2 callbacks and 2 rejections, why?

[h2xblive]

So, I am faring a lot worse than the OP is and I don't know why.  I'm at a top30 school, law review, top 10%.  All of my callbacks(5+) interviews have gone well, no real mistakes that i can tell, and I have nothing to show for it.  By the way the firms are running away from me, i almost feel like my background check must be coming back with a report that I am a child molester.

Most of my interviews tend to run over the 20-30 time allotment, the conversations are engaging(at least i feel that they are), and there has been no awkward responses or silence.  I am interviewing in cities that I have strong connections to and always do a lot of research on the firm/interviewer.

So what gives?  I guess i am "that guy" that brings down the callback-to-offer ratio.  I am waiting to hear back from 5 firms and still have 4 more to go, but I am getting really worried at this point.

Well, how long has it been since you had those callbacks?  Have you been officially rejected?

[Megara]

5 outstanding(1 two weeks since callback, another 8 days since callback, 3 less than a week since callback).  5+ rejections, 4 interviews to go...all v100 firms if that matters at all...

[raider1218]

Who cares?  Stop tripping over yourself to try and please these egotistical assholes.  If they like you, they like you.  If they don't, they don't.  You're probably better off not working there anyway.

[Meek]

So, I am faring a lot worse than the OP is and I don't know why.  I'm at a top30 school, law review, top 10%.  All of my callbacks(5+) interviews have gone well, no real mistakes that i can tell, and I have nothing to show for it.  By the way the firms are running away from me, i almost feel like my background check must be coming back with a report that I am a child molester.

Most of my interviews tend to run over the 20-30 time allotment, the conversations are engaging(at least i feel that they are), and there has been no awkward responses or silence.  I am interviewing in cities that I have strong connections to and always do a lot of research on the firm/interviewer.

So what gives?  I guess i am "that guy" that brings down the callback-to-offer ratio.  I am waiting to hear back from 5 firms and still have 4 more to go, but I am getting really worried at this point.

Well I am 0 for 3 right now so I feel your pain, although not as badly since my stats aren't nearly as good. I have 1 callback I haven't heard back from and another firm that told me they're cutting their summer class from 13 last year to THREE, then they asked me if I want to waste two days of my life to visit them. I am like "WTF."  Why are you doing this? Do you LIKE wasting other people's time and your money?

@#!* it. If this doesn't work out, I am just going to learn the personal injury trade this summer and sue businesses for sweet retribution.

[kipford]

At this point probably the thing to hope for is just not to get a rejection.  That means that they want you there, just that they can't make an offer, at least yet.  I talk to my classmates about job stuff, probably more than I should (for my own sanity), and I knew that significant numbers of offers had already gone out to people before I even interviewed at some firms.  The callback that I did earliest I got an offer.  The one I think went the worst I got dinged a few days later.  I'm waiting on two others (although I will be accepting my offer this week).

Theoretically it shouldn't matter when you have your interview but I think it clearly does, at least in this market.  If you are a 1L take the earliest date you can get next year.  I scheduled around classes which I believe made me less competitive.  Luckily my offer is at my first choice anyway, but I am really glad that I scheduled them early.

That said, if my school is any indication there are some rockstars that will get a ton of callbacks and offers.  They can only go to one firm.  Once they make their decision there will be other offers made.  So, like I said, I think that silence is probably about the most positive thing to hear at this point.  Don't firms interview at top schools first and work their way down?  This would fit in to the way I think things are working...

[Megara]

You're ugly.  HTH.

Probably, but law students and lawyers tend to be pretty homely in general, particularly ones at big law firms.  I would think that i would fit right in 

[h2xblive]

5 outstanding(1 two weeks since callback, another 8 days since callback, 3 less than a week since callback).  5+ rejections, 4 interviews to go...all v100 firms if that matters at all...

I understand your concern, but I think you'll be fine.  If you think you're doing something wrong, perhaps you should talk to career services and do a mock interview or something.

[YEMsoon]

A lot of career services are willing to call the firms if you have numerous rejections.  They can try to find out if you're doing something weird you're not aware of--like chewing with your mouth open or bad breath.

[deedeeleigh]

It really seems like a lot of firms are cutting their summer classes dramatically, but still having the same or similar number of callback interviews as they did in past years. I've gone on many CB's where they've told me they're only hiring 5-6 SA's, but they're interviewing at least 4 other people at the same time as me. If they do those interviews for even 2-3 weeks, they're likely interviewing over 50 people for 4 spots. Not every firm is doing this, but I think a good amount are.  The economy and shrinking SA classes allows them to have their pick in ways they might not have in years past. The way it used to be, that if you were nice and normal and fit in with the firm on your CB you'd get an offer, no longer appears to be true in the same way.

[slylives]

I feel your pain - and the callback I am still waiting on was interviewing 36 people for 6 positions. Fancy those odds?! I will second what someone else said about interviewing as early as possible. I was mid-way through the cycle and numerous offers went out before I interviewed.

I was supposed to hear last Thursday and instead I got an email saying "We're still deciding. We think you're a "very strong candidate" and we appreciate your patience." That was on the same day that I found out someone else had an offer from them, so I was INCREDIBLY despondent. As it happens, my mentor is on the recruitment committee and I called and had a chat with him. I asked if the email was a friendly precursor to a rejection and he said no, the rejected candidates all received letters already. Essentially (according to him) I have not been rejected, but that it was simply a matter of managing numbers of offers, etc. I inferred from this that I was some kind of "reserve", as it were, and he was quick to say "No, don't think of yourself as a reserve or backup. We're just trying to manage numbers."

What's the end to this? Who knows - I certainly don't have an offer yet. I am slightly more hopeful than I was last week, but only marginally. Fingers crossed that some people decline the offers and the few remaining interviewees aren't superstars. Not a pleasant place to be, admittedly.

Good luck - I hope something comes through for you.