August 10, 2004
Interviewing (and vacation) Bliss
I just wrapped up five hours worth of interviews (two firms) that I was able to schedule during my trip out west. It went fairly well I think, although it's always tough to tell. But there were no awkward silences, no fumbled questions, a good amount of laughs, and a generally pleasant conversation with the 7 attorneys I met. My advice for those interviewing: come up with lots of questions ahead of time. I had several prepared, but ran in to one attorney who had nothing to say, and quickly exhausted by question bank. It was no big deal, you can always BS a quick question or ask something you already know, but it's always nice to be overprepared!
I was skeptical about the first firm and after spending a few hours there much of my skepticism remains. The atmosphere was more relaxed than I expected, the offices plush, and the attorneys were friendly. The second firm, on the other hand, far exceeded my expectations and I left with a good feeling that it could be a "right" fit for me. It was very relaxed, collegial (the attorneys had nicknames for each other), and comfortable. Associates seems to have quite a bit a freedom and the work appears to be interesting. It looks pretty good.
Unfortunately, we will have to wait and see what happens before there's anything to get excited about. Since both firms are smallish large firms, they will only be hiring 4-5 summers associates. As such, neither firm makes their offers on a rolling basis. Instead, they hold off until they have completed their on-campus recruiting interviews. That means I won't hear much until September. In the meantime, no news will be considered good news, as both firms do "rolling rejections."
I'm spending the night in the city and have one more interview tomorrow morning. After that, I can return to the pleasant void of activity that is my vacation. I'm enjoying the rest while I can. On Monday, law fellow training begins. We've already been given our first journal assignment. And OCI is the following week...
I was skeptical about the first firm and after spending a few hours there much of my skepticism remains. The atmosphere was more relaxed than I expected, the offices plush, and the attorneys were friendly. The second firm, on the other hand, far exceeded my expectations and I left with a good feeling that it could be a "right" fit for me. It was very relaxed, collegial (the attorneys had nicknames for each other), and comfortable. Associates seems to have quite a bit a freedom and the work appears to be interesting. It looks pretty good.
Unfortunately, we will have to wait and see what happens before there's anything to get excited about. Since both firms are smallish large firms, they will only be hiring 4-5 summers associates. As such, neither firm makes their offers on a rolling basis. Instead, they hold off until they have completed their on-campus recruiting interviews. That means I won't hear much until September. In the meantime, no news will be considered good news, as both firms do "rolling rejections."
I'm spending the night in the city and have one more interview tomorrow morning. After that, I can return to the pleasant void of activity that is my vacation. I'm enjoying the rest while I can. On Monday, law fellow training begins. We've already been given our first journal assignment. And OCI is the following week...
