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– Issue area and practice setting based (note: some listings outdated)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