A student’s account of the online recruitment process
Over the past two months, I participated in an entirely virtual recruitment process for 2L summer positions in the Calgary market. This process included a formal OCI day in early September, followed up by a second round of interviews and networking events in October. I thought I would share my experience and tips on virtual recruitment with my peers, as I know some firms used the Calgary recruit as a “test run” for the upcoming Toronto recruit. Of course, this is only my personal experience with national “big law” firms, so take what I say with a grain of salt. The entire process went virtual due to the pandemic, and I predict that the Toronto recruit will also be virtual.
Here are my takeaways and tips from a 100 per cent virtual recruitment process:
Setting up a space: Find a quiet space with a neutral background and decent lighting (which I know is easier said than done). Some firms recommended not to be more than three metres away from the Wi-Fi modem. Having access to strong Wi-Fi is extremely important; however, most firms gave specific instructions on who to contact or what to do if you encounter technical problems. I had one interview where my Wi-Fi failed, so I just called the interviewers directly and completed the interview over the phone. Also, put your pets in a separate room. It’s no fun when Mr. Whiskers jumps onto your keyboard mid-interview. I also suggest looking directly into the camera when speaking; the interviewers will see you looking at them directly.
Virtual platforms: Firms used a variety of virtual meeting platforms, which was confusing. I could have downloaded each software; however, all were accessible via web browsers like Google Chrome. As a result, if a meeting was on a platform that I didn’t already have downloaded, I accessed the meeting via my web browser. I found this easier than downloading a bunch of different apps.
OCI Day: I received the OCI interview invitations in separate emails from each individual firm, which contained the links to the interview. I created an Excel spreadsheet with all the different links, so that I had one master sheet to access the links at any given time. This avoids having to rummage through your emails to find each link. The actual OCI interviews seemed typical: Just me and a couple lawyers from each firm doing a normal interview—but virtual.
Sound: I bought a headset and microphone on Amazon for approximately $30. I found the microphone helped reduce the background noise normally picked up by the one built-in to my laptop. Some firms also suggested I connect to the meeting sound by calling in (i.e. mute my computer sound, but call in on my cell phone and use the audio from the call, while using the video from the laptop camera). This way, if the internet screws up, you still have the audio of the meeting. Furthermore, if you have slow internet, you may want to consider the calling-in option for audio. Most interview invitations included a phone-in number and password. If you do call in, I would suggest being in an area with good reception.
Dress: Some firms allowed business casual dress, as the interviewers themselves were often in business casual wear sitting in their homes. My default was business formal dress for interviews unless otherwise specified, and then business casual for the “virtual networking” or “virtual coffee chat” meetings. And yes, I actually wore dress pants and shoes to get my head in the game.
Virtual “networking” events & post-OCI process: Most firms started the second-round process with a longer, formal second interview. After this, some firms decided to just keep scheduling informal virtual meetings with different people from their firm. However, some firms decided to host virtual “networking” events. To my understanding, normally in pre-COVID society, firms hosted dinners where they wined and dined with the students. Here, the virtual networking events were big meetings with various associates and other student candidates. The host would give some opening remarks, then assign people into breakout rooms (smaller meetings within the larger meeting), so students could ask the lawyers questions and schmooze. One firm even had it set up where students got to choose which “room” they wanted to go to, and then talk with people from specific practice areas. One firm even set up Zoom game nights, where they facilitated a virtual “escape room” event. Students were teamed up with various lawyers and the teams competed, like in trivia. Personally, I preferred the individual meetings format, as it gave me a better chance to interact directly with the lawyers, as opposed to competing for speaking time in the larger groups.
And there you have it, my virtual recruitment experience in a nutshell. Best of luck to you all, and may the odds be ever in your favour.