Getting a job after law school.

Getting a job out of law school can be quite a challenge.  Although I have yet to find a legal job, I realize that 3L especially is the time to start figuring out how I can get a law job.  Therefore, I realize that I must have a strategy in place in order to find a legal job.

I have found that those without a strategy will not find a job.  One can not expect a legal job to just fall into their lap.  The law profession is incredibly tight right now, and those who are serious about finding jobs are going to have a much better chance of getting a law job than those who don't try or who expect luck to get them a job.

If you are a graduating 3L, you need to start considering your job search strategy now.  There are a couple of good books that I recommend that will help you with this.  However, let me add that merely reading a few books will not find you that position you are looking for.  You must follow the strategies outlined in these books.  Many jobs will expect you to pass the bar exam.  If you have not passed the bar exam and are looking for some bar exam resources, check out this site.

If you are looking for some ways in which you can plan a job search strategy in order to get a job after law school, you may want to consider some of the books below.  Some are better than others, but they are all helpful for the student who needs legal employment.

This book made me realize that getting a job is really determined by how much effort you put into the job search, you can get the job you want! Of course, the content should be adapted to what is best for you individually--I did not use the interview responses word for word by any means, nor the cover letter samples--but I referred to this book a ton while looking for jobs! I am not the cookie-cutter big firm candidate. I am not even in the top half of my class. But I worked hard to network throughout 1L year and the summer and am getting interviews over the top 10% of my class! It's what you put into it, and this book has great tips for getting an "in" to get the job you want! (review)

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 STARTING YOUR OWN LEGAL PRACTICE.

 

 "If you are graduating from law school, you MUST read this book. $olo is a fantastic resource for the new attorney considering starting their own practice right out of law school. It is chock full of practical tips and advice that no one bothered to teach you in law school. With humor and wit, Marc Garfinkle will take you through the essentials of being a solo practitioner. He even explains how to survive financially as you build your practice, a particularly important consideration for graduates with student loan payments looming on the horizon. $olo is a must-read for any 3rd year law student on the verge of graduation without a job offer. $olo will give you the confidence and know-how to survive and succeed as a solo practitioner" Maybe you want to hang your own shingle instead? Many law graduates are able to start their own business, even though it is hard. Here is a great resource for doing just that. Even if you are unsure of going this route, having this resource on hand is helpful if you want to open your own law office eventually.

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 INTERVIEWING

 

 "As a mid-level associate at a large international law firm, I strongly recommend this book to anyone trying to get the law firm job you want, whether you are a prospective or current law student or a recent graduate. I did not attend a top 10 law school, nor was I at the top of my class when interviewing for a summer associate position. As a result, my prospects of getting the big law job I wanted boiled down to my ability to truly nail my job interview. In the end, I was fortunate enough to succeed, but only after I learned the hard way from all the interviewing mistakes I had made along the way. If I had had this book when I interviewed, I know I would have received a lot more offers than I ended up getting. It is an excellent toolkit for selling and distinguishing yourself in the best way possible, which these days will prove more important than ever -- Ivy League or not." (Amazon.com review) --- "Law job interviews ARE different from any other type of employment interview. I have been in the non-law work world for some time and have done plenty of successful interviews. Still, this book helped me tailor my style to match legal job interviewers expectations. The book has excellent and specific advice that your career services office may be too shy to tell you. The advice is practical; based on feedback from lawyers who regularly interview prospects from top law schools nationwide. As a law student, I found two chapters most helpful: 1) How to Research your Interviewer. One of the hardest questions to nail in a law job interview is, "What do you want to know about our firm?" To answer well, you have to have done your homework. The book gives you great advice on how to research the firm so you can ask intelligent questions and get meaningful answers. 2)On-campus Interviews. Understanding the OCI process--and what the interviewers have to endure--is critical to creating your interviewing strategy. The book gives give a look a the OCI process from the interviewers perspective, and gives you tactics you can use to make an impression on a tired, possibly disinterested interviewer. It is a quick read and well organized so you can easily find the specific info relevant to your situation. I highly recommend it to anyone with a law job interview in their future--regardless of experience." (Amazon.com review)