Lowest possible grade for AIII clerkship? Forum

[Anonymous User]

I have a median GPA. I know this sounds like a joke but I want to try my luck if this isnt a deal breaker from the get go. If it matters I am prepared to explain that I had to work throughout law school and commuted 100 miles a day to go to school due to my poverty status.

[KissMyAxe]

Way too vague for anyone to help you. Without knowing your school/professorial connections, it's impossible to tell. Yes, there are schools where median is doable for a clerkship. People at YLS at the "bottom" of the class get clerkships all the time (though not the very competitive ones of course). I'm sure median at HLS and SLS can also land clerkships, if they have the right faculty members backing them. But for most schools, you need to be near the top of your class. Your story makes very little difference. Judges are hiring people who will be the best at their job, it's definitely not a charity.

[Anonymous User]

Im trying to show that I am capable and responsible, and to show potential that with the right opportunity I can excel even more.

I get your point about school prestige though. I went to a decent school (T20 range) with decent clerkship placement rate. I will try my luck anyway if this is not a deal breaker.

[mjb447]

Im trying to show that I am capable and responsible, and to show potential that with the right opportunity I can excel even more.

If a judge has any problem with your GPA, you'll probably never get a chance to explain.

No real harm in applying (pretty much my default stance with everybody), but your odds aren't great.

[ArtistOfManliness]

Way too vague for anyone to help you. Without knowing your school/professorial connections, it's impossible to tell. Yes, there are schools where median is doable for a clerkship. People at YLS at the "bottom" of the class get clerkships all the time (though not the very competitive ones of course). I'm sure median at HLS and SLS can also land clerkships, if they have the right faculty members backing them. But for most schools, you need to be near the top of your class. Your story makes very little difference. Judges are hiring people who will be the best at their job, it's definitely not a charity.

SLS pulls the same % a3 clerkships as YLS... including dragging people from the "bottom"

[curry1]

Way too vague for anyone to help you. Without knowing your school/professorial connections, it's impossible to tell. Yes, there are schools where median is doable for a clerkship. People at YLS at the "bottom" of the class get clerkships all the time (though not the very competitive ones of course). I'm sure median at HLS and SLS can also land clerkships, if they have the right faculty members backing them. But for most schools, you need to be near the top of your class. Your story makes very little difference. Judges are hiring people who will be the best at their job, it's definitely not a charity.

SLS pulls the same % a3 clerkships as YLS... including dragging people from the "bottom"

I don't think you understand ... only Yalies are special. All law schools not located in New Haven admit purely based on numbers and federal judges know that. They would never deign to take a below-median candidate who has not been identified as the best by the omnipotent professors and faculty at YLS (who aren't classist and elitist in their selections at all!).

user outed for anon abuse

[ArtistOfManliness]

Way too vague for anyone to help you. Without knowing your school/professorial connections, it's impossible to tell. Yes, there are schools where median is doable for a clerkship. People at YLS at the "bottom" of the class get clerkships all the time (though not the very competitive ones of course). I'm sure median at HLS and SLS can also land clerkships, if they have the right faculty members backing them. But for most schools, you need to be near the top of your class. Your story makes very little difference. Judges are hiring people who will be the best at their job, it's definitely not a charity.

SLS pulls the same % a3 clerkships as YLS... including dragging people from the "bottom"

I don't think you understand ... only Yalies are special. All law schools not located in New Haven admit purely based on numbers and federal judges know that. They would never deign to take a below-median candidate who has not been identified as the best by the omnipotent professors and faculty at YLS (who aren't classist and elitist in their selections at all!).

oh, my b

[Anonymous User]

.

[lavarman84]

Im trying to show that I am capable and responsible, and to show potential that with the right opportunity I can excel even more.

I get your point about school prestige though. I went to a decent school (T20 range) with decent clerkship placement rate. I will try my luck anyway if this is not a deal breaker.

Might as well just go for it and see how you do. A personal connection will likely be very important for you. But if you're willing to put the work in, you might be able to get one. You just have to stick with it. But there are no guarantees with your grades and law school.

Another poster on this forum talked about how he or she called up every judge's chambers who weren't on OSCAR and the districts he or she was willing to clerk in to figure out when they'd accept applications. That would be smart for you. Judges who aren't on OSCAR might be easier to get if you know exactly when they'll be looking. But even then, you need a strong application aside from your grades or a personal connection to get you into the interview room.

Once you get in the interview room, all bets are off.(because judges are typically looking for personality fit at that stage)

Also, keep your eye on judicial nominations. Judges who get elevated to the district court will likely look to hire quickly. They might be more willing to take someone with lesser grades.

[KissMyAxe]

Way too vague for anyone to help you. Without knowing your school/professorial connections, it's impossible to tell. Yes, there are schools where median is doable for a clerkship. People at YLS at the "bottom" of the class get clerkships all the time (though not the very competitive ones of course). I'm sure median at HLS and SLS can also land clerkships, if they have the right faculty members backing them. But for most schools, you need to be near the top of your class. Your story makes very little difference. Judges are hiring people who will be the best at their job, it's definitely not a charity.

SLS pulls the same % a3 clerkships as YLS... including dragging people from the "bottom"

I don't think you understand ... only Yalies are special. All law schools not located in New Haven admit purely based on numbers and federal judges know that. They would never deign to take a below-median candidate who has not been identified as the best by the omnipotent professors and faculty at YLS (who aren't classist and elitist in their selections at all!).

Really necessary use of anon there.

And ArtistOfManliness, that's entirely possible. Good to know. I just don't don't say something unless I know for sure, and I have no experience with Stanford's employment practices.

And OP, yeah, it's not super likely, but entirely possible if you want to cast a very wide net. If you really want to clerk, I think it would be worth trying.

[A. Nony Mouse]

Yeah, I noticed that too.

[Anonymous User]

Im trying to show that I am capable and responsible, and to show potential that with the right opportunity I can excel even more.

I get your point about school prestige though. I went to a decent school (T20 range) with decent clerkship placement rate. I will try my luck anyway if this is not a deal breaker.

Do you have publications, connections or work experience? It doesn't sound like you went to a t-10. If you did, you might have a shot. Otherwise, start with an article I or magistrate and work up. Trying for an article iii with median from UT or GW will only, at best,work in the area's local courthouses. Even then the chances aren't great; you need one kid from Stanford or Yale making a good impression on the judge to ruin your chances.

I was also median; I got mine with work exp

[Anonymous User]

Op here. I have a year of exp and lateraled to a large firm. I will go ahead and apply. I really dislike my job.

[Anonymous User]

DCt clerk here; you can go ahead and try, though judges are idiosyncratic. I can honestly tell you that in my chambers, unless you went to a certain school (there are ~7 on the list, and not the top 7 on USA news) your chances of getting hired is low.

[Anonymous User]

Had a similar observation as above poster. The D.Ct. judge I clerked for excluded certain schools from consideration based on bad experiences with clerks (or even one clerk from those schools). There was a random t-14 school from which the Judge would not even consider applications. But he was glad to consider kids from low ranking schools in the area, having had good experiences with them as clerks. He would also not consider applications from a certain area of the country because he found students from that area to hold condescending beliefs about his area of the country (described as flyover, in the south).

[Anonymous User]

Had a similar observation as above poster. The D.Ct. judge I clerked for excluded certain schools from consideration based on bad experiences with clerks (or even one clerk from those schools). There was a random t-14 school from which the Judge would not even consider applications. But he was glad to consider kids from low ranking schools in the area, having had good experiences with them as clerks. He would also not consider applications from a certain area of the country because he found students from that area to hold condescending beliefs about his area of the country (described as flyover, in the south).

Sounds very similar to my judge. I'll never understand the strict ding for certain schools, but it's kind of common. There is one sort of local school, ranked in the 50s-60s I think, that the judge loathes due to a clerk he had from there 10 years ago. He is also the least grades-conscious judge I've ever encountered, but that's due in large part to his hiring only people with work experience.

[Anonymous User]

Had a similar observation as above poster. The D.Ct. judge I clerked for excluded certain schools from consideration based on bad experiences with clerks (or even one clerk from those schools). There was a random t-14 school from which the Judge would not even consider applications. But he was glad to consider kids from low ranking schools in the area, having had good experiences with them as clerks. He would also not consider applications from a certain area of the country because he found students from that area to hold condescending beliefs about his area of the country (described as flyover, in the south).

Sounds very similar to my judge. I'll never understand the strict ding for certain schools, but it's kind of common. There is one sort of local school, ranked in the 50s-60s I think, that the judge loathes due to a clerk he had from there 10 years ago. He is also the least grades-conscious judge I've ever encountered, but that's due in large part to his hiring only people with work experience.

Our judge lets us have a say in our own replacements, even if its a minor say. I was recently hired, and my co-clerks both want their successors to share their respective law schools. Unfortunately, unless those schools suddenly stop producing clerkship candidates, anyone not from their schools won't be clerking for this judge until much later.