Advice for Summer Associates: Try Not To Be Socially Awkward (And Other Words of Wisdom)

It’s been quiet here at Above The Law in terms of chatter about the summer associate experience. SAs seem a wee bit scared to reach out to us this year. We’re trying to gather submissions for the SA Event Contest, and we’ve only gotten five submissions! And one is a fishing trip.
Is the summer associate experience really that lame this year? Or are you all just terrified to send us an e-mail with a little braggadocio about your summer events? There are workarounds, you know. One SA printed an event announcement and sent it to us snail mail style.
(Just a reminder that all tips are anonymous, so send us more submissions. Just do it from your personal account, or on Facebook, or via carrier pigeon.)
Okay. Okay. We understand your reticence. SAs are stressed out about getting job offers in this competitive environment. Georgetown Law sent out a memo to its students predicting that most firms will be offering jobs to 50 to 80% of their summer associates. They then offered some advice for current SAs, which basically consisted of “things to think about doing in case you don’t get an offer.” Georgetown also advised checking out a piece that appeared in Massachusetts Lawyer Weekly: Some Words of Advice for Summer Associates of 2009 [PDF].
In case you didn’t surf over to it, we’ll boil it down for you, along with some of our own advice, after the jump.


The article [PDF] was authored by Stephen Seckler, a legal consultant. Here’s his advice, along with our thoughts.

Be very aware of making a good first impression. While this is good career advice in general, this summer many of you will have a short period of time to demonstrate your potential. Show a positive attitude right from the start. There will be no time for second chances.

This is a good time to query all your friends about the first impression you make. It may contribute to your neuroses and increase your number of visits to the shrink in the future, but you should find out now whether you have a sweaty-palm handshake, a tendency to nervously forget to blink, or a happy-to-meet-you-smile that teeters between positive and positively creepy.

Ask good questions when you get assignments. Asking for clarification is a way to demonstrate that you understand what is being asked. It is also a way to increase the likelihood that you will do what the supervisor intended.

Don’t ask dumb questions though.

Attend every social function that you can. Even if you are an introvert, don’t underestimate the importance of building relationships while you are a summer associate. Doing good work is of course important. But this summer it behooves you to try and build some political capital as well. In order to accomplish this, you have to get out of your office and meet some people.

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Translation: try not to be socially awkward.
Have more fun. No one wants to work with an automaton. Show a little personality.
(And if a summer chooses to show A LOT of personality, say after a few drinks at a firm happy hour, please, please send us an e-mail about it. We miss Summer Associate stories, and we’re sure you do too.)

If social situations make you uncomfortable, keep your expectations low. If you can find just one or two lawyers to talk to, that’s fine. Ask about their work. Try to find out why they chose firm X. (People love to talk about themselves, and if you are an introvert, you are probably a good listener.) Talk about the function you are attending, and if you can, something non-work-related. But keep it positive. “The veal is a little over cooked” is unlikely to score you many points. In contrast, finding out that a senior associate is also an avid runner will help.

Translation: If you are socially awkward, find two partners who are also socially awkward and make them your friends.

Be proactive about seeking out work. There will not be enough billable work to go around this summer, so talk to associates and partners who are doing work that interests you. Find out who is busy, and let them know you would be happy to help. Listen for their pain points. Maybe they have form files that need to be reorganized. Maybe there is pro bono work where you can play a role. Maybe someone is speaking at an industry function or CLE program, and they need help preparing their materials. If a partner or associate talks about something that interests you, find out if they need help. Lawyers are not always the best at delegating, and believe it or not they may not have thought of it.

There’s lots of creative work you can do. Maybe a senior associate would like you to rearrange their office furniture. Or maybe they have dry cleaning you can pick up for them!
There was a little hullabaloo this summer about “fake work assignments.” Summers were freaking out that there was not enough work around for them to do, but a little digging on our part revealed that firms have been doing this since the 80s. So stop freaking out and get to (fake) work! Screw it up, and your lack of an offer will be very real.

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Look for opportunities to “shadow.” While there may not be enough work to go around, there will certainly be opportunities to observe what lawyers at the firm are doing. Ask if you can sit in on a negotiation or join a lawyer for a court appearance or a deposition.

Shadow, but don’t stalk.

Get to know partners and associates, but do not forget about paralegals, secretaries and other support staff. These individuals usually know a lot about the inner workings of the firm, and, in many instances, they can provide you with good guidance to get your job done more effectively. In some cases, their opinion of you will also count. Furthermore, support staff may be aware of who in the firm is busy (and, therefore, who may be a potential source of work).

Be nice to everyone. Here’s an upside to all this. Usually, it’s frowned upon for SAs to get frisky with each other, lawyers, partners and support staff. But since there’s only a 50% percent chance in some cases that you’ll be back at the firm, go wild!
But you may not want to take our advice. Apparently, it’s dangerous and dubious [PPT – Slide 7].
Some words of advice for summer associates of 2009 [Massachusetts Lawyers Weekly]
Earlier: Advice For Summers From Georgetown