Law Schools

Essential OCI Advice For LL.M. Students

A close relationship with your Career Services Office will help maximize your chances of landing a position.

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Up to this point, much of the discussion in this space has centered on the relationship between Career Services and full-time J.D. students.  But those enrollees are but a portion of the overall population of many law schools.  Across the country, law schools are seeing their enrollment numbers swell from a dramatic influx of LL.M. students — a phenomenon kicked into high gear by the Great Recession.  This growth has been so dramatic, at some schools, that staff and faculty have been brought on to work directly with these students.  As my business card states, my official title at Vanderbilt Law School is not only Associate Director of Career Services but also Director of LL.M. and Alumni Advising.

My dedicated position was created as Vanderbilt’s LL.M. program grew from rough six students a decade ago to more than 60 for the just concluded academic year.  Like many schools, Vanderbilt’s LL.M. program is limited to foreign attorneys looking to further their education and be exposed to the American legal system for a year.  But there are also a litany of more tailored LL.M. programs, for both domestic and international attorneys, focusing on Environmental Law, International Law, Intellectual Property, and dozens of additional topics.  Indeed, there is probably no better guarantee of long-term Biglaw legal employment (outside of having Wachtell, Skadden, or Cravath as a surname) than obtaining an LL.M. in Tax from NYU.  A Tax LL.M. from other schools can also be valuable, though perhaps not a golden ticket to the same extent.

But while LL.M. programs cover nearly the entirety of the legal spectrum, today’s column will focus on international students obtaining their LL.M., both because that is the portion of the LL.M. market I personally know the best and also where the path to employment can be more difficult.  These challenges have only been heightened recently due to political sentiment towards non-native born Americans, in some corners of this country, which is, to put it overly kindly, less than welcoming.  For those international attorneys set to start an LL.M. program this Fall, or even if you graduated earlier this month, here are some tips for making your way into the American legal market.

First, work with Career Services as much as possible.  As I have mentioned previously, the National Association for Law Placement (NALP) has Principles and Standards that govern all aspects of legal recruiting, including Part V.D.1. which states that CSOs cannot work with first-year law students on a one-on-one basis until, at the earliest, October 15th.  Fortunately, LL.M. students are not covered by this provision.  So take advantage of the 1L quiet period between when you first arrive on campus and October 15th.  While your first stop upon arriving on campus might have to do with your visa, or perhaps finding a place to live, Career Services should be soon thereafter.

Second, take advantage of the recruiting opportunities provided to you, even if they seem somewhat limited.  Perhaps the biggest drawback to an LL.M. program, from a legal recruiting perspective, is that, for the most part, students are unable to take advantage of On-Campus Interviews.  This is not due to some sort of nefarious plot between law schools and legal employers, but rather, is a result of the way the calendar shakes out.  With OCI taking place before classes commence — and continuing to trend earlier into the summer — LL.M. students cannot take part not only because they have yet to spend a single minute in an American law school classroom, but often times they are not yet even in the United States.  While some schools are allowing LL.M. students to take part in OCI that follows their graduation, the opportunities there will likely be limited.  Instead, be sure to take advantage of the programs which are specifically designed to connect international attorneys with employers, both domestic and foreign.  The two largest programs are the International Student Interview Program run by NYU (available to students at more than 30 law schools, including Vanderbilt — shouts to Clara and Laura for running a fantastic program each and every year) and the Overseas-Trained LL.M. Interview Program run by Columbia (available to students at the University of Chicago, Columbia, Harvard, Michigan, Stanford, UVA, and Yale).  Unless you already have a job in your home country and they are paying for your LL.M., if you are attending an LL.M. program at one of these schools, you would be foolish not to take part in your respective program.  While employment outcomes are typically not as strong as would be found in OCI, these are one of the few interview opportunities exclusively available to LL.M. students.

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Finally, be realistic in your post-graduation employment goals.  Yes, the allure of $180,000 can be quite great, but those Biglaw jobs in the U.S. are difficult for J.D. students to obtain, and they have the benefit of an additional two years of legal education, not to mention a law firm being able to avoid the H-1B process (assuming that program even continues to exist in the future).  If you are determined to work for a U.S. law firm, seek out opportunities at smaller firms which might be willing to roll the visa lottery dice for the opportunity of getting top legal talent.  Since these firms are typically not taking part in interview programs, you will have to network relentlessly to find these opportunities.  Again, work with your Career Services Office to identify networking contacts.  If you are willing to work abroad for a few years, try to work in the international office of a U.S.-based firm.  Once you have proven yourself to be a valuable asset to the firm, transferring to an American office can be much easier.  For those of you determined to work in American Biglaw right after graduation, explore the opportunity of transferring into a J.D. program, either at your school or elsewhere.  While obviously not the cheapest option, this can greatly increase your chances of American employment after graduation.

LL.M. programs serve as a fantastic opportunity for attorneys to further their legal education and refine their skills.  For international attorneys, it can be a whirlwind nine months trying to not only learn a new legal system, but also a new country.  While employment opportunities for international attorneys can be more circumscribed than might be the case for U.S. citizens, Ess

Nicholas Alexiou is the Director of LL.M. and Alumni Advising as well as the Associate Director of Career Services at Vanderbilt University Law School. He will, hopefully, respond to your emails at [email protected].

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