All law firms, like all law students, have unique personalities and characteristics. It is important to determine the things that are most important to you in your work experience. Then do some research to find which firms best match what’s important to you. Here are some tips to help you get started:

• Talk with your classmates who previously have worked at the firm to get their opinions (check out the Inside Scoop on Blackboard for where your classmates have worked over the summers).

• Find out what you can about the firm's summer opportunities. Do students rotate through different practice groups, or do they assign students to one group for the whole summer? Do students have any input in their assignment?

• Who are the firm's clients? If you were to work there, would you be representing individuals, business entities, or municipalities? Does the firm mostly represent the pharmaceutical industry, banks, or technology firms? You can find this information through the firm's website and by searching for the firm’s name (or a particular attorney in the firm) in the caselaw databases on Lexis and Westlaw.

• Does the firm have a particular niche practice area that appeals to you?

• What opportunities does the firm offer for professional development? For third-year students, what are the firm's expectations for their new associate development?

• What type of work would you be engaged in? How is work distributed and how much responsibility are law clerks and summer associates able to assume? For third-year students, how aggressive must associates be about pursuing their own work?

When you visit the firm, either for networking purposes or for an interview, keep your eyes and ears open. You can gather a lot of information just from sitting in the reception area or while being led around the firm during your interview. What is the "feel" or "vibe" in the office? Are doors opened or closed? Is it silent as a library or is there lively conversation? Do the attorneys and staff seem relaxed and generally content, or is there a feeling of tension in the air? Watch the way people interact with each other. Try to speak with as many attorneys in the firm as possible to help you gain a well-rounded perspective.

These are just a few suggestions to help you find your best fit for law firm employment. You must determine for yourself what is important to you, weighing the plusses and minuses of each firm. Remember that the end goal is to find a place where you will be happy both professionally and personally.

The workshop is offered four times and each first year student MUST attend one session. Be sure that you RSVP through the Symplicity system.

Monday, November 9 at 12PM in A57

Thursday, November 12 at 12PM in 157

We look forward to advising you about career options in NYC and the other regions we have recently visited, including Columbus and Chicago.

Keep your eyes open for updates about our trips. Be sure to check out the bulletin board outside of the CSO to review our recent travels and employer meetings. Make sure to stop by the bulletin board every so often to see where the CSO has been and which employers we have met with.

If you have suggestions for future trips or specific employers you would like to learn more information about please feel free to stop by the Director of Employer Outreach’s office or visit your career counselor.

Remember that this week the CSO will be holding mandatory 30 minute orientation sessions. Students will be introduced to Symplicity, the CSO's online job posting system, and will become familiar with the career development resources available through the CSO. CSO staff will also discuss the next steps in your summer job search process.

Mark your calendars to attend one of the following sessions, and be sure to sign in on the attendance sheet before you leave!

Monday, November 2 at 12pm in A59

Tuesday, November 3 at 12:30 in A59

Wednesday, November 4 at 12pm in A59

Thursday, November 5 at 4pm in A59

The most important first step in using LinkedIn in your job search is to make sure you have an effective presence on the site. If you missed this past Tuesday’s session on using LinkedIn in your job search, be sure to stop by the CSO to pick up the handouts and speak to your counselor about getting a copy of the presentation. You can also learn more at LinkedIn’s tutorial site: http://learn.linkedin.com.

As we are forever eager not to reinvent the wheel, here are several good resources to learn how to use LinkedIn most effectively:

How to Use LinkedIn Effectively

Top Eleven Ways to Use LinkedIn Effectively

Six Elements of a Great LinkedIn Profile

LinkedIn: Seven Tips to Make the Most of Your Profile

Leading Professional Network LinkedIn Offers Ten Tips for a Great Online Profile

Five LinkedIn Tips on Effective Personal Branding

(With thanks to our friends at Touro Law Center for compiling these resources.)

As lawyers by nature we tend to be adversarial. Law school teaches us to advocate for our clients but it is important to get along with our peers, clients and employers. Numerous employers discuss the importance of an associate’s ability to work well with co-workers and make clients feel at ease.

Employers want to know that you possess the skills of proper advocacy and the ability to negotiate with your competitors. Being a good lawyer is knowing how to deal with everyone in an amicable way.

You never know who you will encounter in the future so always behave professionally and cordial. Your professional reputation may depend on it!

The ABA’s article entitled, “Office Etiquette Essentials,” By Deborah Schneider highlights some important issues when thinking about interviewing or how you want to be perceived. Below are key tips for how to behave in the professional world. The full article can be found here.

Do mind your manners

One of the most commonly reported offenses of young lawyers is treating support staff disrespectfully. Treating staff with the utmost respect is not only the right thing to do, but it also can make your work life a lot easier.

"You need the staff's support for everything from finding office supplies to filing court documents," notes Lisa Dickinson, director of career planning at the University of San Francisco School of Law. "If you treat them well, they will look out for you and offer extra help and insider information."

Conversely, if you develop a reputation as someone who is difficult to work with, your work might end up at the bottom of the pile.
One lawyer at a Washington-based government agency points out that support staff may be called on to help evaluate your job performance.
"As part of my evaluation, the firm I worked for as a summer associate asked my assistant what she thought of me," he says. "I hadn't expected that and was doubly thankful I had always treated my assistant with respect and collegiality."

Of course, it's not just support staff you should treat respectfully. It's everyone.

"Use basic politeness," Abrahams says. "Say ‘please' and ‘thank you.' Hold doors for people. Try it and see what a big difference it makes in how people relate to you. You'll get more with honey than with vinegar."

Another important way to show respect for your colleagues is respecting their time.

"Don't be late," notes White, "either to a meeting or with a promised item. Lack of punctuality is a sign of rudeness that tells others that you think your time is more important than theirs. If you know you will be late, give as much advance notice as possible. And if you are late despite your best efforts, don't interrupt the meeting when you enter. Apologize to the meeting organizer and don't do it again."

Do watch your mouth

Despite the saying "actions speak louder than words," your words can speak volumes about you. That's why it's so important to be mindful of what you say and how you say it, when you're looking for a job and when you're on the job.

When it comes to the manner in which you express yourself, a common misstep is using language that's, like, too casual.

"The most common workplace etiquette faux pas I've observed among law student interns is using the word ‘like' and other slang words too often," says Karen Doran, an associate at Maduff, Medina & Maduff in Chicago. "When law clerks sound more like high school students than burgeoning attorneys, it is difficult for me to take them, and their work, seriously."

How to improve your language? Doran suggests reading classic books, newspapers like The New York Times, and magazines such as The New Yorker and The Economist.

As for what you say, make sure you think before you speak.
"Even if your office atmosphere is congenial and informal, do not ever make jokes or comments that could be perceived as offensive or inappropriate," says Ellen Fred, an associate at Coblentz, Patch, Duffy & Bass in San Francisco. "You're still in a professional setting and should conform your behavior accordingly. Inappropriate comments tend to stick in people's memories."

That's certainly the case with Glover. "In one instance," she recalls, "I was in a cab with three summer associates who began discussing in explicit detail the sex one of them had with a pick-up date the night before."

Do recover gracefully

According to Morris, Abrahams, and Dickinson, overcoming an etiquette slip-up is a four-step process:
- Address the issue directly and don't ignore it or try to cover it up.
- Apologize to the appropriate individual(s) and acknowledge that you made a mistake.
- Make any necessary amends or take any action needed to remedy the situation.
- Learn from your mistake and don't repeat it again.

So, for example, if you are disrespectful to your assistant, apologize and do something nice for him or her (like bringing flowers or sweets) and don't behave rudely ever again.
Don't beat yourself up too much, either.

"If you're not sure how to handle a particular situation, seek advice from a trusted colleague," Morris advises. "Most importantly, keep your head up, own up to your behavior, and act like a professional. The best lawyers and law students can deal with the hardest aspects of communication."

Doran agrees. "A law clerk who recognizes the problem and takes responsibility to actively remedy it goes a long way in my mind to becoming a clerk I can trust."

Stop by the Career Services Office in the morning (after 9 am) for a cup of coffee and to check in with us about your job search.

1. You should aim to have 3-5 references.

2. Choose references who either know what it's like to work with you, or know the quality of your work product (academic or professional). Former supervisors and professors are ideal references. Volunteer experience supervisors can also make great references. Bottom line is that you want to choose people who can say great things about you.

3. At the very least, provide each reference with a copy of your updated resume. If the reference is writing an actual letter of recommendation for you, you should also provide him/her with a list/description of the position(s) you are applying to, and instructions as to where to send the letter. It is not uncommon for a professor reference to also ask to see your transcript.

4. If a reference does write an actual letter of recommendation for you, be sure to send him/her a thank-you note or email. Keep them up to date with your job search and the outcome of the positions you have applied to.

If you have any questions about references, please stop by the CSO to speak with a counselor!

During your free time or on weekends, consider tutoring young children, organizing and conducting food drives, visiting and entertaining at nursing homes, and reading to children in hospitals.

These activities will help you to develop strong skills as a humanitarian and an individual. Simply put, people want to work with those who are involved, friendly, and understanding. Not to mention the networking benefits of volunteer work!

To get started check out www.volunteermatch.com! VolunteerMatch strengthens communities by making it easier for good people and good causes to connect. The organization offers a variety of online ervices to support a community of nonprofit, volunteer and business leaders committed to civic engagement. This popular service welcomes millions of visitors a year and has become the preferred internet recruiting tool for more than 65,000 nonprofit organizations.

And be sure to stop by the CSO to pick up a copy of the Community Involvement handout. This resource highlights additional volunteer local and national volunter opportunities.

To read why she suggests that law students and young attorneys think twice before they hit send click here.

As you head into Fall Break, the CSO wants to encourage you to take some time to evaluate your current job search strategy (and if you’ve been putting off your job search, to take some time to think about your job search goals) and prepare yourself for diving into your job search full steam ahead when you return to school next week. Having a good strategy in place can help keep stress levels in check.
The following article, provided to us by our friends at the University of Minnesota Law School CSO, provides some excellent advice for managing the stress of a job search.

“Sometimes the most important thing in a whole day is the rest we take between two deep breaths.” – Etty Hillesum

Reducing and managing stress is one of the keys to a successful search. Too much stress and you appear desperate. Not enough and people question your motivation. Only you can decide how much stress is the right amount! Here are seven steps you can take to significantly lower stress, improve your effectiveness, and ultimately shorten your job hunt.

1. Have a realistic understanding of how long a job search takes. Many job seekers have an unrealistic time frame for finding their next job. It always takes longer than you think. When you don’t have a realistic expectation for how long it can take it is easy to feel stressed out.

2. Develop a job search action plan. Map out where you want to go and how you are going to get there. Set specific daily and weekly goals; then develop a contingency plan for when Plan A doesn’t work. Once your plan is in place and you are emotionally prepared – take action!

3. Reduce unnecessary expenses immediately. Minimizing financial responsibilities and maximizing financial resources will significantly reduce stress. This is not the time to go stress shopping. The greater your financial resources the more flexibility you have to accept the right job offer rather than grabbing the first one that comes along.

4. Think of your job search as a job. Consider putting specific job search activities on your calendar and treat them like a job.

5. Spend time on the right activities. Do spend time developing high quality marketing materials – like a résumé, cover letter, and reference list; networking with friends and colleagues who can connect you to the right people or opportunities; and following up with potential employers. Don’t spend hours on the internet searching job boards for the ‘right’ job. Instead use the internet to research organizations, gain information about specific industries, and network with people who can assist with your search.

6. Evaluate your progress on a weekly basis. Stay on top of your search so that you can tell immediately if your search starts to stall and take steps to get it back on track. Assess what is working – do more of it. Determine what isn’t working and revise your approach.

7. Take time to refresh your mind, body, and soul. Looking for a job, especially when you don’t have one, is something you carry around 24/7. Remind yourself to set regular office hours and knock off at a reasonable hour. That includes taking time off on the weekends. Take a walk, go to the gym, escape with a good book, or have coffee with a friend.

Be sure to touch base with your CSO counselor when you return from Fall Break; she can help you set up or refine your game plan, as well as point you towards resources that will help you identify potential opportunities.

Click here to complete the geographic survey online.

The survey will be available to complete until 1pm on Friday, October 16th.

If you would prefer to fill out a paper version of the survey, please come by the CSO office.

For additional tips and advice on the informational interview, read the full article here.

Need a searchable copy of the Federal Rules Evidence? Or how about an app that translates improper citations into Bluebook form and includes accurate pinpoint cites? There are apps for that!

Check out the article for 68 other apps to make your law life easier.

Click here to complete the geographic survey online.

The survey will be available to complete until 1pm on Friday, October 16th.

If you would prefer to fill out a paper version of the survey, please come by the CSO office.