Updated January 2025
The Office of Career Services at Harvard Law School (OCS) has developed the following Policies and Guidelines (Policies) to protect the interests of both students and employers. By recruiting students at Harvard Law School (HLS), employers agree to abide by these Policies. OCS may impose sanctions for failure to comply.
I. Non-Discrimination
HLS has instituted policies and procedures to ensure a safe and non-discriminatory environment and to meet legal requirements. Employers recruiting HLS students must comply with HLS’s non-discrimination policy. In addition, employers may not discriminate on the basis of citizenship or immigration status in their recruitment of HLS students.
II. OCS Recruiting Programs and Events
OCS facilitates multiple interview and recruiting programs throughout the year, including the Early Interview Program (EIP), Spring Interview Program (SIP), and Resume Collection programs (collectively, OCS Facilitated Programs). OCS also welcomes employers to HLS throughout the year for additional programs and events including networking receptions, firm fairs, and career education programming. Recruitment of HLS students encompasses, but is not limited to, employer participation in these events.
More information may be found on our Employer webpages, including our Early Interview Program overview page. For certain of the OCS Facilitated Programs, including EIP and SIP, OCS assigns interview slots for employers and students (OCS Scheduled Programs).
III. Interviewing Guidelines and Procedures
A. Student Materials Distributed by OCS
OCS collects and distributes students’ resumes and transcripts to employers for OCS Facilitated Programs.
B. Cover Letter and Prescreening Prohibitions
Employers are not permitted to ask students to submit cover letters for any OCS Facilitated Program.
Employers may not request transcripts or information regarding law school grades, or otherwise prescreen students in advance of, or as condition to, granting a student an interview, or adding or filling an open slot during OCS Scheduled Programs. Interview slots in OCS Scheduled Programs are assigned at the discretion of HLS.
C. Interviewing Time Guidelines
Academic Year Interviews
Employers scheduling interviews directly with students may not schedule interviews at times that conflict with classes or exams. This includes interviews during January Experiential Term classes, which take place over three weeks in January (J-Term). Employers are also strongly encouraged to avoid scheduling interviews during the six-day Harvard Law Review writing competition, typically held the week after the conclusion of spring semester exams. Please refer to the HLS Academic Calendar for pertinent dates. Likewise, interviews scheduled by OCS are assigned at times that do not conflict with classes or exams.
Summer Interviews
Employers are expected to offer callback interviews at times that do not conflict with students’ summer internship and work obligations. Similarly, in order to minimize disruption to summer internships, employers are strongly encouraged to offer interviews via videoconferencing and other technology where possible.
D. Reimbursement of Expenses
Prior to interviews that may involve travel, employers shall inform students of the firm’s reimbursement policy pertaining to interview travel expenses. Employers agree to reimburse students promptly for reasonable travel expenses submitted under their policies.
IV. Recruiting 1Ls
A. Guidelines Regarding First Contact with 1Ls
Beginning November 15, employers may accept formal applications and extend interviews or offers for 1L summer employment. Prior to November 15, employers may not request resumes, transcripts, writing samples, or any other application materials from 1Ls.
Employers recruiting 1Ls for 2L summer positions are reminded to review our policies and restrictions on interviewing and recruiting for 2L summer employment, including but not limited to our offer timing provisions.
V. Recruiting for 2L Summer Employment
A. No interviews or direct applications prior to assigned EIP date.
Employers participating in EIP may not solicit direct applications, solicit transcripts, or conduct interviews for their 2L summer programs prior to their assigned EIP interview date(s), except as stated in Section V.B. below.
B. Exceptions to EIP Recruiting
The following are permitted exceptions to 2L summer recruiting restrictions. However, employers are reminded that other provisions of our Policies, including our interviewing and offer timing guidelines in Sections III and VI respectively, remain valid.
- Straight to Callback (previously interviewed 1Ls only): For any rising 2L candidate an employer has previously interviewed during their 1L year, the employer may invite the candidate directly to a callback interview for a 2L summer associate position prior to EIP. When doing so, the employer should notify the student, in writing, that: (1) the student should NOT bid on the firm for EIP; and (2) the student should send their complete transcript, when available, to the employer.
- Employer-sponsored diversity fellowship/scholarship programs: Employers may conduct interviews, request transcripts, and extend offers to rising 2L students for an employer-sponsored diversity scholarship/fellowship program. Such a program must provide a benefit or compensation separate from and in addition to the offer of summer employment.
- Job Fairs: Employers may conduct interviews, request transcripts, and extend offers to rising 2L students participating in non-HLS organized job fairs.
C. Informational and mock interviews exempted
Notwithstanding the above, employers may meet with students in the case of student-initiated requests for informational and mock interviews. In both cases, employers may not request from students any information about law school grades or ask for transcripts. Additionally, because the primary goal of these informational and mock interviews is educational, employers should not consider these interactions when evaluating students for employment.
If exigent circumstances require individual exemptions from these Policies and Guidelines, please contact the Assistant Dean for Career Services.
VI. Timing of Offers and Decisions
Employers recruiting at HLS agree to the following terms regarding the timing of offers and decisions. This timing applies to all offers made to HLS students, including but not limited to offers made pursuant to the exceptions described in Section V.
Note to employers: Our “Student Recruiting and Interviewing Policies” provide that students are permitted to hold open no more than three (3) offers of employment at any one time.
A. 1L Summer Employment
All offers for 1L summer employment must remain open for at least 14 days after the date of the offer letter. OCS strongly encourages employers to grant extensions for offers to remain open until the conclusion of 1L fall term exams and winter break.
OCS strongly discourages any 1L summer employment offer that requires the student to return to the same employer for more than four (4) weeks of their 2L summer or otherwise requires the student to materially limit their 2L summer at another employer as a condition for a 1L summer offer. Employers must disclose any such conditions or expectations to the 1L at the time of the 1L offer.
B. 2L Summer Employment
Offers made for 2L summer employment, including all such offers made during a student’s 1L year, must remain open until either: 1) July 18, 2025; or 2) 14 days after the date of the offer letter, whichever is later. Extensions may be granted at the discretion of the employer, except for the April 1 extension stated below in VI.D.
C. Post-Graduate Employment
For a full-time post-graduate offer made to a student previously hired by that employer: the offer must remain open until either: 1) October 1 of the student’s final year or law school; or 2) 28 days after the date of the offer letter, whichever is later.
- Reaffirmations
Employers may request that students reaffirm interest in their open, full-time post-graduate offers within 14 days from the date of the offer letter. Employers that request students to reaffirm their open offers may retract any offer that is not reaffirmed or accepted.
For a full-time post-graduate offer made to a student not previously hired by that employer, the employer must leave the offer open for at least 14 days after the date of the offer letter.
D. April 1 Extension Rule: Public Sector and Non-EIP Employer Extensions
A student may keep one 2L summer employment offer or one post-graduate employment offer open until the following April 1 if the student: 1) is pursuing public interest or other non-EIP opportunities, including participation in the Office of Public Interest Advising (OPIA) Virtual Public Interest Interview Program; 2) notifies the employer in writing before the offer expires; and 3) affirms in writing that the employer’s offer is the only offer that the student is holding open.
VII. Employer Events and Student Organization Sponsorship
As an integral part of the recruiting and employment process, employers participating in information sessions and networking receptions, and those sponsoring student organizations must comply with all HLS policies, including but not limited to HLS’s non-discrimination policies and the Employer Policies herein. Before organizing an event for HLS students, employers should contact OCS to ensure that the proposed date of the event does not conflict with another program. Please see our Hosting an Event or Reception page.
VIII. Student Complaints
While most employers strive to maintain a professional and sensitive attitude in recruiting, there may be instances of offensive or discriminatory behavior. If a student believes an employer has acted in a way that does not comply with HLS’s non-discrimination policies, has engaged in harassing behavior, or has exhibited any other concerning behavior, we encourage the student to speak with the Assistant Dean for Career Services or contact the Office of Career Services (ocs@law.harvard.edu). OCS will work with the student to address the issue in a timely and sensitive manner.