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Alumni Mock Interview Participation & Cancellation Policy

Frequently Asked Questions about Alumni Mock Interviews

What are Alumni Mock Interviews?
1Ls, 2Ls, 3Ls, 4Ls, and LLMs participate in a simulated legal interview with an attorney volunteer, most often an alumnus.
When and where is it?
Mock interviews will take place from 6 to 8 p.m., Monday, January 23 through Thursday, January 26. You will be able to select your interview date and time. You will check in ten minutes before your mock interview in Career Services, Warren Hall Room 113 and will be directed to your interview room.
What happens at a Mock Interview?
The whole process lasts about thirty minutes. You should prepare as if you were going on a real interview: you will have practiced answering common interview questions, brought extra copies of your resume, and dressed in a suit. You will be informed who is interviewing you and will have researched the attorney and his or her place of employment. For twenty minutes, the interviewer will ask you interview questions, of a general nature, that he or she actually uses or has used in interviewing. Then, the interviewer will give you five to ten minutes of constructive feedback about your interview, from your resume to your handshake to how well you responded to questions.
Why Should You Participate?
This is a great opportunity for you to practice your legal interviewing skills and to become comfortable speaking with lawyers, right in time for the many job fairs and other interviewing that take place in the spring. You should participate, regardless of how much legal or non-legal interviewing you have done, whether you have participated in previous mock interview programs, or if you have had a mock interview with a Career Advisor.
What are the Deadlines?
In order to participate in a mock interview, you must:
1. Attend one presentation of "How to Interview to Get the Job" on Wednesday, January 11 at noon or 4:30 p.m. If you cannot attend either program because of a work or academic obligation, email Career Services before 4:30 p.m., January 11.
2. Register for Symplicity, upload your resume, agree that you have read and will follow this Participation & Cancellation Policy in full, and "apply" for the "2012 Alumni Mock Interview Employer" by noon, Friday, January 13.
3. Once you are notified by email that you may select an interview date and time, select your interview date and time via Symplicity by 8:00 a.m. on Wednesday, January 18. By selecting an interview time, you are agreeing that you have read and will follow this Participation & Cancellation Policy in full and that you attended (or were excused from attending by Career Services) a presentation of "How to Interview to Get the Job."

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How To Participate in the 2012 Alumni Mock Interview Program

Register Yourself on Symplicity.
The 2012 Alumni Mock Interview Program is run through Symplicity. You must register with Symplicity to take advantage of these and many other career resources all year. Complete registration instructions are available on line.
Note: you must use your USD email account to register for Symplicity. Career Services will only communicate with you regarding the 2012 Alumni Mock Interview Program through Symplicity, which, in turn, will use your USD account. Therefore, you are responsible for (and will benefit greatly from) checking your USD email account regularly and always ensuring that it has enough room to receive emails.
Attend "How to Interview to Get the Job."
Attend one presentation of "How to Interview to Get the Job" on Wednesday, January 11 at noon or 4:30 p.m. If you cannot attend either program because of a work or academic obligation, email Career Services , before 4:30 p.m., January 11. Career Services must excuse you from attending "How to Interview to Get the Job" before you "apply" for the "2012 Alumni Mock Interview Employer."
Use Symplicity to Participate in the 2012 Alumni Mock Interview Program.
1. Upload your Resume by Friday, January 13 at noon: Click the tab entitled "Documents & Guides." Click "Add New." You will then arrive at a new page where you must name the resume (where it says "Label"), indicate the document type as prompted, and click "Browse" to select the document you wish to upload. If you subsequently alter your resume, remove the old resume and upload the revised resume to Symplicity.
2. "Apply" to the "2012 Alumni Mock Interview Employer" by Friday, January 13 at noon: First, sometime after 11 a.m. on Wednesday, January 11, click the tab titled "OCI." The first time you click on "OCI" you will be automatically directed to review the Spring Recruiting "Interview Attendance & Cancellation" and "Representations in Job Application Materials" Policies and "Spring Recruiting Release Agreement." You must agree that you will abide by these policies to participate in the 2012 Alumni Mock Interview Program. You will be held to these policies if you participate in 2012 Spring Recruiting. Therefore, read each carefully.
  
  Next, select from the "Session" scroll-down menu "2012 Alumni Mock Interview Program." One "employer" will be listed: "2012 Alumni Mock Interview Employer." Click "Apply" on the right. If you only have one document uploaded, the button to the right will indicate that you have applied. If you have multiple documents uploaded, you will be brought to a separate review page on which you will select the particular resume you wish to use for your mock interview from the right hand side of your screen.
3. Once you are notified by email that you may select an interview date and time, select your Mock Interview Date and Time by Wednesday, January 18 at 8 a.m.: You will receive an email to the USD email address on record with Symplicity as soon as you are able to sign up for an interview time. The notice will come after the January 13, noon application deadline, likely that afternoon or evening. The email will instruct you to log on to Symplicity to select an interview date and time. The email will also prompt you to carefully review this 2012 Alumni Mock Interview Program Participation and Cancellation Policy, and will notify you that by selecting a mock interview date and time, you are agreeing that you have carefully read and agreed in full to this policy. You must agree to this policy to participate in the program.
  
  To select an interview date and time, return to the "OCI" tab. Select from the "Session" scroll down menu "2012 Alumni Mock Interview Program." Click "Accept Pre-select," next to the "2012 Alumni Mock Interview Employer." A listing of the four evenings of mock interviews will appear. By clicking into each one, you will see the list of available interview times for that evening. Select a time and then click on the "Sign Up" button. If you do not select an interview by January 18 at 8 a.m., you may forfeit your opportunity to participate.
  
  Some things to keep in mind when selecting an interview time:
  1. Sign up for only one mock interview.
  2. Mock interview slots are filled on a first-come, first-served basis. Log on to Symplicity as soon as possible to ensure the greatest selection of interview times.
  3. As a courtesy to our interviewers and to your fellow students, please select the earliest available time that you can make, so as to prevent gaps in the interview schedule.
  4. Select an interview time from those available, even if it is not your first choice. The weeks before the spring recruiting season are extremely busy for attorneys involved in hiring and for Career Services. Mock interviews with a Career Advisor in January and February may be limited.
  5. If you do not see any available times, it means demand for mock interviews has exceeded the scheduled number of interviews. If this happens, Career Services will make every effort to secure additional interviewers. You will be emailed if new times become available.
  6. After you select a mock interview date and time, you may not change it.
  7. Do not attempt to change or cancel your interview date and time on Symplicity or you will forfeit your interview.
  You will receive an email from Symplicity confirming your mock interview date and time twenty four hours before your mock interview. In the meantime you should double-check your interview date and time and determine who will interview you: click "OCI," then click on the "Scheduled Interviews" tab. Your interview date will appear. Click on it, and you should see your time and interviewer.

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Participation and Cancellation Policy Agreement

Because this program relies on the generosity of local attorneys, there are simple rules and procedures that you must follow. Specifically, you must read fully and agree to the following:

I have read, carefully and in full, this 2012 Alumni Mock Interview Participation & Cancellation Policy and agree with all the instructions, requirements, and policies therein.

I have attended one presentation of "How to Interview to Get the Job" on Wednesday, January 11 or I emailed Career Services, and she excused me from attending. I will be notified via email of a mock interview time and date. I will arrive ten minutes prior to the start time of my interview.

Once I select and am assigned an interview, I will not cancel my interview except in an emergency. I will not attempt to change or cancel my interview via Symplicity. In the event that an emergency arises that precludes me from attending:

I must seek permission from Career Services, to cancel my interview.

If I am unable to reach Career Services by phone, I must email Career Services (lawcareers@sandiego.edu) and call the main Career Services telephone number at (619) 260-4529 and leave a voicemail.

I will not contact the interviewing attorney.

My circumstances will be evaluated on an individual basis.

If Career Services does excuse me from my interview, I must write a letter of apology and explanation to the interviewer and submit a copy of this letter to Career Services within 48 hours of the scheduled interview.

Any misrepresentation in my resume (including the rounding up of my GPA or rounding down of my class rank) may be determined to be a violation of Section 3.02 of the Honor Code of the University of San Diego School of Law. Such misrepresentation may result in serious sanctions from the School of Law.

Furthermore, Career Services will not submit my resume to an interviewer if Career Services is aware of any misrepresentation. It is my responsibility to ensure that my resume accurately states my class rank, GPA, extracurricular activities, awards, and all other material information before I submit them for the 2012 Alumni Mock Interview Program.

If you do not comply with this Policy, you may not be permitted to participate in subsequent job interviews for the spring semester, or other appropriate action may be taken, at the sole discretion of Career Services.

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Interview Preparation

In every respect, treat this as a real interview. Prepare an error-free resume describing your experience in an engaging manner. Meet with a Career Advisor for suggestions. Have an objective third-party review your resume for typos and mistakes. Consult the Career Services Resume Guide. Dress professionally: a conservative suit (e.g., black, dark gray), shirt (e.g., white, blue) and tie (e.g., red, navy) for men and a suit and accessories for women. We suggest you dress and groom exactly as you will for the spring recruiting season interviews to obtain feedback on your professional presentation. Practice answering common interview questions out loud in front of a mirror, with a friend, or with a Career Advisor. The Career Services Interviewing Guide contains pointers and common legal interview questions. The Legal Professionalism Guide advises on interacting with attorneys in interviews. All of the guides referenced herein are available in Symplicity under the Documents & Guides tab, Career Services Guides sub-tab.

Many students ask if thank you letters are required after mock interviews. No, but, it is a courtesy that your interviewer will appreciate and a smart way to network. Take a business card from your interviewer and review the Cover Letter and Job Search Correspondence Guide for sample thank you letters.

Finally, take confidence from knowing you have taken a positive, affirmative step in your professional development! Relax, and enjoy meeting members of your chosen profession and the USD community.

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For questions about this page, please email Career Services.