Law Prof to Would-Be Supreme Ct. Clerks: Keep Trying
Being a stellar law student isn’t all it takes to win a U.S. Supreme Court clerkship. Perseverance is almost as important as the prerequisite U.S. Court of Appeals clerkship, a law prof who’s been there told students at a recent Harvard Law School meeting.
Even if the first application or two is rejected, those who think they have a shot at a clerkship might want to give it another try, says Jeannie Suk, a Harvard professor who clerked for Supreme Court Justice David Souter. Some high court clerkship applicants, she says, have been accepted on their third or even fourth applications, reports the Record.
Justices also are looking for clerks who work well with others, she notes, because of the collaborative nature of the job.
For those who win a coveted clerkship, Suk says, “It’s an experience unrivaled in its excitement and its intensity. You eat and breathe and sleep the work. And because you can’t talk to people outside, you go crazy and you become close with the people who you work with. Those 35 other people become close friends.”
