Clerkships

So yesterday I was talking to a friend of mine that is heading so Seton Hall in the fall (and hoping to transfer up) and the topic quickly turned to the idea of clerkships. He seems very set on trying to clerk for at least a year after his legal education. I have also considered clerking, if I could land a good clerkship (federal appeals or state supreme) but am definately not set on doing this.

In our discussion we both agreed that a year clerking beats a year of 80 hour weeks in terms of quality of life, but we didn't know how it translated to the job market. Do students that clerk have the ability to slide easily into big law? Do students that clerk mainly end up working at DoJ or a similar government agency? Is a student that clerked more desirable than a student coming straight from undergrad? Less desirable?

These are questions that I will have to find the answers to while in law school. Hopefully my friend will figure them out first and then pass the answers along.

I don't think I will consider strength in placing students in clerkships in my decision, I figure if I attend a strong school and do ok, I should be able to find something in whatever field I decide to become involved in.

The current plan is for tomorrow's post to include the more trim list of schools that I am applying to.