Externship v. Journal Forum

(Study Tips, Dealing With Stress, Maintaining a Social Life, Financial Aid, Internships, Bar Exam, Careers in Law . . . )
Post Reply
11law01

New
Posts: 19
Joined: Tue Mar 15, 2016 12:01 pm

Externship v. Journal

Post by 11law01 » Mon May 22, 2017 11:30 pm

How would having a 2L Fall externship lined up, but no journal experience look going into OCI?

I attend the newly dubbed T-15 school with grades hovering around the median, which is likely to remain the same. I started my summer internship the day after I finished finals at a reputable gov. regulatory agency. Currently sluggishly working through write on, and I have not made good progress. Working full time I don't have the hours to put into this to do super well. I am going to complete write on either way, but if only get on a really second tier journal would it look better, or the same, if I just took a Fall externship? My school allows 2L Fall externship programs and my supervisor was very open to the idea of me staying into the Fall. (I'm also asking this as a safety net in case I get on no journals, and because journal work sounds miserable and my job is not miserable.)

Appreciate the help,

mcmand

Silver
Posts: 722
Joined: Thu Jun 05, 2014 12:45 pm

Re: Externship v. Journal

Post by mcmand » Tue May 23, 2017 1:29 am

...
Last edited by mcmand on Wed Jan 24, 2018 5:43 pm, edited 1 time in total.

User avatar
cavalier1138

Moderator
Posts: 8007
Joined: Fri Mar 25, 2016 8:01 pm

Re: Externship v. Journal

Post by cavalier1138 » Tue May 23, 2017 6:11 am

Yeah, firms look for a journal on your resume. It's a signal in the same way that your class rank and school reputation are signals.

hiima3L

Silver
Posts: 911
Joined: Sun Mar 25, 2012 10:26 pm

Re: Externship v. Journal

Post by hiima3L » Thu May 25, 2017 3:47 am

Do both.

User avatar
ChristineBaskets

New
Posts: 81
Joined: Thu Jun 02, 2016 7:32 pm

Re: Externship v. Journal

Post by ChristineBaskets » Tue May 30, 2017 5:47 pm

mcmand wrote:
cavalier1138 wrote:Yeah, firms look for a journal on your resume. It's a signal in the same way that your class rank and school reputation are signals.
hiima3L wrote:Do both.
Weird question: because OCI takes place before Fall semester, how do you signify the fact that you're on a journal & taking an externship in the Fall? Do you just throw them on your resume even though you haven't started yet?

Also - any other ideas for some not-completely-worthless extracurricular activities? I'm planning on being on a (probably secondary) journal in the Fall, and also doing an externship -- but I'm not sure what to do in terms of extracurriculars going forward.

More externships? I don't really want to do moot court. Not sure about clinics. And if I get an offer at OCI, I'm not entirely sure I'm going to have the motivation to take on anything from Spring 2L-onward.

Want to continue reading?

Register now to search topics and post comments!

Absolutely FREE!


User avatar
cavalier1138

Moderator
Posts: 8007
Joined: Fri Mar 25, 2016 8:01 pm

Re: Externship v. Journal

Post by cavalier1138 » Tue May 30, 2017 6:02 pm

ChristineBaskets wrote: Weird question: because OCI takes place before Fall semester, how do you signify the fact that you're on a journal & taking an externship in the Fall? Do you just throw them on your resume even though you haven't started yet?
Yes.

User avatar
A. Nony Mouse

Diamond
Posts: 29293
Joined: Tue Sep 25, 2012 11:51 am

Re: Externship v. Journal

Post by A. Nony Mouse » Tue May 30, 2017 7:28 pm

Yup.

Also do clinics. Do multiple internships. Anything that involves practice gets you much better experience and connections than classes will. (Yes much of this will be after OCI but after you get a job at OCI and then do your SA and get an offer you can do what you like. Till then get as much experience as you can.)

mcmand

Silver
Posts: 722
Joined: Thu Jun 05, 2014 12:45 pm

Re: Externship v. Journal

Post by mcmand » Wed May 31, 2017 10:40 pm

...
Last edited by mcmand on Wed Jan 24, 2018 5:44 pm, edited 1 time in total.

User avatar
xjustyoursmile

Bronze
Posts: 137
Joined: Thu Oct 25, 2012 3:23 pm

Re: Externship v. Journal

Post by xjustyoursmile » Fri Jul 14, 2017 10:49 am

It depends on what you want to do, what kind of externship, and how you balance your work. I chose to do a 2L externship at a big tech company rather than journal. I'm sure you could do both, but the externship demanded being on call even on weekends and I was on the board of one of the largest student orgs on campus so I knew I'd already be swamped considering I was taking 15 credits on top of that.

No one at OCI asked me why I wasn't on journal. I decided not to pursue law firms my 2L, took an RA part time position for 3L on top of other internships etc to get the writing and bluebooking experience. And now I'm.headed to a big law firm in NY after completing a fellowship after graduating.

I know people say do both, but you know better what makes you feel overwhelmed and what doesn't.

I don't think it'll hurt you in OCI as long as you have a good explanation, the externship is relevant to what you ultimately want to do, and you get the writing and bluebooking exp elsewhere at another time.

Also remember OCI isn't the end all be all to end up at a law firm.

User avatar
TheSpanishMain

Gold
Posts: 4744
Joined: Tue Apr 02, 2013 2:26 pm

Re: Externship v. Journal

Post by TheSpanishMain » Fri Jul 14, 2017 2:42 pm

Take this with a huge hunk of salt because it's just an anecdote, but I didn't do journal (knew I wasn't going to make main journal and secondary journal sounded miserable and pointless) and didn't suffer for it. The only time it came up during OCI the associate interviewing me congratulated me on passing on the pointless busy work. YMMV.

Want to continue reading?

Register for access!

Did I mention it was FREE ?


Post Reply

Return to “Forum for Law School Students”