Tackling the Summer Internship Interview

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Last Thursday, I submitted an application for a local summer internship with a small firm. Friday morning I got an email extending an invitation to come and interview for the position. I was beyond exciting but at the same time my anxiety shot through the roof: What do I wear? What do I bring? How should I follow up? How do I answer tough questions that I don't have an answer for?

Now that my interview is over, I wanted to share my experience and give some tips that could be useful for legal interviews or any interview.

The first thing that you should do once you have been invited to interview, if you did not already do so for the application, is RESEARCH THE EMPLOYER. I did some preliminary research during the application process for my cover letter to relate it to the area of law I am interested in and how the firm practices within that area. Once I was offered an interview I did some more research about the firm to find out all the areas of law the firm is engaged in and what exactly their representation within those areas entails.

For example this firm's foundation is Real Estate law with a majority of its practice focused around residential real estate rather than commercial real estate. They also practice wills, trusts and estates, civil litigation and criminal defense.

I also researched the number of attorneys within the practice, any recent publications, and anything extra. ALL OF THIS INFORMATION WAS ON THE FIRM WEBSITE. It really should not be a huge ordeal to find out the basics of your employer. Do enough research to show familiarity with the firm, its practice and purpose.

What to Wear

Other than worrying about a few potential questions, I stressed the most out about what to wear. I am a firm believer in the phrase "its better to be over dressed than under-dressed". You need to keep your outfit business professional and there are a few ways you can do that:

1. Suit & Blouse/Button Down
2. Skirt, Blouse/Button Down & Suit Jacket
3. Dress and Suit Jacket

Stick to black, navy and darker grey for pants, skirts, jackets and dresses. As for blouses I would suggest neutral colors like white, blush, grey, light blue. If you are going to do a pattern under shirt, keep it subtle. As for shoes, nice flats or heels that coordinate with the rest of your outfit. 

Accessorize? I have multiple ear piercings and a nose ring - the nose ring came out, and I only put earrings in the first holes. I ditched the cute Alex & Ani bangle bracelets and opted instead for a single stone necklace. The key, at least for me, is to keep it simple, clean and professional. 

compliments of google.

Side note: I have not had the chance to invest in a full on suit yet. I was not comfortable with a skirt or a dress so I ran to Khol's and purchased a black suit jacket, a button down shirt and a white tank top blouse (I didn't know which top would look better with my pants). I have multiple pairs of black dress pants so I wore a pair that was not too tight, or long, along with black flats.

In addition to Kohls, JCPenny, Macy's, White House Black Market, Loft and Lord & Taylor, have a great selection of business professional attire depending on your budget. 

What to Bring

There are a couple of things that you should bring even if you don't end up needing them or if you have already submitted them:

1. Resume
2. Cover Letter for that Position
3. Writing Sample
4. Transcript
5. References

I would highly suggest investing in a padfolio to carry these documents in. My school sold personalized ones in the beginning of the fall semester and I decided not to purchase it at the time but I highly regretted that come Monday. So before my interview I ran down to target and found a simple black one for $20 which will work until I invest in a leather one. I also purchased Resume Card-stock to print both my Resume and Cover Letter on. Its thicker and more professional looking than normal printing paper. I highly suggest investing in some, mine was only $10.

Side note: I was super thankful that I put the time and effort into creating my padfolio because when I got to the interview the attorney asked if I had an extra copy of my Resume as soon as we sat down. He really seemed to appreciation this and it helped steer the interview towards my prior experiences and background. 

Questions to Ask:

During a mock interview at my school, it was suggested that we prepare 1 -2 questions to ask at the end of the interview. This shows interest in the position, firm and preparedness. My school released an interviewing preparation packet with a list of potential questions to ask during an interview. Here are a few I had wrote down:

• How many summer associates/interns are typically hired? 
• What are your expectations for the person hired into this position 
• How would you describe the work atmosphere here 
• Did you start in your current practice area? If not, why did you switch? 
• What is your typical day like? 
• When you can expect to hear back about the position? 

Follow Up:

Once you're interview is over, its not completely over. You need to be sure to send some sort of thank you. This can be in the form of an email - but be sure to wait 1-2 days and between the hours of 8am - 5pm; or a written "Thank You". In either case be sure you:

• properly address the thank you note to whomever interviewed you - multiple people if more than one interview you - and if that is the case, be sure each note is a different from one another, pick something specific that they said that was helpful or caught your attention
• it is free from grammatical/spelling errors and names are spelled correctly. 
• If you are hand writing the note make sure it is legible! If not its okay to type out the body of the thank you and sign it.

Finally, If you do not hear from them after a set time, call or write to find out where they are in the process.

My Overall Experience:

I was nervous. I have never been a good interviewee. I jumble my words, forget what it is I am saying, make little eye contact. Its a huge anxiety thing for me. But this time I wanted to be confident and really put my best foot forward so I continuously told my self "what do you have to lose by just being you?" the answer... nothing. If I didn't get the position it was not the end of the world. There would be more opportunities and I needed to remind myself that I am still only a 1L.

I laid out my outfit, put my completed padfolio by my keys, and went over some potential sample answers in my head. One "common one" that the mock interview said to prepare for is "tell me about one of your weaknesses" the key is to turn your weakness into a positive. THIS QUESTION WAS STRESSING ME OUT. I couldn't think of any weaknesses that I've really turned into a positive yet because this whole first year of law school has been nothing but a continuous round of trial and error with a weird mixture of results. So I prepared the best answer that I could think of.

I arrived to the location 15 minutes early which worked in my favor because the attorney was ready for me right away. He actually cracked a joke about where I was from because his children attend a neighboring rival school. This definitely calmed a few of my nerves. Once we got into the conference room he asked if I had a copy of my resume and once I handed it to him he began explaining what it was they do at his firm. At one point he told me that he was actually done looking for interns until my resume was submitted. He liked that I was local, my previous employment gave me an tool under my belt that most did not have, and appreciated my former role as an athlete - team player, passionate, hardworking. He told me that he couldn't not interview me to see if I was a good fit. NONE OF THESE THINGS HAD ANYTHING TO DO WITH THE LAW. Which to me, I was a bit taken back. I was expecting him to ask me about my current course work, legal research and writing skills, etc. etc. But he was more interested in my character and ability to work because thats exactly what I would be doing... working.

By the time I knew it 45 minutes had flown by and I had only been asked one question: "what was the most important thing that you took away from your previous employment?" I gave an answer discussing how my position put me in contact with customers from all different backgrounds requiring nothing short but great customer service. It wasn't the best answer but it was enough. Somehow I was offered the summer position and I couldn't be more excited for summer to just get here. Now to just finish the spring semester with my best foot forward.