Applying to Paul, Weiss for the 2028 summer associate program? Check your resume against a Paul, Weiss-style screen below, then read when the portal opens, the four documents it asks for, what the cover letter should say and what comes after you submit.
Key facts
- When it opens: For summer 2028, the postings went up around Nov 1, 2026. For summer 2027, the New York posting went up on Nov 1, 2025.5,6,11
- Deadline: The firm says applying early shows a strong interest in Paul, Weiss, which matters to it. Add first-semester grades to your application once they arrive.10,1
- Who it is for: Current 1Ls, for the 2028 summer after 2L. Houston also takes 1Ls for summer 2027, who are expected back for the 2028 2L program.1,3
- Documents: A resume, a cover letter naming your departmental interests, your undergraduate transcript and an unofficial law school transcript.1,2
- Fall grades: If your first-semester grades are not out yet, you add them to the application once you have them.1,10
- Offices: The 2028 postings cover New York, Houston, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Washington, D.C. and Wilmington, plus a patent litigation track in New York and D.C.5
- Fellowship: You can apply for the 2L Pauli Murray Fellowship inside the same application. It pays $25,000 when you accept the 2L offer and $25,000 when you accept a full-time offer.7,2
- Pay: Summer associates are paid an annualized $225,000, prorated for the weeks worked, about $4,327 a week over a 10-week summer.1,11
Flo Recruit dates the New York postings two ways: Nov 1, 2026 on the job board and Oct 28, 2026 on the firm's profile for summer 2028, and Nov 1, 2025 and Oct 23, 2025 for summer 2027. Either way, both went up in the last days of October or on Nov 1.5,6
Check your resume before you apply
Check your resume
Read against the Summer Associate role at Paul, Weiss, the way the first screen reads it.
- A score and a verdict
- An ATS check
- Your lines rewritten
What the Paul, Weiss online application looks like
Apply directly, and early
Paul, Weiss takes students through on-campus interview programs and resume collections at top law schools, and it encourages everyone else to apply directly through its online portal. It recommends early, direct applications: applying early shows strong interest in the firm, which it weighs. The wider market has moved the same way: in the 2025 cycle (summer 2026), 93% of offices recruited 2Ls by direct application.1,10,12
Pick your office
Each 2028 posting is for one office: New York, Houston, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Washington, D.C. or Wilmington, with a separate patent litigation posting for New York and D.C. Houston's posting is a combined program: you join as a 1L in summer 2027 and are expected back as a 2L in summer 2028. Recruiting contacts are listed by office; New York, Houston and Wilmington share a director, and Houston has its own email.5,3,9
Send the four documents
Upload your resume, a cover letter that says which departments interest you, your undergraduate transcript and an unofficial law school transcript. If your first-semester grades are not out yet, add them once you have them. Keep a writing sample ready: Paul, Weiss does not list one, but law school offices advise having one prepared in case an interviewer asks.1,2,10,17
Say where you want to start
Summer associates name a practice area preference during the interview process and can then work in one department or across several. The cover letter is where that preference first shows, so name one or two departments and a reason for each.6,2,8
After you submit
Next comes a screening interview, through a school program or after your direct application, then a callback of about four interviews with partners and associates. Questions center on why Paul, Weiss and its practices, and on your goals and experiences. Keep your application current as grades arrive.10,1,13
What the application asks
- Office One per posting
- Each 2028 posting is for one office. Houston's combines a 2027 1L summer and a 2028 2L summer.
- Resume Required
- The document interviewers read first. One page, law school first.
- Cover letter Required
- Indicate your departmental interests. Name one or two and say why.
- Undergraduate transcript Required
- Upload it with the application.
- Law school transcript Unofficial
- Add first-semester grades once you have them.
- Pauli Murray Fellowship Optional
- Tick your interest inside the application and upload a personal statement, suggested at 500 words or less.
The office, documents and fellowship steps come from Paul, Weiss's pages and postings. The resume format lines are our reading of law school guidance; check each field when you open the form.1,2,3,7,15,16
Paul, Weiss resume checklist
- One page, saved as a PDF, in an 11 or 12 point font.
- Law school first, written as "J.D. Candidate, May 2029", then your college and degree.
- A law GPA only in the exact form your school allows, never rounded up, once you have one.
- Honors and activities under each school, with leadership roles named.
- Experience newest first, each bullet starting with a verb and saying what you did.
- A cover letter that names one or two departments and a reason for each.
- Two or three specific interests, and languages with your level.
- Undergraduate and unofficial law transcripts ready to upload, and a reminder to add fall grades.
What to put on it
Paul, Weiss reads your resume and cover letter before anyone meets you, and its interviewers ask about your goals, experiences and interest in its practices. A law resume keeps to one page with law school first. The examples below are Intervyo rewrites of common 1L lines, not questions from the form.1,10,15,16
- Education: Law school first, then college: J.D. Candidate with the month and year, honors and activities under each school.
- Experience: Jobs newest first, with action verbs that say what you actually did.
- Cover letter: The departments that interest you, and why, in a short business letter.
- Interests: Two or three specific interests, so interviewers have something to ask about.
Example questions and how to answer them
Education line"Rewrite this education line: "Columbia Law, JD 2029.""15,16,1
- 1Law school name and city on the first line.
- 2Write the degree as "J.D. Candidate" with the month and year.
- 3Add a GPA only in the exact form your school allows, to the hundredths and never rounded up.
- 4Put honors and activities under the school.
Tip: If you apply in November, you have no law grades yet. That is expected: Paul, Weiss lets you add first-semester grades once you have them.
Example answer, written by Intervyo (not a real candidate)
Intervyo example.
Columbia Law School, New York, NY J.D. Candidate, May 2029 Activities: Columbia Business Law Review (prospective); Federalist Society; 1L Moot Court
University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI B.A. in Economics, magna cum laude, May 2025
Cover letter"Write the paragraph of your cover letter that names your departmental interests."2,10,8
- 1Name one or two departments in the first sentence.
- 2Give one reason for each, from a class, a job or a matter you followed.
- 3Tie it to Paul, Weiss: a practice it is known for, or how its summer program works.
- 4Keep it to four or five sentences.
Tip: Paul, Weiss asks for a cover letter that indicates your departmental interests, so this paragraph matters more than the opening. Name real departments rather than "corporate law generally".
Example answer, written by Intervyo (not a real candidate)
Intervyo example.
I am most interested in Paul, Weiss's M&A and private equity practices. Two years as an analyst on a middle-market deal team taught me how much of a deal turns on the agreement, and I want to be on the side that drafts it. I followed the firm's work for Chevron on its $55 billion acquisition of Hess closely in law school. I also want to try restructuring this summer, and I value that summer associates at Paul, Weiss can take assignments from several departments before choosing one.
Experience bullet"Rewrite this bullet from a job before law school: "Helped with litigation research.""15,10
- 1Start with a verb for what you did yourself.
- 2Name the type of case and your part of it.
- 3Give scale with a number you can stand behind.
- 4End with what your work fed into.
Tip: Paul, Weiss interviewers ask about your experiences and goals, so pick lines you can talk about for a few minutes each.
Example answer, written by Intervyo (not a real candidate)
Intervyo example.
Analyzed 1,200 internal emails for a securities class action as a paralegal at a 40-lawyer litigation boutique; built the chronology the partner used to prepare two witnesses for deposition.
Interests"Rewrite this interests line: "Reading, travel, fitness.""15,16
- 1Be specific enough that someone could ask a real question.
- 2Pick two or three you could talk about for a minute.
- 3Put languages on their own line with your level.
Example answer, written by Intervyo (not a real candidate)
Intervyo example.
Languages: Spanish (fluent) Interests: Marathon running (Chicago 2025), restoring vintage film cameras, New York City jazz clubs
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How long to hear back after the online application
Paul, Weiss asks applicants to update their applications with grades as they come in, and it values early applications. Interviews follow as a short screener, then a callback.10,1
2025 (summer 2026)
All firms, NALP survey
85% of 2L summer offers went out before July. May 2025 was the busiest month at 36%, then June at 29%.12
Nov 1, 2025 (summer 2027)
Paul, Weiss, New York
The 2027 2L New York posting went up, asking for a resume, a cover letter and an unofficial law school transcript.5,4
Jan 2026 (summer 2027)
Berkeley Law Preview program
Firms picked students by Jan 17, and virtual interviews ran on Jan 22 and 23, 2026, on Flo Recruit.14
Around Nov 1, 2026 (summer 2028)
Paul, Weiss, all US offices
The 2028 2L postings and the combined Houston 1L and 2L posting went up.5,6
Jan 8 to 13, 2027 (summer 2028)
Harvard Early Interview Program
A virtual program for private sector employers, for the Class of 2029's 2L summer jobs.13
Paul, Weiss lists recruiting contacts by office, so send questions about timing to the contact for the office you applied to.9
Best guessApply in November so your file is in before winter programs, add fall grades as soon as they post, and expect screeners from December to February and callbacks soon after.
What happens after the online application
Online applicationYou are here
This page. Four documents through Paul, Weiss's Flo Recruit portal, with first-semester grades added once you have them.1,2
Screening interview, then callback
A short screening interview, then about four callback interviews, two with partners and two with associates, plus meals with lawyers and office tours.10,13,14
Offer
Around the callback you can have follow-up meetings with lawyers in your practices of interest, and after an offer, partners can meet with you to help you decide between firms.10
The 2028 2L program vs the Houston 1L and 2L program
Paul, Weiss recruits two ways this cycle. Most offices hire 1Ls for the summer after 2L; Houston also hires 1Ls for this coming summer, with the expectation that they return as 2Ls.
Offices
New York, Houston, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Washington, D.C. and Wilmington.5
The summers
One 2L summer, in 2028.2
A 1L summer in 2027, then the 2L program in 2028.3
2028 summer associate status
Paul, Weiss's 2026 summer class was 145 summer associates, 142 of them 2Ls, and all 148 2L summer associates received offers in 2025. The program runs 10 weeks.11
FAQ
When do Paul, Weiss 2028 summer associate applications open?
At the start of November of the 1L year. The 2028 postings went up around Nov 1, 2026, and the summer 2027 New York posting went up on Nov 1, 2025. Applications are rolling, and the firm values early applications.5,6,10,11
What documents does Paul, Weiss ask for?
Four: a resume, a cover letter indicating your departmental interests, your undergraduate transcript and an unofficial law school transcript. Grades that are not out yet can be added once you have them.1,2
Does Paul, Weiss want a cover letter?
Yes. It is one of the four required documents, and it should say which departments interest you. Name one or two and a reason for each.1,2
Can 1Ls work at Paul, Weiss in summer 2027?
Houston's combined posting offers it: 1Ls join the Houston summer program in 2027 and are expected back for the 2028 2L program. For summer 2026 the firm also ran a New York 1L program, chosen inside the New York 2L application, and Vault lists 1L summers as case by case, so ask the New York recruiting team.3,18,11
Does Paul, Weiss have an online test?
Expect none: the application is the four documents on the 2L page and the 2028 postings. Watch your email after you submit in case another step is added.1,2
What is the Pauli Murray Fellowship?
A 2L fellowship open to all applicants in six US offices. You apply inside the summer application with a personal statement, suggested at 500 words or less. It pays $25,000 when you accept the 2L offer and $25,000 when you accept a full-time offer.7,2
Online application at other firms
Sources
Firm pages first, then dated candidate reports. Last checked Nov 4, 2026.
- 1Paul, Weiss: 2L Summer Program
- 2Paul, Weiss (Flo Recruit): New York - 2028 2L Summer Associate Application
- 3Paul, Weiss (Flo Recruit): Houston - 2027 1L & 2028 2L Summer Associate Application
- 4Paul, Weiss (Flo Recruit): New York - 2027 2L Summer Associate Application
- 5Paul, Weiss (Flo Recruit): Job Openings at Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison LLP (Nov 4, 2026)
- 6Flo Recruit: Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison LLP firm profile (updated Oct 2026)
- 7Paul, Weiss: 2L Pauli Murray Fellowship
- 8Paul, Weiss: The Summer Experience
- 9Paul, Weiss: Contacts
- 10Chambers Associate: Paul, Weiss firm profile: Get Hired · prep site
- 11Vault: Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison LLP: Summer Law Program · prep site
- 12NALP: Law Student Recruiting Moves Earlier as Employer-Sponsored Hiring Expands (Jan 2026) · press
- 13Harvard Law School Office of Career Services: Recruiting Programs for Employers · prep site
- 14Berkeley Law Career Development Office: Class of 2028 2L BigLaw Recruiting · prep site
- 15Penn Carey Law Career Planning & Professionalism: Do's and Don'ts for 1L Resume Writing · prep site
- 16Boston University School of Law Career Development Office: Resume Handbook · prep site
- 17Yale Law School Career Development Office: Writing Samples, References & Transcripts · prep site
- 18Paul, Weiss: 1L Summer Program (Feb 2026, summer 2026; archived)
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