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Employment Prospects Survey |
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1L-- Its pretty tough. The worst, most disheartening job
search is the one that you do for a volunteer or non-paying internship and you
still can't make the cut. Most students intern for a judge, (Judge Urbina in the
U.S. District Court of D.C. is reknown for taking on 10+ summer interns per
summer, what he does with them is not so important as the fact that they can each
put it on their resume). GW also offers the Oxford Human Rights Summer Abroad
Program, which many studenst jump during their first year, thereby circumventing
the whole business. But if you want cash your first year, you need top 5% grades
and IP background/experience (i.e., B.S. undergrad with intention of going into
IP). If you don't have wealthy parents, this summer will be tough.
2L: Like all other top-tier schools, GW kicks off the second year with the FIP
(Fall Interview Program). It is a venture wherein
employers sign-up with the career developement/counseling offices (at GW its the
CDO,career development office) at the schools with which they want to set up on
campus interviews. The 2L students at each school then upload their resumes
onto
the school's server and "bid" for interviews. It is not uncommon for students
to
schedule 20-30 interviews per week, most of which will lead to nothing. A few
will turn into "call back" interviews and hopefully the summer associate offer
at
a big firm and thereafeter the real McCoy. For all the effort and time, there
is
a lot of angst and heartache this first fall semester simply because most of the
students who participate will not get an job through the FIP. For them, the
second summer looks slightly better than the first. I also note that unlike our
cross-town "rival," Georgetown, the GW CDO doesn't lend a hand and set up the
first round of interviews the week before classes, but makes students juggle
interviews and studies, an ill-fated venture. The only reason I can think of
for
this is simply that setting up the interview before classes would mean that the
CDO would have to end their summer vaccation sooner rather than later.
3L: IF you don't get a job in the FIP and don't get an offer after your second
summer, there isn't a lot the CDO can do for you. 99% of the CDO's effort is
spent on the FIP. They make an effort, however slight, to help the rest of you
out, but I note that the CDO itself admits that the most GW graduates get their
jobs after graduation by getting an offer from the firm or office with which
they
clerked at during their third year. The CDO does provide a list of employers
looking to hire students, clerks and researchers, during the school year, but it
is simply a list, much like the classifieds and you've got to take the
initiative. That said, the list is helpful because each employer has contacted
GW because it wants GW students.
Finally, though a top tier school, GW is not top ten, or top "15." While
sufficiently prestigous to get into many big firms, the elite firms usually
don't
hire GW students. If you are going to GW for the ranking I advise you to
seriously consider quality of life and location. If you got into GW you
probably
got into William and Mary and other comparable schools that can provide a
different (non-urban) campus and life with no loss of prestige.
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George Washington University Law School Admission & Application Surveys
