Interview for "Fit"

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

Today’s interview advice comes from Mary Crane, author of 100 Things You Need to Know--Business Etiquette for Students and New Professionals, and focuses on interviewing for “fit.” While most employers will use your application materials to assess your job qualifications, they rely on the interview to determine if you are a good “fit” for their organization. While Mary’s advice is not specific to the legal profession, she offers clarity to the nebulous concept of “fit” so that you can be effective when communicating with employers.

Employers generally acknowledge that technical skills account for only 25% of any new professional’s success at work. The employees who thrive possess a series of soft skills—communication, networking, time management, teamwork—and they naturally “fit.”

“Fit” relates to how well a potential new hire syncs with the culture or the core values, behaviors and personalities that make up an organization. Where fit occurs, new hires comfortably slide into positions. They share the beliefs, attitudes and priorities that drive the organization. Frustration is minimized. Retention improves. (For more on “fit,” click and view business psychologist Natalie Baumgartner’s TED Talk.)

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!

Career Fair Deadlines are approaching!

ATTEND A CAREER FAIR: There are so many great career fairs going on this summer! If it is out-of-state, consider making it worth your trip and stay for a couple more days to explore the city.

• BASF's Bay Area Diversity Career Fair (San Francisco, CA) -  (registration is open from May 19-June 15) July 26
• National Black Prosecutors Association 31st Annual Conference and Job Fair (Scottsdale, AZ)- (Registration is from June 16 - July 7) July 20-26
• SFIPLA's 17th Annual Bay Area Job Fair (San Francisco, CA) - (registration is open April 28-May 19) July 27
• National LGBT Bar Association 2014 Lavender Law Conference & Career Fair (New York, NY) - (Register by August 3: The National LGBT Bar Association does not guarantee that materials, welcome bags, or other opportunities will be available to those who do not register prior to August 3, 2014.) August 21-23
• Hispanic National Bar Association Annual Convention & Career Fair (Washington, DC) - September 10-13

View more career fairs

A Successful PI/PS Day!

by Victoria Capinpin
LCS Graduate Fellow

GGU Law Career Services applauds all of the students that worked so hard in getting their applications and other documents together for PI/PS Day! We know you all put in a lot of work researching interviewing and networking strategies. We would also like to congratulate those students who have already gotten offers or follow-up interviews! Good work everyone!

Now what?

GET ADVICE FROM LCS: Come meet with our counselors to get advice on what to do next! Common questions students have for LCS after participating in PI/PS Day include:

• How do I handle multiple offers? What if I am still waiting on my first choice to give me a decision? 
• How do I approach a follow-up interview? Is it the same strategy as my first interview?

You can make an appointment by emailing LawCareer@ggu.edu or calling 415 442-6625.

SEND THANK YOU CARDS: We hope that you collected business cards of all the people that interviewed you so that you can thank them for taking the time to interview you. Send "Thank You" notes to all of your interviewers as soon as possible. TIP: Make yourself stand out by sending personalized handwritten cards. If you were not able to get business cards from every interviewer, you can try to get information online:

• Check the the One Justice website, which lists the PI/PS Day participants.
• Look on LinkedIn or Google for the interviewer's name 
• Look at the organization's website and see if you can spot the interviewer in a photo.
• Contact LCS to see if our counselors know the name of the interviewer.

Career Opportunities Heat Up This Summer

by Jared Solovay
Director of Employer Relations

There is no time like the present to invest in your career development. The most obvious way to do so is through hands-on legal skills, whether that be an internship, externship, or pro bono work. But you should also be aware of the following summer job fairs:

• BASF Diversity Job Fair on July 27 for “diverse” rising 2Ls (registration ends June 16)
• SFIPLA Job Fair on July 28 for rising 2Ls and 3Ls interested in IP law (registration ends 5:00pm PDT on June 17)
• National Black Prosecutors Job Fair on July 16 (registration ends June 14)
• GGU’s Summer Recruitment program (login to LCSonline) for rising 2Ls seeking summer 2014 positions and rising 3Ls seeking post-bar positions (review employers now and upload applications from July 19 to August 5).

1Ls: Start Planning Ahead for Job Fairs

Even though many of you are still firming up your plans for this summer and fall, it is already time to start planning ahead to summer/fall 2012! Many employers will be relying on job fairs this summer to recruit law students for next summer. Some fairs focus on certain types of positions, such as patent law or prosecution jobs, while others are focused primarily on recruiting diverse applicants. Many of these opportunities will require you to register NOW for interviews that will occur during the summer of 2011 for jobs that will take place in summer 2012.

To learn more about these opportunities, review the job listings on LCSonline and our summer job fair handout, below. - Susanne Aronowitz

Job Fairs: Start Planning Ahead

Even though many of you are still firming up your plans for this summer and fall, it is already time to start planning ahead to summer/fall 2011! Many employers will be relying on job fairs this summer to recruit law students for next summer.

Job fairs tend to have a particular focus. Some recruit students for a specialized practice area, such as public interest or intellectual property, some focus on recruiting diverse students, and others promote opportunities in a particular geographic region.

For more information, consult the job fair list on the NALP website.

Career & Job Fairs

Career & job fairs are one way to survey the legal employment field. Here are two links to comprehensive lists of career fairs.

• NALP List of Career Fairs ( link )



• PSLawNet List of Career Fairs ( link )

Below are some upcoming career and job fairs that might especially interest GGU students:

August 7, 2009
Vault/MCCA Legal Diversity Career Fair ( link )
New York City, NY

August 7, 2009
Indianapolis Bar Association Diversity Job Fair ( link )
Indianapolis, IN

August 7, 2009
IMPACT Career Fair for Law Students & Attorneys with Disabilities ( link )
Washiongton, DC

August 8, 2009
BASF/Orrick Bay Area Diversity Job Fair ( link )
San Francisco, CA

August 9, 2009
12th Annual SFIPLA Bay Area Job Fair ( link )
San Francisco, CA

August 14-15, 2009
Minnesota Minority Recruitment Conference ( link )
Minneapolis, MN

September 10-12, 2009
Lavender Law Conference ( link )
Brooklyn, NY

September 25 – 27
2009 National Latina/o Law Student Association (NLLSA) Conference Career Fair ( link )
Chicago, IL

September 26, 2009
Northwest Minority Job Fair ( link )
Seattle, WA

October 24-25, 2009
Equal Justice Works Public Service Career Fair ( link )
Washington, DC

February 5, 2010
2010 Northwest Public Service Career Fair ( link )
Seattle, WA

February 6, 2010
Northwest Public Service Career Fair ( link )
Portland, Oregon
(Table talk session is open to all law school students and alumni.)

February 6, 2010
Public Interest Career Day ( link )
Los Angeles, CA