KU Law Blog

Today the National Association for Law Placement (NALP) released “28 Tips for 28 Days,” an informational handout with tips for law schools and employers regarding its new timing guidelines.

The NALP Board of Directors unanimously approved two changes for the 2010 recruiting cycle:

1. The adoption of a 28-day rolling response deadline for candidates not previously employed by the employer; and
2. A Nov. 1 response deadline for candidates who have been previously employed by the employer.

Two years ago, NALP replaced the former Dec. 1 response date with a 45-day rolling response deadline. Students who had not previously worked for an employer had 45 days to respond to an offer from that employer for summer or permanent employment.

Feedback from law schools and legal employers has indicated that a shorter period will still allow students sufficient time to choose among competing offers.

Therefore, beginning this month students will have 28 days to respond to an offer from an employer for which the student has not worked. For offers to candidates who have been previously employed, the response deadline will be Nov. 1.

Based on a quick read of NALP’s new tips, and my experience with the fall on-campus interview process, here are the most salient points for law students:

• Read “Student Professionalism During the Interview Season: A Quick Guide to Your Ethical Responsibilities in the Offer and Decision-Making Process,” available at www.nalp.org/studentprofessionalism.
• Learn as much as you can about organizations with which you interview. This may include asking the Office of Career Services to put you in touch with students and alums who have worked for those organizations in the past.
• Upon receiving an offer, set reminders on an online calendar of upcoming response deadlines.
• Don’t be afraid to stay in communication with employers between the time you receive an offer and when your respond.
• Don’t let an offer deadline pass without sharing your decision. Declining an offer may be hard, but it’s an important part of the process.
• Students who are actively pursuing positions with public interest or government organizations may request that a private employer extend the deadline to accept the employer’s offer until as late as April 1.
• Understand that employers having a total of 40 attorneys or fewer in all offices are exempted by NALP from these timing guidelines. Those making offers for full-time employment on or before Dec. 15 are encouraged to let them remain open for at least three weeks or until Dec. 30, whichever comes first. Offers made after Dec. 15 should remain open for at least two weeks.
• Similarly, employers offering candidates positions for the following summer and having a total of 40 attorneys or fewer in all offices are encouraged to let offers made on or before Dec. 15 remain open for at least three weeks following the date of the offer letter or until Dec. 30, whichever comes first. Offers made after Dec. 15 should remain open for at least two weeks.

Todd Rogers, Assistant Dean for Career Services

More members of the KU Law Class of 2010 reported finding jobs through referrals and self-initiated contact (32 percent) than through on-campus interviews (25 percent). While most job-seekers intuitively understand that meeting a potential employer in person is preferable to contact by mass-mailed resume, law students often lament that they can’t network with attorneys because they don’t know any.

One of the best strategies for meeting attorneys is to go where attorneys go. And where are all attorneys required by law to go? Continuing Legal Education seminars, known as CLEs. For example, Kansas attorneys must complete at least 12 hours of CLE credit per year, and Missouri attorneys must complete at least 15 hours. CLE courses are sponsored by various groups, including the Kansas Bar Association, Topeka Bar Association, Johnson County Bar Association, Kansas City Metropolitan Bar Association and KU Continuing Education. Most of these organizations will allow law student members to attend programs for free or at a greatly reduced cost.

Attending CLEs as a way to meet practitioners is a recognized method of networking. The following excerpts from two of the most popular reference books about legal job-hunting describe the benefits of attending CLEs:

Excerpt from “The Legal Career Guide: From Law Student to Lawyer,” by Gary A. Munneke

(pp. 168-69) Many students who enter law school do not personally know any lawyers. If you are in this situation, you will want to develop a network of professional mentors. Your objective is not to develop specific job opportunities, though that frequently occurs, but to develop a better understanding and knowledge of what it actually means to practice law.

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Take advantage of CLE programs that allow you to mingle informally with attendees. Your law school provides many such opportunities, such as lectures, competitions, receptions and career services panels. Local bar associations also offer CLE programs that are open to law students.

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(pp. 228-29) If you are interested in a particular area of practice, go where the lawyers are. Many CLE conferences are offered free or at reduced rates for law students. This approach may require you to be assertive in meeting people and arranging interviews and can offer informal opportunities to talk during breaks or discussion groups.

Excerpt from “Guerrilla Tactics For Getting the Legal Job of Your Dreams,” by Kimm Alayne Walton

(pp. 134-35) I’ve mentioned CLE classes before; they’re “continuing legal education” classes, and lawyers have to take them periodically to maintain their licenses to practice law. Something most students don’t know is that law students can also take CLE classes.

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There are several excellent benefits to taking CLE classes, including:

• You meet practitioners in an area you’re interested in.
• You learn what’s going on in the practice area, and that kind of education is valuable in and of itself. It may generate article ideas for you (if you’re interested in writing), and it’ll key you in on what’s on the minds of practitioners.
• You get a great resume item.

While neither Munneke nor Walton come right out and say it, the most intimidating aspect of attending a CLE is also the best reason for going: You’ll likely be the only law student in a room full of practicing attorneys. Think about it this way: Would you rather be the only job-seeker in a room of 40 potential employers or one of 40 resumes in a stack on a potential employer’s desk?

So take advantage of these CLE discounts and attend a program or two each semester. When you do, be prepared to talk to attorneys. Here are a few suggestions on questions to ask during breaks in the presentation:

• What publications should I read to keep current in this field?
• Are there professional organizations that I can join now?
• How did you prepare yourself for this kind of work?
• What skills and abilities have you found most important in your work?
• Could you suggest a couple of colleagues or acquaintances who you feel would be good sources of information about the field?
• Could I use your name when I contact them?

The one question you should NOT ask is “Can I have a job?” This approach will likely be a conversation killer. Remember, your reasons for attending a CLE are to meet attorneys and to demonstrate an interest in a field of law.

By engaging the attorneys present at the CLE in conversation, you’re hoping that you can learn more about what they do and — best case scenario — add them and some of their colleagues to your network of contacts. Networking is, on the surface, a slower process than mass-mailing cover letters and resumes, but it almost always is more effective.

Todd Rogers, Assistant Dean for Career Services

I’m currently reading “The Happiness Project” by U.S. Supreme Court clerk-turned-author Gretchen Rubin. In a chapter about seeking happiness in her work life, she reveals one of her “Secrets of Adulthood”: “It’s okay to ask for help.”

She describes how she came up with the idea of meeting with two other authors once every six weeks for two hours in order to talk shop. Hashing out her ideas with others similarly situated improved both her writing and marketing plans and made her accountable to a writing schedule. The three called themselves a “writers’ strategy group.”

The knowledge that you have to talk out loud to other people, or at least communicate electronically about the actions you’ve taken to further your job-hunting, will likely hold you accountable to your action plan. And the support you’ll likely receive from others in the same boat may very well keep you afloat!

Similarly, I’ve observed my wife Erin and two of her friends hold each other accountable to their running schedules. Every Sunday, each group member e-mails the other two a detailed description of the past week’s workouts, complete with no holds barred commentary like “Tuesday’s run was miserable! This hobby is stupid.” Sending an email that fesses up to missing a workout or two, or failing to send the email at all, stokes the ire of the group to the extent that the offending party rights the ship the following week.

I see some application of Rubin’s writers’ strategy group and Erin’s running support group to a legal job search. Law school is obviously a competitive place, and job-hunting often pits law student against law student in a high stakes struggle. But how about creating an informal job seekers’ support group of no more than two or three other students, preferably those who share slightly different career goals than you in order to minimize potential conflict?

Like Rubin’s group, you could meet on a regular basis to swap ideas and encouragement. Or like Erin’s group, you could commit to regularly send each other emails that detail your recent job-hunting efforts.

The knowledge that you have to talk out loud to other people, or at least communicate electronically about the actions you’ve taken to further your job-hunting, will likely hold you accountable to your action plan. And the support you’ll likely receive from others in the same boat may very well keep you afloat!

Todd Rogers, Assistant Dean for Career Services