Law students mourn loss of ‘dream jobs’ after government offers disappear: ‘I was distraught’

On January 22, Andrew Nettels spent the morning onboarding for his Honors Program role with the Department of Justice. Later that day, an email put his future on hold.

The third-year law student at George Washington University had his full-time offer with the Department of Justice rescinded due to the federal government’s hiring freeze. He was planning on starting after his graduation in the spring.

“At first, I thought it was an error,” says Nettels, 25. “It was several days before I realized it wasn’t.”

Nettels is one of many early-career professionals affected by the freeze, confirmed by rescission letters which CNBC Make It reviewed.

The National Association for Law Placement says around 1,000 law graduates in the class of 2023 joined the federal government, including 250 placements into honors programs, which are highly competitive, entry-level fellowships. The total number of graduates entering federal government jobs has remained relatively steady since 2018, according to NALP data.

Some, like Isaiah Gonzales, a third-year law student at Vermont Law and Graduate School who had an Honors Program offer with the Department of Justice rescinded, signed long-term leases in anticipation of their jobs. While Gonzales, 28, says he was able to get out of the lease, the disappointment of losing his “dream job” stung.

“I was distraught,” Gonzales says. “I worked my whole three years in law school to get this and somehow, with the strike of a pen, it’s been taken away from me.”

Interns have been affected, too. Austin Mun, a second-year law student at Seton Hall, had a summer offer with the IRS rescinded. He says he was looking forward to taking a role with the agency, which he says has a “good re-hiring policy.”

He immigrated to the United States from South Korea when he was in middle school and planned on being the first in his family to buy a house if he received a full-time offer. Now, he fears those plans are in jeopardy.

“That job security is gone, so all that dream is gone,” says Mun, 31.

He has found summer employment with the insurance company AIG but is “not sure how well it translates into full-time, like [the] IRS does.”

Many students decided to forego other opportunities in the private sector and with state and local governments in favor of the federal government offers. Now, a lot of them say they are left without a backup plan.

“When I accepted the offer with the government, I didn’t apply to a lot of other places that I could have,” says Michael Stile, 25, a second-year student at Seton Hall who also accepted a summer role with the IRS. And now it’s too late: “A lot of firms and everything that I could have applied to, the applications have closed.”

The rescission of offers has left schools and industry professionals scrambling to help students find work, as well as recent graduates who were laid off.

Students with rescinded job offers aren’t just scrambling to find a new position. Many now don’t know in which state they are going to take the bar exam, which often takes place in February and July, Nettels says. Where they take the bar determines the states in which they are licensed to practice law — and not every state has reciprocity. For example, if you are licensed to practice law in Washington, D.C., you would have to retake the bar to practice law in California.

Daniela Kraiem, assistant dean for career and professional development at American University, says the school has tapped into its alumni network to help recent graduates and students find replacement opportunities.

“In this case, we’ve especially reached out to our state and local government alumni, looking around for people who can provide similar training experience [to the federal government],” Kraiem says. “We’ve already had a couple of students obtain new job offers that way, through our alumni network, word-of-mouth.”

These efforts aren’t limited to just American University; they’re nationwide. Kraiem was one of more than 100 people on a recent call hosted by the NALP, she says, focused on sharing what strategies schools, non-profit organizations, and recruiters are using to help place candidates affected by the hiring freeze.

“It’s amazing to see the support of the legal community,” she says.

Industry professionals, like Caroline Ciraolo, have also extended resources. Ciraolo, who specializes in tax law and is a partner at the law firm Kostelanetz LLP, initiated the email address taxhiring25@gmail.com to help provide employment opportunities for those affected by downsizing at the IRS and Department of Justice tax division.

“This began with a feeling of frustration,” says Ciraolo in an emailed statement to CNBC. “Rather than simply complain, the tax bar decided to act.”

Candidates send an email with their resume, a writing sample, their offer letter and offer rescission. After filling out a survey, they are entered into a spreadsheet, where employers can access their materials and get in contact with them.

Between Feb. 8 and Feb. 28, approximately 100 candidates, including Mun and Stile, reached out to the email address, according to Ciraolo. So did 50 employers.

The employers include “law and accounting firms, academia, for-profit and non-profit entities, and state tax authorities,” Ciraolo says. They offer a variety of positions including one-year fellowships, summer internships, and even some full-time permanent positions.

“As tax professionals, we are raised to support mentor, sponsor, and train the next generation,” Ciraolo says of the group’s efforts. “If we do nothing … we will lose future tax practitioners, professors, judges and government leaders.”

“Several” candidates have found opportunities through the email address as of March 13, Ciraolo says.

Nettels is still in the job search. He started a support group chat with other students to “talk about what we’re going through” and discuss potential opportunities. He estimates that there are 100 members to-date.

Gonzales, one of those members, says he’s “grateful” for it and other help he’s received. He recently accepted a role with the Albany County Public Defender’s Office in New York.

“It’s such a terrible situation,” Gonzales says. “But at the same time, it has truly shown what the legal community can do in terms of supporting each other.”

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This article has been updated to accurately reflect where Isaiah Gonzales is a student. He attends Vermont Law and Graduate School.