Counseling
CDO counselors are available to meet with alumni by phone or in person to assist with career transitions. Career counseling sessions are confidential.
To arrange an appointment, send us a request at career@law.berkeley.edu.
The California Bar Association offers resources to its members who are facing personal or professional challenges. The Bar’s Lawyer Assistance Program serves attorneys grappling with stress, anxiety, substance abuse or concerns about their careers. All consultations are confidential, and many of the services are free.
Career Fields/Exploration
The CDO offers extensive guidance and resources to assist you through the judicial clerkship application process. We recommend that you start by reading this guide that we prepared especially for alums.
- Guidance, information, and links especially for those seeking public interest (non-profits, private firms with public interest missions) or public sector (government) jobs.
- Switching from Private Sector to Public Interest (4/16/2010)
Alums Neil McCabe and Harry Jackson share their stories about making the switch from the private sector to the public sector.
- Panel on In-House Careers – audio recording (4/28/2011) (Four Boalt alums speak about in-house legal careers)
- Article on making the decision to go in-house.
- Article on the difference between working at a firm and in-house.
- GoInhouse (jobs board exclusively for in-house lawyers)
- An Unexpected Switch in Practice Area Brings Growth and Satisfaction: Tomomi Glover (’06) (1/5/2011)
When Plan A Didn’t Work, Staying In Touch With Friends Resulted in a Better Plan B - A Bold Move That Actually Worked: Steve Koyanagi (’09) (1/5/2011)
Opting out of a second year of his clerkship without another job opportunity in a tough market wasn’t an easy decision, but for this alum it all worked out - Successfully Navigating the Course From Private Practice to Nonprofit: Jora Trang (’01) (1/5/2011)
After the recession made continuing her private practice of seven years impossible, this alum engineered a career transition culminating in getting her dream job at a nonprofit. - 5 Big Steps From BigLaw to the SEC: Maggie Spillane (’01) (1/5/2011)
Job Search Process
- Resume Guide
- Cover Letter Guide
- Effective Interviewing
- Informational Interviewing
- An Article About Using a Headhunter in Your Job Search
- Self Assessment (see drop-down on linked page)
- Great Things to Do While You Are Job Searching
- Negotiating Compensation: A Guide to Assisting Law Students & Graduates (NALP Publication)
- An extensive list of external links to useful resources, organized by theme.
- Consult our Quick Guide to Employer Research and our more detailed Employer Research Guide.
- NALP Directory
- NALP Salary Information
- Salary Negotiations – updated 8/22/2013 (12/19/2011)
(Information, Salary Calculators and Articles on Negotiating Salaries and Responding to Salary Requirements) - Law.com lists and rankings (including clerkships)
- Accessing Lexis and Westlaw
- List of Legal Temporary Agencies
Developing and maintaining your professional network will be a key feature of your working life.
LinkedIn is a particularly powerful resource for networking, and every attorney should have a profile, which needs to be updated regularly. Be sure to join the UC Berkeley School of Law, Boalt Hall group (alums only). For more details on using LinkedIn in your job search, see our Social Media guide, below.
Here are links to CDO’s resources on networking (including informational interviewing) and using social media (including LinkedIn).
CDO Guide to Informational Interviewing
FindLaw’s National List of Legal Associations & Organizations
CDO List of Professional Associations and companion Guide on how to use it.
CDO Guide to Career Fairs & Receptions
Social Media, Your Job Search and Your Legal Career
Leverage connections in the Berkeley Law community to advance your understanding of the job market and specific careers — see the CDO guide Connecting to the Berkeley Law Alumni Network for guidance on reaching out to other alums. See the “Key Resources” listed at the end of the guide for links to external tools and databases to locate alumni in specific organizations, practice areas or geographic markets.
You may also locate alumni using these law school or UC Berkeley-specific resources:
- Berkeley Law Mentor Directory on LinkedIn (open to both alums willing to serve as mentors as well as current students (and, of course, alums) seeking mentoring)
- @Cal AlumniNetwork