Law Schools Worry More Firms Will Delay or Ax Campus Interviews
Law school officials are hoping decisions by two law firms to pull out of or delay on-campus recruiting are just aberrations.
Morgan Lewis & Bockius is pulling out of all on-campus interviews this fall and axing its 2010 summer program, while Orrick Herrington & Sutcliffe is pushing back the dates of its on-campus recruiting. Rather than interviewing in August, Orrick will interview from Nov. 15 to March 2010.
The Legal Intelligencer talked to law school officials for their take on the situation.
Melissa Lennon, assistant dean for career planning for Temple University law school, told the publication it would be “unfortunate” if many more firms pull out of on-campus recruiting. She also was worried about the possibility of more law firms pushing back fall interviews until spring.
Students who participate in both fall and spring interviews won’t know whether to accept a fall offer, or wait till spring in hopes of getting an offer from a different firm, she said. And those who wait for spring interviews won’t have much time to find a job if they don’t get a spring offer.
On the bright side, she said, is that students who wait for spring interviews will have an extra semester’s worth of grades to show recruiters.
“If this is the model that firms are going to use, then schools will have to adjust,” she said.
