A review of results and students’ thoughts on LSSEP.
For the first time, Ultra Vires surveyed U of T Law’s students on their experience with and thoughts about the Law School Summer Employment Program (LSSEP). A total of 40 students responded to UV’s survey, answering questions about their recruit results and providing comments on the process. Respondents had the option to abstain from any question. Their responses have been anonymized and reproduced below.
Please note that, as with some of UV’s other recruit surveys, we expect that students who performed better or were more satisfied with the outcome of the recruit may have been more likely to participate in this survey.
A QUICK LOOK AT THE NUMBERS
Results
The vast majority of students (62.5%) applied to between four to six LSSEP employers. Meanwhile, only 2.5% of students applied to more than 11 employers. Students also had varying opinions on the ideal number of employers to apply to.
Some students suggested applying broadly.
Apply widely! It’s more competitive than you think and it’s better to give yourself options.
Others advised taking a more selective approach to submitting applications.
Don’t just apply randomly. I was pretty picky and only applied to places that I was genuinely interested in. This allowed me to craft very individualized cover letters, which I think helped me get interviews.
Of the survey respondents, no student received or participated in more than five interviews. The majority of students received three interview offers (41.0%) and, similarly, most students participated in three interviews (35%).
Over half of the survey respondents (55.0%) reported receiving one LSSEP offer through the process. The highest number of offers received, reported by 10.0% of students, was four. As for the final breakdown, 87.5% of survey respondents accepted a summer job offer through LSSEP, 5.0% declined all offers, and 7.5% received no offers.
Networking
Survey participants were also asked whether they had engaged in networking, both generally and with the employer with which they received an offer.
The majority of students (62.5%) reported networking for LSSEP. Virtually all students who reported networking clarified that their networking involved coffee chatting with upper-years who had experience with the positions they were interested in. However, compared to the 62.5% of students who had engaged in networking, only 27.0% of survey respondents reported networking with the employer from which they accepted an offer.
When asked about their thoughts on networking, some students expressed that they found it helpful.
I would recommend networking. Talking to students who had done the interviews and worked in the positions gave me a sense of what the job was like and what the employers were looking for in their candidates.
I found it worth speaking to employers early on to show interest.
Others took a more neutral stance.
I think it helps, but it’s definitely not necessary. I would recommend it just to get a feel for what the jobs are like!
I think networking can be helpful, but it’s not super necessary. I did not feel that a lack of networking hindered my performance.
Finally, some expressed that they felt networking had little to no impact on their job prospects.
Networking is useless, based on my experience. If you have a strong application, you do not need to do anything else.
I don’t think networking is even remotely necessary for LSSEP. They just don’t care about that sort of thing in the same way that firms do.
Effect of the process
To close out the “numbers” section of the survey, students were asked to rank the effects of the recruit on their academic, extracurricular, and personal life, with a ranking of one meaning that there was “no disruption” and a ranking of five meaning that there was a “significant disruption.” Most student rankings fell between a two and a four.
STUDENTS’ THOUGHTS ON LSSEP
As part of UV’s survey, students were also encouraged to share their thoughts and comments on the LSSEP recruiting experience.
Do you have any comments on the application process?
Many students expressed that they felt the process of applying for LSSEP was long, confusing, and demanding.
The application process is quite demanding, taking extensive time to write cover letters.
It was a bit confusing with every application requiring different materials (different combinations of resume, cover letter, transcripts, reference letters, statements of intent, questionnaires, etc.). It made submitting more difficult than just a traditional resume and grades.
Some students also emphasized the importance of tailoring cover letters when applying to LSSEP positions.
I definitely recommend getting materials reviewed by the CDO ahead of time—it really helped with my resume in particular. I also think it’s very important to tailor each cover letter specifically to each employer.
Don’t be afraid to diverge from the classic cover letter formula that the CDO suggests. My cover letters had personal stories that I tied into my work experience.
What would you change about the process?
Some students expressed a desire for more clarity and transparency from employers throughout the LSSEP process.
I received a fellowship offer from an organization that never extended an interview—it would have been helpful to know in the LSSEP guide which employers interview and which do not.
Other students provided recommendations for streamlining the application process and making certain positions more accessible to students.
Some positions by the same organization required separate applications but ended up having only one interview. It might be easier for the applicants if such positions required one application (like DLS).
I would suggest that acceptances be done through the application portal rather than via email. I was on the waitlist for an offer and was super stressed about it all day because the student who was originally offered the position took several hours to reject the offer. I think it would be less stressful for students to have the acceptances be done through the portal and have it auto-reject other offers if possible.
Self-directed fellowships should be a separate cycle after the rest of the LSSEP. I felt like I couldn’t apply for a self-directed fellowship because the amount of investment from the partner organization would mean I’d basically be forced to accept if I was offered the position, and I wanted to know if I would get other jobs first.
If professors know they have funding and need an RA for the summer, I would encourage them to be a part of the LSSEP recruit. It would spare them the pain of responding to independent emails from students asking for work and would also allow them to interview students.
Respondents also commented on the timing of the recruit and provided varying suggestions to make the process easier for students.
The application deadline was too close to 1L recruit which made it difficult to portion off an adequate amount of time to submit applications on time, especially given the need to cater applications to each employer.
Make the process shorter if possible so that people who are not successful in the recruit have more time to find other positions.
What advice would you give to future LSSEP participants?
Many students recommended speaking with upper-year students to get a sense of employers’ interview formats.
Practice with upper-year students that have gone through the recruit. It’s more important to share your genuine passions and personality than it is to memorize interview questions and answers. Practice discussing your career goals and speaking about your passions out loud!
Talk to upper years who have done the interview process! It removes a lot of the unknowns. Even if you don’t know anyone, the directory on the CDOs website is helpful for finding students to reach out to.
Students also emphasized the necessity of preparing thoroughly for the recruit and expressed that LSSEP was more competitive than expected.
Prepare thoroughly for the jobs you think you’re particularly interested in/qualified for. The spots are very competitive, so if you don’t think you’re qualified for a job, your time would not be well-spent focusing too much on securing that job.
It is much more competitive than the CDO makes it seem. The CDO also can’t help with public interest materials as much as they can with firm stuff. Talk to students who worked at the organizations you’re applying to.
Other students provided general reassurance to future applicants.
You’ll be fine.
Be easy on yourself! It’s important to remember that the majority of 1Ls in Canada don’t work any legal related job whatsoever (at least I believe lol you can fact check me). LSSEP is a pretty competitive process and, in my opinion, is by no means indicative of your worth as a human being and future legal professional.
Do you have any closing thoughts?
Once again, many students expressed that the LSSEP recruitment process was more competitive than it had been made out to be.
Heard it from the upper years that last year LSSEP recruit was a bloodbath, so is this year.
LSSEP is more competitive than it seems but having a genuine and demonstrated interest will get you far.
The LSSEP recruit is definitely still competitive; I don’t think people should always necessarily view it as a backup to the Toronto 1L recruit. I’d recommend people take extra care in preparing for the LSSEP applications if public interest is something they genuinely want to do. On the other hand, your conception of success as a law student should never be contingent on your ability to find a job—you are worth more than being able to find a job through any of these admittedly competitive recruits!
Finally, students provided some last pieces of advice that could be helpful for next year’s applicants to hear.
Watching all my friends secure positions before I did (in the Toronto Recruit and elsewhere) was rough. Try not to get caught up in what’s going on around you. Focus on yourself, creating your own opportunities, and making good on the interviews you get.
As a 1L, you might not know what type of law you want to do, so the idea of “locking yourself in” to a practice area can be scary and overwhelming. What you do in 1L summer is not determinative. The main thing is finding anything that you can spin positively for 2L.
LSSEP applications are stressful especially since we’re surrounded by such brilliant colleagues who are also well-qualified. Just make sure to review all your application materials, practice interviewing, and remember that you’re smart and capable and deserving of these opportunities!
Regardless of whether you secured a position or not through LSSEP, UV would like to offer sincere congratulations to everyone who participated in and made it through the process. As some students from the survey expressed, there are so many things you can do with your summer, and your summer experience is by no means a measure of your success or worth. With that said, best of luck to everyone with the homestretch of this year of law school!