Another Hallmark Conspiracy?

So...this handout I'm looking at says that our career services office recommends sending handwritten--and never, ever e-mailed--thank you notes to every attorney we've interviewed with. Now, assuming that I could remember the name of everyone I've interviewed with (which is a long shot, since I have the short-term memory of an alcoholic puppy), what exactly is a handwritten note going to accomplish? And what the hell do I send it on? I don't have monogrammed stationery or scented greeting cards just lying around, you know. And what if they take one look at my hideous, first-grade scrawl and decide that I'm completely unfit for employment? If students are all automatically doing this in some mass-mailed, large-scale way, does it really tell employers anything about their enthusiasm for their firm? Am I going to be blacklisted if I don't start calligraphicationalizing immediately?

I'm serious about this. Is everyone else out there writing these things? Let me know. I'm about to start a movement.

EDIT: After more consideration, I still feel like it's a silly custom. But no sillier than, say, paying law students more than $2000 a week during the summer, so I should probably shut up.

Comments

[Balazo]

I did it as a 1L, but this year I am only mailing a few. My impression is that it is good manners, but that the lawyers could really care less.

[Lindsay]

Our career services office recommends short, typed thank you notes on resume paper.

[Christina]

I'm a 2L. I type mine on resume paper.

[Tbag]

I'm sort of doing the inverse:

I wait until I get my rejection letters and then I send out pleasantly worded and fancily decorated "Fuck You" cards to everyone who had the audacity to actually turn me down...ME.

Fucking plebeians...

[Milton]

I felt this way as a law student and feel the same as a practicing attorney: if anyone thinks whether they send an effing thank you card makes a darn bit of difference in whether one gets hired, I have some swamp land in Florida you might be interested.

I agree with Balazo: no one gives a damn, so far as I can tell.

[Patrick]

Like all paper in a law firm, everything has to go in a file at some point, so Hallmark Hello Kitty cards aren't a good idea. Better to stick with 8 1/2 x 11 paper, which looks silly if you handwrite, so type it out with the same resume header you use.

[KP]

Yep - our OPD (Office of Professional Development - are you down with OPD?) recommends a short typed thank you note on resume paper....I do that, wipe my ass with and then send it.....it always does the trick.

[soldado23]

if the interview goes well, i send a handwritten note (calligraphy, of course) sprayed with cologne (usually drakkar noir, since i still have 7 bottles leftover from bar mitzvah gifts). this letter, of course, is hand-delivered by a string quartet. usually, most cities have them, but in small towns like amarillo, i usually just call the town fiddler and make do.

if the interview goes badly, i usually just send fake anthrax (talcum powder) or a used maxipad i find in the parking lot's dumpster with a message saying "i anticipate you will call me and offer the the summer clerkship, or a callback. unfortunately, i do not think you got to know the real me, as we only had 18.3 minutes to meet because the next interviewee was eager to knock on the door a lot. since you did not keep him/her at bay and reprimand him/her for interrupting our time together, i respectfully decline your offers to lure me.

sometimes the anonymous dirty condom works, too.

[Dylan]

I wouldn't bother until after your callbacks. One firm got us next day rejection letters last year, and many were within 2-3 days. If they're taking longer than that, I still doubt your letter will have any influence. As you say, it can only be a downside.

[heidi]

an e-greeting would be a nice touch... animated & sound... you know, the works! well, handwritten gets noticed... don't you have any stationary left from the wedding? when my sister got married it took them a year to get their thankyou's out. i have horrible penmanship, so it takes forever to write one t/y using my fake/legible h/w. i throw in foil confetti.. because everyone knows confetti makes them so fun to open!

[No]

DO NOT SENT THEM. We will have completed our evaluations before we get the thank you note. The only thing that will cause us to change our minds or amend our evaluation is if you do something shockingly strange (e.g., smiley face over the "i"s) or misspell something or use bad grammar. There is no way to help your candidacy with a thank you note.

[g]

Our Career Development Office strongly recommends against sending thank you notes on the grounds that it can't really help you and can hurt you if the note isn't absolutely perfect.

[Barefoot]

I say send them -- even if it does nothing for you now, it's good to be polite and forge a stronger connection. I'd either type one on nice paper or order some cheap stationery with your name on the front.
Just be sure to triple-check it for errors!

[Centinel]

The other atty postings are correct -- thank you notes aren't going to make a lick of (positive) difference in whether you get an offer or not. That said, they can help attys remember you. For example, I received a short, hand-written note from one particular interviewee that was fantastically done. He was sincere and referenced something we'd talked about (OK, it happened to be Office Space). I will definitely remember him should he come here, and I will already have a good impression of him. Not bad for $.37.

[No]

I sent emails. They didn't hurt me.

[astuce]

astuceacuraaston martinad awareantivirusantivirus en lignealbumsastrologieantivirus gratuitadobe acrobatastuce jeu videoalbumassurance autoacrobatastrologie gratuiteantivirus a telechargerantivirus gratuit a telechargeralfa romeo brera

[-df]

amateursex =amateursex anal animesex asiansex bbwsex bdsmsex bigboobssex bigcockssex bigtitssex bisexualsex bizarrese blacksex blondessex blowjobsex bondagesex brunettesex bustysex cartoonsex centerfoldsex cumshotsex doggystylesex doublepenetrate drunkgirlssex ebonysex ethnicsex facialsex fatsex feetsex femdomsex fetishsex gayasiansex gayasiansex gaybearsex gayblacksex gayfreechatsex gaycollegesex gayebonysex gayfreesex gayhairysex gayhunkssex gaylatinosex gaymaturesex gayoldersex gaytwinksex gaywebcamssex gayyoungsex groupsex hairygirlssex handjobsex hardcoresex hentaisex hotgirlsex hotguysex indiansex interracialsex latinosex legssex lesbiansex livesex mangasex masturbationsex maturesex milfsex olderwomensex orgysex pantiessex pantyhosesexporn petitesex pornmoviessex pornstarssex pornvideossex realitysex redheadsex sextoyssex sexvideossex shavedsex shemalesex smokingsex spankingsex teensex trannysex transsexualsex upskirtsex voyeursex webcamssex youngsex

[-df]

amateurxxx amateurxxx analsex animesex asiansex bbwsex bdsmsex bigboobssex bigcockssex bigtitssex bisexualsex bizarresex blacksex blondessex blowjobsex bondagesex brunettesex bustysex cartoonsex centerfoldsex cumshotsex doggystylesex doublesex drunkgirlssex ebonysex ethnicsex facialsex fatsex feetsex femdomsex fetishsex gangbangsex gayasiansex gaybearsex gayblacksex gaychatsex gaycollegesex gayebonysex gayfreesex gayhairysex gayhunkssex gaylatinosex gaymaturesex gayoldersex gaytwinksex gaywebcams gayyoungsex groupsex hairygirlssex handjobsex hardporn hentaisex hotgirlsex hotguysex indiansex interracialxxx latinosex legssex lesbianxxx livesex masturbationsex maturesex milfsex olderwomen orgysex pantiessex pantyhosesex petitesex pornmoviessex pornstarssex pornvideossex realitysex redheadsex sextoyssex sexvideosporn shavedsex shemalesex smokingsex spankingsex teensexporn trannysex transsexualsex upskirtsex voyeursex webcamssex youngsexporn