Career Planning Timeline

Year 1, Semester 1

• Schedule an appointment with a Center for Professional Development counselor (after Nov. 1).
• Lay out plan with counselor for desired internships, externships, and fellowships.
• Join student activities and clubs that will benefit your job search or help determine your interests.
• Begin your research for summer jobs, externships, or volunteer opportunities (beginning in November).
• Prepare for Department of Justice Honors Program opportunities.
• Ask your career counselor for alumni contacts in cities you will visit over Winter Break. Contact them to schedule informational interviews.
• Attend career-planning workshops.
• Draft resume.
• Use a professional email address for all correspondence.
• Create a professional voicemail message.
• Develop a system to monitor resumes sent and responses received.
• Start a file to track networking contacts.
• Contact individuals not associated with law school for references.
• Finalize resume, targeted to desired employers.
• Prepare cover letters to targeted employers.
• Send resumes on Dec. 1 to selected employers (usually larger firms).

Note: Employers are not allowed to consider student resumes until after Dec. 1. Have yours ready to mail that day.

• Review your Facebook profile and Google your name to ensure that you present a professional image on the Web.
• Network during Winter Break.
• Apply for summer volunteer positions with the DOJ after Dec. 1.

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Year 1, Semester 2

• Remember, your second-summer internship, whether volunteer or pay, could lead to post-graduation employment. Focus on opportunities that may result in a post-graduate position.
  
• Begin online job search.
• Organize your interview attire. 
• Follow up to make sure employers received your resume.
• Watch job postings.
• Participate in a mock interview.
• Apply for internships and externships.
• Research funding availability for public-interest opportunities.
• Participate in various career fairs; attend the Northwest Public Service Job Fair in Seattle and Portland in February, and the Spring Career Fest Job Fair at Gonzaga University School of Law.
• Contact your career counselor if you do not have a summer position secured by April 1. Consider volunteer positions.
• Sign up for Northwest Minority Job Fair.
• Apply for summer or fall externships.
• Network during Spring Break.

Summer After Your First Year

• Focus on internship opportunities with the potential to result in a post-graduate position. 
• Submit a note to secure a position on Law Review or the Journal of International Law.
• Update your resume  and class rank for a summer position; contact the Center for Professional Development for review.
• Draft various cover letters; have the Center for Professional Development review.
• Begin applying to employers scheduled to interview in the fall. The Center for Professional Development will update the employer list throughout the summer. Applications are due early August. Apply for everything you think you may be interested in.
• Check the Center for Professional Development job postings for public-interest opportunities for the upcoming summer. Watch for Equal Justice Works application by July 15.
• Mail application materials to employers who do not interview at GU. These include most out-of-state employers.
• Maintain your "resume-and-responses-received" tracking system.
• Complete your application for DOJ Honors SLIP Program (late August). Contact your career counselor for application strategies.
• Network throughout the summer.

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Year 2, Semester 1

• Organize your job hunt strategy.
• Utilize the Center for Professional Development for specific out-of-town referrals.
• Submit materials to other fall on-campus interview employers.
• Participate in every opportunity available for fall on-campus interviews.
• Research interviewers and organizations where you have obtained an interview; review sample interview questions.
• Watch for job postings; research jobs on the Web.
• Participate in a mock interview; watch the "Do's and Don'ts of Interviewing" DVD.
• Organize your attire for first and second interviews.
• Attend Northwest Minority Job Fair and Equal Justice Works Fair.
• Meet with a career counselor.
• Inform the Center for Professional Development of second interviews, job offers, and acceptances.
• Begin preparation in December for Judicial Clerkships. Remember, you do not have to be in the top of the class to apply to a local court.
• Looking for a job in a different state? Research employers and apply; let employers know when you will be in the vicinity for an interview. In your cover letter, show a connection between you and the out-of-state location. Obtain contact information from the Center for Professional Development for more informational interviews over Winter Break. Search for jobs online.
• Network over Winter Break.
• If you are still searching for a summer position, research and apply to potential employers during Winter Break.
• Confirm that your email address, voice message, and Internet image are professional.

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Year 2, Semester 2

• Begin applying for judicial clerkships in January. Visit the Center for Professional Development for judicial clerkship cover letters, etc. Choose professors for references.
• Apply for summer/fall externships.
• Review sample interview questions.
• Watch for job postings and search for jobs online.
• Attend Career Services how-to-network programs.
• Attend Spring Career Fair and Northwest Public Service Job Fair, etc.
• Consider volunteer work.
• Be aware of fellowship opportunities.
• Be aware of public interest and government hiring needs.
• If you are still searching for a job in April, continue searching but plan to volunteer. Contact a career counselor.
• Network over Spring Break.
• Update resume.
• Looking for a job in a different state? Research employers and apply; let employers know when you will be in the vicinity for an interview. In your cover letter, show a connection between you and the out-of-state location. Obtain contact information from the Center for Professional Development for more informational interviews over Spring/Summer Break. Search for jobs online.

Summer After Second Year

• Apply for fall on-campus interview program.
• Continue to apply for judicial clerkships.
• Watch job postings.
• Update your resume and class rank, including your summer job.
• Begin searching for post-graduate jobs; contact the Center for Professional Development.
• Search for jobs online.
• Apply for DOJ Honors positions in August. Contact your career counselor for application strategies.
• Research employers and submit applications.
• Looking for a job in a different state? Research employers and apply; let employers know when you will be in the vicinity for an interview. In your cover letter, show a connection between you and the out-of-state location. Obtain contact information from the Center for Professional Development for more informational interviews over Spring/Summer Break. Search for jobs online.

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Year 3, Semester 1

• Meet with the Center for Professional Development and make sure we are aware of your interests.
• Analyze your job-campaign strategy and allocate time to various methods; remember that referrals and direct applications yield the best results.
• If you do not have a post-graduate position by the fall of your third year, do not get discouraged. Keep researching and applying to organizations. The hiring season for 3Ls picks up in April and May, but many smaller firms and most public interest organizations will not hire until after bar results are received. Use this time to lay the groundwork to obtain one of these positions.
• Participate in fall on-campus interviews; attend Equal Justice Works Fair.
• Beginning in December, apply for judicial clerkships in states that are hiring.
• Contact alumni and schedule meetings.
• Network, network, network!!
• Apply for government honors programs and public-interest fellowships.
• Watch job postings; search for jobs on the internet.
• Attend career-oriented programs.
• Consider volunteer work to gain experience in an area of interest.
• Determine where you will take the bar.
• Looking for a job in a different state? Research employers and apply; let employers know when you will be in the vicinity for an interview. In your cover letter, show a connection between you and the out-of-state location. Obtain contact information from the Center for Professional Development for more informational interviews over Spring/Summer Break. Search for jobs online.

Year 3, Semester 2

• Complete bar registration materials.
• Make plans to take a bar review course.
• Complete the Center for Professional Development graduate survey.
• If you plan to relocate, ask the Center for Professional Development for a reciprocity letter so that you may receive access to another law school's job postings.
• If you do not have a post-graduate position by the spring semester of your third year, do not get discouraged. Keep researching and applying. The hiring season for 3Ls picks up in April and May, but many smaller firms and most public interest organizations will not hire until after bar results are received. Continue to lay the groundwork to obtain one of these positions.
• Before graduation, make sure the Center for Professional Development has your current phone/address/email and interest area if still seeking employment.
• Looking for a job in a different state? Research employers and apply; let employers know when you will be in the vicinity for an interview. In your cover letter, show a connection between you and the out-of-state location. Obtain contact information from the Center for Professional Development for more informational interviews over Spring/Summer Break. Search for jobs online.
• Once employed, celebrate! Then, fill out the Graduate Survey form.

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