hlsboi2020 wrote:Hi 2020ers. I am hoping we can share at least tiny bits of information with each other about the new hiring timeline. I was initially really happy about Manning's announcement....but have started hearing that some professors might be breaking Manning's "requested policy" about waiting to recommend people for clerkships until the new, post-2L June date. If some professors are disregarding the policy, that probably means that most HLS students (who don't have recommenders breaking the "rules") are actually going to be in the worst of both worlds, worse off than the shitty anarchy of before. So we should at least know what is going on. (TBH, if HLS actually wanted this policy to be serious, they should've imposed a threatened penalty on students who apply early, rather than a "firm suggestion" to faculty, who don't give a shit...)
I realize that anyone who is exceptional will not be willing to share identifying information about professors departing from the policy but...to the extent that we can, shall we share info about this with each other? The clerkship office is already clearly pulling some BS with this hiring plan. As in, wink-wink, nod-nods, about applying before the new date. So it's impossible to ask them about whether there are any circumstances when a student should ask a professor to bend the rules (is it only acceptable for professors to bend the rules when they are the ones initiating the proposition? and so on). They will answer with a double, triple, quadruple negative. "Well, we're not, not, not, not, not, saying that you can't apply now...if you weren't to not, not, not, neglect to approach a professor about this, and if a judge wasn't not not interested in you for some reason..."
Any info to share on this issue? For instance, I've heard Fed Soc is encouraging its members to find judges who aren't on the plan and apply early. But does this mean they're going to go ask professors to break the "rules" for them?
Welcome to reality. The clerkship office will always play a ruthless numbers game: it will go to bat for the students who, in terms of GPA and other connections/credentials, have the best chances of placing well with prestigious judges. After all, the staffers in that office want to perform well in their own jobs (they've got their own bills to pay!), and placing students is part of that. So, in line with reality, they care first and foremost about grades and credentials. Always have, always will. If you've got mostly DS's and H's, they'll work to find you feeders to SCOTUS, whatever "requested policy" may be in place. And so on down the tiers of grades. You have to expect, and plan for, that reality.