Law Review, reviewed
If you are a regular reader, you probably know my position about Law Review. If you don't, it's basically the following--do it if you want to be an academic or clerk, but if you're doing it for the perceived prestige or the perceived job benefits, then you're buying into the hype.
Back during spring break when more than 1/2 the 1L class was doing the writeon, I adamantly refused to buy what Law Review was selling. I have no desire to clerk or to be an academic (utterly dreary professions in my humble opinion). But that is not why most people did the writeon. Most people did it because they thought that "it would look good on my resume" and "help me get a big firm job."
Now that the recruiting season is over for me, let's review on how my lack of Law Review has affected my job hunt.
I recently accepted with WORM, a pretty good firm (according to Vault at least, anyway). Granted the firm extended callbacks and offers to some Law Review members, many other Law Review types who interviewed were shut out by the firm. And the Law Review callbacks were people with high GPAs and good personalities to begin with, and Law Review was thus not the determinative factor. During my callback interviews with WORM and with other firms, at no time was my lack of Law Review ever even mentioned or discussed. (The dirty little secret that Law Review does not want people to know [and thus my obligation to let people know] is that there are some members, including current 3Ls, who are having difficulty with the job hunt.)
So, my lesson I would like to share is that GPA + personality absolutely trumps Law Review, EACH AND EVERY TIME. Membership is neither necessary nor sufficient for the desired end goal for most students: a big firm. Plus, I don't have to write that dreadful required comment.
Basically, everything that I said about Law Review when the writeon occurred has proven very accurate (at least in my case). Whether you think that my experience (to the utter dismay of the Dean and the Law Review leadership who would delete this post if they could) is representative is for you to decide, but I think that it is.
[EDIT: I am not speaking for any law schools other than my own. I do not profess knowledge of the relationship between Law Review and employability at any other law school.]
Back during spring break when more than 1/2 the 1L class was doing the writeon, I adamantly refused to buy what Law Review was selling. I have no desire to clerk or to be an academic (utterly dreary professions in my humble opinion). But that is not why most people did the writeon. Most people did it because they thought that "it would look good on my resume" and "help me get a big firm job."
Now that the recruiting season is over for me, let's review on how my lack of Law Review has affected my job hunt.
I recently accepted with WORM, a pretty good firm (according to Vault at least, anyway). Granted the firm extended callbacks and offers to some Law Review members, many other Law Review types who interviewed were shut out by the firm. And the Law Review callbacks were people with high GPAs and good personalities to begin with, and Law Review was thus not the determinative factor. During my callback interviews with WORM and with other firms, at no time was my lack of Law Review ever even mentioned or discussed. (The dirty little secret that Law Review does not want people to know [and thus my obligation to let people know] is that there are some members, including current 3Ls, who are having difficulty with the job hunt.)
So, my lesson I would like to share is that GPA + personality absolutely trumps Law Review, EACH AND EVERY TIME. Membership is neither necessary nor sufficient for the desired end goal for most students: a big firm. Plus, I don't have to write that dreadful required comment.
Basically, everything that I said about Law Review when the writeon occurred has proven very accurate (at least in my case). Whether you think that my experience (to the utter dismay of the Dean and the Law Review leadership who would delete this post if they could) is representative is for you to decide, but I think that it is.
[EDIT: I am not speaking for any law schools other than my own. I do not profess knowledge of the relationship between Law Review and employability at any other law school.]
posted by The Fox at 12:15 AM
3 Comments:
Wow that post cheered me up.
Thanks for the insight, as a 0L applying to law schools I have heard alot about law review.
Glad to hear a different perspective, that makes alot of sense.
Sure. I'll give you that. Our law review 3Ls weren't exactly handed jobs either.
That being said, there are two longer term law review benefits you may have overlooked. One is experience. The other is ego. Take a look at the typical biglaw firm attorney profiles and you’ll see them full of magna cum laudes, awards and law reviews. The firms are hiring status. As a new attorney, your school and your achievements are all you have to offer them and all they have to sell your high billing rate to clients.
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