My favorite question at this time of year is: “I think I have too many callbacks. What should I do?”
But given the current economy and the slow down in law firm hiring, inevitably there are also students with the opposite problem: “I didn’t get any callbacks. What should I do?” We also hear from some 3Ls: “I didn’t get an offer from my summer employer. What should I do?”
Of course, we career counselors can take comfort that we can work with the students who are proactive and come to us with those questions. They have confronted the situation and are motivated to continue the search. Often, however, students who were not successful in on-campus interviews (OCI) or did not receive an offer from their summer employers are embarrassed to identify themselves, given the success of many of their classmates. Denial, procrastination, or dwelling on the past, when left unchecked, can combine to create a job search disaster and, to the extent possible, we need to coach them past these initial responses.
Meeting with each student in job crisis starts with where the student is and what the student wants. Sometimes, not getting a big firm offer can be the best thing that could happen to a student — she needed the firm to tell her that a large firm was not for her. As we know, many students head to large firms due to peer pressure or debt pressure (or both) rather than a genuine fit or practice area interest. Not receiving an offer through OCI, while painful, can be a wake-up call.
If the student genuinely wanted to work with corporate clients in a large firm but was downed either by a work or behavior issue or the economy or GPA, the key is hearing the student out. First they need to vent. Then they need to consider what they have learned from the experience about themselves. Is there anything that they are doing to impede their own success? They cannot continue the search until they have addressed any behavior, attitude or skills-related issues. Next, they need to get down to strategy or “next steps.” If the student is a non-offered 3L, can he get one or two partners he worked for over the summer to serve as a reference? Sometimes if a student’s career counselor contacts the firm directly, the firm will share information that can be helpful to the student though oftentimes firms are understandably reluctant to comment on a student’s performance.
For both 2Ls and 3Ls, the good news is twofold: there are lots of other options at this point in the fall and they have a year to land the job.
In terms of an action plan, there are several opportunities to pursue. The 3Ls are facing graduation and debt payments so their situation is more urgent than the 2Ls. Should a 3L blanket every large firm in the market with their materials? Is it worth the time and the rejection? Perhaps it is — at least contacting the firms that gave them offers last year. It’s probably better though to take a step back and ask themselves why the big firm was so important (apart from the money). What do they really want out of their first few years of practice? Experience? Balance? A great working environment?
For private sector work, there is the smaller firm market. Small firms (the definition will vary depending on location), while not always in hiring mode for permanent jobs, will hire third-year students as clerks during the year. Clerking leads to connections and experience and an understanding of what smaller firms look for in new hires. Law clerks also get to see up close the business aspects of law firm practice. Small firms also hire year-round so many opportunities will not arise until closer to graduation.
Locating small firm opportunities requires more work on the student’s part. Small firms do not come for OCI or have large recruiting departments. Students need to follow up with them.
Third-year students can consider (or re-consider) the clerkship option. If they have either missed the boat timing-wise or credential-wise for the federal courts, state courts often hire on a later schedule. If they can land a clerkship, whether state or federal (don’t forget bankruptcy), opportunities will open up down the road.
Both 3Ls and 2Ls need to think broadly, both in terms of type of practice and geography. Are there secondary markets where they might be more competitive and/or have family ties? Have they considered all levels of government? Nearly all federal agencies and many large state and local employers begin the hiring process in the fall. Another practical reason to avoid denial is that these opportunities will be gone by spring.
There may be public interest opportunities. Many nonprofits cannot afford to hire new attorneys without the student obtaining some kind of fellowship assistance. Someone who worked at large firm after second-year may also have a PR issue in trying to now get into the public sector. Yet if the student worked for a public interest employer after first year, at least the student has a starting contact. Attending the Equal Justice Works Job Fair is a must for these jobs.
For 2Ls, the PR issue is not a problem since many of them will have worked in the public sector after their first-year. The job search for 2Ls interested in public sector work shifts focus from OCI to Equal Justice Works and regional public interest job fairs for both nonprofit and government jobs.
And of course, it always does come back to networking, doesn’t it? Professors, alumni, social connections, fellow students, and their law school career advisors all can offer students advice and job search leads.
Students who were not successful in OCI or who did not get an offer from a large firm after their 2L summer cannot let that negative experience define them. They need to work through their disappointment, anger, frustration and self-doubt and get back to the plan they’ve worked out with their career advisor. Students who take charge of their job searches and do not allow themselves to be sidetracked by an unsuccessful experience at a firm over the summer or during OCI will have the greatest chance of success in the job hunt. There are always next steps. Students just have to take them.
William A. Chamberlain is assistant dean, Law Career Strategy and Advancement, Northwestern University School of Law.
