Early career public interest pivot? Forum

[Anonymous User]

Note: edited to make my question more clear.

So I'm a 3L who's set to go to a V10. Don't particularly want to do biglaw, have lots of pre-law-school public interest experience and two summers in different biglaw litigation groups. What public service roles exist that hire candidates either (a) immediately coming out of LS or (b) shortly after starting?

For example, I was considering uncompensated SAUSA positions. Many say they're willing to hire after 1 year of litigation experience. Is this accurate, or are they typically looking for more years? I'm happy to take a pay cut or go to zero for a high-enough-impact role, and SAUSA positions are pretty intriguing, but I'm willing to consider other roles that would let me do more independent advocacy in the public interest than biglaw allows. I'm also not married to criminal law, so very open to other types of litigation.

If relevant: HYS, significant pre-law WE in public interest (I've never worked in a for-profit setting before 1L summer, actually) and leader of a few PI focused orgs on campus. No clerkship, but applying now for 2024 and 2025.

[Anonymous User]

You don't want the job and you don't need the job so... don't take the job. If you want permission from an internet stranger (you don't need it, you're a grown-up), here it is: you don't have to go to biglaw. Plenty of people don't, and most of them are probably happy with that choice.

Apply for something you want to do and do that instead (and sign up for LRAP if applicable). Talk to your public interest career office. I'd probably find another job before I quit, but that's me.

[Anonymous User]

You don't want the job and you don't need the job so... don't take the job. If you want permission from an internet stranger (you don't need it, you're a grown-up), here it is: you don't have to go to biglaw. Plenty of people don't, and most of them are probably happy with that choice.

Apply for something you want to do and do that instead (and sign up for LRAP if applicable). Talk to your public interest career office. I'd probably find another job before I quit, but that's me.

Sorry if I was unclear--it's late and I'm studying for my last final. It's more that I don't want the job but everything interesting I've seen seems to either (a) want demonstrated commitment to public interest (which you would think I have, but apparently my two summers of biglaw negates my pre-law experience) or (b) wants dedicated biglaw experience. I've had a couple people I talked to mention that trying to pivot early makes me seem like I was cold/no-offered (which was not the case, let's be clear).

I guess it was more of a vent than a question tbf, so let's start over with a more general question:

Where should I be looking for public service opportunities that would likely be interested in hiring someone with a pretty strong public interest track record, prestigious academic credentials, and minimal biglaw experience? Our public interest office tries their best but are, uh, not lauded for their jobs.

Edit: thought more about the question, restated in the edit above.

[Anonymous User]

Sorry if I was unclear--it's late and I'm studying for my last final. It's more that I don't want the job but everything interesting I've seen seems to either (a) want demonstrated commitment to public interest (which you would think I have, but apparently my two summers of biglaw negates my pre-law experience) or (b) wants dedicated biglaw experience. I've had a couple people I talked to mention that trying to pivot early makes me seem like I was cold/no-offered (which was not the case, let's be clear).

I guess it was more of a vent than a question tbf, so let's start over with a more general question:

Where should I be looking for public service opportunities that would likely be interested in hiring someone with a pretty strong public interest track record, prestigious academic credentials, and minimal biglaw experience? Our public interest office tries their best but are, uh, not lauded for their jobs.

Edit: thought more about the question, restated in the edit above.

I don't think you're giving PI employers enough credit. You summered in a biglaw litigation group, liked it enough to go back the next summer, and now you've decided you don't actually want to do it. Why should a PI employer hire you, and invest time in training you, over someone who spent both summers in PI and seems less likely to get cold feet? If you can sell your prior work experience as a demonstrated commitment, it wouldn't hurt to shoot in an application, but that's the sort of question you'd need to be able to answer; especially for "high-impact" roles, your application is being measured against people with the same prestigious academic credentials and stronger public interest track records. Why you?

As for where to look, you're past most federal and state honors hiring timelines, but many state/local DA and PD offices hire throughout the year. Your school also has a public interest fellowship program that would be worth exploring.

[Anonymous User]

Sorry if I was unclear--it's late and I'm studying for my last final. It's more that I don't want the job but everything interesting I've seen seems to either (a) want demonstrated commitment to public interest (which you would think I have, but apparently my two summers of biglaw negates my pre-law experience) or (b) wants dedicated biglaw experience. I've had a couple people I talked to mention that trying to pivot early makes me seem like I was cold/no-offered (which was not the case, let's be clear).

I guess it was more of a vent than a question tbf, so let's start over with a more general question:

Where should I be looking for public service opportunities that would likely be interested in hiring someone with a pretty strong public interest track record, prestigious academic credentials, and minimal biglaw experience? Our public interest office tries their best but are, uh, not lauded for their jobs.

Edit: thought more about the question, restated in the edit above.

I don't think you're giving PI employers enough credit. You summered in a biglaw litigation group, liked it enough to go back the next summer, and now you've decided you don't actually want to do it. Why should a PI employer hire you, and invest time in training you, over someone who spent both summers in PI and seems less likely to get cold feet? If you can sell your prior work experience as a demonstrated commitment, it wouldn't hurt to shoot in an application, but that's the sort of question you'd need to be able to answer; especially for "high-impact" roles, your application is being measured against people with the same prestigious academic credentials and stronger public interest track records. Why you?

As for where to look, you're past most federal and state honors hiring timelines, but many state/local DA and PD offices hire throughout the year. Your school also has a public interest fellowship program that would be worth exploring.

Yeah I agree with the above poster that high-profile public interest orgs (ACLU, LDF, etc) are definitely looking for folks with more of a demonstrated public interest commitment (and clerkships too) for the few openings they have available. The pre-law-school public interest to big law summer intern path is so common it’s a cliche, so a lot of PI orgs (fairly or not) won’t really view you as someone with a “pretty strong public interest track record.” Also, the main public interest fellowship deadlines (like state/fed gov honors program deadlines) have already passed by now - if you’re dead set on something for next year, I think it might be slim pickings if you don’t want to be a local DA/PD (which usually is good training for federal prosecution/defense work, so I wouldn’t rule it out).

It’s probably best to see if your school does any sponsored fellowships and then reach out to an organization you’d be interested in working for to see if they’ll take the free labor.

[Anonymous User]

Note: edited to make my question more clear.

So I'm a 3L who's set to go to a V10. Don't particularly want to do biglaw, have lots of pre-law-school public interest experience and two summers in different biglaw litigation groups. What public service roles exist that hire candidates either (a) immediately coming out of LS or (b) shortly after starting?

For example, I was considering uncompensated SAUSA positions. Many say they're willing to hire after 1 year of litigation experience. Is this accurate, or are they typically looking for more years? I'm happy to take a pay cut or go to zero for a high-enough-impact role, and SAUSA positions are pretty intriguing, but I'm willing to consider other roles that would let me do more independent advocacy in the public interest than biglaw allows. I'm also not married to criminal law, so very open to other types of litigation.

If relevant: HYS, significant pre-law WE in public interest (I've never worked in a for-profit setting before 1L summer, actually) and leader of a few PI focused orgs on campus. No clerkship, but applying now for 2024 and 2025.

re uncompensated SAUSA gigs - if it says they'll consider you after 1 year, they'll definitely consider you, and your school/experience will probably look good. It will depend entirely on who else is applying/interested, b/c sometimes you get much more experienced people using the SAUSA position to pivot down the line. But if you're willing to do uncompensated SAUSA, you could also consider regular AUSA gigs in border districts, b/c they're more likely to hire people with less experience. (You'd have to be willing to do border district work though - primarily immigration and drugs coming over the border - which may not be consistent with your PI focus.)

[Anonymous User]

Sorry if I was unclear--it's late and I'm studying for my last final. It's more that I don't want the job but everything interesting I've seen seems to either (a) want demonstrated commitment to public interest (which you would think I have, but apparently my two summers of biglaw negates my pre-law experience) or (b) wants dedicated biglaw experience. I've had a couple people I talked to mention that trying to pivot early makes me seem like I was cold/no-offered (which was not the case, let's be clear).

I guess it was more of a vent than a question tbf, so let's start over with a more general question:

Where should I be looking for public service opportunities that would likely be interested in hiring someone with a pretty strong public interest track record, prestigious academic credentials, and minimal biglaw experience? Our public interest office tries their best but are, uh, not lauded for their jobs.

Edit: thought more about the question, restated in the edit above.

You summered in a biglaw litigation group, liked it enough to go back the next summer, and now you've decided you don't actually want to do it.

Ah, I wish that were true. I absolutely despised my 1L summer, but I wasn't able to get traction with PI orgs before OCI and felt heavily pressured by my school to do the biglaw thing, so I switched firms hoping that I disliked the firm more than the work. Sadly, my second firm was much worse than my first.

For 1Ls currently applying to firms, don't fucking do it. It's awful. Do something meaningful instead; doesn't even have to be PI, just something that has more intrinsic meaning than making a partner more money.

Edit: I know we do sponsored fellowships, but I've never been explained how you actually get them. I'll reach out to our PI careers office after the holidays.

[lavarman84]

Note: edited to make my question more clear.

So I'm a 3L who's set to go to a V10. Don't particularly want to do biglaw, have lots of pre-law-school public interest experience and two summers in different biglaw litigation groups. What public service roles exist that hire candidates either (a) immediately coming out of LS or (b) shortly after starting?

For example, I was considering uncompensated SAUSA positions. Many say they're willing to hire after 1 year of litigation experience. Is this accurate, or are they typically looking for more years? I'm happy to take a pay cut or go to zero for a high-enough-impact role, and SAUSA positions are pretty intriguing, but I'm willing to consider other roles that would let me do more independent advocacy in the public interest than biglaw allows. I'm also not married to criminal law, so very open to other types of litigation.

If relevant: HYS, significant pre-law WE in public interest (I've never worked in a for-profit setting before 1L summer, actually) and leader of a few PI focused orgs on campus. No clerkship, but applying now for 2024 and 2025.

What exactly are you interested in doing in the PI space? There's a massive difference between federal prosecutor and what most of the nonprofit world does. School-funded fellowships can be a great way to make the transition, but you have to actually have some plan for the work you want to do. I'm not trying to be harsh, but it feels a bit like you don't know what you want.

[Anonymous User]

Note: edited to make my question more clear.

So I'm a 3L who's set to go to a V10. Don't particularly want to do biglaw, have lots of pre-law-school public interest experience and two summers in different biglaw litigation groups. What public service roles exist that hire candidates either (a) immediately coming out of LS or (b) shortly after starting?

For example, I was considering uncompensated SAUSA positions. Many say they're willing to hire after 1 year of litigation experience. Is this accurate, or are they typically looking for more years? I'm happy to take a pay cut or go to zero for a high-enough-impact role, and SAUSA positions are pretty intriguing, but I'm willing to consider other roles that would let me do more independent advocacy in the public interest than biglaw allows. I'm also not married to criminal law, so very open to other types of litigation.

If relevant: HYS, significant pre-law WE in public interest (I've never worked in a for-profit setting before 1L summer, actually) and leader of a few PI focused orgs on campus. No clerkship, but applying now for 2024 and 2025.

What exactly are you interested in doing in the PI space? There's a massive difference between federal prosecutor and what most of the nonprofit world does. School-funded fellowships can be a great way to make the transition, but you have to actually have some plan for the work you want to do. I'm not trying to be harsh, but it feels a bit like you don't know what you want.

I don't want to specify exactly, because most of my work has been in a sufficiently specific niche that HYS + area of interest could easily out who I am. Like, I'm one of two people my year who has a serious interest in this field and the only one who was a biglaw summer. It's an area where federal prosecutors and nonprofits have a surprising amount of overlap (though obviously a big split in criminal/civil work).