Career Development Office 2021 – 2022 Recruitment Planning Guide
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Career Development Office 2021 – 2022 Recruitment Planning Guide http://law.richmond.edu/career (804) 289-8638 [email protected] 2021 – 2022 Recruitment Planning Guide Table of Contents Hiring Practices Summary ...............................................................................................................2 Description of Recruitment Programs .............................................................................................7 Southeastern Minority Job Fair (SEMJF) ....................................................................................7 Southeastern Intellectual Property Job Fair (SIPJF) .................................................................11 Loyola Patent Law Interview Program .....................................................................................12 New England Interview Program (NEIP) .................................................................................14 August/Early Fall On-Campus Interview Program ...................................................................15 Equal Justice Works Conference and Career Fair .....................................................................17 Spring Interview Programs ........................................................................................................18 Recruiting Programs Dates and Deadlines ....................................................................................19 Frequently Asked Questions ..........................................................................................................22 On-Campus Interview (OCI) Applications ...............................................................................22 Interviews ..................................................................................................................................23 Offers .........................................................................................................................................26 Other Questions .........................................................................................................................27 Sample Documents ........................................................................................................................28 Guide to Summer Employment Evaluations ..................................................................................43 Best Practices for Preparing and Submitting Applications ............................................................46 NALP Guidelines ...........................................................................................................................48 Richmond Law Interview and Offer Policies ................................................................................50 Staff and Contact Information .......................................................................................................51 1 Hiring Practices Summary Introduction Depending on where you are in the career development process, your first and second summer may have vastly different purposes. The goal of your first summer is to explore your options and further develop your legal knowledge and fundamental skills such as research and writing. It is an opportunity to learn more about your interests and how they relate to various areas of legal practice. Ideally, by your second summer, you can begin to tailor your experiences toward your post-graduate employment goals. Further, during your second summer it is important to increase your substantive knowledge and demonstrate your interest in or commitment to a particular kind of work. For these reasons, you must approach your second summer and post-graduate search thoughtfully. The summary below provides general information about the summer and post-graduate employment process for a variety of employers. This information is designed to help you over the summer months as you begin to plan your 2L summer employment search. Schedule an appointment to meet with your career advisor to discuss these practices further and develop your search strategy. Multi-Pronged Approach As you think about the various Richmond Law-sponsored recruitment opportunities available, it is important to remember that employers hire in a variety of ways. The National Association for Law Placement (NALP) reports that only 19.8% of law students nationally in the Class of 2019 secured their post-graduate position via a fall on-campus recruitment program. That number increases to 24.9% when you add other job fairs and spring on-campus interviews. A multi-pronged search incorporating formal recruitment programs such as On-Campus Interview (OCI) and Government and Public Interest Interview Programs (GPIIP), job postings, unsolicited applications, and networking efforts significantly increases your likelihood for success. This multi-pronged approach worked for Richmond Law 2Ls in securing their 2019 summer employment: 42% obtained jobs through formal recruitment programs, 25% from job postings in Symplicity, 35% through direct applications and networking, and 7% were rehired by previous employers. We have focused on summer 2019 employment in this guide because summer 2020 was atypical as a result of the global COVID-19 pandemic. In response to the public health crisis, the law school community solicited a variety of school-paid opportunities in the private sector and additional opportunities on campus to make up for positions that had been cancelled. Large Law Firms Large law firms rely almost exclusively on their summer associate programs as the primary method for hiring entry-level attorneys. Typically, these firms interview second-year law students in the summer and early fall for summer associate positions the following summer. Last recruiting cycle, these employers interviewed sporadically throughout the fall and during organized recruitment programs in late January and early February. Offers of post-graduate employment are made at the conclusion of the 2L summer. In most circumstances, large law firms do not interview third-year students for post-graduate employment. Thus, if you want to work at a large law firm immediately after graduation, it is important to secure a position with one during your 2L summer. There may be opportunities to join these firms following a judicial clerkship or later in your career after gaining some practice experience. Large law firms are among the most grade-conscious of legal employers. Strong academic credentials and participation in co-curricular activities, including law journals and moot court, are highly valued. 2 Some large law firms, particularly those in Virginia, will participate in Richmond Law’s August on- campus interview program (August OCI). However, it is important that you supplement your August OCI applications with direct applications to other law firms in which you have an interest, especially firms outside of Richmond. Early July is an appropriate time to apply to firms that are not participating in OCI. The NALP Directory is a good resource for learning more about and directing applications to large law firms. In addition to making direct applications, it is important to take advantage of opportunities to participate in any spring and summer programming, including networking receptions and mock interview programs, offered by law firms in which you have an interest. From the Richmond Law Class of 2019, 13% secured their first post-graduate position in law firms of over 100 attorneys. Small and Mid-Size Law Firms The majority of attorneys in private practice work in small (fewer than 50 attorneys) and mid-size (50-100 attorneys) law firms. In fact, according to the American Bar Association, more than 60% of lawyers work in small firms. With few exceptions, small law firms hire on an as-needed basis in the same manner as most other employers. Few participate in OCI. They often seek summer associates or interns during the spring semester, and entry-level attorneys following the release of bar exam results. Some will post opportunities, while others will rely on unsolicited applications or their referral networks to identify new attorneys. Though small and mid-size firms cannot always make post-graduate hiring decisions following summer employment, developing a relationship with a small firm of interest and demonstrating related practice area expertise through your summer work, clinical placements, and pro bono work will increase your chances of landing post-graduate employment. Personality fit, practice-area-specific knowledge, and geographic ties (key to successful client development) are among the most important factors to small and mid-size law firms when making hiring decisions. During the 2019-2020 OCI programs, 19 small and mid-size law firms interviewed 2Ls, while during the 2020 – 2021 cycle, 3 firms in that size range recruited our students. In addition, Richmond Law co-hosts the Commonwealth Law School Consortium’s Spring Interview Program (SIP) every March, in which Richmond Law students participate with students from the law schools of Washington & Lee, William & Mary, and the University of Virginia, exclusively for small and mid-size firms. In 2020, 10 small and mid-size law firms interviewed 2Ls. In 2021, 14 small and mid-size law firms interviewed 2Ls through SIP. For additional information about applying to small and mid-size law firms, review Choosing Small, Choosing Smart: Job Search Strategies for Lawyers in the Small Firm Market by Donna Gerson (available in the Career Development Office