Some Thoughts on Callbacks

Hooray for Cat being all done with callback interviews! Hooray for me only having one left!

As much as I value the chance to go visit law firms in person - to meet with partners & associates, to get a sense of the culture, and to learn more about their practice - I will be pretty happy to be done with interview-related travel after next weekend.

My desk is littered with train tickets with my name on them. I have my fill of tiny shampoo and lotion bottles squirreled away for winter. I've eaten more Auntie Anne's train station and airport pretzels than I care to admit.

And of course, we're extremely blessed to have multiple callbacks and offers to join some fabulous firms. But I think I speak for the collective of many 2L law students: we're exhausted. We're ready to be students again. Whatever that means.

Perhaps somewhat ironically, interviewing has been the best boost to my class reading completion thus far this semester. Lots of hours on the train without internet access = very little excuse not to catch up on tax reading. And some cool encounters:

A few weeks ago I was on the train up from DC, and it just so happened that Joe (that'd be Biden) was hopping the 4:00, too. I sat next to one of his Secret Service agents, who was apparently so bored that he felt a desire to attempt to stealthfully read my screen - unfortunately for him, it was plastered with relatively mind-numbing moral philosophy.

The LSAT is - suprisingly - not the LAST thing from my mind

Tomorrow, for the second time in a couple weeks, I'm proctoring a practice LSAT for an LSAT prep company. The last time I proctored - a glorious morning in which I was able to simultaneously time the test-takers and work on my own research for a professor, resulting in getting paid twice for doing two different tasks - the students were pretty new to the game and had relatively no idea what they were doing. Many of them couldn't even hope to finish the various sections in the allotted 35 minutes. I'm sure by now their skills and confidence have improved dramatically, but at the time they were incredibly overwhelmed:

"You go to Yale?!?" they said. "You must've gotten, like, every question right on the LSAT."

"No," I said. "But I *did* study a lot. And I got lucky on a few guesses," - both of which are very true.

Sometimes it's sickening just how important one single test is in the general scheme of admissions for 99% of the law schools in this country. Every time I talk to someone in the midst of prepping for the LSAT, I am incredibly thankful that I'll never have to take such a high-stakes test again. Except maybe the bar. But I'm not going to think about that right now.

**

Some More Words on Interviewing

Our poster had a good point - I am, of course, very grateful to have the opportunity to do all these interviews. That does not mean, however, that the process was pleasant. I had the flu, and running all over New York to do between four and nine half-hour interviews a day was not fun. The interviewers themselves were extraordinarily varied. I met some incredibly kind and helpful people, some very direct and professional folks, and one extremely rude gentleman from a firm that shall remain nameless. I had some delicious lunches, which I couldn't really eat because I was nauseous, and met a large number of extremely nice junior associates. Despite that fact that most of the people I met were friendly, approachable, and genuinely interested in making sure that both I and they made the right decision, I think that even had I been in the best of health, the process would have been pretty miserable.

Before this week, every firm looked identical to me. I had no experience with law firms, and to be honest, very little idea of what they actually did. I still don't have a great understanding of what your archetypal New York law firm does, especially the corporate sections of it. Now, though, I see that there are actual differences between firms. One partner told me to "kick the tires a bit" while I was interviewing, and so I tried to do that. For examples, firms have different ways of assigning work to associates that seems to have a tangible impact on the associate experience. There are definite cultural differences between really large firms as compared with smaller ones. Some firms seemed more formal, while in others, no one was wearing suits. And, associates did actually say different things about how many hours they worked per week, and how happy they were with their jobs.

All in all, I hope this week will result in both some job offers, and also a better conception of how to chose between firms. I'm happy I got a chance to participate in fly-out week. However, I think I'm going to retire to bed until Monday to recover from the experience.

2 Words About Doing 6 Interviews in 4 Days

It sucks.

Sad Day at Yale

It was announced today that the body found in an on-campus research building was that of Annie Le, a student at Yale's medical school. Tonight, there's going to be a candle-lit vigil at Cross Campus, a large outdoor meeting space near the center of campus. Of course, additional counseling staff have been brought on board, and a lot of extra security has been put in place around the medical institutions, which are generally on the south side of the Yale complex and about a 15-20 minute walk from the Law School.

Although it's believed that the crime was not a random act, lots of people are quite shaken that something so horrific could happen here, so close to where we live and study. [I walk by the Amistad building from time to time, usually on my way to the train station from the medical campus.] Perhaps rightly so, the Law School is doing its best to put forth a supportive but reserved face - reminding students that we do live in an urban area where crime does occur, circulating phone numbers and security shuttle schedules, and emphasizing the need for everyone to speak up if someone or something seems out of place.

Neither Cat nor I are strangers to living in cities that are stereotyped as dangerous and/or crime-ridden, and I don't pretend to be invincible...though I do walk home alone in the dark probably more often than would be advisable. Still, I think what's particularly troubling about this case is the reminder that threatening activity can happen even inside the confines of a building you think to be safe simply because it has the University name stamped on the outside. Sadly, that heuristic isn't always accurate.

***

Choosing Battles

Today has been a day unlike any other. Partially because, well, every day around here is different...and partially because it was full of some great highs (the possibility of an exciting part-time job as a teaching assistant in Yale College; anticipation of an impending reunion in DC this weekend; dinner with a good friend) and some obnoxious lows (a difficult phone call with a clinic client; a piece of news uncharitably delivered via Facebook newsfeed). For some reason, the first couple weeks of a semester are a time for reconsideration and rebirth - both good and bad - and the past few days have been no exception.

One of the challenges of 2L is the realization that "1Ls do all the busywork, 2Ls are in charge, and 3Ls tune out" is often truer than one might like to believe. Most organizations are run by 2Ls, and while some of the groups I'm involved in are a huge source of positive energy, others tend to be a bit of a drain. A few times, I've found myself thinking, "Why did I sign up for this again?!? How did I let someone convince me to be in charge of this??"

It's always been hard for me to say no when asked to help out...and to acknowledge that I can't and don't want to do everything is certainly a positive change that I'm trying to make for myself. I was trying to explain to a 1L friend of mine today that 1L fall is all about trying lots of new things, but that you shouldn't feel obligated to do *everything*...and I felt like I should have been giving myself the same advice. As my calendar fills up with color-coded obligations from morning till night, it gets harder and harder to prioritize class reading (which, let's face it, is almost always my lowest priority), clinic projects, journal work (honestly, I'm scared to check my journal's email account that I've let languish for at least two months), and research & other part-time work...especially against spending time with old friends and nurturing new relationships. One of my goals is to be more purposeful this semester - thinking seriously about how I use and commit my time, both to myself and others.

**

Too Much to Do in 2L

Classes have been going for just under a week around here, and things are already moving quickly. Of course, we had FIP way back in what feels like a past life (really only two weeks ago...really?!), and now everyone is scattered to the wind trying to do callbacks as quickly and efficiently as possible [unlike at HLS, here at YLS we don't have a dedicated "fly-out week" so everyone has to make their own callback schedule]. On any given weekend, a good number of people have been out of town.

I myself just got back from visiting Cambridge (with a brief foray into Boston on Saturday) for a few days...though this trip was strictly for fun. It was great to see Cat - and her new bike - and a handful of other good friends, especially since the New England weather cooperated with us so nicely as we walked around Cambridge and played badminton in a parking lot. I was so exhausted from all the weekend's fun that I slept the entire train ride back to New Haven, even though some Yale undergrad thought it smart to watch a movie without headphones right behind me.

The weekend was great to rest up before what promises to be a busy week full of classes (I'm taking one black letter class, my clinic, a couple fun-sounding courses, and probably a reading group), clinic meetings, club meetings, and an interview trip later in the week. I'm also really looking forward to catching up with a few new 1Ls that I haven't had a chance to meet up with yet this semester. All in all, if this semester keeps moving as quickly as it has, interviews will be done and finals will be here before we have a chance to enjoy the autumn colors.

**

2L!

Classes have just started at HLS, and I'm very excited for the semester. 1L year at Harvard is (semi) fun, but I think the upper level years is when the true benefits of going to a large and diverse law school really become apparent. There is a specific sub-field of law that I am particularly interested in, and the wonderful thing about HLS is that not only is there a wonderful and well-known legal expert in that field at the school - there are many, and therefore there are multiple classes taught in the subject each semester by professors and practitioners with very different professional experiences and perspectives. Additionally, I'm finally able to meet a variety of other people who hope to practice in the same area as myself.

In fact, the real problem I'm having is restraining myself from taking too many courses at one time. The options are so fantastic, and it's the last time I'm going to be in school. However, I'm doing a clinical this semester, so 15 hours of my week are already spoken for. I'm also working as a research assistant, as well as on a law journal (although not THE law journal). And of course, I'd like to save time to ride around my brand new bike (bought with money I made as a part-time RA this summer), enjoy the company of the S.O. and my wonderful friends from 1L , and gripe about the Boston winter.

OCI in Cambridge

We've just finished our own OCI (On Campus Interviewing). I, like most of my classmates, interviewed with about 25 firms in 5 days. In addition to wearing very uncomfortable shoes and a suit that doesn't fit, I spent my time during it saying fairly stupid things. For example, on a day in which I had eight interviews, I interviewed with Firm A from 10-10.20 and Firm B from 10.40-11. During the Firm A interview, I said "I see your firm has worked on X litigation - that's very impressive." As those words were leaving my mouth, I recalled that I actually intended to make that comment to Firm B. Luckily, litigation X was ginormous. Ginormous enough, in fact, that the interviewer from Firm A said "Oh, yes. That was a very important milestone for us."

Anyway, it's all over (thank goodness) although our flyout week is approaching shortly. You can tell where people interviewed by how depressed they look on campus. Interviewing in NYC = relatively cheerful, interviewing in DC = very unhappy, interviewing in California = mentally picturing self as homeless hobo with HLS diploma sticking out of back pocket (I exaggerate, but not that much). I'm sure that almost everyone who wants one will end up with a firm job, but there is a fair amount of panic going around. Still, I think most folks feel the situation is better than what we were expecting (i.e., DOOM). Better yet, classes start tomorrow, so soon we'll have other things to expand our mental energy upon!