And bar prep for those who just graduated. Or as I like to think of it, bar(ely reviewing and resigning myself to food) prep. No really, it's fun. You have so much to look forward to. Like six hour practice MBE's. On Saturday. Yay.
Now back to the point of this post.
I've been seeing a lot of advice in articles and on forums about how if law students were smart they would "summer" at a firm. The theory is that "summering" at a firm will automatically blossom into a full-time job for 1-3 years post grad, and then the student can follow their real passion (why can't working at a firm be a student's passion?). Apart from the issues of using a season as a verb, I noticed a few other snags in this logic.
Full disclosure: I am one of those students who did not try to "summer" with a firm, for faulty reasons I have come to realize. I nonetheless held relatively esteemed legal postions during my 1L summer, my 2L year, and my 2L summer, and worked for the law school my 2L and 3L year. I chose these positions for experience over a guaranteed job, which in retrospect is not always the right decision. But I still do not believe that everyone should "summer" at a firm, and if someone decides to "summer" they should not count their chickens, especially before hatching a passing score on the bar.
1) "Don't lose your soul." Whatever this may mean to you, some students are told by their families or by popular media that if they are going to become a lawyer, for goodness sake don't turn into a bloodsucker or an ambulance chaser or a soulless swine who just smokes cigars and drinks and screws and wins cases at any cost (wait, why are we against all of these?). It may not be logical, but many students fear losing themselves or losing their 'good character traits' upon becoming a lawyer. So they avoid large law firms. Not because there is anything inherently wrong with a large firm, but it can be easy to think about how you could become just a number. And thus, we shy away from OCI and go for government or nonprofit jobs. I find this mentality a shame. Of course we need quality government lawyers and nonprofit lawyers. And of course we do not want to be unethical lawyers. After all, to be unethical is to lose your license to practice law. And that is one mighty expensive license to lose. But law firms should not be associated with evil or with losing one's self.
Now, I'm not saying that law firms are right for everyone, because they are not. And that is part of why not everyone can "summer" at a firm. If a student's passion is in international humanitarian law, or CYF, or nonprofit, then students should follow those passions. And they should get internships where there are lawyers they can network with who are active in that area. Unfortunately, some law jobs may look less favorably on the student who "summered" twice, and worked for three years at a big firm before coming to work for the community. It may make it more difficult to prove that this area of law is a passion when the student did not attempt to work there during school. Is this bad? Probably. But it remains a possibility in some areas, and it needs to be considered.
But if your desire is to work in a law firm, go for that summer position. If you're not sure of your passion, try a firm that will allow you to try different practice areas. If you need a paying summer position, your best bet is a firm. I guess my advice is be smart about where you want to do your internships. Think long term and short term. And of course, sometimes these decisions are out of our hands and we end up where we end up, but it is good to focus on applying to places where you want to be.
2) Ok, let's assume everyone wants a big firm internship. Not everyone can get these internships. It's just not possible for everyone to get these positions. So if you don't get it, yes it sucks but don't beat yourself up over it. It could have been a bad fit, or maybe you wouldn't have liked it, or maybe it would have been a good fit, but there was another equally qualified candidate who got it. You could be at the top of your class, actively involved on campus, on a journal, have a stellar personality, get every girl to hit on you at bar review, win over the interviewers and have the offer being typed up, but if another candidate comes along who maybe didn't interview as well but whose grandmother is a big client for the firm, you can bet the connected candidate and not the preferred candidate is getting that position. "It's all who you know." Or who flew airplanes of mashed peas and carrots into your hangar. At any rate, there are a limited number of big firm slots for students from all over the country, and there inevitably will be a multitude of students who do not get these positions for one reason or another. That's just the legal marketplace.
3) Assume everyone could get these positions. Well, then the "summer" market would be oversaturated and not everyone would be 'guaranteed' a position. It's not economically feasible for everyone to follow this path. The reality is that summer classes are down and they have not fully returned to pre-2008 levels. Smaller summer classes means fewer new hires. So while it would be nice if everyone who wants a summer internship at a firm could get one, the reality is that they are competitive. And the numbers of spots have dwindled exponentially. Additionally, it is cheaper to hire law students to do work during the summer than hire new associates, so the new associate classes each year could potentially be smaller than even the summer class was.
4) "Summer" does not turn into 4-12 seasons automatically. It depends on the firm, the size, the need, the class size wanted, the economy, whether the student ends up passing the bar, how many new attorneys they can support, the student's attitude, work ethic and work product during the summer (noun, not verb), and any potential personality conflicts. There are a lot of factors at play, which means that landing a summer internship at a law firm does not mean it will necessarily without a doubt foolproof turn into a job after graduation. For example, one way to lose that associate position is to talk with your mouth full at work lunches. Apart from the factors the firm uses in deciding if they want the student, what if it is a horrible fit from the student's perspective? I know, this was a birthday candle 'let this be my worst nightmare' wish at least once for me. But still, I imagine it would suck.
So if you didn't work for a law firm during the summer, don't get mad when someone tells you that life would be good if only you'd "summered." They haven't really thought it out.
But if your desire is to work in a law firm, go for that summer position. If you're not sure of your passion, try a firm that will allow you to try different practice areas. If you need a paying summer position, your best bet is a firm. I guess my advice is be smart about where you want to do your internships. Think long term and short term. And of course, sometimes these decisions are out of our hands and we end up where we end up, but it is good to focus on applying to places where you want to be.
2) Ok, let's assume everyone wants a big firm internship. Not everyone can get these internships. It's just not possible for everyone to get these positions. So if you don't get it, yes it sucks but don't beat yourself up over it. It could have been a bad fit, or maybe you wouldn't have liked it, or maybe it would have been a good fit, but there was another equally qualified candidate who got it. You could be at the top of your class, actively involved on campus, on a journal, have a stellar personality, get every girl to hit on you at bar review, win over the interviewers and have the offer being typed up, but if another candidate comes along who maybe didn't interview as well but whose grandmother is a big client for the firm, you can bet the connected candidate and not the preferred candidate is getting that position. "It's all who you know." Or who flew airplanes of mashed peas and carrots into your hangar. At any rate, there are a limited number of big firm slots for students from all over the country, and there inevitably will be a multitude of students who do not get these positions for one reason or another. That's just the legal marketplace.
3) Assume everyone could get these positions. Well, then the "summer" market would be oversaturated and not everyone would be 'guaranteed' a position. It's not economically feasible for everyone to follow this path. The reality is that summer classes are down and they have not fully returned to pre-2008 levels. Smaller summer classes means fewer new hires. So while it would be nice if everyone who wants a summer internship at a firm could get one, the reality is that they are competitive. And the numbers of spots have dwindled exponentially. Additionally, it is cheaper to hire law students to do work during the summer than hire new associates, so the new associate classes each year could potentially be smaller than even the summer class was.
4) "Summer" does not turn into 4-12 seasons automatically. It depends on the firm, the size, the need, the class size wanted, the economy, whether the student ends up passing the bar, how many new attorneys they can support, the student's attitude, work ethic and work product during the summer (noun, not verb), and any potential personality conflicts. There are a lot of factors at play, which means that landing a summer internship at a law firm does not mean it will necessarily without a doubt foolproof turn into a job after graduation. For example, one way to lose that associate position is to talk with your mouth full at work lunches. Apart from the factors the firm uses in deciding if they want the student, what if it is a horrible fit from the student's perspective? I know, this was a birthday candle 'let this be my worst nightmare' wish at least once for me. But still, I imagine it would suck.
So if you didn't work for a law firm during the summer, don't get mad when someone tells you that life would be good if only you'd "summered." They haven't really thought it out.
Now, where's the closest pool?
No comments:
Post a Comment