Advice on Cold-Emailing for Articling Jobs

[legallynotblondee]

I am currently seeking an articling position in Edmonton/surrounding areas, but am feeling a bit overwhelmed and discouraged.

I was planning to start cold-emailing some smaller firms, basically expressing my interest in articling with their firm if there are any openings, and attaching a cover letter and resume. Is this a viable plan? None of these firms have posted an opening for an articling student, but have taken on a student in the past. I'm wondering if anyone has succeeded with this approach in landing a job,  or what your experience was. Any tips would be much appreciated! 

[canuckfanatic]

This is how I (and many others) landed my articling job. The "trick" is to actually take the time to personalize your email and cover letter.

Here's a post I made a few years ago about my job hunt:

 

[scooter]

It is definitely a viable plan if you stick with it! Expect that some people will not respond, and it's not personal at all. The people that do respond will generally be nice and willing to help you out.

I think that @canuckfanatic's post linked above has a lot of really good tips and I would try to emulate their approach in terms of research, personalization, etc.

Some additional things that I would do:

• The first line of your email should stand out as personalized to the person & firm. Even something simple like "I saw you are X Position at ABC Firm, and I am interested in..." - Get the person's attention and show them that this isn't some mass email sent to 1,000 people. Don't bury the personalization somewhere in the middle or at the end.
• Keep it short - ideally your entire email should fit on someone's phone screen without scrolling.
• End the email with a specific "call to action" - what do you want the person to do? Speak with you, intro you to the appropriate contact, etc.? Make it easy for the person to respond. For example, "Would you have 20 minutes next week to discuss XYZ? Best, legallynotblondee" Or maybe you just want to ask them a direct question like "Are you planning to hire an articling student this year?" - this would be easy for them to respond to, and voila, you've started a conversation!
• Don't be afraid to follow up politely if you don't hear back. I'd say maybe 1-1.5 weeks later? A lot of people will see your email and intend to reply, but then forget because other things come up. Respond to the email thread with something quick like "Hi Name, I just wanted to follow up on my interest in articling at ABC Firm. Are you planning to hire an articling student this year?" In my experience this type of email gets way more replies than the first personalized email. This works best if the second email is really short and to the point.
• If you don't hear back from one person, don't give up on the firm completely. Try reaching out to someone else. Don't assume it's a "no" until someone actually responds and tells you that they aren't hiring.
• If someone replies but says they aren't hiring, ask them if they know of anyone else that you should reach out to instead. If they've taken the time to respond instead of just ignoring your email, they may be willing to help you out

[ZineZ]

39 minutes ago, scooter said:

• Get the person's attention and show them that this isn't some mass email sent to 1,000 people. Don't bury the personalization somewhere in the middle or at the end.
• Keep it short - ideally your entire email should fit on someone's phone screen without scrolling.
• End the email with a specific "call to action" - what do you want the person to do? Speak with you, intro you to the appropriate contact, etc.? Make it easy for the person to respond. For example, "Would you have 20 minutes next week to discuss XYZ? Best, legallynotblondee" Or maybe you just want to ask them a direct question like "Are you planning to hire an articling student this year?" - this would be easy for them to respond to, and voila, you've started a conversation
• If you don't hear back from one person, don't give up on the firm completely. Try reaching out to someone else. Don't assume it's a "no" until someone actually responds and tells you that they aren't hiring.
• If someone replies but says they aren't hiring, ask them if they know of anyone else that you should reach out to instead.

Can't emphasize the bolded ones enough. And a related couple of notes that I'm going to highlight because this has both worked for me, and for people I've batted for:

• If you get that call, come prepared. Spend 30 minutes or so figuring out what that person/firm is working on, or has worked on. Find ways to link your experiences to those files/areas. Ask questions based on all of it. Show active interest in their work.
• But do NOT make the other person feel like they need drive the conversation. 

[legallynotblondee]

2 hours ago, scooter said:

It is definitely a viable plan if you stick with it! Expect that some people will not respond, and it's not personal at all. The people that do respond will generally be nice and willing to help you out.

I think that @canuckfanatic's post linked above has a lot of really good tips and I would try to emulate their approach in terms of research, personalization, etc.

Some additional things that I would do:

• The first line of your email should stand out as personalized to the person & firm. Even something simple like "I saw you are X Position at ABC Firm, and I am interested in..." - Get the person's attention and show them that this isn't some mass email sent to 1,000 people. Don't bury the personalization somewhere in the middle or at the end.
• Keep it short - ideally your entire email should fit on someone's phone screen without scrolling.
• End the email with a specific "call to action" - what do you want the person to do? Speak with you, intro you to the appropriate contact, etc.? Make it easy for the person to respond. For example, "Would you have 20 minutes next week to discuss XYZ? Best, legallynotblondee" Or maybe you just want to ask them a direct question like "Are you planning to hire an articling student this year?" - this would be easy for them to respond to, and voila, you've started a conversation!
• Don't be afraid to follow up politely if you don't hear back. I'd say maybe 1-1.5 weeks later? A lot of people will see your email and intend to reply, but then forget because other things come up. Respond to the email thread with something quick like "Hi Name, I just wanted to follow up on my interest in articling at ABC Firm. Are you planning to hire an articling student this year?" In my experience this type of email gets way more replies than the first personalized email. This works best if the second email is really short and to the point.
• If you don't hear back from one person, don't give up on the firm completely. Try reaching out to someone else. Don't assume it's a "no" until someone actually responds and tells you that they aren't hiring.
• If someone replies but says they aren't hiring, ask them if they know of anyone else that you should reach out to instead. If they've taken the time to respond instead of just ignoring your email, they may be willing to help you out

Thank you so much for this! 
If the firm has a careers/hiring section on their website, is it worth using that email to apply even if there isn’t a posting? Or is it better to pick an actual member of the firm and ask them? Thanks for your help 🙂

[legallynotblondee]

3 hours ago, canuckfanatic said:

This is how I (and many others) landed my articling job. The "trick" is to actually take the time to personalize your email and cover letter.

Here's a post I made a few years ago about my job hunt:

 

Thank you for this! Your post was super helpful. Did you essentially outline 2-3 notable things and follow with asking whether they are hiring? I’m struggling with whether I should outright say “I’m interested in articling with X Firm, if any positions exist”

 

Thanks for your help-the whole process is daunting. 

[LMP]

You don't have to be shy about it. I used the same strategy for my 1L job search and everyone was very open to a direct ask. Frankly, a lot of these smaller firms are pretty flattered you're expressing such a clear interest and people are happy to try and help you out. 

Everyone is happy to talk and no one will take offense if you ask them directly about hiring. 

[Phaedrus]

Here's a previous post I made about my approach to networking to find articles. 

 

[ZineZ]

Quick note - I'm pinning this post as there's some great content in here, including linked content. 

[legallynotblondee]

Thank you for your help everyone! It is very appreciated!

[canuckfanatic]

11 hours ago, legallynotblondee said:

Thank you for this! Your post was super helpful. Did you essentially outline 2-3 notable things and follow with asking whether they are hiring? I’m struggling with whether I should outright say “I’m interested in articling with X Firm, if any positions exist”

 

Thanks for your help-the whole process is daunting. 

Here's the (redacted) verbatim email I sent that lead to my articling job:

Quote

RE: Articling Inquiry - Canuckfanatic

Dear [Name Partner],

I am writing to inquire about whether Law Firm LLP (LF) is considering adding an articling student to its team. I am drawn to LF because of my strong interest in being a part of [City]'s economic development, which is reflected by my membership on the policy team for the [City] Board of Trade [NTD: I was aware that this particular firm cared a lot about community involvement/economic development of the community].

I recently completed my J.D. at [Law School], where I served as President of the [Student Organization] and [was selected for X award].

Attached below is my cover letter, resume, and transcript. Please let me know if there are any further steps I should take to pursue an articling position with LF, or if you need any additional information.

Thank you,

Canuckfanatic
[Phone #]

Notice how short I kept the email, and how I asked for a job in the first sentence. As said above, it needs to be to-the-point. 

Edited February 14, 2024 by canuckfanatic

[legallynotblondee]

10 minutes ago, canuckfanatic said:

Here's the (redacted) verbatim email I sent that lead to my articling job:

Notice how short I kept the email, and how I asked for a job in the first sentence. As said above, it needs to be to-the-point. 

Thank you! This is super helpful!!

[Constantine]

On 2/14/2024 at 10:05 AM, canuckfanatic said:

Here's the (redacted) verbatim email I sent that lead to my articling job:

Notice how short I kept the email, and how I asked for a job in the first sentence. As said above, it needs to be to-the-point. 

This templated is GOATED. Thanks for sharing. 

[VarsityBlues]

On 2/13/2024 at 9:26 PM, canuckfanatic said:

This is how I (and many others) landed my articling job. The "trick" is to actually take the time to personalize your email and cover letter.

Here's a post I made a few years ago about my job hunt:

 

This post was very helpful during my recruit. Some additional points:

OP, if you stick with it, cold emailing and cold applying can work. Not everyone will respond, and that’s normal, just don’t take it personally. The ones who do reply are usually friendly and open to helping.

To make your email stand out, start with a sentence that clearly shows you’ve researched the person or firm. Something simple like, “I saw you’re a [Position] at [Firm], and I’m really interested in…” immediately signals that this isn’t a generic mass email. Keep the email short—ideally, it should fit on a phone screen without scrolling. At the end, be clear about what you want, whether it’s a quick call, an introduction to the right person, or a direct answer on hiring. A specific request makes it easier for the person to reply.

If you don’t hear back, follow up in a week or so. A lot of people see emails, mean to respond, and then forget. A short, direct follow-up like, “Hi [Name], I just wanted to check in on my interest in articling at [Firm]. Are you hiring this year?” often gets better results than the initial email. If someone says they aren’t hiring, ask if they know of any other firms that might be. If they took the time to respond instead of ignoring you, they might be willing to point you in the right direction.

When applying cold, start by making a list of firms in your practice areas of interest and in locations you’d be willing to work. Once you have your list, pick a few firms each week, research them, and tailor your applications. Address your cover letter to the right person, whether it’s the hiring manager, head/chair of practice group, or another lawyer. Your email should briefly highlight two or three key things about you. Some people suggest not attaching your resume and transcript in the first email, and waiting to send application info only after setting up a coffee chat or phone call. Sometimes lawyers will ask you for it. 

Cold applications often work better than applying to job postings. A lot of firms don’t post openings but will consider a good candidate if they come across one.