Upgrading Your Resume for
On-Campus Interviews (OCI)
And Other Documents for an Application Packet
Presented by:
The Placement Office
Elmer Ignacio, Esq., Director
eignacio@law.fsu.edu
Becky Marsey, Assistant Director
rmarsey@law.fsu.edu
Why Do I Need to Upgrade My
Resume?
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Your resume tells employers what you have
learned and the type of experiences you have
gained
Today’s job market is very competitive
You will be competing with classmates and
students from other schools that are credentialed
and have varying backgrounds and levels of
experience
The better your resume, the better your chances
of succeeding in the employment search, not just
during OCI
Why are resumes so important?
Your resume is your first impression with that
employer
 Most legal recruiters will spend less than 30
seconds reviewing your resume
 You want to make sure that you are portraying
yourself in a manner that is positive, organized,
concise, and persuasive
 Your resume should be your absolute best
work product
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Characteristics of a good resume
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Concise and brief
One page
Arranged so that the high points can be
absorbed in literally 20 seconds
Does not contain “first person” pronouns (i.e.
“I”)
Free of grammatical, typographical, and spelling
errors
All information provided is correct, including
dates and titles
Resume Suggestions
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Stick to standard Margins: .7 to 1 inch
Use standard font sizes: 10 to 12 point
List only one phone number
Be consistent with formatting
Do not overuse bold and italics
Include any and ALL legal / law related
experience
List most recent education and work
experiences first and work backward
Basic Format of the 2L / 3L Resume
The education section will be first
 Under the appropriate educational
institution highlight outstanding activities
and academic achievements
 The Experience / Employment section
should follow
 Using Experience instead of Employment
allows you to include clinical work,
internships, and / or volunteer work
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Education Section
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List your law degree as “Juris Doctor Candidate, May 200_” or
“Juris Doctor, expected May 200_”
Do NOT estimate G.P.A. or Class Rank
Use 100-point scale for reporting G.P.A.
Include undergraduate academic achievements
Include any activities and organizations under the appropriate
school
Transfer students should include the previous law school
Should I include my G.P.A. or other
grade information?
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If grades are an important hiring criterion to a particular
employer and you do not have top grades, they will likely not
select you for an interview with or without them being
listed.
Generally, you want to include information that works to
your advantage.
Some employers will assume the worst if no grade
information is provided.
If your grades have shown consistent improvement, you may
want to highlight that by breaking them down by academic
year.
If you have significant work experience or other
qualifications to set you apart from others, then an employer
may very well select you for an interview without any grade
information.
Listing G.P.A.
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Use only your G.P.A. received from the Law School
Registrar’s Office.
Do NOT calculate your own GPA.
Report your G.P.A. in the 100-point scale
Do NOT report G.P.A. using the 4.0-scale used by main
campus
When obtaining transcripts for OCI purposes, use only
the unofficial transcripts obtained from the Law School
Registrar’s Office. Do NOT use transcripts obtained
through Blackboard.
To obtain your official G.P.A. and an unofficial transcript,
submit a records request
Class Rank and G.P.A.
2L Information
You will only have “Class Rank” and “GPA”
Class Rank and G.P.A.
3L Information
3Ls (non-transfers) Have Both Sets
“Class Rank” &
“GPA”
“Upper Level Rank” &
“Upper-Level GPA”
INCLUDES your first
year grades.
DOES NOT INCLUDE
your first year grades.
DOES NOT INCLUDE
transfer students
INCLUDES transfer
students
Class Rank and G.P.A.
3L Information
Listing Credentials on Resumes and
Job Applications
OPTION # 1
List only “Class Rank” & “GPA”
Class Rank and G.P.A.
3L Information
Listing Credentials on Resumes and
Job Applications
OPTION # 2
o Include
your “Upper-Level Rank” and
“Upper-Level GPA.”
o If you choose this option, you MUST also
indicate your “Class Rank” and “GPA”
Class Rank and G.P.A.
Transfer Student
Information
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Indicate your rank and GPA from your previous law
school under that law school on your resume.
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Any subsequent rank and GPA you receive from Florida
State University College of Law should be indicated as
your “Upper-Level Rank” and “Upper-Level
GPA” under FSU Law on your resume
Experience Section
Include ALL legal experience
 Include non-legal experience
 List your most recent position /
experience first
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Tips for Including Non-Legal Jobs
When listing non-legal positions, highlight your
transferable skills
 Key transferable skills include:
o Writing
o Research
o Leadership
o Communication / Client Contact
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Action Words
When writing your descriptions for internships,
externships, volunteer positions, or previous
employment, try to use action words
 Vary your usage
 Use a thesaurus
 Do not: Research and write everything!
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Analyze
Formulate
Develop
Prepare
A Sample of Action Verbs
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Achieved
Analyzed
Authored
Chaired
Clarified
Communicated
Coordinated
Counseled
Demonstrated
Delegated
Developed
Established
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Evaluated
Examined
Formulated
Implemented
Managed
Mediated
Negotiated
Operated
Organized
Performed
Planned
Presented
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Prioritized
Provided
Reduced
Researched
Revised
Scheduled
Solved
Supervised
Trained
Translated
Verified
Wrote
Sample Resumes
Example of how to list previous law
school if you are a transfer student.
If you did well in your undergraduate
degree, it may be to your advantage to
showcase this.
In this example, the student separated
legal experience from previous work
experience. This is not necessary, but
may be advantageous if your legal
experience gets lost among other work
experience.
Adding community involvement and / or
interests can be advantageous by
providing a source of additional topics
of conversation. Hobbies should be
interesting, and not weird.
Great grades in only certain
classes. Listed these on the
resume.
This student was published
prior to law school. Any
publications are great to
include on a resume.
Example of how to list GPA
and Class Rank information.
Book Award listed.
Example of how to list two
degrees.
Student has foreign language
skills. This is important to
include. Be sure not to
overstate your abilities.
Typical levels listed include:
Native, fluent, proficient,
conversational. Be prepared
to speak in the language if
asked!
Unsure if you should include it?
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Avoid activities that might portray you as a "party animal" or nonacademic type.
◦ If you were the social chairman for an organization, you might
want to use a different term
That does not mean that you should always leave off things like
membership in a fraternity or sorority.
Carefully consider what value including your activities might add.
◦ If you had a leadership position within your fraternity or
sorority, this might demonstrate leadership skills, commitment,
etc.
Consider when and when not to include political allegiances or
membership in politically sensitive organizations.
◦ You have no idea of the personal likes and dislikes of the readers
of your resume.
Writing Sample
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The four types of legal writing:
Application Analysis. This includes memos, briefs, judicial
opinions, and law school exams.
Critical Analysis. Includes seminar papers and law review articles
and case notes.
Legal Drafting. Includes contracts, interrogatories, and pleadings.
Legal Correspondence. Includes letters to clients and other
attorneys.
Most employers expect to see an application analysis, as this is
what the attorney or law student is going to be asked to do in his
or her job.
Items produced during your first-year legal writing courses are
excellent examples of self-edited work.
Writing Sample cont.
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Employers expect about 5-10 pages of your best work.
Legal employers would rather see legal analysis;
something like a memo or brief is preferred over a
research paper, and something on a legal topic is
preferable to a non-legal paper.
If you use an excerpt, indicate it is an excerpt.
Make certain you use a cover sheet or other method to
indicate that it is your writing sample.
Obtain approval before using materials from a previous
employer!
TIP: You do not need to submit a writing sample to an employer
unless it has been requested. However, you should bring copies of
your writing sample to all interviews.
Cover Letter
For OCI, you will only submit a cover letter if requested
by the employer.
 Keep the letter to one page.
 During a regular job search, a personal, well-crafted
cover letter should accompany each resume you send
to an employer. Unless it is not requested.
 A cover letter offers you an opportunity to make a
positive first impression on the firm or organization. It
should be error free!
 Mention any pertinent information about yourself not
available in your resume.
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Cover Letter cont.
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Always address the cover letter to a specific person—
never send a letter “to whom it may concern.”
For OCI purposes, you may address the cover letter to
the contact listed in Symplicity.
Do not use passive voice
Do not waste time with puffery about the firm's overall
strength, prestige, or size.
The letter should establish logical reasons for sending
your resume to a particular employer (your experience,
geographical considerations, personal contact, etc.) and
state your interest in and qualifications for the
particular type of work.
Cover Letter: The Breakdown
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First Paragraph
Introduce yourself.
o Tell why you are writing, name the position for which you
are applying, and tell how you heard of this opening.
o Many OCI employers will want to know why you are
interested in a particular location. The first paragraph can be
a great place to demonstrate any ties or particular interest
for a specific area.
o Examples:
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 "Having been raised in Seattle, I intend to return to the Northwest to
practice law after I graduate."
 "I spent four years as an undergraduate at Georgetown, and I intend
to practice law in Washington, D.C. ,following my graduation."
 “Having visited Atlanta numerous times, I am attracted to both the
professional and personal opportunities that your city offers.“
Cover Letter: The Breakdown
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Second and Third Paragraphs
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State your skills and establish your value. Answer: “What can you do for
the employer?”
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Supplement, not replicate, the information on your resume.
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Establish traits which an employer expects from an employable law
student:
◦ Excellent legal writing and research skills.
◦ Mention skills that you don’t have on your resume. (i.e. ability to work
under deadline pressure; outgoing; ambitious).
◦ Explain how your non-legal skills translate into the legal profession.
 For example, if you have worked in retail, you might say that your
"customer service experience has prepared you for the challenge of
dealing with attorneys and clients with diverse backgrounds and
goals.“
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Unique qualifications may come from work experience, an academic
experience as an undergraduate, or in another graduate school or from an
extracurricular activity.
Cover Letter: The Breakdown
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Final Paragraph
Assert your method of follow up.
 Have an appropriate closing to pave the way for
the interview by giving your telephone number
or by offering some similar suggestion for an
immediate and favorable reply.
 Let the employer know if you will be in that
area or that you will call to arrange for an
interview and that your resume is enclosed.
 Thank the employer for their time.
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References
Use the header and format from your resume
 Have 3-4 listed
 For OCI purposes, submit only when requested
 References may include: professors, previous employers,
current employers, contacts from volunteer positions
that can speak to your work ethic and ability
 As a courtesy, ask and notify anyone you list as a
reference.
 Have available at your interview
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References: An Example
Sample Reference List and Resume. Notice
the student used the same header for both.
Make sure to list complete contact
information for each reference.
Commonly Asked Questions
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Should I include information about my high school or
activities I did in high school?
o Generally you should remove high school experiences from your
resume.
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Should I include my LSAT scores on my resume?
o No, you should not include LSAT scores. At this stage, your academic
achievements will be most relevant to the employer.
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Should I include an objective on my resume?
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No, listing an object is a common space water.
Should I include my computer skills on my resume?
o It is universally assumed that all law students have and will graduate
with skills in word processing and on-line research. The exception is if
you have advanced computer skills, that are directly relevant to the
position you are seeking. For example, advanced research certificate in
WestLaw or Lexis.
Commonly Asked Questions
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Should I include the tag line: “References and writing
sample available upon request”?
o No, this statement takes up valuable resume space.
Should I include my permanent home address?
o Often times if your permanent address can show ties to the
area, it may be beneficial to include on the resume.
I was invited to a Journal, but did not join, should I place
this on my resume?
o It is of questionable benefit and can only lead to the question,
why didn’t you join.
Can Pro Bono experience be placed on the resume?
o It can be placed on your resume, particularly if you have no
other legal experience. Just indicate it appropriately.
Questions?
For individual questions regarding your
resume, or to have your resume reviewed,
please contact the Placement Office.
Placement Office
850.644.4495
Elmer Ignacio, Esq., Director
eignacio@law.fsu.edu
Becky Marsey, Assistant Director
rmarsey@law.fsu.edu