Is clerking becoming a necessity for DOJ and non-DOJ Honors Programs? Forum

[Anonymous User]

It seems to me that everyone I know who has received offers for different HPs has clerked. Is this almost a new pseudo-requirement?

[Anonymous User]

Same here. Everyone I know is extremely impressive in other ways too— excellent grades, clerkship, sometimes another degree (PhD or Masters) or pre-law school work experience.

[Anonymous User]

I don’t think this is really new. I went through the honors program about 8 years ago and clerks dominated then as well. While government hiring can be really black box/holistic (especially DOJ), there’s also a pretty strong tradition in the government of using rubrics/checklists and giving points for having certain qualifications. Clerking is another thing that can add points. But it also tends to be associated with/signal other excellent qualifications as well.

[Anonymous User]

I don’t think this is really new. I went through the honors program about 8 years ago and clerks dominated then as well. While government hiring can be really black box/holistic (especially DOJ), there’s also a pretty strong tradition in the government of using rubrics/checklists and giving points for having certain qualifications. Clerking is another thing that can add points. But it also tends to be associated with/signal other excellent qualifications as well.

That makes sense to me that clerks would have a leg up. But I’m wondering if it’s like that for all DOJ divisions (maybe not EOIR) or non-DOJ honors programs as well. I’d also love to hear from anyone who was a 3L when they got an honors offer and what their resume looked like.

[Anonymous User]

Anecdotally, I know two people starting at DOJ CRT in the fall and they both have COA clerkships/COA level credentials. I know one person starting at DOJ Tax and they also have a COA clerkship. I would guess this fall was particularly competitive one in terms of numbers given the administration change.

[Anonymous User]

I don’t think this is really new. I went through the honors program about 8 years ago and clerks dominated then as well. While government hiring can be really black box/holistic (especially DOJ), there’s also a pretty strong tradition in the government of using rubrics/checklists and giving points for having certain qualifications. Clerking is another thing that can add points. But it also tends to be associated with/signal other excellent qualifications as well.

That makes sense to me that clerks would have a leg up. But I’m wondering if it’s like that for all DOJ divisions (maybe not EOIR) or non-DOJ honors programs as well. I’d also love to hear from anyone who was a 3L when they got an honors offer and what their resume looked like.

I think maybe OCIJ is less clerk-heavy (even though they’re essentially clerkships) because a lot of the positions are in less commonly desired places to live, they’re temporary, and they tend to weight immigration experience/interest heavily. But other EOIR positions are more like any other DOJ positions. Maybe BOP is a little less clerky? But that’s speculation.

I think non-DOJ programs tend to hire a lot of clerks because they’re even more wedded to the “tick off the qualifications on a list” hiring model than DOJ is. (Not saying they necessarily hire more clerks than DOJ, just that I don’t think they hire fewer of them.)

I don’t think I’ve come across a 3L who’s actually got an honors position except in OCIJ. But obviously that’s completely anecdotal.

(Oh wait, I lied - HUD hires 3Ls. They have - or had at least - a weird thing where you couldn’t even apply if you had passed the bar somewhere?)

[Anonymous User]

I'm a 3L DOJ Honors hire in a non-EOIR component (one of the criminal sections but not necessarily Crim). I can't go too much into specifics because my resume is very distinct, but I had a unique military background + demonstrated and easily verifiable interest in my offered component. I tried the clerkship game and was told I was competitive for flyover districts but that was about it. I know of another 3L hire in my component as well.

[Anonymous User]

I got interviews pre-clerkship, so they will at least look at you. I had top 10% from T-14 and strong military record, though. I never made it to the interviews because I picked up a district court clerkship in between, so I can't say if I would have made the final cut or not. I did get hired for a prosecuting component after my clerkship, but I can't say what the outcome would have been without it.