Objectively stating the facts here- The batch size of GNLU is 180. Not more than 120 people register for placements. Around 110 students end up getting job offers by the time they graduate. Around 60 people end up in Tier 1 firms. Around 90 people end up with decent placements (jobs that pay more than 80-90k per month). Is it all great for everyone? No, many people still end up dissatisfied with their placement outcomes. However, it isn't too bad. More than 75% of interested people end up with good-paying jobs. It is not all too rosy. But isn't even as bad as some people on this platform portray GNLU to be.
Source- I graduated from GNLU in 2021. Got placed at S&A via college placement and laterally got hired at a T1 firm recently.
Broadly, here are the things that you can do to enhance your CV. These are in addition to good academics. Depending on which college you're from, good academics are non-negotiable. For me, they were and I know that people wouldn't have even looked at my CV if not for my CGPA.
1. Internships: This was quite possibly the strongest section in my CV. My parents aren't lawyers and my Placement Cell wasn't spectacular, this happened because of good old networking. My first 4 internships were in chambers/litigation in my city - easy to get because they weren't coveted internships that everyone was trying to get. I kept in touch with all the people i met here, texted them for New Years, Diwali, did my best to be on good terms with everyone. A year later, when I asked these people to help me get other internships, they really did. This led to my tier 2 internships.
My tier 1 internships did not come from connections, I found that the strategy I outlined above seemed to work from tier 3 to tier 2 but not tier 2 to tier 1. I got my JSA internship by directly applying, they had a long procedure but I did get it without recommendations. The other t1 internships I got were through the Placement Cell - by this time I was in 4th year and had a good CGPA so I got the internships I wanted through college itself. By recruitment time, I had 10 internships on my CV - 3 T1s, 3 T2s, and 4 random ones that people outside my city wouldn't have heard of. Got placed through campus placement in a T1 that I hadn't interned at.
2. Moots: I did 3 external moots and would say that this was a fairly strong part of CV. The first moot I did was a random one, we reached the semi-finals but didn't win anything. The second moot I did was a really good one, a competitive national level corporate law moot of repute. We won an award but not the entire event. The last moot I did was a reputed constitutional law moot in which we reached the finals and won an award. An international moot would have been a great addition to my CV but was not affordable. I didn't really have the time to undertake something like this, either.
3. ADR Competitions/Essay Writing Competitions/Quiz Competitions/Debates/MUNs/Miscellaneous competitions: Some of these are easier to get awards in than others. Target those, and you'll build up your CV without spending an unreasonable amount of time/effort. I had a fair few of these and while they look impressive put together, the truth is that they're not that difficult to crack. You need to participate persistently, and you'll win a few awards in a few places.
4. Publications/Paper Presentations/Conferences: A lot of people focus on these extensively, and they're usually rewarded for their efforts. I wasn't one of these people, and had 0 publications when I got placed. My first publication was accepted after my placement. If you're interested in publishing, target good journals and blogs, a "publication" in ipleaders doesn't add value to your CV.
All this may seem intimidating, but remember that you can't do everything in the limited time you have. Try to build a diverse CV, and enjoy yourself with these activities! Good luck!
Does moots and client councelling competition plays a major role in CV? OR, it's Past Internships.
What makes a CV different? Please help me out.
Top 5 NLUs are
NLS
NUJS
NALSAR
NLIU
NLUJ
NLSIU
NALSAR
NUJS
GNLU
NLUJ
NLSIU
NALSAR
NLUD
NUJS
NLUJ
Source- I graduated from GNLU in 2021. Got placed at S&A via college placement and laterally got hired at a T1 firm recently.
1. Internships: This was quite possibly the strongest section in my CV. My parents aren't lawyers and my Placement Cell wasn't spectacular, this happened because of good old networking. My first 4 internships were in chambers/litigation in my city - easy to get because they weren't coveted internships that everyone was trying to get. I kept in touch with all the people i met here, texted them for New Years, Diwali, did my best to be on good terms with everyone. A year later, when I asked these people to help me get other internships, they really did. This led to my tier 2 internships.
My tier 1 internships did not come from connections, I found that the strategy I outlined above seemed to work from tier 3 to tier 2 but not tier 2 to tier 1. I got my JSA internship by directly applying, they had a long procedure but I did get it without recommendations. The other t1 internships I got were through the Placement Cell - by this time I was in 4th year and had a good CGPA so I got the internships I wanted through college itself. By recruitment time, I had 10 internships on my CV - 3 T1s, 3 T2s, and 4 random ones that people outside my city wouldn't have heard of. Got placed through campus placement in a T1 that I hadn't interned at.
2. Moots: I did 3 external moots and would say that this was a fairly strong part of CV. The first moot I did was a random one, we reached the semi-finals but didn't win anything. The second moot I did was a really good one, a competitive national level corporate law moot of repute. We won an award but not the entire event. The last moot I did was a reputed constitutional law moot in which we reached the finals and won an award. An international moot would have been a great addition to my CV but was not affordable. I didn't really have the time to undertake something like this, either.
3. ADR Competitions/Essay Writing Competitions/Quiz Competitions/Debates/MUNs/Miscellaneous competitions: Some of these are easier to get awards in than others. Target those, and you'll build up your CV without spending an unreasonable amount of time/effort. I had a fair few of these and while they look impressive put together, the truth is that they're not that difficult to crack. You need to participate persistently, and you'll win a few awards in a few places.
4. Publications/Paper Presentations/Conferences: A lot of people focus on these extensively, and they're usually rewarded for their efforts. I wasn't one of these people, and had 0 publications when I got placed. My first publication was accepted after my placement. If you're interested in publishing, target good journals and blogs, a "publication" in ipleaders doesn't add value to your CV.
All this may seem intimidating, but remember that you can't do everything in the limited time you have. Try to build a diverse CV, and enjoy yourself with these activities! Good luck!