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Employment Prospects Survey |
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Career services is very helpful, with seminars on resume and cover letter
writing, interviewing, legal specializations, etc. Willamette operates a
mentorship program, which matches first year law students with attorneys in the
area. The programs does its best to match students and lawyers with similar
interests. It is an excellent way to start networking. The mentorship program
continues as long as the student wants, and many students stay in touch with
their mentors throughout law school and after.
On campus interviews begin in the fall. Not as many firms interview on campus
as the "big" schools, but I recall at least 30 or so while I was there. There
are many more firms which interview off campus, but use the career services
office to collect the resumes and forward them to the firms.
Willamette has a good reputation in the Northwest, but if you plan to move very
far out of the area, going to Willamette will probably not help job prospects.
But I think that is true for many schools. Firms are looking for people with
community ties, so prospective students should consider that when making their
school choice.
Career services continues to assist students after graduation, for however long
is necessary. They have a website with job openings and information on events
related to career planning.
Also, many of the professors take on research assistants. This is a great
opportunity to improve your research and writing skills, while gaining an
additional reference for your resume. It helped me a lot in my job search after
graduation.
One secret to Willamette: during first-year orientation, run down to the law
library at put your name on the waiting list to be a library clerk. It's a
peach
job. It only pays $7.00 per hour, but it's at night. Each student hired is
assigned a particular day of the week. Weekdays you would work from 4 pm until
midnight, and on weekends there are two shifts - one from 8 am to 4 pm and one
from 4 pm to midnight. All you have to do is check books in and out and answer
phones. It's usually really quiet, and is a great opportunity to get paid while
you study. Plus, it's just one more thing you can put on your resume. If you
put your name on the waiting list, you may not get a call to come to work until
the end of your second year, or beginning of your third year, but it's worth it!
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Willamette University College of Law Admission & Application Surveys
