Introduction to Clerkship Interviews & Assessments

/ Interview & Assessments / By
Welcome to Interview & Assessments – the stage widely acknowledged as the most stressful and time-intensive part of the clerkship process. Thankfully, once you progressed the written applications and reached this stage, you have a pretty decent chance at landing a clerkship.
 
So what happens now and what are some essential tips on how to succeed?
 

The Assessment Stages

From hereinafter, the process is ordinarily split into several components. Note that the specific assessments may differ across firms but the expectations at each stage are similar.
 
  • Networking or Information Evening
  • Coffee catch ups
  • First Round Interview
  • Second Round Interview
  • Cocktail Evenings
  • Offers Being Released

 

Networking or Information Evening

Prior to your first interview, you will be invited to attend a networking evening. This event runs for about 2 to 3 hours and involves a gathering of all the prospective clerkship candidates who have progressed through the written application and lawyers from the firm.
 
Subject to the firm, the evening may be split into two components: an information session and a networking session. The informative session goes into some depth about the firm, its culture, reputation and involvement in some interesting transactions. The networking session gives you an opportunity to speak to lawyers about their experiences at the firm. If you have multiple information evenings to attend on the same night, I recommend that you prioritise the informative components. This is because the informative part of the evening will give you the most information on the firm, including a deep insight into the firm’s most salient features: from their practice areas to their initiatives for innovation and diversity.
 
Tip: If you are not prepared or confident, you do not need to approach your interviewing partners or lawyers if you see them on the night. It may be better to start on a clean slate.
 
If you would like more tips on what to do at your next networking evening, read this article.

 


Coffee Catch ups 

Once you pass the written applications, you should be assigned a “buddy”. This person is usually a graduate or junior lawyer who will try to organise a coffee with you before your first interview. Your buddy is to be your go-to person for any questions you have in relation to the firm and are a valuable resource. They also do NOT play a deciding role in your clerkship application so do not hesitate to ask them questions on matters you feel uncomfortable discussing with your interviewers. Buddies are simply there for you to bounce ideas off or calm your nerves before the actual interview, so take advantage of the opportunity!

Being prepared for these coffee catch ups can give you a lot more information and I suggest you take some time to prepare some questions for them. Try to organise coffee catch ups with them before (and maybe even after) each interview you have with the firm.

Tip: on what to prepare, I often wanted to learn about my interviewer and their interview style so I know what to expect. Some of these conversations gave me some questions to expect in the interview (which were actually asked!) I also highly recommend rehearsing a few prepared interview responses with your buddy, especially if they are questions you are less confident in answering, and seek their feedback on ways to improve. They were able to give me some great insights on how to impress the interviewer.

 


The Interview Stages

Each interview slot is scheduled for an hour, available on all weekdays from 9 am to 5 pm. You should book your interview time slot as soon as you receive the interview offer as these slots fill up quickly. As to what date or time to select, the focus should be in relation to when you will most likely perform the best – the time where you are the most vocal and responsive.
 
Once you have booked in your interview, you will receive an interview confirmation and list of who your interviewers are. Note that your interviewers may change, but this is not a common occurrence. At the first round interview, most students are interviewed by a senior lawyer or partner and one HR representative. The second round interview usually involves two senior lawyers/partners.
 
At your interview, you will realise that the structure of the interview is wholly dependent on the interviewers and may differ quite significantly from what you expect. Nonetheless as a general guideline, first round interviewers are more structured (as the HR representative is present) as compared to the second round interview. This means that there may be behavioural questions, culture fit questions and others arising from your written application. At the same time, most interviews don’t follow a script so the conversation can literally be about anything.
 
For a detailed guide on how to prepare for the clerkship interview, see this article.
 
 


Cocktail Evenings

Alas, you have reached the final stage of your clerkship. More of a celebration than an assessment, the second round of cocktail evenings often happen a day or week before offers come out. This is simply a formality and time to enjoy yourself – speak to other candidates, students and friends you may have made during this intense clerkship process. While there are still ways to ‘lose’ that clerkship offer, the decision by now has already been made. Eat the food, drink the wines and just relax – you deserve it.
 

Offers being released

Probably one of the most anxious and gripping experiences that I had ever gone through was the wait on offers day. While I have heard that morning calls generally means an offer and afternoon calls mean rejection, this has been less than accurate in my experience. The only advice I can give you once you receive an offer is to hold off on accepting it right away, especially if you are waiting on other firms. Law firms appreciate that students may get multiple offers and would usually give you a couple of days to consider which firm to choose.