Scheduling In-firm Interviews

[Remedies]

Does anyone have advice on the best way to schedule multiple in-firm interviews? Should I schedule interviews back to back with the risk of being late to make sure that I can get most of them done on Monday or do I push some of them off to Tuesday so that I have enough time in between interviews? I want to make sure that I have enough time for the second/third round of interviews.

Unfortunately, most first in-firm interviews seem like they will start on the hour so I might have to wait an hour if I don’t schedule them back to back.

[lawfacade123]

How many firms are you trying to interview with and is this going to be in person or online?

If it's online I wouldn't be too worried about going back to back - I don't recall my interviews taking a full hour. If it's in person and you have to go in between offices I definitely would not book them back to back, but I can't speak to that experience personally. 

I did five (which was the maximum that was recommended to me) and all fit comfortably on Monday with at least a half hour spacing between. Granted this was virtual interviews and a few firms were offering interviews on the hour and half hour. If you're trying to do more than five I just wouldn't. Everyone I know who tried to do that last year regretted it and ended up cancelling even first interviews that could have gone to other students. 

If you really can't fit them all in on Monday, just prioritize and try to book the ones you like the most earlier and the ones you like the least later (also trying to factor in how much you think they like you back). I wouldn't schedule any first interviews on Tuesday afternoon unless some disaster occurs - you want that open for second/third interviews.

Edited October 4, 2022 by lawfacade123

[QueensDenning]

Schedule back to back. Employers know you're interviewing with different firms and if an interview goes long you can excuse yourself politely - they'll understand. (this is assuming all interviews are online. 

[Remedies]

Thanks for the advice!

I'm doing Vancouver in-firms and they're all in-person. Most of the firms are less than 10 minutes away from each other but I'm worried I'll be really frazzled from all the running around or I'll give a bad impression running in because I'm late.

[QueensDenning]

7 minutes ago, Remedies said:

Thanks for the advice!

I'm doing Vancouver in-firms and they're all in-person. Most of the firms are less than 10 minutes away from each other but I'm worried I'll be really frazzled from all the running around or I'll give a bad impression running in because I'm late.

yeah, then definitely don't schedule your interviews back to back. Being late because you didn't give yourself enough time between interviews is not a good look. On zoom, back to back was doable. 

Edited October 5, 2022 by QueensDenning

[QMT20]

Does back to back mean one-hour per interview?

Back before the pandemic the advice was to set two-hours aside for each interview. Most lasted around an hour and a half and it gave you enough time to go to the next firm and maybe wait a few minutes in the lobby to review your notes. You could schedule five in one-day that way if you did 8, 10, 12, 2, and 4. If one of the ones in the middle gets thrown off (for example 3 instead of 2), you might be able to beg a firm to let you do 5 as your last interview. In my experience, they were relatively flexible with helping you squeeze them in on Monday. That was when in firms were actually in the firms though. 

You can schedule 2 on Tuesday morning but if you had a lot of in firm offers, you were likely to cancel those anyway for second-round interviews or coffees that the firms who are interested ask you do with their lawyers. 

If everything is back to in-person now you should consider timing for dinners, lunches, and receptions as well. 

[Remedies]

2 hours ago, QMT20 said:

Does back to back mean one-hour per interview?

Yes. It seems like most firms are scheduling students on the hour based on their emails. Thanks for the advice! 5 interviews on Monday then 2 on Tuesday is seems like the most optimal

[Swami]

5 hours ago, Remedies said:

Thanks for the advice!

I'm doing Vancouver in-firms and they're all in-person. Most of the firms are less than 10 minutes away from each other but I'm worried I'll be really frazzled from all the running around or I'll give a bad impression running in because I'm late.

I gave myself at least 30 mins between each interview so I had time to run around. 15 mins was the shortest I had between but because I've been to the office before I wasn't too concerned. If you're nervous you could try a dry run of going to all the offices and figuring out where the entrances are so you aren't too frazzled trying to google map everything. I was also kinda worried and was google street viewing everything a few days before haha

[christinaA]

Just a quick question since we are on this topic: if a firm scheduled you on Tuesday morning because "all the slots on Monday" are booked out, does this mean that they are not really that interested in you, at least at this stage?

[Firecracker]

I just had a very chaotic series of phone calls for Vancouver in-firm scheduling and I'm left a little worried about the timing.

The first interviews for my first and second choice are, respectively, Day 1 afternoon and Day 2 morning. My first choice had a Day 1 morning opening but I had already scheduled another firm that called me first. Oi. What a stressful system.

How much does it impact your chances to have your first interview on Day 1 morning... vs Day 1 afternoon... vs Day 2 morning... etc.?

I know that firms wouldn't offer first interviews on Day 2 if you didn't have any chance, because they don't have time to spend on people that they aren't considering. But I've also heard people say not to schedule firms on Day 2 because doing so is essentially a write-off.

 

MOD NOTE: Merged these two topics as they are similar. This is where Firecracker's thread started. 

 

[Ramesses]

I would say not important. I got more offers from my afternoon and second day interviews than the earlier ones. To be fair, I am not a morning person so I did better later on and with the "additional practice" I got from the earlier interviews.

[Ramesses]

21 minutes ago, christinaA said:

Just a quick question since we are on this topic: if a firm scheduled you on Tuesday morning because "all the slots on Monday" are booked out, does this mean that they are not really that interested in you, at least at this stage?

it means you are not that high on their list now but this can change really quickly with the process. Don't psych yourself out. 

[lawfacade123]

The timing is an indication of interest. There are other ways to express interest, so focus on those now and don't stress too much about what's already happened. The fact they wanted you in the morning is a great sign. 🙂 Good luck!

[AverageStudent2022]

I think it is circumstantial. For students with excellent grades, experience, etc. that firms actively pursue it may be less important. For the rest of students, timing is very important to communicate interest and maximize your chances of getting an offer.

Edited October 6, 2022 by AverageStudent2022

[Cool_name]

In the articling recruit, I had my first interview with the firm that hired me at 4 on the last day of interviews. 
 

So don’t overthink it.

[VIPigeon]

1 hour ago, lawfacade123 said:

The timing is an indication of interest. There are other ways to express interest, so focus on those now and don't stress too much about what's already happened. The fact they wanted you in the morning is a great sign. 🙂 Good luck!

Is this confirmed? If a firm called me right at 8 AM on the dot and scheduled me for 8 AM on the Monday (and a lunch that day), does that actually mean I’m at “the top of their list” or is it possible it’s all randomized? 

[sunshinecoast]

57 minutes ago, VIPigeon said:

Is this confirmed? If a firm called me right at 8 AM on the dot and scheduled me for 8 AM on the Monday (and a lunch that day), does that actually mean I’m at “the top of their list” or is it possible it’s all randomized? 

There is unfortunately no way to know for sure. When I went through the OCI process a few firms explicitly told students that timing of interviews was random and not a reflection if interest. On the other hand, I am also aware of firms that rank students and hold the 8 am spots for their preferred candidates. I would take it as a very good sign and an expression of the firms interest in you. 

Remember that a firms interest in you will change throughout the week as in firms progress. Also first choice language is very important for most firms and will have an impact on offers.

[lawfacade123]

1 hour ago, VIPigeon said:

Is this confirmed? If a firm called me right at 8 AM on the dot and scheduled me for 8 AM on the Monday (and a lunch that day), does that actually mean I’m at “the top of their list” or is it possible it’s all randomized? 

I interpreted that as a very positive sign when I was going through recruit. I don't know if I'd go so far as "the top of the their list", but I think it's a safe bet they really like you.

[Jaggers]

When I was making calls (which admittedly was a while ago) the instructions we got were to book the person into the earliest slot they would agree to. We didn't like booking Tuesdays, but we would if that was the only possibility. It ends up being a bit random because a lot of firms are phoning a lot of the same people all at the same time. I doubt that if you plotted Monday interview times vs eventual job offers on a chart that there would be a huge amount of difference, and the difference probably comes more from the student side rather than the firm side.

[Psychometronic]

On 10/6/2022 at 9:20 AM, Firecracker said:

- snip -

Sometimes it really does mean their Monday is full. Some firms (ex: mine) slot people in where they fit and order doesn't matter. Don't overthink and focus on what you can control.

[Lawllapalooza]

9 hours ago, Psychometronic said:

 

In addition to this I'll say that psyching yourself out based on when the firm scheduled you won't do you any favours. Even if it does mean something, things change. When I was in 2L one firm sent me an ITC shortly after OCIs. The same firm offered my friend an in firm several days later, the timing of which clearly indicating it was due to someone else cancelling. My friend got a job offer from them, I did not. Your order going in does not determine your order coming out.