In what might be regarded as an industry shift away from the traditional on-campus interview (OCI) process, several prominent law firms, including Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati and Goodwin Procter, are increasingly favouring the route of early recruitment. Get a detailed overview in this law.com article.
The move to pre-OCI recruitment initiatives is mainly driven by the high-stakes competition to secure top law school talent. The primary aim is to get a foot in the door with second-year law students (2Ls) before the onslaught of the formal on-campus interview process. There is evidence to suggest that this trend is gaining traction, with nearly twice as many early offers extended to 2Ls for summer 2023 programs compared to the previous year, according to the latest data from the National Association for Law Placement (NALP).
Proactive in their approach, some law firms, such as the Boston-based Goodwin Procter and Palo in California’s Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati, have already embraced this shift. Others, including the Los Angeles-based Sheppard Mullin, are mulling over the potential benefits of jumping the traditional recruiting queue.
Although the ‘free market’ alternative to campus recruiting could usher in a raft of opportunities for both firms and law students, it also heralds a notable departure from longstanding recruitment conventions in the legal industry. As more firms consider this path, it creates an interesting landscape for law school recruiting, potentially redefining traditional practices.