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Author Topic: Rejected?  (Read 15752 times)

mstiger

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Rejected?
« on: October 11, 2006, 06:59:45 PM »
I finally heard from the hiring partner at the firm I worked at this summer.  He said that they are unable to make an offer b/c they have no space in their transactional dept. (which is what I was interested in), and that they will make only 1 offer in their litigation dept.  (There were 5 summers including me).  He said that they had just hired 5-6 new people in the transactional dept. which they hadn't anticipated and didn't think there would be enough work to go around.  Then he offered to write recommendations or help me out in anyway, and said he'll keep in touch in case they anticipate a need.  He also asked me to not tell the other summers since he hadn't yet talked to them and wanted to break the news personally.

I responded that I am sorry that is the case since I really enjoyed working there - the people and the work I did - but I understood his situation.  I said that I would keep in touch as well and thanked him for calling.

Any thoughts?
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LegalLatin78

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Re: Rejected?
« Reply #1 on: October 11, 2006, 07:27:06 PM »
Ouch, sorry to hear that. 

Was that the only firm you worked with/for during law school?  You might have to dig a bit to find some prospects.  What part of the country are you in? 
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mstiger

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Re: Rejected?
« Reply #2 on: October 11, 2006, 07:54:39 PM »
Yea, I clerked w/ them for the whole 12 wks.  I left thinking that I'd get an offer b/c I did well (b/c everyone said that) and b/c they had hired all summers from the yr before.  I am in FL.
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LegalLatin78

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Re: Rejected?
« Reply #3 on: October 12, 2006, 01:53:52 AM »
Well if you are interested in joining securties, you should check out the NASD and SEC.  They are always looking for staff attorneys, and if you do well, there are lots of opportunities to go work for the brokerage houses and get P-A-I-D!

The most important thing is stay possitive. You still have a great degree and if you pass the bar, you will be very marketable. 

Wish you the best of luck,  hope you find something soon.
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mstiger

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Re: Rejected?
« Reply #4 on: October 12, 2006, 09:33:13 PM »
Is this going to look really bad in future interviews?  If they ask why I didn't get an offer, what should I say?
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LTM

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Re: Rejected?
« Reply #5 on: October 13, 2006, 09:41:32 AM »
Quote from: mstiger on October 12, 2006, 09:33:13 PM
Is this going to look really bad in future interviews?  If they ask why I didn't get an offer, what should I say?

As a general rule, yes, it looks pretty bad to get a no-offer.  In your case, however, I think you can explain the situation in a way that will erase most of the stigma.  When asked about the summer, I'd start by enthusiastically describing the work you did, and how much you liked all the attorneys, staff, etc.  Then explain that the firm unexpectedly found that it would be unable to make any offers in the transactional department. At this point, whip out the fabulous LOR and encourage them to give your summer firm a call.

I'll reiterate that I think it's critical to speak positively about your summer experience - don't let any bitterness creep in to the conversation.  You can express disapointment, of course, but the general theme should be that you had a great summer, got great feedback, looked forward to a long, prodcutive career there, but that unfortunately the firm had a business downturn. 

Good luck... 
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