(Author) Associate

How strict are listed experience requirements for in-house counsel jobs? I’ve got 4.5 years of BigLaw employment experience with a lot of autonomy in my cases that I can demonstrate in an interview. Should I apply for in-house employment jobs seeking 6-8 years of experience?

General Counsel Responses:

• Yes, apply.

• Yes.

• Always apply. Best of luck to you.

• I agree with everyone else, apply. Also, where are you located? The company I work for has a L&E openings in the DC area.

Counsel Responses:

• Do it. You've got this 💪🏻! After so many years of experience, personality is what really matters for me.

• You should definitely apply. But also know that jobs often get applicants with much more experience (eg, I was hired with seven years of experience for a job listed as three plus years of experience), so it’s going to be competitive.

• I would use the buzzwords from the posting. Remember, it has to get past HR/software before someone looks at it.

• You can definitely apply. In my experience when hiring for more typical practice groups (like L&E) companies have a lot of room to go outside the listed years of experience but, more often, they end up hiring someone with more experience than the job listing requires. All that being said, don’t discount postings asking for less years of experience. If they like you and want to bring you on, they’ll adjust the title and compensation.

• I literally got my last job with four years of experience and it asked for six to eight. My experience was super relevant and for in-house, they’re often just guessing on experience range, especially at smaller places.

• You should definitely apply! There is no need to worry about the experience difference.

• Apply. But also, watch those typos- “council” when referring to attorneys is like nails on a chalkboard to me.

Attorney and Associate Responses:

• They aren't strict at all.

• Yes!

In-house? Be a part of the conversation on Fishbowl (anonymous).