Legal Recruitment: How to Explain Bad Ratings

As a practicing attorney who regularly volunteers at a couple of local law schools, I spend a fair amount of time advising students. A question I often get during recruiting season is, “How can I explain to interviewers why my grades aren’t great?” While it’s true that you can’t change your grades, the way you explain less-than-stellar grades can be the difference between a callback interview and, well, nothing at all.

First of all, it should be noted that qualifications are, as most people assume, the factor that most interviewers assign the most weight. However, the scores often serve as a cut point rather than a grading system. That is, a company may, as a policy, only consider students in the top 25% of their class, but a student ranked in the 87th percentile of their class is not necessarily in a much better position to receive an offer than a student ranked in the 87th percentile in his class. 77.

However, if you think your qualifications place you outside the target range of most employers, a convincing explanation may give your interviewer a reason to fully consider you—and perhaps a callback interview.

As a matter of threshold, I think the bad ratings should be addressed in an interview. Some students (and even some career services advisors) believe it’s best not to call attention to bad grades and instead focus on making a positive impression during an interview. However, whether a student chooses to address or ignore the grades, the interviewer it is will consider them. Not talking about a C+ is not going to change it to an A-. In my experience, a student who can speak candidly and thoughtfully about her failing grades leaves a much better impression than one who simply ignores the problem. An honest and well thought out explanation suggests a student who is self-aware, self-assured, analytical, and enthusiastic about self-improvement. All important traits in a new lawyer. On the other hand, it can be assumed that a student who does not address his failing grades is simply a bad student.

for 1L: If you are a 1L interviewing in the spring for your first summer job as a law student, then you only have one semester of grades to assess. If those grades are not as good as you would have liked, your explanation should:

1. Discuss what you learned by taking tests
2. Please provide some concise details about why your exam did not get as many points as others
3. Highlight what you did Correct
4. Explain how you intend to improve your performance in the current semester (spring)

For example: “My scores are not where I expected them to be. However, when I went back and compared my essays to the sample essay, I noticed a few areas where I was dropping points on the chart. On the problem-finding questions, I was able to identify all the important problems, but my analysis went too deep, which did not leave me much time to discuss the minor secondary problems in the troubleshooter. For example, one of our criminal law experts involved a kidnapping, illegal imprisonment, and murder that took place in a barn. In my answer, I thoroughly analyzed each of the elements of felonies. The professor’s model response, however, included only a cursory analysis of the items, but then also addressed other minor crimes that I did not do, such as the murderer committing shoplifting when he took a wheelbarrow that was not his to move the body. out of the barn. For this semester, I’ve already started working on past exams from my current professors to get a feel for the balance of breadth and depth my professors prefer, and I’m going to tailor my essay answers to each professor’s preferences.”

An explanation that includes a plan for how to improve grades in the future may influence an interviewer to give you the benefit of the doubt. However, 2Ls and 3Ls who have two or more semesters of failing grades will have a harder time convincing interviewers that their poor test results were a fluke.

For 2L and 3L: Poor grades for two or more semesters suggest to interviewers that the candidate is simply not a good student. However, there are still things that 2Ls and 3Ls can do to mitigate the impact of poor grades.

First, all other components of your file must be Perfect. Make especially sure that the writing sample shines. A great writing sample shows the interviewer that he has strong analytical skills and that his writing is clear, concise, and organized.

Similarly, work on your resume until you’re sure it will get an interviewer’s attention. If you don’t have an eye for design, ask a friend who does to help you with the design and layout of the resume. Ask your Career Services office and any mentors you may have for help. Get as many comments as possible. And most importantly, make sure your job descriptions and previous experiences are clear, concise, accurate, and well written. People often don’t realize that a resume is actually a writing sample. A poorly written resume (wordy descriptions, time shifts, typos) is often the only reason an interviewer should reject a candidate. If a student is not willing to put in the effort to put together a perfect resume, interviewers will reason, so what is the probability that he or she will be willing to put in the effort that the job requires?

Finally, once you’re sure your candidate package is perfect, prepare and rehearse an explanation for your disappointing transcript. Be honest. Call attention to any academic achievements. Remind the interviewer of your stellar writing sample or other work product. Focus on the positive reviews you received on internships or internships. In other words, explain that his qualifications do not reflect his true abilities as a lawyer.

Remember, your goal is to get a job. Show the employer that you are the best candidate for the position.