Summer has ended and classes have resumed, which can only mean one thing for law students: time to find a job for next summer. The Fall Recruiting Program is once again in full swing, and both second and third year law students are busy posting resumes, writing cover letters, and donning their finest suit for a trip to St. Gregory's.

However, the market this year is not quite the same as it has been in the past.  A recent article in the New York Times suggested that students are facing "the most wrenching job search season in 50 years." Many large law firms that previously hired law students for their summer programs are not doing so, or doing so sparingly. The Times reports that not only has this has made it difficult for many people to get interviews with large firms, it has also had a trickle down impact upon other legal job markets, including the government and public interest sectors.

The market's reluctance to hire for the upcoming summer has been felt by many students at GW who have been disappointed by the number of interviews they received this recruiting season. Several third year law students who worked at large firms over the summer report that when they jumped back into the recruiting pool this fall they received only one, or maybe two, interviews - if any.

Likewise second year students such as Joon Song have found that although they put a number of bids out there, they too are only receiving a small smattering of interviews. According to Song and his colleagues' observations, most students who are not in the top 10 or 15% of the class have only gone on 0-3 interviews.  Other students, such as second year student Michael Alliance, have found that when they do go on an interview, the recruiting attorney is not really interested in hiring them from the moment they open the door.

Still, it is not all doom and gloom. Although the number of employer interviews has been reduced, once GW students have gotten their foot in the door, it appears that things are going much better. According to the CDO, "interviews are running smoothly and employers have been extremely impressed by the quality of candidates that they are meeting with. They are raving about how well-prepared GW students are for their interviews, compared to other schools. The feedback we have received up to this point has been very positive. Both recruiters and interviewing attorneys alike have said that GW students were truly exceptional this year."

Indeed, Song reports that his FRP interview seemed to go well, and, with the exception of the one firm who was not interested from the start, Alliance agrees that his interviews have been successful. Whether a good interview will be followed by a job remains to be seen, as the Times conveys that many firms are interviewing for slots that they do not intend to fill.

Because of the market difficulty this fall, the CDO is suggesting that students "conduct their own direct write outreach to employers nationwide . . . in order to connect with as many employers as possible." Song has taken this advice and is planning to begin this campaign soon. In addition, he has taken advantage of other recruitment opportunities, such as the DuPont Legal Minority Job Fair, which he attended earlier this month. This entire day affair brought in firms from throughout the country, including places such as Los Angeles, Phoenix, and Portland - markets that are not represented in the traditional FRP process. Song was able to speak with eight different employers at the fair and states that it "was a good opportunity, especially because I didn't get too many interviews through the traditional process."

Going the non-traditional route and building a network through events such as this may be the best thing students can do right now. According to the CDO, "Networking and building connections with employers through receptions, CDO programs, your professors, past and current internships, and other professional outlets will also be extra useful this year."