I am really sorry for what you are enduring right now, having experienced that with a T-1 myself, I completely understand. My primary recommendation would be to give it 4 weeks, drop in a follow-up after 2 weeks and start applying to any and all Tier-2 firms which you feel are great in the practice areas you like, in the meantime and line up your internships after this 4 week period. You have to give the Firm some time to respond also as HR focuses more on client-related duties than on talent selection, and most fee earners prioritize their work over administrative duties, so your application/ selection would be the last thing on their mind (I am really sorry, but that is the truth).
From now on its a numbers game for applications, and careful planning after shortlising for internships. Get into a T-2/3 firm, give it all to secure a job and then aim for a lateral hire. In all seriousness, 2-3 year PQE (not even that much actually) gives you a very strong chance to get into a T-1 than as a fresher. All you need is a foot in the door, which your Tier-2 Firm job would be.
A recommended plan to follow after that 4 week waiting period would be to select three firms (optimistically they will select you too), work with them for two months each, and get a sense of their hiring scene. After completing this, go back to the firm you liked the most and intern with them for as long as you can, by that time you would get closer to your graduation date and therefore there will be a stronger inclination to hire you. Hopefully the 4 week waiting period might also give you some breathing space and time to relax, which honestly is very important if you want to perform really well in your internships.
Plan your finances carefully, if the repayment can happen comfortably through the salary you're getting and you genuinely like the work culture, then don't shift up, but please be open to working at a T-2/3 Firm. Unless you have a financial or personal reason, don't hedge all your bets on a T-1 firm.
Application here isn't just cold emailing, as cliched as it sounds, you have to actively reach out on LinkedIn as well. Start by shortlisting 10-15 T-2/3 firms where you would like to work and figure out a specific reason why you want to do it, then craft a simple 2-3 para message mentioning who you are, the reason you like the firm and why should the firm take you (your internship/moot/publication, etc). Lastly don't ask them directly for an internship, but just say something like I would really like to work for your firm, could you please guide me on the correct method of applying, communicate interest to intern but subtly such that its not a demand, as these individuals receiving your message don't owe you anything.
Once you have this message ready, start by firstly reaching out to any alumni of your college in these firms, and then start sending them this message. Try personalizing it as much as you can. If you can't find enough alumni, then reach out to senior associates or partners. Again its a numbers game, out of 50 maybe 5-7 may respond. Here you can also reach out to associates you may have worked with in previous internships, and ask if they can refer you somewhere, but please remind them first of who you are and pray that they remember you enough to do this favor for you. Make sure to optimize your profile, which means that you add all details, have at least 300-400 connections and have a proper updated profile with some basic activity. Point here is that if the recipient sees your profile, they can confirm the interest that you have shown and can determine the authenticity of the request. Add a display picture as well, if you can, might work with seniors or alumni who may have seen you around campus (not that relevant, but whatever helps in increasing chances).
Aside from this, reach out to Faculty members who have been teaching at your college from the past 5-7 years. They might know your seniors or their own batchmates who might be practicing professionals. Here luck would be very important if they might have taught you before or know you, so take up some kind of a research assignment or audit their course to familiarize yourself with them (idk how it works in your college) and then ask for any referrals or help in this regard.
The objective here should be to at least gain one referral or the email ID of the main HR person responsible for applications, and the bottom line is to reach out to as many people as you can. There is a lot of material online on Linkedin networking, if what I have mentioned above does not work for you, please research more.
From now on its a numbers game for applications, and careful planning after shortlising for internships. Get into a T-2/3 firm, give it all to secure a job and then aim for a lateral hire. In all seriousness, 2-3 year PQE (not even that much actually) gives you a very strong chance to get into a T-1 than as a fresher. All you need is a foot in the door, which your Tier-2 Firm job would be.
A recommended plan to follow after that 4 week waiting period would be to select three firms (optimistically they will select you too), work with them for two months each, and get a sense of their hiring scene. After completing this, go back to the firm you liked the most and intern with them for as long as you can, by that time you would get closer to your graduation date and therefore there will be a stronger inclination to hire you. Hopefully the 4 week waiting period might also give you some breathing space and time to relax, which honestly is very important if you want to perform really well in your internships.
Plan your finances carefully, if the repayment can happen comfortably through the salary you're getting and you genuinely like the work culture, then don't shift up, but please be open to working at a T-2/3 Firm. Unless you have a financial or personal reason, don't hedge all your bets on a T-1 firm.
Once you have this message ready, start by firstly reaching out to any alumni of your college in these firms, and then start sending them this message. Try personalizing it as much as you can. If you can't find enough alumni, then reach out to senior associates or partners. Again its a numbers game, out of 50 maybe 5-7 may respond. Here you can also reach out to associates you may have worked with in previous internships, and ask if they can refer you somewhere, but please remind them first of who you are and pray that they remember you enough to do this favor for you. Make sure to optimize your profile, which means that you add all details, have at least 300-400 connections and have a proper updated profile with some basic activity. Point here is that if the recipient sees your profile, they can confirm the interest that you have shown and can determine the authenticity of the request. Add a display picture as well, if you can, might work with seniors or alumni who may have seen you around campus (not that relevant, but whatever helps in increasing chances).
Aside from this, reach out to Faculty members who have been teaching at your college from the past 5-7 years. They might know your seniors or their own batchmates who might be practicing professionals. Here luck would be very important if they might have taught you before or know you, so take up some kind of a research assignment or audit their course to familiarize yourself with them (idk how it works in your college) and then ask for any referrals or help in this regard.
The objective here should be to at least gain one referral or the email ID of the main HR person responsible for applications, and the bottom line is to reach out to as many people as you can. There is a lot of material online on Linkedin networking, if what I have mentioned above does not work for you, please research more.