1L SA Forum

[Anonymous User]

Is there any point to applying on Dec. 1 with no grades? Do call backs happen? Or do they just wait for you to submit grades in January?
If all you need is a cover letter & resume, would it be beneficial to mass mail now? Or would waiting until January be better? It seems like some people think it's a, hey why not, and some people say wait there's no point. And then there are those who say Dec. 1 or it's over.

[lymenheimer]

http://top-law-schools.com/forums/viewt ... c#p9669076

Also, today's Dec 2, hth

[Roy McAvoy]

Apply now, they know you don't have grades. Last year, my school took forever with grades and by the time we sent out apps that included grades, a lot of firms had already filled their classes. We all had to scramble to find something because we took CSO's advice to wait.

[Anonymous User]

I got my 1L SA position with no grades. Apply ASAP.

[ND2018]

Is there any point to applying on Dec. 1 with no grades? Do call backs happen? Or do they just wait for you to submit grades in January?
If all you need is a cover letter & resume, would it be beneficial to mass mail now? Or would waiting until January be better? It seems like some people think it's a, hey why not, and some people say wait there's no point. And then there are those who say Dec. 1 or it's over.

Anecdotally I know someone in my class who got a job specifically because her grades had not come in. This person applied Dec. 1 interviewed over winter break pre-grades and ultimately got the offer.

Turns out her grades ended up sucking-->Moral of the story is that if you have your shit together rn, there is no harm in not sending them in. Also the all rejections you'll get will soften the blow this summer.

[Anonymous User]

I know this is going to sound ridiculous... but is there any difference between sending in my application right now (friday night), this weekend, or waiting until Monday? Does any option have even a slight advantage? Will sending them in first thing Monday morning be better and more likely to be seen/read? I guess I'm just afraid of sending them in right now or on the weekend and having them get lost in junk mail somewhere because I doubt firms spend their weekends looking at identical cover letters. I could be wrong.

[acr]

I know this is going to sound ridiculous... but is there any difference between sending in my application right now (friday night), this weekend, or waiting until Monday? Does any option have even a slight advantage? Will sending them in first thing Monday morning be better and more likely to be seen/read? I guess I'm just afraid of sending them in right now or on the weekend and having them get lost in junk mail somewhere because I doubt firms spend their weekends looking at identical cover letters. I could be wrong.

Monday morning isn't an ideal time either. People are usually trying to catch up on email/are in a bad mood that it's Monday morning. At least according to my generally useless CSO, Tuesday-Thursday afternoon is usually the best time to send apps.

[ArtistOfManliness]

I know this is going to sound ridiculous... but is there any difference between sending in my application right now (friday night), this weekend, or waiting until Monday? Does any option have even a slight advantage? Will sending them in first thing Monday morning be better and more likely to be seen/read? I guess I'm just afraid of sending them in right now or on the weekend and having them get lost in junk mail somewhere because I doubt firms spend their weekends looking at identical cover letters. I could be wrong.

Monday morning isn't an ideal time either. People are usually trying to catch up on email/are in a bad mood that it's Monday morning. At least according to my generally useless CSO, Tuesday-Thursday afternoon is usually the best time to send apps.

Jesus they all go into a pile until someone of authority sifts through them. Doesn't matter when—except 3am might look bad if they print off the e-mail too or otherwise log the submission.

Also, 1L grades are 10000x more important than 1L job, so don't waste time you'd be studying for applying to a long-shot job.(I applied in 12/1 several years ago, but only during study breaks.)

[acr]

I know this is going to sound ridiculous... but is there any difference between sending in my application right now (friday night), this weekend, or waiting until Monday? Does any option have even a slight advantage? Will sending them in first thing Monday morning be better and more likely to be seen/read? I guess I'm just afraid of sending them in right now or on the weekend and having them get lost in junk mail somewhere because I doubt firms spend their weekends looking at identical cover letters. I could be wrong.

Monday morning isn't an ideal time either. People are usually trying to catch up on email/are in a bad mood that it's Monday morning. At least according to my generally useless CSO, Tuesday-Thursday afternoon is usually the best time to send apps.

Jesus they all go into a pile until someone of authority sifts through them. Doesn't matter when—except 3am might look bad if they print off the e-mail too or otherwise log the submission.

Also, 1L grades are 10000x more important than 1L job, so don't waste time you'd be studying for applying to a long-shot job.(I applied in 12/1 several years ago, but only during study breaks.)

Okay, they don't always go into a pile until "someone of authority sifts through them." Sometimes that happens. Sometimes you get instant responses. Out of the thousands of mass mails I sent, I landed numerous callbacks/screeners within an hour or two of sending the email. Most of those positive responses happened to come on the days I mentioned. I think you maximize the chances of that occurring by sending your application at a better time than "3am."

Also, I wouldn't go as far as to say that 1L grades are "10000x more important than 1L job." Sure, 1L grades are the most important grades of your life, but if you can land a 1L SA, then that puts you in a pretty damn good position and minimizes the overall importance of 1L grades. If you can lock up a 1L SA and get a return offer, then (a) you'll have post-graduation employment lined up; and (b) people who go into OCI with an offer generally perform better. And based on this cycle, it seems like firms are hiring more 1L SA's than the hive mind on this board would have you believe.

I agree to not waste time applying for 1L SA's during first semester finals, but after they're over, go for it.

[12481632]

I just wanted to echo the sentiment to try and NOT focus on 1L jobs during first semester finals. It's a very difficult thing to do because you will feel like the job pool is getting smaller every day that goes by, but that is not really the case. Focus on finals, take a day off when you're done with everything and then start mass mailing and getting your applications out. Also, if you happen to do well your first semester, immediately forward your transcript to every employer you submitted an application with (probably goes without saying) but I got some rejections at first from firms and then when they received my grades, they had me do a phone screener interview and no, I didn't get all A's.

However, I do want to add that although 1L grades are certainly important (number 1 factor perhaps in some hiring decisions), getting a 1L SA job is an immeasurable advantage during 2L OCI. First, telling an employer you worked at a firm and got an offer to come back lets them know that you aren't a fuck up/will do "decent" work at worst. Secondly, if you work at a firm and find that you really enjoy lit or transactional work, this goes miles when talking to an employer. I was able to say "I worked at a big law firm, I really liked the transactional/corporate work I did and saw firsthand what practice is like. Transactional/corporate is what I want to do and I know this form actual experience."

Not saying that my 1L SA got me by 2L SA, but it certainly didn't hurt me and I think some firms were impressed by the hustle it took to get it.

(Note: not URM, worked in a secondary Midwest market)

[Anonymous User]

Current 1L at T14. Submitted apps Dec 1. Got an interview invite yesterday. They will end up asking for a transcript when grades come in, but it's gonna help me plan my break since exams run pretty deep into the month.