While there are students enjoying the good life as summer associates, many rising 3Ls are staring into the abyss of entering 3L recruiting without a post-graduate job lined up. At the University of Michigan Law School, the office of career services is preparing students for just how abysmal the abyss is going to be:
As you look at the employers coming to campus to interview 3Ls, some of you may be feeling quite frustrated at the number of employers willing to interview you as a 3L when there were far more willing to interview you when you were a 2L. Unfortunately, in the next few weeks there may be even more firms that cancel or reduce the number of interview slots they want reserved for 3Ls.
Welcome to “the suck,” my friends. I hope you brought your BFG…
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The Michigan message might be depressing, but the CSO is encouraging students not to lose all hope:
Rest assured, however, that, in addition to OCI, there are other opportunities for you as a 3L to explore, and we hope that you avail yourself of our counseling, the counseling of our colleagues in the Office of Public Service, and other resources to explore them.
Does that counseling come with anti-depressants? Because neither talk therapy nor public interest work is going to help students pay off Michigan’s hefty tuition bill.
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There’s no need to pick on Michigan with this one; 3L recruiting promises to be absolutely terrible all across the country. It’s not just that there are few (if any) firms looking for 3Ls, it’s that there is so much competition for the few spots that are open. Law firms drastically reduced their 2L hiring this year, which means that there will be a great number of 3Ls still on the market looking for jobs.
On the bright side, [insert silver lining platitude that only an idiot would believe].
Rising 3Ls shouldn’t hold out too much hope that fall recruiting is going to solve their unemployment nightmare. Instead, it’s time to trot out all those books about non-traditional uses for a law degree — or start playing the lotto and praying for luck.