A guide to the mechanics of OCI, callbacks, etc. Forum

[Cavalier]

Do we assume that firms will look at our Facebook pages/profile pictures now? Or moreso during callback section of this whole experience? Is this even something to be too concerned about?

You should make your profile totally private. The vast majority of firms don't even care about references, so I think it's fair to assume that most aren't going to be searching for you on the Internet, but there's no reason to disadvantage yourself at the firms that do look at Facebook just to preserve an unprofessional public profile. Many people I know had only one offer, so this could mean the difference between a rewarding legal career and debtor's prison.

[barry]

thanks so much this is really helpful....seriously if i get a job i think that you should get about 1/2 the credit haha (this combined with all your other advice has definitely been a life saver)

[musketeerlady]

Thanks so much! Regarding resumes to bring to the interview, what paper do you print them on? Normal library-printer paper is okay, or should we invest in heavy weight one?

[Cavalier]

Thanks so much! Regarding resumes to bring to the interview, what paper do you print them on? Normal library-printer paper is okay, or should we invest in heavy weight one?

Use normal paper; heavy paper is douchey. I handed out maybe only one or two resumes during the entire OCI and callback process though--your interviewers should already have a copy of your resume (printed on normal paper, of course).

[Kilpatrick]

Awesome thread. I fully support your campaign for mod of the employment forum.

[swc65]

Great Post!

BUT, what is the worst part of OCI????

[oneforship]

I recognize the underlying absurdity to this question, but what's the protocol for declining a call back? If, for example, you were really turned off by your screening interview, and somehow knew that wasn't the firm for you, would you just politely decline if/when they call to offer a call back, or send them an email beforehand to avoid declining it?

[Cavalier]

I recognize the underlying absurdity to this question, but what's the protocol for declining a call back? If, for example, you were really turned off by your screening interview, and somehow knew that wasn't the firm for you, would you just politely decline if/when they call to offer a call back, or send them an email beforehand to avoid declining it?

After you get the callback, tell the recruiting coordinator that you will be declining. Emailing before you have it would be obnoxious, and declining it on the phone with the attorney that extends it would be a bit awkward. Your question isn't absurd, since plenty of people do end up declining callbacks, but I think you would be insane to decline a callback before having an offer. It's not unheard of for people with five or even ten callbacks to strike out.

[chem]

thank you! tagged

[oneforship]

I recognize the underlying absurdity to this question, but what's the protocol for declining a call back? If, for example, you were really turned off by your screening interview, and somehow knew that wasn't the firm for you, would you just politely decline if/when they call to offer a call back, or send them an email beforehand to avoid declining it?

After you get the callback, tell the recruiting coordinator that you will be declining. Emailing before you have it would be obnoxious, and declining it on the phone with the attorney that extends it would be a bit awkward. Your question isn't absurd, since plenty of people do end up declining callbacks, but I think you would be insane to decline a callback before having an offer. It's not unheard of for people with five or even ten callbacks to strike out.

Thanks, this makes sense. I just know I had seen previous OCI threads showing declined callbacks, and wasn't sure how they went about doing it.

[buckilaw]

Thanks for the post, I've been wondering how this stuff works. Now if I can just pry myself away form TLS long enough to read Torts....

[Renzo]

I recognize the underlying absurdity to this question, but what's the protocol for declining a call back? If, for example, you were really turned off by your screening interview, and somehow knew that wasn't the firm for you, would you just politely decline if/when they call to offer a call back, or send them an email beforehand to avoid declining it?

After you get the callback, tell the recruiting coordinator that you will be declining. Emailing before you have it would be obnoxious, and declining it on the phone with the attorney that extends it would be a bit awkward. Your question isn't absurd, since plenty of people do end up declining callbacks, but I think you would be insane to decline a callback before having an offer. It's not unheard of for people with five or even ten callbacks to strike out.

Yes to all of this, especially the bolded.

[D-hops]

There are some old threads on this topic, but I figured I'd ask it here:

What are your thoughts on sending thank you letters/emails after interviews? Never do it? Only after call backs? Or for everything?

[SweetnessUVA]

What days of the week are callbacks? Fly out Thurs. Night and interview on Friday? I'm wondering in terms of scheduling classes.

[Cavalier]

What are your thoughts on sending thank you letters/emails after interviews? Never do it? Only after call backs? Or for everything?

Don't do them at all for screening interviews; it just looks weird. For the typical NY/DC/LA V100 firm, you don't need to at callbacks either, because (a) most attorneys won't care, and (b) most firms require evaluations to be submitted immediately after the interview, so the thank-you won't do any good. And many (if not most) firms will save all of your communications in your file, so a typo in just one of your five or six thank-yous could easily doom you. You can't avoid this risk by sending the same thank-you to each attorney, because if each gets saved in your file and they are all nearly identical, that won't look good either. The point is, the risk from sending thank-yous far outweighs any potential reward.

If you're interviewing at a smaller firm, especially if it's in the South, a thank-you might be more expected. Also use your own judgment: if some hip junior associate interviews you, he probably doesn't care about a thank-you, but if an old dinosaur partner interviews you, he's more likely to be affected by a thank-you.

[Cavalier]

What days of the week are callbacks? Fly out Thurs. Night and interview on Friday? I'm wondering in terms of scheduling classes.

They can generally be scheduled anytime between Monday and Friday. So if you create a MWF or TuThF schedule then you can schedule callbacks to not conflict with courses. But don't worry about course conflicts; the importance of 2L and 3L year to your legal career is trivial to the importance of OCI.

[DeSimone]

Thank you for the post.

[rinkrat19]

Great post. I'd started to gather some of it from various sources, but putting it all together like this is really helpful. I'll probably end up printing it out for my dad to read at some point.

[Anonymous User]

Try not to be a dick about it: Let the call go to voice mail if you're in the library instead of picking up your phone and shouting "OH HI CRAVATH, THAT SOUNDS LOVELY, LET ME CHECK MY VERY CROWDED CALENDAR AND SEE IF I CAN SQUEEZE A CALLBACK IN SOMETIME WEEK AFTER NEXT ONCE I HAVE SOME OPENINGS."

Not joking - I overheard this exact phone conversation last year. To the word.

[wiseowl]

Callbacks were the best part of OCI; I don't know where OP went wrong.

The worst part was by far the "So what can I tell you" interviews with the interviewer subbed at the last minute at a firm you don't want anyway.

[98234872348]

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[shepdawg]

Tagged to add advice for non-top law school/top grades people in a day or so.

I'm looking forward to that. Give me some tips to take this TTTT to the top.

[stratocophic]

180

[Anonymous User]

follow-up E-mails after screening or callbacks?

[Anonymous User]

follow-up E-mails after screening or callbacks?

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~thesealocust abusin anon durnk