First Monday Musings By Dean Vik Amar: Tips For Law Students To Help Them Succeed In The Upcoming Interview Season (Part II)

Some solid advice on how to get the most out of the interview process and increase your chances of getting the job you want. 

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Today’s column, Part Two in a series, follows up on last month’s First Monday Musings, in which I and two experts (Joshua Vincent, a partner at Hinshaw & Culbertson and Greg Miarecki, the Dean of Career Services at Illinois and a former partner at Winston & Strawn) provided interviewing guidance for law students.  Part One focused on pre-interview preparation.  Below we dive more deeply into the interview itself and its aftermath.

During the Actual Interview . . .

Choose your words carefully. Speak slowly. People who are nervous (and interviews make nearly everyone nervous) may speak too quickly without realizing it.  Focus consciously on your cadence.  Be wary of fillers, such as “like,” “you know,” “um,” and colloquialisms such as “you guys.”  It’s OK to pause (briefly!) after a sentence and think about your next words.

Specifically explain your interest in this job. Employers want to know why you want this job.  Some questions will naturally elicit these points, but even when an employer doesn’t ask, try to find ways to discuss the reasons you are interested in the position.  When interviewing in a jurisdiction new to you, be sure to explain your particular interest in that jurisdiction.

Make use of short stories. Most people, including interviewers, love stories.  You need to convince employers that you want to work for them, that you can deliver value, and that you are someone they’d enjoy working with.  Illustrate these selling points with a few compact, self-contained stories that confirm you would be a good fit.  Start by generating a list of significant projects that you completed in law school, at work, and in college.  Then, boil them down into 90-second (or shorter) vignettes.  Your summary should be simple enough that someone can easily follow it, but detailed enough to show that you know what you are talking about. Leave openings for the listener to ask follow-up questions; this technique can help you control the flow of the questions and answers.

Be prepared for the “Behavioral Interview.” Many firms have identified behaviors that characterize their superstars, and they will ask questions to probe for these desired behaviors. Behavioral interview questions usually ask you to describe your performance in a prior situation, such as “Tell me about a time when it seemed you might not be able to meet a very difficult deadline.”  Think about how to use your compact interview stories to demonstrate behaviors such as good judgment, resourcefulness, ability to take ownership, and/or personal integrity.

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Make the interview a conversation. Avoid answering questions with a short “yes” or “no.” Expand upon your answers with a few sentences, a concrete illustration or two, or perhaps a question to the interviewer. Engaged interviewers enjoy the process more, and are more likely to hire you.

Provide focused answers. Many interviewees ramble and answer questions indirectly. Provide a direct answer to each question and offer some explanation. But avoid excessively lengthy responses.

Make eye contact. Interviewees often fail to make eye contact, which usually signals disinterest, disdain, or lack of confidence or trustworthiness. Good eye contact is especially important in “panel” interviews with several attorneys interviewing a single candidate; in such settings, the candidate should work to make periodic eye contact with everyone.

Maintain good posture. Poor posture can be interpreted as a lack of discipline or interest.

Become aware of your body language. Interviewees often display nervous ticks, including fidgeting or playing with their hair or jewelry. A poised and confident candidate sits comfortably in the chair and keeps both hands clasped gently in either the lap or on the table. (Psychologists say that these positions demonstrate confidence.)  We all have trouble seeing ticks in ourselves, making practice interviews essential preparation tools.

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Ask good questions.  Failing to ask any questions shows lack of interest, but not all questions are equally helpful. When formulating questions, remember to focus on: 1) how you can add value to the employer; and 2) how you might fit within the organization.  Avoid tired questions such as: “Why do you enjoy working here?”  “What are the people like?” and “What does the summer program involve?”  Better questions focus on what the employer cares about, and show that the candidate did research.  Imagine if you asked an interviewer about a case she recently handled, after you read the opinion on Westlaw.  A total grand slam!

Follow up. When an interviewer responds to your question, use the response as a springboard to make conversation or to highlight your skills or experience. Don’t simply say “OK” and move on.  You want the employer to believe you are genuinely interested in the answer and want to learn something.

Don’t be fooled by “lunch” interviews. Often, you will have lunch or dinner during an interview. This meal is a key part of the interview, although the setting will be a bit more relaxed.

Assume every interviewer has the potential to be a decisionmaker. Anybody you meet may have influence over the hiring process. So be nice to everyone, from the hiring partner to the receptionist.

After the Interview Concludes . . .

Send a thank-you note to all interviewers. Thank-you notes are appropriate for any kind of interview. Make sure they are error-free, discuss aspects of the interview you found noteworthy, and reiterate why you would be a good fit. Keep the note short — a paragraph or two is fine. Email is a generally accepted way of sending thank-you notes, although a handwritten note is more likely to be remembered. The following is a sample thank-you note. Ideally, if you can work in references specific to the interviewer, such as “I hope the home renovation goes smoothly,” or “It was especially nice to meet someone who loves Door County as much as my family does,” it will personalize the note that much more:

Thank you again for taking the time to meet and discuss [firm name] with me this [morning][afternoon]. I enjoyed learning about the ways I might contribute to the firm, such as [give examples based on what was discussed at the interview]. These sound like exciting opportunities to make a difference for clients and to work with a great group of people. I look forward to speaking with you again.

If you receive an invitation for an additional/callback interview from an employer, respond ASAP (within one or two business days) to the invitation.  Schedule additional interviews only if you are seriously interested, but either way give a timely response.

If you receive an offer from an employer, thank the employer for the opportunity, determine expectations regarding deadlines, and respond promptly to follow-up communications from the employer.  If you have decided to decline, let the employer know ASAP. Do not leave anyone waiting unnecessarily.

There are no guarantees in the hiring process, but if you bear in mind the pointers we have offered here, we are optimistic about your prospects.  Good luck!


Vikram David Amar Vik AmarVikram Amar is the Dean of the University of Illinois College of Law, where he also serves the Iwan Foundation Professor of Law. His primary fields of teaching and study are constitutional law, federal courts, and civil and criminal procedure. A fuller bio and CV can be found at https://www.law.illinois.edu/faculty/profile/VikramAmar, and he can be reached at amar@illinois.edu.