1. What if NGE does not have on-campus recruiting at my school?
2. What is a call back interview like?
3. What is the process after my call back?
4. Can I split my summer?
5. Will I have a mentor?
6. What training will I receive?
7. What pro bono opportunities are available to summer associates?
8. Is there a social component to the program?
9. Can you describe a typical day for an NGE summer associate?
10. Will I interact with partners?
11. What will I be paid?
12. Will I need to get a PDA device?
1. What if NGE does not have on-campus recruiting at my school? Write to us! After you have completed your first year of law school, you can submit your resume, cover letter and transcript to the recruiting contact.
2. What is a call back interview like? We want to take the time to get to know you and for you to get to know us. Over the course of the day, you will meet with a variety of partners and associates. You will interview with four attorneys and have lunch with two additional associates. If you have a particular practice area that you intend to concentrate on, please let us know so that we can try to make sure some attorneys from that practice group are on your interview schedule. Of course, there is no expectation that you will have selected a practice area at this time. We anticipate that following the first year, most law students are still in the exploratory phase.
3. What is the process after my call back? We will keep you in the loop throughout the application process. Typically, the Hiring Committee takes 1-2 weeks to evaluate an application after the call back.
4. Can I split my summer? We consider splitting on a case-by-case basis. Overall, we would like you to spend at least 8 consecutive weeks with us at the beginning of your summer.
5. Will I have a mentor? You will have two. Each summer associate is paired with a partner and associate mentor to guide you throughout the summer. They will serve as your “go-to” person for insider information on the firm, be an extra set of eyes for your assignments and answer any and all questions that may arise during your summer with us.
6. What training will I receive? In addition to mentoring, on-the-job-training and shadowing opportunities, we have a robust training program for our summer associates. Training begins with the basic nuts and bolts of working in a law firm and transitioning your research skills from a law school environment to the real world of paying clients. Throughout the summer, additional training programs may focus on topics such as professional communication skills, persuasive writing, law firm economics and litigation workshops.
7. What pro bono opportunities are available to summer associates? As members of the bar, we take our commitment to pro bono work very seriously. Each summer, we try to get our summer associates involved in a firm-wide project. In the past, summer associates have worked on matters such as advising the local family court in guardian and adoption matters and providing the Anti-Defamation League with cutting-edge legal research on civil rights issues. To learn more about the firm’s pro bono programs, click here.
8. Is there a social component to the program? Our goal is for you to get to know our attorneys both in and outside of the office. A variety of relaxed settings are available for socializing, from weekly practice group lunches, to after-work social events, to grabbing a coffee or ice cream with the attorneys you are working with. We also plan more organized events such as a firm-wide outing to a Chicago Cubs game, dinners at our partners’ homes, and heated cooking competitions.
9. Can you describe a typical day for an NGE summer associate?
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9:00 am. It’s “Oatmeal and Donuts” Wednesday in the firm cafe. I have breakfast with a couple of summer associates and grab an extra glazed doughnut to eat later.
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9:15 am. I sit down at my desk for a final read through of the research memo I finished yesterday afternoon regarding whether the National Labor Relations Board should afford deference to the factual findings of an external investigator hired by a union. After making sure the document flows and rewording a couple of sentences, I am happy with my work product. I print to final and drop it off with the assigning partner. We make plans to sit down later this afternoon to review my work.
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10:00 am. I’ve been invited to shadow a litigation associate for a hearing on a motion to send a breach of warranty case to arbitration. I walk to court with the client and attorney and listen in on the arguments the associate plans to make. The courtroom is packed with lawyers waiting for their case to be called. After a 10 minute oral argument, the motion is granted. The client is pleased and already gearing up for the arbitration!
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11:00 am. I begin my next assignment, which is a pro bono adoption matter I will be working on with my partner mentor. I read through the file to become familiar with the facts of the case and learn more about the family. I’m excited about helping with the adoption process.
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12:00 pm. I attend lunch with women associates and partners in the Women’s Network Group. The subject is particularly interesting as the attorneys are discussing the strategies they have used to strike a workable balance between being a successful professional and devoted parent.
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1:45 pm. I sit down with the memo I turned in this morning with the assigning partner. I’m a little nervous about having a face-to-face critique rather than just getting a grade. It ends up being a fantastic interaction. In addition to discussing my research findings, we talk about strategy decisions to be made now in light of my findings. The partner critiques my writing and we discuss other ways I could have structured the memo.
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2:15 pm. I get together with the assignment advisor partner and discuss the status of each one of my assigned projects.
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3:00 pm. Arrange lunch meeting with my partner mentor for tomorrow.
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3:10 pm. I work on a presentation I will be giving at the Labor & Employment group meeting regarding a recent employment discrimination decision. This will be a great opportunity to have a number of partners and associates in the Labor & Employment Group get to know me as well as my work product.
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6:00 pm. Along with my husband, we join some partners and their spouses for a nice dinner event at the home of an attorney in the Taxation practice group.
10. Will I interact with partners? Absolutely. Aside from the fact that one of your formal mentors will be a partner, you will work on assignments with partners, attend depositions, go to court and accompany partners to closings and mediations, to name a few examples. Our partners are hands on and look forward to sharing their experiences with you.
11. What will I be paid? Summer associates are paid a salary equivalent to the prorated amount of a first year associate salary.
12. Will I need to get a PDA device? The firm will issue you a Blackberry so that you can stay connected during your 10 weeks.
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