BigLaw Recruiting Before 1L

What BigLaw Recruiting Looks Like

The summer program is the main way students get hired at a large law firm. You apply for a summer job during law school, interview, work the summer, and the firm decides whether to offer you a full-time job. It starts earlier than most incoming students expect.

There is no single national calendar. Dates differ by school and by firm, so treat this as a map, not a schedule.

1. Summer before 1L

   Nothing to apply to yet. Learn the words and the order of events, and look at a few firms and cities.

2. 1L fall

   Classes come first. Grades arrive after exams. Some firms open direct applications or 1L programs this fall.

3. 1L winter and spring

   At many schools, the interview cycle for 2L summer jobs now starts here, after fall grades. Your school may call it OCI. A screener comes first. Other schools run theirs later, so your career office's calendar is the one that counts.

4. Callbacks and offers

   A callback is the longer second round with several lawyers. Offers for a 2L summer job follow, on timing that varies by firm and school.

5. 1L summer

   Use the summer to build skills. Some firms also run 1L programs, each with its own dates.

6. 2L summer

   The summer associate program. It is usually the way to a full-time offer after graduation.

For the full version, read the BigLaw recruiting timeline, or see when programs open on the summer associate deadlines page.

What To Do Before 1L

• Learn the order of events: interviews, callbacks, summer programs, offers.
• Build a short first list of firms and two or three cities you could see yourself in. The firm directory is a good place to start.
• Learn the basic practice areas, such as litigation, M&A and capital markets, so firm names start to mean something.

The summer before 1L starter plan walks through each one.

1L Fall

Classes and exams come first. Keep recruiting light: go to your career office's orientation, keep a short list of firms, update your resume, and write down questions to ask them. By November and December, get your materials ready to reuse.

How Grades Matter

First-semester grades are often the main common credential firms can compare, so they carry weight when interviews start. Firms may also ask for an undergraduate transcript, so keep a copy. Grades are not everything: firms also want to hear why you want their office. Ask your career office how your school's grading and recruiting rules work.

What BigLaw Bear Does Today

BigLaw Bear is free for students. Today you can:

• See when summer programs open and close, and how to apply, on the Job Board.
• Browse 1L programs and the firm directory.
• Read the Library, our guides to each step.