The OU College of Law’s Office of Career Development (CDO) is dedicated to assisting law students and OU Law alumni explore various legal, business, and alternative career options. The CDO provides comprehensive counseling, programming, and job search resources for current law students and alumni.
Resource Links
CDO Commitment
The CDO is committed to offering students a variety of resources to assist them in their search for internships, permanent employment, and overall career development. Below is a brief overview of the main resources the CDO offers to students:
Throughout a law student’s schooling, they face many questions related to employment. From selecting an area of practice to negotiating a salary, the CDO Team can guide you through. At any time, students can schedule a meeting with CDO at placement@law.ou.edu.
The 1L Career Launch Program gives first-year law students tools to help them pursue a legal career that is personally meaningful. The Career Development Office provides weekly classes with pre-work and homework to help them systematically begin their career. The goal of the Program is to break down the different aspects of starting a legal career into manageable pieces so that by the end of their first semester they will be able to successfully start searching for summer employment without last-minute panic. The Program is structured to not only help in the first year of law school but it also provides the tools to be successful throughout their entire law school journey and after graduation.
Every fall and spring semester, OU Law hosts an on-campus recruitment program (OCI) where employers from all over Oklahoma and the region come to OU Law to conduct interviews.
Every year at the beginning of the spring semester, the CDO hosts a Government & Public Interest Career Fair where local government and public interest employers come to OU Law to meet students. Some employers conduct interviews the day of the fair and some schedule interviews with students they meet at the fair. In past years, over 30 employers have attended.
Our goal is for the Career Fair to be a time for organizations to meet our students in a less formal setting and for you to showcase the organization to our students. This is an amazing opportunity for our students to learn about Government, Non-Profit and Public Interest career paths and for our students and to network! This is also a great time for our students to explore possible pro bono, internship and externship opportunities. While we will still encourage our students to drop off resumes with the organizations they have an interest in, we want the focus to be on learning and networking.
Several times a month, the CDO hosts outside speakers to conduct Lunch & Learn presentations during the noon hour. Speakers are practicing attorneys, all specializing in various practice areas with unique backgrounds to provide students an opportunity to learn more about the myriad of options which exist within the practice of law.
Some of our presentations include, “Day in the Life of a DA”, “Going In-House”, “Judicial Clerkships,” “Opening up a Solo Practice,” and more. If you are interested in speaking with our students, contact us at placement@law.ou.edu.
We strongly encourage that all students take advantage of the mock-interview program. Mock interviews are a great opportunity to meet with practicing attorneys, expand your network, and improve your interviewing skills. Every fall and spring semester, prior to the beginning of OCI, the CDO hosts a mock interview program where practicing attorneys from the area come to OU Law to conduct mock interviews for students. In addition, CDO is available to conduct mock interviews, virtual or otherwise, throughout the year. These interviews mirror a true OCI interview, with attorneys providing constructive feedback at the end of each interview.
Having a perfect application packet is critical to gaining the right internship or post-graduation position. Our CDO team provides guidance regarding resumes, writing samples, cover letters and more to ensure our students are successful.
- 10 Resume Tips (hyperlink to Legal Resume guide on Courtyard)
- Resumes should be one page
- Traditional font- same font throughout the document
- Limit the number of font sizes
- Proofread it! Give it to 5 friends and CDO to review
- Clean, succinct job descriptions
- If you have a permanent address in the state in which you are seeking employment, list both your current address as well as your permanent address
- List a professional email- use your OU email
- Include unique interests- marathon runner, travel blogger, etc.
- Include languages spoken- be honest in your proficiency level
- CDO Writing Sample Guide (hyperlink to guide on Courtyard)- hasn’t been added yet. Sending on 10/5/2020
- CDO Cover Letter Tips (hyperlink to Cover Letter guide on Courtyard)
For individual counseling regarding these materials contact placement@law.ou.edu for an appointment.
We encourage students to meet with a CDO counselor often. The better we know you, the better we can serve you. We are here to assist you throughout the process of searching, applying, interviewing, and accepting a position. Many positions will be posted through Symplicity.
Our career counselors can help you navigate your job search and offer guidance in balancing the demands of finding a job while in law school. Each one of our career counselors has a J.D. and specializes in counseling students interested in working in the corporate, government, judicial, law firm or public interest sector, as well as those interested in pursuing alternative careers.
Each year, the CDO offers networking opportunities to students to assist them in meeting practicing attorneys and refining their networking skills. For example (i) every year local law firms host networking events which are scheduled through the CDO, (ii) the CDO works with OU Law’s Young Alumni Board to schedule networking opportunities with students, and (iii) the CDO organizes a networking opportunity specifically for students interested in government and public interest careers. In addition, every year the CDO organizes programming for 1Ls which includes networking components, such as Career Development Night and Professionalism Night.
In addition, the CDO encourages and fosters informal networking opportunities through the Lunch & Learns, Virtual Meet & Greets, Individual Introductions, etc.
Nearly every day, the CDO receives new job postings for students and posts such opportunities on our web-based recruiting system, Symplicity. Students are encouraged to check Symplicity often. Students can log in at https://law-ou-csm.symplicity.com/
If you are interested in advertising your open positions with our OU Law students and/or OU Law Graduates, please contact us at placement@law.ou.edu.
Contact
CDO counselors are available for appointments throughout the year. To schedule an individual appointment with a career counselor, contact the CDO at placement@law.ou.edu.
Office of Career Development
OU College of Law
Andrew M. Coats Hall
300 Timberdell Road
Norman, Oklahoma 73019
Phone: (405) 325-4717
Email: placement@law.ou.edu
Alicia Currin-Moore, Director
Email: alicia.currinmoore@ou.edu