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September 03, 2005
Buddha's Experiential Guide To Getting A Law Firm Job
Reading this post from a second-year about to start on-campus interviews (OCI), I began to wax nostalgic about the time I spent looking for a job. It's all worked out quite well for me, and I'm very excited about the job I'll be starting in just under two weeks.
For those going through the law school job mill now, here's a look back:
January 14, 2003: Signs of the Times. I think the "Dear Job Market" letter is one of the funniest things I've ever written here. Thankfully the market has gotten better in the last few years.
February 3, 2003: Job Prospects: The Great Emptiness of 2003. "Pretty soon, we'll all be working for Cravath, Skadden, & Morrison, LLP, which represents all companies in the world in all disputes."
February 12, 2003: Lawyer Larvae. The first big firm reception for 1Ls, at which a miserable time was had by most.
February 18, 2003: Job Prosepcts: The Great Emptiness of 2003 (part II in the series). This is your brain on fears of unemployment.
February 24, 2003: Rejection Letter Lottery: The Great Emptiness of 2003 (part III). Three flavors of law firm rejection letter (Slurm, Diet Slurm, and Slurm fortified with extra humiliation).
March 20:, 2003: Interviews: The Great Emptiness Uncertainty of 2003 (part IV). Counting chickens before they hatch. Mmm.. chicken.
March 24, 2003: One Down One To Go. Buddha got a j-o-b!
April 11, 2003: California Here I Come: The Great Uncertainty of 2003 (part V). I finally figured out what I'd be doing my 1L summer, which was a huge relief. The job, working for a superior court judge (state court, trial level) turned out to be a phenomenal experience.
July 17, 2003: Whew! I'm Glad We Cleared That Up. Going into the interview process, you have very little useful information about the firms, so you have to look at virtually useless resources, such as the Vault Guide to the Top 100 Law Firms. Still, I wouldn't mind if the "buzz" about my firm were that we were "total ninjas." Ninjas are cool. At least my new firm is on the upswing, with a five spot jump in the 2006 rankings.
July 28, 2003: Sorority Rush Meets Law School. I agonized over how to rank the firms for the on-campus interviews. Equal parts anxiety, game theory, and law school. In the long run, the firm I ended up working for the following summer was a late addition to OCI, not even included in the bid process.
August 31, 2003: So That Happened. The aftermath of OCI -- it's a completely exhausting week.
September 6, 2003: West Coast in da House. I got some callbacks. You hear good news before bad after OCI, so I was frontloaded and feeling pretty good about myself.
September 8, 2003: Potpourri, Miscellaneous, and Etc. Some random thoughts about callback travel, rejection letters, and other minor details of law firm recruiting as a 2L.
September 14, 2003: Why Interviews are Like Finals. A list of 5.
September 16, 2003: Didn't You Get the Memo? Loud & Obvious is the New Obnoxious. Interview etiquette is difficult to master, but there are other social graces at play during callback season.
September 18, 2003: Thank You for Taking the Time to Not Interview Me. More on rejection letters and scoring extra interviews during OCI.
October 15, 2003: California, Here I Come, Right Back Where I Started From. The job search winds to a close with one final callback trip, and my relfections on the process.
October 18, 2003: Called Out. This website becomes part of my interview process in what was certainly among the most awkward of my interview experiences. This should be a good reminder for any other law school bloggers.
August 25, 2004: Recruiting Redux: It's Different as a 3L. It's a completely different attitude when you interview as a 3L with an offer in hand.
November 4, 2004: Finally. It's all over. I accepted an offer from a firm. It isn't the firm where I was a summer associate, so I have a lot of insight on the 3L process if anyone's interested.
Posted by buddha at September 3, 2005 08:58 AM
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