What to Do While Awaiting Bar Results

Courtney Brown 
Graduate Fellow 
Law Career Development 

     It has been almost two months since law school graduates took the July 2016 bar exam. Some of you may be wondering what you can do during this waiting time to help you get a job when you pass the bar exam. The time while you are waiting for results is time you should use to increase your chances of getting the job when you pass the bar, and below are some ways you can be using the next month and a half.

1) Bridge Fellowship 

     This is a great time to look for volunteer opportunities in the community no matter where you are currently living. Volunteering will allow you to gain valuable practical experience and continue to improve your skills. This is also a great way to meet new attorneys that can be references for future jobs, and get experience in different areas of law. Also by doing this, you are helping organizations and populations that need the help and usually do not have the necessary resources.
     As a recent graduate myself, I understand that volunteering as we struggle to pay our bills does not sound like a good option. However, GGU tries to help with the financial difficulties that recent graduates face while taking on volunteer opportunities by providing Bridge Fellowships. The Bridge Fellowship program supports recent graduates in making a successful transition into the legal profession by providing them with a stipend for the volunteer work they do. If you are interested in the program and want more information, make an appointment at LCD prior to the next application deadline on October 15th.

2) Networking and Informational Interviews

     Use the extra time you now have to set up informational interviews with lawyers, mentors, and alumni that you didn’t have time to meet with before. These interviews may help you narrow down specific job possibilities that you did not think about during law school. Interviews also allow you to learn more about the field you think you want to enter after you pass the bar.
     Now is also a great time to become involved with local bar associations. These groups provide opportunities to meet lawyers, find mentors, and learn more about areas of law that may be of interest to you.
     For more tips on networking and informational interviews, visit the LDC Blog.

3) Career Kickstart Bootcamp Webinar

     GGU is giving new graduates a great opportunity to take part in a FREE webinar by Susanne Aronowitz. This weekly webinar series will be airing Mondays from noon to 1 PM PST from October 10th to November 14th. The program will give you the tools to conduct a job search, develop a professional network, and help employers recognize the unique value you have to offer. For more information and to sign up, please visit the webinar sign-up form. Spots are limited!

4) Polish Your Resume and Online Profiles

     You never know when the perfect opportunity is going to show itself. So make sure you are spending the time now updating your resume so that includes recent job experience, awards, and leadership experience. Having a resume that is polished means that when an opportunity presents itself you will be ready to apply and send in application materials that you are confident about.
     Along with updating your resume, make sure you are also updating your online profiles, such as LinkedIn. Make sure you have a proper headshot and that it includes all recent work experience. A potential employer could be pulling up your information without you realizing it, and having your profile updated could assist you in getting the job you want. For more tips on updating your LinkedIn profile, visit these blog posts.

5) Enjoy This Time!

     Although job searching is very important, especially now that the legal field is saturated, it is also important to enjoy this time before becoming a lawyer. You most likely will never have another time in your life where you have the free time you do while waiting for bar exam results. Now is the time to pick up a new hobby that you didn’t have time to do when you were in law school. Take a cooking class, teach yourself how to knit, or do projects around the house or apartment that you have been putting off. This is also a great time to spend time with friends and family you have neglected the last three years, and especially neglected this summer.

Boost Your Interviewing Confidence: GGU J.D. Candidate Explains How He Landed A Top Internship Through GGU’s Mock Interview Event—and Offers Tips and Advice for Students and Alums Alike on Nailing the Interview and Landing the Job

Josue Aparicio

By Frank Zeccola 
LCD Graduate Fellow

In order to help you prepare for the upcoming Summer Job Fair, GGU will host the Mock Interview Program on August 9th. At the event, attorneys will be paired with students to conduct a series of 20-minute, one-on-one practice interviews and provide individual feedback on performance. This is an excellent opportunity to ensure that you excel in your actual interview this summer by working on your interviewing skills with real attorneys in a low-pressure environment.

It is a proven method for success. In fact, one J.D. candidate even landed an internship at a top law firm with one of the mock interviewers at last year’s event.

Here’s how: “I treated it like a real interview,” explains Josue Aparicio, GGU J.D. Candidate (May 2017). “But it was still low pressure.” The key to success: “I told [the mock interviewer] about myself and things I wanted to do, such as diversifying the legal profession, pro bono work, and how I wanted to grow as an attorney. He agreed and had similar values on the topics I was bringing up. He then told me he knew I was interviewing for his company in a few weeks and asked if I had any questions about the process. He also told me that I could meet with him prior to the interview. I did that, and he answered all of my questions. It gave me a lot more confidence for when I went into the real interview.”

Should You Get a Networking Buddy? How to Leverage Your Friendships to Ease Anxiety While Networking

By Frank Zeccola 
LCD Graduate Fellow

We all know networking is a key component in any job search. A recent article on the topic suggested that, “Just about every article on job-hunting you’ll read on any career site says the same thing—rendering this maxim a virtual job-seeker mantra: ‘the most effective method for finding a new job is through networking.’”

The problem is that networking scares a lot of people to the core of their job-searching beings. It’s awkward, uncomfortable, and scary. Walking into a room full of strangers to ask for a job is the last thing I want to do.

However, I have something that makes networking a little easier: I have a networking buddy.

A networking buddy is simply a friend I go to networking events with. We graduated together, and we have been friends since we were in the same section together as 1Ls.

Here’s how it works: The week before—or early in the week—I email him a list of the networking events I want to attend that week. I get this list from the right-hand side of the webpage you are reading now, under the heading “Upcoming Networking Events.” Additionally, you can search the calendar pages of any Bar Association in your area. You can view some of those here, here, and here.

Networking Spreadsheets and Other Tactics: Organization is Key in Job Search

By Frank Zeccola 
LCD Graduate Fellow 

As I met with my counselor this week for a career appointment, he suggested I create a networking spreadsheet to brainstorm all the contacts I could reach out to, and then include additional fields in the spreadsheet for dates of outreach, notes of topics discussed with each contact, and next steps to take in further developing these relationships. This had never occurred to me and is a level of organization I’ve never achieved in any of my previous job searches.

Now that I think back on it, my prior job searches have mostly been edge-of-the-seat expeditions where I was in reactive mode—reacting to job posts, reacting to job fairs or other networking functions, reacting to leads from friends. I feel like I have never been in the driver’s seat in my own job search—and achieving a level of organization through this networking spreadsheet is an empowering idea.

Master the Informational Interview: How Three-Hundred-Year-Old Advice from Ben Franklin and More Recent Tips from a Duke University Career Coach Can Get You Top of Mind for Legal Employers

By Frank Zeccola 
LCD Graduate Fellow 

An article in Slate last week discussed the pros and cons of the tried-and-true job search tactic known as the informational interview. This approach involves emailing or calling an employer and asking them for a brief meeting over coffee or lunch to inquire about their job and career, and to seek any advice they may have for you about your own career.

While the author of the Slate piece seems to suggest that this is a disingenuous way to network, she cannot deny that it absolutely works. She admits, in fact, that, “Once I’ve met someone, she’s no longer an abstraction—she’s a real, friendly, sweet, awkward person, and I now have an emotional investment in her success or failure. So I give her pitch the benefit of the doubt. I’ve accepted pitches that I probably would have passed on had I not met the person face to face.”

The author sums up the piece like this: “I hate disappointing people, and I especially hate disappointing people I know. And that is exactly how ‘informational interviews’ are supposed to work.”

Social scientists have recently coined a term for this mentality: The Ben Franklin Effect, based on an “old maxim” Franklin discussed throughout his life: “He that has once done you a kindness will be more ready to do you another, than he whom you yourself have obliged.”

In his autobiography (available in full, free of charge, here), Franklin recounts the following tale about a rival legislator when he served in the Pennsylvania legislature:

Having heard that he had in his library a certain very scarce and curious book, I wrote a note to him, expressing my desire of perusing that book, and requesting he would do me the favour of lending it to me for a few days. He sent it immediately, and I return'd it in about a week with another note, expressing strongly my sense of the favour. When we next met in the House, he spoke to me (which he had never done before), and with great civility; and he ever after manifested a readiness to serve me on all occasions, so that we became great friends, and our friendship continued to his death.

It sounds counterintuitive, but has held true in the three-hundred years since Franklin first wrote this advice: Once someone has done you one favor, they’re more likely to do you another.

And that next favor could be your next job.

Stop ‘Wasting Everyone’s Time’: Five Tips to Help Employers Help You Find a Job

By Frank Zeccola 
LCD Graduate Fellow 

An email by a partner at a large national law firm has gone viral across the Internet in the last month. In the message, the partner complained that sending thank you notes after your interviews with BigLaw firms is “Just a complete waste of everyone’s time.” The subtext is that thank you notes add very little value to your prospects of landing the job but cost large firms money by clogging employees’ inboxes with unwanted emails. Whether this advice translates to small, midsized, or public interest law firms remains to be seen, but a general guidepost is probably: “when in doubt, leave it out.”

The bigger picture issue is that hiring and training new employees costs money—some estimates range as high as $300,000 per new lawyer.

 As a new lawyer entering the marketplace to find your first job, the last thing you want to do is waste employers’ time at any point in the hiring process. If you can show that you can seamlessly transition from job applicant to employee without any wasted time and effort on the part of the employer, you stand significantly improved chances of landing the job.

To do that, here are five tips for helping employers help you in the job hunting process. Further, these tips will help get your resume to the top of the pile and increase your chances for scoring the job:

Telling Yourself Better Stories About Networking

By Tammy Dawson 
Law Career Development Counselor 

I love networking but, believe me, that wasn’t always the case. I found the whole experience to be deeply uncomfortable. I was sure I was bothering people who didn’t really want to spend their limited time talking to me. I hated feeling like I was begging people for work. I didn’t know what to say. In other words, the stories I told myself about my ability to successfully network were neither motivating nor empowering. No wonder I avoided it!

Do you feel the same way? If so, you are not alone. Many people view networking as a distasteful chore or worse. So how did I go from hating networking to loving it? I started telling myself different stories.

People don’t want to spend their time talking to me; I’m just bothering them. 

If the tables were turned and a friend of a friend of a friend reached out to you to ask about your career, how would you respond? Would you feel annoyed or put out by the request? Chances are you wouldn’t. Most of us are happy to help someone starting out in their career. It is likely the person you have reached out to feels the same way.

Tips On How To Network In Different Settings

By Erica L. Morris
Graduate Fellow, Law Career Development

Following up with last week's blog on why networking is crucial to being a successful attorney, below are some networking tips to utilize depending on your networking setting. There are different approaches for large group networking events versus one-on-one informational meetings. In addition to these tips, be sure to check out Law Career Development's "Networking Tips" flier in the LCD office or on the LCD online resource library.

LARGE GROUP SETTINGS

Attending a large networking event is very common, but it is no less daunting for being common. For me, the larger the networking event, the more uneasy I feel because there are too many people - who do you know to talk to? How do you talk to those you do meet when you likely only have a couple minutes of their time? Below are some quick tips ato help you stay afloat during your next large networking event or bar association conference.

What Is Your Name Brand?

by Michelle Queirolo 
Grad Fellow 
Law Career Services

During law school, and your professional legal career, you should consciously manage your brand. What is a brand, you might ask? Dictionary.com defines “brand” as “a kind of variety of something distinguished by some distinctive characteristic.” This is the exact purpose of your brand – to set yourself apart from the rest, to highlight the distinct qualities that you can bring to employers, and to show employers and clients what kind of an advocate you are. (For more info on what a brand is, and the importance of a professional brand, read this Forbes article.)

A professional brand is developed by your reputation, which is essential in the legal community. Your reputation is demonstrated by your style and professional interactions, your paper trail, your social media profiles, and your involvement in the community. Ultimately, your personality and values drive your particular brand, so it is vital that you remain genuine.  

What Are Some Common Mistakes Made By Law Students and Recent Graduates? (Part 3)

by Andrea Loh
Director of Employer Outreach
Law Career Services

Part 3 of our networking series provides a list of "top networking tips" shared by our panel of GGU alums during the LCS sponsored event “Leveraging Your Network to Create Professional Opportunities.”

Based on their collective experiences in practice, our panelists advised law students and recent graduates to do the following:

The Law School Fashion Statement, Part I

by Hengameh Poya 
LCS Intern

Remember college? Rolling out of bed 10 minutes before class and throwing on the closest pair of sweats. Fine for college, not so much in law school. This doesn’t mean that you have to wear a suit to every class, but you probably shouldn’t wear flip flops. Why? Law school is a professional school. Are you presenting yourself in a way that supports your professional ideals? How might you be received by others?

There isn’t a precise guideline for everyday attire. There are, however, some things to avoid, such as, clothing that is tight fitted or revealing. In addition to what you wear to class, there are those events that require more thought, such as: career panels, receptions, informational interviews, and formal interviews. What do you wear to those? Again, there is no rulebook, but here are some things to keep in mind:

Networking Events: Any event that gives you the opportunity to network with attorneys should have you looking your professional best. This is your chance to make a good first impression on attorneys who may have internship or employment connections, so dressing the part can reveal your professionalism. Business casual is probably a safe bet. You can also play it really safe (depending on the event) and wear interview attire since some events turn into on the spot interviews. Informational

Interviews: When appearing for an informational interview, you always want to put your best foot forward. Even if the attorney you are meeting with is not offering you a job, informational interviews are an opportunity to establish your network. We recommend that you wear formal business attire so the person you are meeting with can be confident in the impression you'll create if he or she refers you to a colleague.

Research Future Employers

by Sabrina Johnson
LCS Graduate Fellow

Employers want to hire students who can articulate why they want to work for their organization.  Fortunately, there are many resources to help you learn about employers.  For more information on how to do this, please follow the link to the article from Student Lawyer called, Getting the Backstory: Tips for Employer Background Research, by Markeisha J. Miner. 

Review of "How to Succeed as a Freelance Attorney" by Marina Modlin Esq.

by Sabrina M. Johnson
LCS Graduate Fellow

available at the LCS Library

You have graduated law school, hurdled the bar, and now it is time to work. The ability to find employment taking you in the direction you want to go can be a challenge. Some difficulties in finding employment range from not really knowing what you want to do, to not having enough experience to work in a particular area of law. A solution could be to work as a freelance attorney. A freelance attorney is an independent contractor, your client is a law firm, and you work on projects.

How to Succeed as a Freelance Attorney is conversational and easy to digest. In reading it, I found that I had a mindset that limited my employment options, and this book helped me to see other opportunities available in starting my legal career. Many graduates leave law school with this idea that there is a normal path to follow, and this thinking keeps new lawyers ‘inside the box’, but as Ms. Modlin has said, “freelancing is really a fantastic and very doable path that gives great results.”

One thing that helped to solidify the importance of what this book is about happened as I was leaving class in my LL.M. program. A fellow student was asking the adjunct professors how to find work. Part of their response was to do some freelance work to get experience and to get your name out there.

Interview Season Tip 1: It’s More Important to Hear Than to be Heard

by Susanne Aronowitz 
Associate Dean for Law Career Services

As we approach GGU’s On-Campus Interview season, over the next few weeks we will be sharing a variety of interview tips and resources on the LCS blog to help you ace your next job interview.

Most students will prepare for their upcoming interviews by exhaustively researching their prospective employers and learning as much about their organizations as possible. When combined with a healthy dose of nervous energy, many students feel compelled to show off this new-found knowledge with rehearsed pitches and rambling answers to questions. Please resist this urge! Indeed, as a recent SFGate blog article observed, most job candidates spend more time talking at rather than with their interviewer. As a result, they lose the opportunity to make a meaningful connection that highlights why they are a good fit for the position they are seeking.

If this sounds like you, I encourage you to try a new approach at your next job interview. It may feel counter-intuitive, but consider spending less time talking and more time listening. Your interview should feel more like a conversation than a one-sided deposition. Use your thorough pre-interview preparation to identify connections with your prospective employer; allow your natural curiosity and enthusiasm for the employer to introduce these connections more organically in your conversation.

As the SFGate article advises, pay attention to cues: are you doing most of the talking? Does the interviewer seem distracted? Are you so busy silently rehearsing your answer to the next question that you haven’t heard what the interviewer has said? If so, you are probably talking at (and not with) your interviewer.

Take a few deep breaths, slow down the pace, and focus on listening. By listening to your interviewer better, you will become a more compelling candidate!

Oops . . . What’d you say your name was?

By Susanne Aronowitz
Associate Dean of Law Career Services and Alumni Relations

Have you ever had that awkward experience of forgetting a person’s name about 5 seconds after they introduce themselves to you? This can be particularly awkward at a job interview or networking event. Never fear, this happens to all of us from time-to-time. The Culture and Manners Institute at www.cultureandmanners.com offers some great tips for handling the situation with grace and improving your ability to recall names:

Some people think name recall is something you are born with. You either have it or you don't. Not true! Name recall is a life-long practice. Anyone can become skilled at name recall, it just takes a little effort.

When you collect business cards at an event -- look at each card after the event and try to picture the person. Don't just do it once, do it a few times a week or before your next event.

A great place to practice name recall is on your LinkedIn account. Cover up the names of your LinkedIn "Connections" and try to identify each person by his/her picture. Next, try covering the pictures and visualizing the person that goes with each name.

When you invite someone to connect on LinkedIn, don't just send the generic invite. ("I'd like to connect with you on LinkedIn." The other person may be thinking, "Who are you?")

In your invite, introduce yourself, whether you have met before and why you want to be connected. (Hopefully, it's not just to reach 500+ Connections.)

We met at the Chamber of Commerce event...
We have a mutual friend in Mark Harris...
I noticed you are also in LinkedIn's Association of MBAs group and thought you might be a good person to connect with...

If you do forget someone's name, don't say, "I'm sorry, I forgot your name." (That's a little on the chilly side.) A nicer way is to say, "Please tell me your name again."

Short and Sweet (and Personalized)

Wondering what to say in that thank you letter for an interview or informational meeting? The Culture and Manners Institute offers these tips:

Etiquette is about being attentive to the people around us. Whether writing a follow up thank you letter for an interview or a client meeting, personalize it. Include details of what you talked about in the meeting. 

It's a mistake to write a generic thank you that looks like it could have been cut and pasted with different names and companies: 
"Thank you for telling me more about the position at (fill in the organization). I feel like my skills would make me a valuable member of your team." 

Make the person feel like you are talking to him/her and not just anyone: 
"I was inspired by your story about how you started out in manufacturing..." 
"You are interested in a greater online presence for your athletic clothing line, and I have proven experience in growing several student organizations through social media." 
"Attached is the online advertising information we talked about. Thank you for taking time out of your busy schedule to meet with me." 
"I enjoyed meeting you and Manny Products, your Vice President of Consumer Research." 
"I will follow up with you on the week of June 8th. Congratulations on your first grandchild and enjoy your time off." 

The most valuable part of personalizing a business letter? It says to the person, "I was listening." 

For help with formulating an effective thank you letter, contact a career counselor at LCS at lawcareer@ggu.edu.

Stop Squandering Opportunities

By Victoria Capinpin 
LCS Graduate Fellow 

Students listen to lawyers present on career panel. The end. 
Students attend class with lawyer as guest. The end. 
Students attend a Student Bar Association event and mingle with lawyers. The end. 

So begins Erin Binns’ article describing common networking mistakes that law students make, and how opportunities like these throughout law school can be turned into ongoing relationships with professionals.

Some law students find "networking" to be easy; to simply be a result of their charming socializing skills or a result of the confidence that stems from an impressive pre-law background. Other law students see networking as a way of being insincere or unreal, or worry that it never leads to any solid connections. Well, what if we told you that networking is very simple and starts right inside the lecture halls of GGU?

From the first day of law school orientation, we are told that networking is critical in any profession. However, we are not told how to go about it. We were not told that what "networking" really means is to build great solid relationships with people that we genuinely connect with.

In the December 2013 edition of ABA's Student Lawyer, Ms. Binns not only emphasizes the importance of networking, but also emphasizes how much easier it is to build those professional connections during law school. Professionals are already "delivered" to you--lawyers and judges come in as guest presenters, lawyers and judges present at events hosted at GGU, alumni lawyers come to speak at student organization meetings--there are plenty of opportunities to build your network in your very own law school.

Here are some tips Ms. Binns offers law students about how to take advantage of networking opportunities that arise via guest lecturers, speaker panels, and other in-school events:

• Make the effort. While attending, look excited and open to meet others. Show that you are genuinely interested when meeting others. 
• Be on the lookout. Events where you can meet professionals are happening all around you every week! So make sure to recognize these opportunities and then GO to the events! 
• Express gratitude. If you enjoyed a particular guest lecture or just really connected with the presenter's experiences or personality, send the presenter a simple "thank you" email. Even though saying "thank you" is a small gesture that can sometimes just feel like an automatic response to everything, the gesture never goes unnoticed. 
• Request a meeting. The key to building relationships that last is to pursue meetings with lawyers who you are genuinely interested in talking to and lawyers with whom you anticipate a good rapport. 
• Give an update. Once a connection has been established, nurture this connection by continuously updating your professional contacts on what you are up to in school. Continuously invite them into your life. 
• Give back. Don't just sit back and receive the benefits from the professional relationships you have now established and nurtured. You can send links to articles that relate to their practice or send them fliers to events that you think they would interested in or that you are going to. 
• Connect via professional networking sites. Utilize websites like LinkedIn to let a person know that you want to remain in contact.

Are you missing announcements about on-campus events where you can meet lawyers? Keep an eye on Law School News every Monday and on the weekly This Week at LCS email—GGU panels, speakers, and networking events large and small are posted every week!

Read more about creating and fostering your professional relationships in the article, which includes extremely helpful sample emails you can use to make your own connections!

30-Minute Mentor - Useful tool for your job search!

by Karla Jean Bacayan

LCS Graduate Fellow 

“An informational interview at this point in my job search? Seems like a waste of time.” As a recent graduate waiting for bar results, this was my exact thought whenever informational interviews were mentioned. I thought of the process to schedule an informational interview – I would first have to research local attorneys, learn about the work they do and find ones that I’m interested in. Then reach out and contact them with hope that the contact information provided on their website is accurate, knowing that there’s a slim chance a busy attorney would carve out time for a stranger and a good chance that attorneys wouldn’t respond. This whole process seemed intimidating and stressful. What was the point of seeking an interview with an attorney who doesn’t have a job to offer me?

I quickly learned that I was mistaken when I registered for LCS’s 30-Minute Mentor Program a few weeks ago. The 30-Minute Mentor Program is available for GGU students and recent graduates to connect with GGU alumni and other attorneys through mentoring informational interviews. I was given access to a database of 60+ attorneys that I was able to filter by field of practice, location, current employer, and even practice setting. The best part is that all of the attorneys in the database have already expressed interest in providing 30 minute informational interviews with GGU law students and graduates!

I identified an attorney who I was interested in – a Corporate Estate Planner in Oakland. I sent him a message by clicking the “Interested” button under his name and he immediately replied. I still questioned the value of meeting with him, since no employment opportunity would be offered as a result of this interview. However, after speaking with this attorney, I quickly learned how important informational interviews are, especially at this point in my job search.

I asked him how he got his first job after law school and if he had any tips for recent grads in their job search journey. He told me that after passing the bar exam, he wrote 100 letters to various law firms and attorneys all over California, showcasing his skills and qualifications, and asking if they have an available position for him. Out of the 100 letters that were sent, he received two responses - not for jobs, but for informational interviews. During his first informational interview, the attorney he met with told him to use informational interviews as practice for real interviews. Learn how to dress and speak professionally, how to answer questions quickly, and how to calm your nerves. The attorney also told him that each time you have an informational interview you should always leave with two new contacts from that attorney. During his second informational interview, he said he left the meeting with two new attorneys to contact. By contacting those two attorneys, he found his first job.

It is important to remember that informational interviews are a strong tool to expand your network. You not only add another name to the list of attorneys you know, but you have the opportunity to show a professional in the field you’re interest in how qualified and skilled you are. Your network can continue to grow with referrals received during your informational interview, and your exposure in your field of interest will increase. This will assist anyone in their job search immensely.

My attitude toward informational interviews changed dramatically after registering for the 30-Minute Mentor program. I now find them to be a “must do” during a job search process. If you would like to register for 30-Minute Mentor and gain access to a database of attorneys wanting to give you an informational interview, click here. You can also visit the LCS office and grab an information packet and registration form for the program. It’s a great use of your time!

Summertime: Don’t Just Sit Back & Unwind

by LCS Staff

We all know how easy it is to become so focused on your summer job or class schedule that you lose sight of your overall law school mission. That mission, in case you’ve already forgotten, is to become a successful member of the legal community. You’re in law school for three years, and we encourage you to get at least three to five legal experiences in that time. Given that timeline, you’ll want to make sure you’re always planning for the future.

We’ve put together a short list of tasks that can help you stay connected to your career development over the next couple of months. Your summer homework, which we promise will not be graded, is to 1) become a member of bar/legal associations, 2) perform informational interviews and 3) submit your writing for competitions and publications. Good luck!

Assignment #1:
Join Bar/Legal Associations & Attend Events
The summer break presents a unique opportunity to expand your network through free professional and social events occurring all around the Bay Area. Bar associations, legal organizations and law firms offer workshops, panel discussions and other programs that allow you to learn about particular areas of the law while mingling with practicing attorneys. Check out the Legal Associations handout on LCSonline to see which legal groups, bar associations or other Bay Area opportunities might interest you. Many of these associations have reduced rates for students and recent graduates.

Upon joining a group, take advantage of all the membership privileges, which typically include access to its attorney database and job listings. The best way to maximize your involvement in these groups is to become an active member of a committee and take on projects with other students and attorneys.

Here are just a few upcoming bar association events that you may want to check out:

• What SF Family Court Judges Want New Attorneys to Know
• AABA Summer Law Clerk Reception
• 5th Annual Pride Breakfast at Jones Day

TIP: Check out www.sfbar.org for a complete list.

Assignment #2:
Follow Up With Contacts & Conduct Information Interviews
Once you’ve made contact with an attorney (maybe through cocktail events, workshops, or even the GGU Alumni Directory), capitalize on that connection and your lighter summer schedule.

Don’t underestimate the importance of informational interviews, and don’t be afraid to ask for them! A phone conversation or an email exchange may lead to a meaningful professional association, but speaking with someone in person is the best way to establish a relationship. Offer to meet at the attorney’s office, or find a place that is convenient for him/her. One of the great things about an informational interview is the lack of pressure or stress that comes with interviewing for a job. While you should always conduct yourself professionally, you can go into the meeting knowing that this person wants to help you. Having consulted with a senior attorney that you met through networking efforts, you will likely feel a lot more confident in your next formal interview for legal position.

Remember to always follow an informational interview with a thank-you note or email. Good manners go a long way in a job search.

Assignment #3:
Write For Competitions & Publications
There are many opportunities throughout the summer to enter writing contests and publish in legal journals and periodicals, both online and in print. You can view a list of contests here. Writing about a specialized area of the law allows for a nuanced understanding of legal issues and will likely help you engage more fully in your summer work. Share your love of the law without having the pressures of the dreaded curve.

Get started and have fun!

What Exactly Is An Informational Interview? (& How To Get The Most Out Of It)

by Jan Nussbaum
Assistant Director for Professional Development
What is an informational interview?

The purpose of an informational interview is to gather information to aid your job search. This is different from a job interview where a potential employer is gathering information on you, your experience and skill set.

In an informational interview, you take the lead to obtain a clearer understanding of the person's practice, how he or she came to practice in this area of the law, and how this person found their way into their current position. Informational interviews are a great way to get information about industry trends, employer preferences, and how best to present your credentials. You also hope to establish a professional relationship with the person that hopefully can be maintained throughout the years.

If you know that you want to practice in the same field as the person you are interviewing, informational interviews are a critical way to get feedback on how best to go about your job search and discover additional people that you should talk to. If you are not sure yet what area of the law you'd like to practice, informational interviews can be an important way to find out more about a particular practice area.

How to get the most out of an informational interview:

• Do not approach the interview with the expectation of a job offer. The professional contact may be offended and you will be disappointed.



• Before the two of you meet, do your homework researching the person's professional background, their practice, firm or company, contacts, and professional associations. If possible, gather a few personal tidbits about the person to help in casual conversation.



• Define what you hope to learn from them, clarify what you want the contact to know about you, and anticipate how he or she may be able to help you.



• Prepare questions that highlight your reasons for wanting to talk with the individual. In general, the questions should fall into 3 categories: 1) specific to the person you are meeting with; 2) about the profession; and 3) about you and your job search.



• While your questions are directed at gaining as much information as possible, be sure to present yourself in a way that makes the person feel comfortable and become one of your supporters.

Sample Questions: These questions are general in nature, and suggested to help you get started. Feel free to customize your questions to accomplish the goals outlined above.

• Questions about the individual: How did you come to practice in this area of law? Did you direct your course of study, and in what way, or did it naturally occur from some other work you were doing? What career track did you follow- summer jobs, internships, participation in professional associations? How typical is this for people in your field? What do you feel was important to your early success in this area? Was there anything that surprised you? What do you find most rewarding about your work?



• Questions about the profession: What qualifications, experiences, and courses do you think are important for getting into and succeeding in your field? Do you have a sense of the hiring trends for your practice area right now? Is there a preference for a recent graduate? A lateral? Someone with a specific background? What changes in the law/economy/politics/business /technology have most affected your practice area in the last few years? In addition to what you do, what other career paths are there in this area of the law?



• Questions about you and your job search: Based on what I've told you about my experience and goals, how do you think I can better position myself to be a strong candidate for positions in this market? Can you offer feedback on my resume? What professional associations would you suggest that I join? What kind of volunteer opportunities are there with these organizations? Are there any courses you think I should take? Do you have suggestions on other lawyers or non-lawyers that I should contact? May I tell them you referred me?

Be sure to write the person a thank you note, and keep them in the loop on the progression of your job search and career. You want to stay on their radar, and as result, find out when they hear of any job leads, events or people that will be important for you to know about.

Successful informational interviews will not only help you gain access to important information, but help you build professional connections that can benefit you in finding your dream job and throughout your career.

Note: A portion of the concepts, ideas, and suggested questions are attributable to Erin Binns, Assistant Director for Career Planning at Marquette University of Law, in her article Good questions are crucial for info interviews, Student Lawyer Magazine, January 2007.

[ We'd love to hear about any informational interview success stories. Let us know at lawcareer@ggu.edu. For more, please see the Informational Interviews handout in the Resource Library of LCSonline. ]