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Nobody warned me that my first year of law school would come with a second, unofficial curriculum. During the day, I was learning offer and acceptance and the elements of negligence. In the evenings, I was learning which law firms served the best food.
With recruiting moved so far up, those two schedules ran side by side almost from the start in my first quarter at Stanford Law School. Here is what I learned from law firm meet-and-greets, interviews, and trying to keep sane amidst it all.
Welcome to the meet-and-greet circuit
Early recruiting seems to create a strange kind of double life. I would see my classmates in class in the morning, then see them again that evening, all dressed up, at the same law firm reception. The next day, half the section shows up to class carrying the same water bottle from whichever firm had particularly nice swag. Once, when it rained, the walk into the law school was just a sea of law firm umbrellas.
It felt like a lot at first, but something that helped me relax is finding out that the firms know the timing is hard. In my experience, the attorneys at these events were actually pretty apologetic about how early everything happens. They know you have barely started law school, and they are not expecting you to have your career mapped out.
So go. If you are not sure which firms interest you, go for the food and to get to know the firm. A reception is one of the easiest ways to see how a firm’s attorneys talk to each other and to students, and you cannot get that from a website. If you already know which firm you like, do a little digging into its practice areas beforehand so your questions can be more specific.
When in doubt, talk about the food.
Seriously. It is a natural, low-stakes opener, everyone in the room is eating it, and it gives you a few seconds to settle in before the conversation turns to anything substantive.
That said, have answers ready for a few predictable questions, especially “What kind of law are you interested in?” If you do not know yet, say that. It is perfectly fine. Most attorneys remember being exactly where you are, and “I'm still figuring it out, but I’ve really enjoyed Contracts so far” is a respectable answer that still gives them something to work with. Still, I recommend having an answer and testing it out with different folks before actual interviews begin.
Take advantage of the lunch talks your school provides, too. They are a low-pressure way to hear practitioners describe their work and a good chance to ask questions about practice areas you are curious about. Between your classes and those talks, you will start to notice which areas align with what you like.
Get the introduction
One helpful tip I had been given is to make some connections ahead of time.
Stanford law gives students a list of where current 2Ls and 3Ls spent their summers. Your school’s alumni network is the other place to look for alumni who went to the firm you want to go to, or who practice in the field you are thinking about.
Then use your school email to cold email them. In my opinion, a school email is a very underrated tool. A message from a school account carries instant credibility, and very few attorneys will turn down a student who reaches out thoughtfully. Go ahead and ask if they will be at the reception, or if they know anyone who will be.
When you arrive, find that contact. Usually with law firm receptions, a crowd of 1Ls swarm the associate/partner from the law firm, so it’s hard to ask for anything specific. But if you’ve already emailed someone, they will be more likely to find a way to talk to you one-on-one, and they’ll be primed to want to give you helpful information. If you play your cards right, that summer associate or alum might be willing to point you to the people to talk to at the reception. One of which might even be the hiring partner.
Asking does not have to be awkward. Once a conversation is going well, a simple “Is there anyone else here you think I should meet?” usually does the trick. Attorneys at these events want to be helpful, and connecting a student with the right colleague is an easy way to do it.
Don’t forget that law firms are competing with each other for top law school talent.
With recruiting starting this early, there is not much of a formal screening process standing between students and the people making decisions. The hiring partner can act as the screener and put your name directly into the callback interview spot. I know someone who hit it off with the hiring partner at a BigLaw firm and was flown down to LA the next week to go golfing with the partners in addition to their callback interview. They told this student that as long as they didn’t fail their exams, they were in.
If someone you email agrees to a coffee chat, treat it like an interview, because in a sense, it is one. Come prepared with a few questions and do your research on the attorney and the firm beforehand, so you are not wasting their time or yours. The best questions are ones the firm’s website cannot answer, such as what their day-to-day looks like, how they chose their practice area, and what they wish they had known as a student.
All of this is mini-preparation for on-campus interviews. Know why you are interested in that particular firm and draw on what you have already learned. If you met someone from the firm at a reception or a coffee chat, mention it. I can’t know for sure, but it appears that law firms are tracking attendance and seem to like students who show real interest.
Balancing your time and staying sane
The biggest tip I can give you is to focus on your grades. No matter how well you interview, grades are a determining factor. In the end, having good grades gives you options. So if you haven’t done the readings for torts, maybe don’t stay at that law firm reception for too long.
Other random things during this time that I did not expect were the personality assessments and pattern recognition tests. Firms claim that these give them another benchmark for whether the firm will be a good fit for the individual. But I have no idea how firms weight these. Firms may also ask you for your LSAT score and undergrad transcript.
There are pathways other than OCI. For the public interest route, you should talk to your school about those resources. For classes taught by partners, I know multiple classmates who got offers this way without having to go through the OCI process. However, these classes are usually taught after the first quarter.
I know that early recruiting can feel like one more thing on an already full plate, but it does not have to be a source of stress. Go to the events, enjoy the food, and get to know the firms. Have a few answers ready, be honest when you do not have them, and ask for the introduction if the occasion arises.
Most of all, keep up with your 1L classes. And if you end up with a closet full of firm umbrellas, at least you will be ready for the next rainy day.
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