Harvard Law School Bernard Koteen Office of Public Interest - PowerPoint PPT Presentation

Harvard Law School Bernard Koteen Office of Public Interest Advising 1L Job Search Strategy

Summer • Exposure to different practice settings and types of lawyering • 2-month trial • No constraints • Develop experience/skills/network

Job Search Considerations • Practice Setting – Nonprofit, government, IGO, private public interest law firm • Issue Area – Education, human rights, transitional justice, environment, criminal, etc. • Type of Work – Litigation vs. policy vs. transactional vs. advising – Impact-oriented vs. client-oriented • Work Environment – Small vs. large – Formal vs. informal – Building on experience you have already/branching out? – Structure/supervision/feedback

Job Search Considerations Cont’d • International work? – Why/why not? • Career plan/goals • Developing a track record • Skills development • Opportunities lost? • Game Plan/Overall Strategy – Balance summers vs. term-time options

First Steps • After self-reflection , meet with an OPIA advisor to develop an individual game plan – Bring your resume – Follow up appointments • Create your personal job search timetable • Develop a list of organizations to target – No more than two types/regions – Evaluations in OPIA job search database

Additional First Steps: International Work • Conduct a personal travel assessment – Prior experience living or working abroad? – Work preferences • Traditionally legal? • Grassoots vs. advocacy? • Ability to manage up? – Language competency • Realistic assessment • Varies from place to place • Expectations – Geography • Comfort level/safety • Urban v. rural • Regional experience or expertise

Researching Employers: General Resources OPIA database • – Geography, issue area, practice setting, type of work – Search by “ organization, ” not “ position ” PSJD • – Geography, issue area, practice setting, type of work OPIA website links • Fellow students • – Who worked where/Chayes Fellows/HRP Fellows – Student-to-student job fair – Personal contacts Alumni mentors • – Alumni Advising Network – Heyman Fellows – OPIA referrals Faculty • – OPIA faculty guide

Researching Employers: Specific Resources OPIA specialty guides • – Issue area and practice setting based (note: some listings outdated) Federal government • – Arizona Government Honors and Internship Handbook – PSJD federal careers guide/NALP guide to Federal Government Employment – OPIA administrative law guide – Leadership directories State and local government • – PSJD state and local government resource – OPIA guide to state and local government – Georgetown OPICS Attorney General guide – Leadership directories Nonprofits • – Arizona public policy guide – NLADA website – Idealist Employer websites •

How Do I Find a Job? Independently pursue employers of interest (often the BEST APPROACH ) • – OPIA database (search by organization, not position) – PSJD (search by employer profiles) Respond to postings (note: only a small fraction of summer positions are • advertised) – Weekly jobs email – OPIA database (position search will bring up postings) – PSJD (search by jobs) Spring Interview Program • – Run by OCS – OPIA advertises public service employers (usually only a handful) – Interviews in February/March Job Fairs • – MA Consortium: January 25-26, 2016 (note: bidding closes in December ) Networking • – Alumni (OPIA, AAN) – Wasserstein Fellows – Events – Faculty

International Outreach • Determine if there is a formal application process – If so, apply following the specified procedures • If no formal application process is specified… – Initial outreach via e-mail • Keep it simple • Limit attachments (body of the email) • Outreach e-mail – Subject line: “ Inquiry from Harvard Law School Student – Summer Law Internship ” – Body: “ I am a first year student at Harvard Law School with a strong interest in X. I am writing to explore a possible volunteer summer internship with Y. Do you have positions for summer law interns? If so, what sorts of assignments/projects and issues would a law intern expect to do while working for you? ”

Logistics • Approximately 20-25 employers, depending on geographic/practice setting flexibility and preexisting credentials • Timing – Deadlines to pay attention to: • Federal government (including DOJ/USAOs): apply by the December holidays (does not need to be Dec. 1) • National nonprofits (e.g., ACLU, CCR, etc.): apply by the December holidays (does not need to be Dec. 1) • MA Consortium (bidding closes in December; MA USAO rule) – International is usually later (late January – late March) • Exceptions: State Department, ICC, Tribunals • Follow up – Persistence is key – International employers may require more follow-up

Application Materials • Resume – Webcast – “ Job Search Toolkit ” includes tips and samples – One page only in nearly every instance – International tips: • Can be more than 1 page if prior international experience/applying to an IGO • Limit use of abbreviations • Be mindful of European date formats (e.g., December 1 = 1/12, not 12/1) • Emphasize foreign language skills • Cover letter – “ Job Search Toolkit ” includes tips and samples – Sense of you as unique individual/not cookie cutter • OPIA drop-off service available for review – Only submit after revising per OPIA guidelines/samples – 4-5 business days

Other Materials • Writing sample (5-10 pages) • References – Professional v. academic • Transcripts • Note: interviews often critical – OPIA/OCS Mock Interview Program: November 9 – Individual mock interviewing

Concerns • Professionalism – Respond in a timely manner to phone calls/emails – Do not reneg on an accepted offer – If someone helped you along the way, thank them! • Split summers • Rolling offers • Security clearances • Online presence • Title IX

Finances • Apply for summer funding – Deadline: December 2015/January 2016 (don ’ t need to finalize plans until April 2016) – SPIF is mix of: • Law school grants • Work-study • Auction funds (don ’ t forget to work for the auction) – Last year students on financial aid were eligible for $4,675 • HLS supplemental funding – Chayes fellowships – HRP fellowships – Alumni and other summer fellowships • Use PSJD to identify additional summer funding resources – Ex: Helton Fellowship, American Society for International Law

Beyond Your Summer: Other Ways to Build Public Sector Experience • Student practice groups • Pro bono program • Clinicals and externships (including independent clinicals/winter term) • Research assistantships/writing projects • Journals

Keeping Up to Date • Weekly emails and archives • OPIA events calendar • 1L timetable • OPIA jobs database profile