How the Fall Interview Program Works
Each year, the Fall Interview Program offers Chicago-Kent
students in their second and third years the opportunity to interview
for summer associate/law clerk or entry-level associate/staff
attorney positions with a variety of legal employers. Program
employer participants are predominantly large and mid-sized Chicago
based law firms, which hire their entry level attorneys through
their summer programs for 2Ls. A number of government agencies
also hire through this program, with the largest number of these
agencies seeking graduating 3Ls. Some of these employers will
interview students as part of the on-campus interview program;
others will need to be contacted directly by students.
On-Campus Employers and Hiring Criteria: This year, most on-campus
interviewing employers will visit campus between August 17th
through September 11th, however there may be a few employers who wish
to interview in late September or during the month of October. Participating students
should review the on-line list of OCI employers (and their respective
hiring criteria) on Symplicity. These will be available for viewing on July 1, 2009. Students can begin registering and bidding on employers in Symplicity on July 27, 2009. The Career Services Office uses a computerized scheduling
lottery system to match on-campus recruiters with students and
create interview schedules. The scheduling program takes into
account student class and work schedules (students may not interview
during a scheduled class time), student preferences for particular
employers, and any hiring criteria required by employers.
Hiring criteria listed for each employer has been set by the
employer;the CSO never sets this criteria. The majority of these
recruiters, especially the very large law firms, seek students
who have attained academic excellence and other achievements such
as Law Review or Moot Court. Some firms are looking for
additional credentials, such as accounting, engineering, or technical
backgrounds. Others may be evaluating candidates on their
past professional work experience, such as teaching, insurance
work or health care experience. Students should
research the employers and know the qualifications they require
before bidding.
Bidding Eligibility: Only students
whose credentials match an employer's hiring criteria may bid
for that employer's interview schedule.
We do strongly encourage employers to consider other students who fall within 10% points of their hiring criteria. Students who do not meet the required hiring criteria for certain employers, but who are within 10% of the employer's "required" class rank should prepare a list of those employers. This list should include your name, gpa and class rank at the top of the page, and you should list those employers you are interested in submitting a resume to but fall just outside of the hiring criteria (within 10%). You must submit this list to the Career Services Office by noon on Friday, August 7th. Our office will forward employers the resumes of these students who are within 10% of the hiring criteria.
Students who do not meet the required hiring criteria, but who are within
5% of the employer's "required" class rank should also consider writing a persuasive cover letter to the hiring partner or recruiter and sending it directly to the firm along with a resume (get contact name and info from www.nalpdirectory.com). In the cover letter, students should assert their skills, background, qualifications, etc., and ask to be added to the firm's interview schedule. We have had several students find success with this option and not only get added to an interview schedule, but actually get the job. Please Note: If an employer's hiring criteria is listed
as "preferred," it indicates that the employer will
typically hire from within this class rank or just outside of
it. Students should be realistic in their bidding selections.
Password for OCI On-line Bidding System: To access the
list of participating employers and complete the on-line bidding process,
students will use their "Symplicity" account, which is located on-line at https://law-kent-csm.symplicity.com/students. Students received their username and passwords via email. If you forget your password, click on the "Forgot my password" tab and your password will be reset and emailed to you.
Once you are into the system, you will click on the "OCI" tab, which will take you to list of employers who are coming on-campus to interview students. To view the schedule for each employer and additional information, including the hiring criteria, simply click on the box labeled "Review" next to the employers name.
Timing for Bidding: All bidding will take place from noon on July 27th to noon on August 7th. All bids must be completed and all registration materials must be turned into the Career Services Office (CSO) by noon on Friday, August 7th.
Direct Contact and Resume Collect Employers: Other employers do not visit campus but have expressed an interest in reviewing Chicago-Kent student resumes. Some of these ask that students contact them directly by forwarding a cover letter and resume to their recruitment administrator (Direct Contact Employers) while others ask that the CSO forward the resumes and cover letters of interested students in one packet (Resume Collect Employers). If interested in "Resume Collect Employers," you will submit a resume and any additional materials requested by the employer through the Symplicity system. In order to submit a transcript, you will need to create an unofficial transcript (using a Word document) listing your classes and grades. You should then be able to upload the Word document to the system and submit it for this position. Cover letters, writing samples, and reference lists can be uploaded from a Word document to the system.
If you have difficulty uploading an unofficial transcript, writing sample or reference list onto the Symplicity system, please contact Pascale Bishop at pbishop@kentlaw.edu for assistance.
The "Direct Contact Employers" have requested that students apply to them directly. Many of these employers are out-of-state firms; however, there are some Chicago recruiters on this list. Keep in mind that there are numerous other employers to consider writing to as well, especially if you are seeking a position in another geographic location. The NALP Directory of Legal Employers is the best resource for locating law firms with summer associate programs and is available on-line at www.nalpdirectory.com. Please note that you are responsible for contacting these employers directly and the CSO will not be forwarding any of your information to any Direct Employer.
Tip for Contacting "Direct Contact Employers": Whether you write to an employer on the "Direct Contact " list or to employers you have researched through the NALP directory, keep in mind that you will need to market the experience, skills and education you can offer them. Out-of-state recruiters will also want to know why you wish to relocate to their cities.
Also note that direct contact recruiters are interviewing and hiring at the same time the on-campus program is taking place. Do not wait until the campus program ends to apply to direct contact employers. Send your resumes in August if you are interested in a particular employer (we recommend that you have forward all such resumes and cover letters no later than August 15th).
Joint Employers: A few employers from outside the Chicago
area will interview Chicago-area students from a number of different law schools at one location (one of the area law schools);
these are referred to as "Joint Employers." These employers are also part of the on-line bidding process and
are included as a resume collect employer. Should you
be interested in being considered by any of these employers, you
will submit an electronic resume and any other requested documents (i.e., unofficial transcript, writing sample, reference list) for each employer you're interested
in at the time you submit all other fall program registration
materials. The Career Services Office will forward all materials to these employers, and they will select which students they wish to interview on the date listed in the Symplicity system. Students selected for an interview may be contacted either by phone or by email from the employer or the Career Service Office regarding scheduling an interview time. Please make sure to check your email and voicemail messages regularly in order to respond in a timely manner.
Principles and Standards for Recruitment and Hiring: The
National Association for Law Placement (NALP), of which Chicago-Kent
is a member, has established Principles and Standards for Recruitment
that legal employers, law schools and law students are expected
to abide by. These Principles were created to ensure fair and
ethical hiring practices; they explain the behavior expected of
both employers and students during the fall recruitment process
and provide "Standards
for the Timing of Offers and Decisions." Review these
standards in detail and familiarize yourself with the timing guidelines, "Part V" of the Standards, which outline how
many offers may be held at one time, the dates by which students
must inform employers of their decision, etc. Also, it is recommended
that you review the "Student
Professionalism During the Interview Season: A Quick Guide to
Your Ethical Responsibilities in the Offer and Decision-Making
Process."
PLEASE NOTE: We would be thrilled if all those who wanted to be hired by on-campus interviewing employers could be. However, these type of legal employers hire a very small percentage of all the nation's law school graduates, making these positions extremely competitive. Please keep in mind that the fall on-campus interviewing program is just one avenue to legal employment and, depending on your academic credentials, career goals and practice interests, it may not be the appropriate avenue for you. If you are uncertain whether this is a program you should participate in, or if you would like to evaluate other employment opportunities, please make an appointment to discuss your options with a Career Advisor.
Important
Dates To Remember
-
Students who plan to participate in the fall interview program must have attended a mandatory Fall Interview Program Orientation the week of April 7th, 2009. If you were not able to attend one of the orientations, please email Pascale Bishop at pbishop@kentlaw.edu to learn about make-up procedures. Make-up procedures must be completed by April 30, 2009.
-
-
All first-time program participants must
have a mandatory resume review
by a Career Advisor. If you have already had your resume reviewed, this can be done via email. If you have not already had your resume reviewed by a CSO Career Advisor, you must make an appointment. Students who participated in the
program last year are not required to have a resume review,
but are encouraged to do so. Call the office at (312) 906-5200
to schedule an appointment. OCI resume reviews end at
noon, Wednesday, July 29. We advise sending your resume via email or making an appointment in June or early July, as appointments tend to fill up fast later in the summer.
-
July 27, 2009: Bidding
system will be open for student bid entry
- July 28 at Noon and 5:00pm: OCI Program will be held in the Auditorium to provide a "refresher course" on program registration requirements, how to bid on employers, and additional information and updates in regards to the OCI program. If you are planning to participate in OCI, we strongly recommend that you attend one of these sessions.
-
August 7 at Noon:
Deadline for OCI Program computer
bidding, submission of resumes (and
uploading of resumes), and other required
materials to the CSO. The CSO will close at noon on August 7th.
-
August 10:
CSO closed
for processing OCI resumes and interview schedules.
-
July/August: Mock Interviews will be available on certain dates from 9:00 am - 5:00 pm for those who wish to brush up on their interviewing technique. Interview slots will be filled on a first-come, first-served basis.
A number of other programs will also be held which are designed to help you maximize your success in the OCI program as well as provide information about other types of career/employment opportunities. Watch The Record for details about all fall career programming.
-
August 14: Student
interview
schedules
will be available
for viewing
on-line.
-
August 17: On-Campus Interviews
begin.
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