Decoding Deadlines - Apply Now or Later?

by Susanne Aronowitz
Associate Dean for Law Career Services

In the daily triage of balancing your school work, jobs and other obligations, it can be challenging to figure out how to prioritize job applications. Sometimes, it is advantageous to get your applications in before other candidates; in other cases, applying early has no effect on your chances. Here are a few tips to help you be strategic with your time.

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Apply IMMEDIATELY to all positions where the listing indicates:
• it is open until filled,
• applications are considered on a rolling basis, or
• the listing comes directly from an employer
In these cases, the employer has an incentive to complete the hiring process as soon as possible and will want to interview strong candidates who apply right away.

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Apply BEFORE THE DEADLINE to all positions where:
• you are uploading applications to an online job fair or recruiting program (e.g., Spring Recruitment, Fall Recruitment, PI/PS Day, etc.).
In these cases, your applications are not being submitted to the employer until after the deadline. Whether you uploaded your documents 2 weeks or 2 hours before the deadline will be impossible for the employer to discern. Nevertheless, we do not encourage you to wait until the last minute to upload your materials. Instead, use this time wisely to research participating employers, craft effective materials, have your documents reviewed by LCS, and upload them in a leisurely pace. The later you wait, the harder it will be to recover if the job fair website slows down (or crashes altogether) or to correct any errors in applications you submit.