Will you succumb to statistics?Sharpy wrote:guybourdin wrote:to be clear: a large part of your backup plan if you don't get biglaw is to pursue biglaw, is that what I'm reading?Sharpy wrote:For 2L and beyond, I will target midsize firms and local government jobs in both Virginia and Pittsburgh, as well as trying to leverage some of my connections in Pittsburgh for a job at the bigger firms there. Because of prior undergrad work in law firms in Pittsburgh I do have some connections to the biglaw market there.Mullens wrote:So what's your back up plan then?Mullens wrote:So if you actually have read as much TLS as you claim, then you know that your plan is target midsize firms isn't really a back up plan at all. And you also know that you can't just waltz into some government job after you strike out of biglaw because most of those jobs require a proven commitment to the work.Sharpy wrote:For my 1L summer, a judge that I know well in Pittsburgh's Court of Common Pleas has offered to help me find employment so I plan on pursuing that.Mullens wrote:So what's your back up plan then?
For 2L and beyond, I will target midsize firms and local government jobs in both Virginia and Pittsburgh, as well as trying to leverage some of my connections in Pittsburgh for a job at the bigger firms there. Because of prior undergrad work in law firms in Pittsburgh I do have some connections to the biglaw market there.
I'm concerned that you're unrealistically optimistic about your chances of landing biglaw and that your school choice doesn't match your goals. Good luck and I hope you succeed against the odds.
Thank you for the input. While I will not succumb to the TLS status quo of believing that it's t14 or bust when it comes to landing any kind of meaningful legal employment, I do appreciate the advice and discussion. Always a refreshing reminder of how cynical the internet can be.
24% in BL+FC
4.9% in what could possibly be considered "midlaw"
9.8% in law firms of 2-10 attorneys
10.2% unemployed
11.6% in state and local clerkships
16.9% in government service (no specification of which kind, but it's pretty likely most of these are state or local government, with a few federal mixed in)
Juxtapose these stats with a forced curve, and you should feel appropriately concerned about your employment out of W&M. They don't have horrible employment prospects, but at best 30% end up in your primary and alternate goals. Depending on how much you're paying for W&M as an OOS student hoping to go back to Pittsburgh, it's just decidedly risky for what you think you want.
https://www.lstreports.com/schools/wm/