What makes a competitive applicant for clerkship, vacationer, internship or graduate positions?
Whether you are an Australian university student in your:
- first-year thinking about how to secure future internship/clerkship or graduate roles;
- penultimate year applying for summer clerkship, vacationer or internship programs; or
- final year applying for graduate programs or entry-level roles,
it is important to understand how you can stand out amongst other university students when there is stiff competition for these roles.
There is, of course, no magic formula for the "perfect" candidate. However, from what I have observed as a law student and as a lawyer (who has seen seasonal clerks and graduates come through), strong candidates tend to have at least some of the following:
- Strong academic results: Technical excellence is valued by many, if not all, top-tier and mid-tier law firms. Unfortunately, the reality is that an obvious marker of "technical excellence" is the average result (e.g. WAM/GPA) achieved by a student in their law degree. Whilst many firms will say that they do not have a strict "cut-off" for WAM/GPA, having a low average in your law degree can certainly hinder your application (especially for certain top-tier firms). What constitutes a competitive WAM/GPA will probably vary from firm to firm but, as a general rule, law students should aim for a distinction (75+) average in their law degree. Generally, the higher the better. Whilst marks are not the "be-all and end-all" (because the following factors will also matter), having a law average that is in the First Class Honours range will certainly make you attractive to top-tier law firms. In my view, this factor should probably be your number one priority (i.e. obtaining work experience and engaging in extracurricular activities should not come at the heavy expense of your law school grades).
- Legal work experience: Legal experience is not a necessity. Indeed, there are seasonal clerks or law graduates who had never set foot in a law firm prior to commencing their clerkship or graduate program. However, legal experience will allow you to better demonstrate your passion or interest in the law. For instance, being a paralegal at a top-tier commercial law firm will allow you to obtain experiences that can be discussed at clerkship interviews as to why you are interested in working in commercial law. Examples of relevant experience include being a paralegal in a law firm or in-house legal team, a research assistant to a barrister or a volunteer at a community legal centre.
- Other professional and non-professional work experience: Many commercial law firms are looking for "commercial awareness" or "business acumen". An easy way to demonstrate "commercial awareness" is to show that you understand how businesses work and the wider business world in which clients operate through your experience in other corporate fields. Examples of other professional experience include part-time jobs and internships in other fields (e.g. accounting, banking, consulting, marketing, etc.). Given that law is a client-focused industry, many law firms also like to see "customer service" experience (e.g. retail and hospitality jobs) on a candidate's resume.
- Pre-penultimate programs and workshops: In recent years, the top-tier firms have created programs and workshops for pre-penultimate year law students (e.g. the Allens Dive In Program). Entry to these programs tends to be competitive. A list of these programs can be found here. Participation in these programs (and any learnings from them) will enable you to better demonstrate your "informed" interest in commercial law.
- Extracurricular and volunteering activities: Extracurricular activities (whether law or non-law) are a common way to develop and showcase your problem-solving, teamwork and leadership skills (which cannot otherwise be developed in a traditional paralegal role for example). Examples of extracurricular activities include leadership roles in student societies, legal skills competitions (e.g. mooting, negotiation, client interviewing), business competitions (e.g. consulting case competitions, hackathons), etc.
- Personal interests and hobbies: Commercial law firms are not necessarily looking for candidates with cookie-cutter applications. Firms are also looking for "interesting" individuals who can strike up a good conversation. Some interviewers will ask you about your interests outside of the law. If you have interesting hobbies (keeping in mind that not all hobbies will be appropriate for professional job applications), then "selling" these on your resume is another way to stand out as a candidate. Examples of personal interests and hobbies include sports, music, start-ups, side projects, freelancing, arts and crafts, etc.
It goes without saying that the earlier you start working on the above factors (which also apply to non-law students and non-legal roles to differing extents), the more competitive you'll be as a candidate when it is time to apply for clerkship and graduate roles.
If you are in your first year of university, your "career strategy" should include most, if not all, of the above factors.
Long gone are the days when a university degree, without anything else, was enough to secure you a job (especially in the law).