CUA Legal Externships:

Frequently Asked Questions for Students and Supervisors

What is the difference between an internship and an externship?

Internship begins with the letters "in" and externship begins with the letters "ex". Seriously, there is no difference. Most law schools use the term "externship" to refer to a program in which the students work at organizations external to the law school and are supervised by lawyers who are not faculty members. CUA, like most law schools, offer externship opportunities and offer clinical courses in which the students work in a law office within the law school and are supervised by faculty members.

How is an externship different from a part-time law clerk job?

The primary purpose of an externship is to provide educational opportunities for the student extern. While an extern will do much work that is useful to the organization, the work is structured to maximize the learning opportunities for the student. This differs from a paid law clerk position, where the primary purpose is for the student to perform tasks needed by the employer.

A law student seeking a law clerk position may apply to whatever employers need clerks, even if the work doesn't look too interesting. When applying for externships, on the other hand, students are offering free labor, so they have much more choice about where they would like to work. A student applying for externships should ask "Where would I work if I could go anywhere I wanted to go?" Many students apply for and are accepted to do externships at organizations that they applied to because of their own professional interests, even if the organization had not advertised for externs.

Can a student get course credit for working at any legal organization outside the law school?

Yes. A student may get credit for work at a government agency, judicial chambers, non-profit organization, congressional office, law firm, corporate general counsel's office, trade association, or any other organization in the DC metropolitan area that does legal or law-related work. The organization must commit to support the student's educational goals and to comply with a few law school requirements.

What does the law school require of an organization hosting an extern?

We try to keep the red tape to a minimum, but there are a few essentials:

· Every placement should recognize that an extern is working without pay for academic credit and should try to structure the experience to maximize learning opportunities for the student.

· Every extern must be assigned a professional person (usually a lawyer) to be the primary supervisor and mentor. Even if a student will do work with several lawyers, one must be designated as a mentor for the student and as a point of contact with the law school. The supervisor should meet with the extern at least once a week to answer questions, review progress on assigments, etc.

· Every extern must be provided with a desk, a phone, and a computer.

· Student externs should not be asked to do administrative work, except for administrative tasks normally performed by other professionals in the organization.

· At the end of the semester, the supervisor must send a letter to the Coordinator of Clinical programs describing the work that the student has done and evaluating the student's performance.

How should an organization advertise for applications from student externs?

Organizations seeking student externs should contact Suraya Adam, the Administrative Assistant in the Clinical Programs Office, at (202) 319-6191 or at adam@law.edu. An organization may submit a notices advertising opportunities for student externs by email. A notice should include a description of the organization, of the types of work that would be assigned to a law student extern, and information about how to apply for the position. The best times of year to advertise for law student externs are November (for the spring term) and March (for the summer and fall terms).

At what point in law school is a law student eligible to do an externship for credit?

Once a student has completed her first year of law school, she is eligible to take an externship for credit. Day and evening students may enroll in externship classes after the first two semesters of law school. Externship classes are offered in the fall, spring and summer.

Does the law school assign students to placements, or do students find their own placements?

Students are responsible for identifying placement options, making applications and then for choosing placements. Students seeking advice about any aspect of placement selection should contact Professor Lisa Lerman, Coordinator of Clinical Programs, at lerman@law.edu.

How should a student decide where to apply for an externship?

Before you begin looking for possible placements, consider your own interests and objectives.

· Identify areas of law that interest you. Civil rights? Patent law? Immigration? National security? (These are just examples, of course.)

· Identify arenas in which you would like to contribute. Global warming? Human rights? Child welfare?

· Think about what type of organization you might enjoy working for. A prosecutor or a public defender? A small non-profit organization? A federal agency? A judge's chambers?

· Think about what type of work experience you would find most useful. Intensive research and writing? Participation in litigation? Work on legislative or policy development?

Once you have identified some areas of interest, you are ready to begin looking at options. To identify options, students may consult the CUA online database of externship placements at http://externships.law.edu. In addition, students should review recent notices from placements seeking applicants. These are posted on the Symplicity database administered by the Office of Career and Professional Development. The law school hosts an externship fair each semester at which numerous organizations recruit law student externs. These fairs are usually held in November and March and are open to all law students, including first year students.

Generate a list of organizations that interest you using the sources listed above. As you focus your interests, ask your professors and others for contacts. Use the Internet to identify organizations that work on the issues that interest you. After you have made a list of places of interest, contact each one by phone or email to see if it is still accepting applications for the semester for which you are seeking a placement. Ask whether you can submit a resume by email, and ask to whom it should be addressed. Once you have sent applications, wait several days and then follow up with a polite phone call.

How should a student approach interviewing for an externship?

Interviewing for externships is far less stressful than interviewing for paid positions. You are offering free labor in exchange for educational opportunity. When you go to interview with a potential placement, try to find out as much as you can about the organization, the lawyers, and the types of work that you might be asked to do. It is desirable to interview with at least three placements before you accept an offer of an externship. The comparative data you will obtain from multiple interviews will help you to critically evaluate the opportunities that you have identified.

When should a student start looking for a placement?

Ideally, you should look for a fall placement during the spring or summer and for a spring placement during the fall semester. However, a diligent student often can find a good placement in a period of a few weeks. If you are seeking a placement in an organization that requires a security clearance, you should apply as early as possible. It can take eight weeks or longer to obtain a security clearance.

Are students required to take a seminar at school during the externship semester?

Yes, for the first externship. If you are registering for an externship for credit for the first time during law school, you should register for a two-credit seminar called Becoming a Lawyer (BAL).[1] This seminar provides oversight of the field placements and focuses on the professional development of the participants. You should register for your fieldwork credits by signing up for Legal Externship (LE) for two credits (120 hours of fieldwork) or three credits (180 hours). You must take BAL and LE during the same semester, so for the first semester that you enroll in an externship, you will earn four or five credits. The seminar is graded; the externship credits are awarded on a pass-fail basis.

If you choose to do a second, third or fourth externship for credit during law school, you should enroll in Legal Externship: Supervised Fieldwork (SF). As an advanced externship student, you may be required to attend a seminar that meets every other week or you may have a series of tutorial meetings with a faculty supervisor. SF students may enroll for two credits (120 hours of fieldwork) or three credits (180 hours). SF students do not earn separate credit for the seminar or tutorial meetings.

May students register for externships before finding placements?

Yes. You may register for Becoming a Lawyer, for Legal Externship, or for Supervised Fieldwork before you have secured an externship. Most students find placements before the beginning of the semester in which they will do the externships, but some students find placements during the first two weeks of the semester. If you do not have a placement when the semester begins, you should treat your search as a top priority. Consult with your BAL instructor and/or with Professor Lerman for assistance. If you do not find a placement within the first few weeks of the semester, you might need to withdraw from the course(s).

Once a student decides on a placement, must the student seek approval from the law school to get credit for that placement?

Yes. As soon as you have been offered a placement, you should fill out the online placement approval form to request approval from the Coordinator of Clinical Programs. The form can be found at http://www.law.edu/clinics/cle/externshipforms.cfm. You can get to the form also by going to the law school website, then click on the "clinical experiences" link on the left side, then click the "legal externships" link, and then look for the form. You will need your CUA username and password to log in. If you do not know your CUA username or password, please contact the law school's computer services department at 202-319-4444 or by stopping by Suite 315.

What other preliminary steps must a student take to get academic credit for an externship besides filling out a placement approval form?

In addition to the placement approval form, to get credit for an externship, a student must register for the fieldwork credit, and for the first placement, for an externship seminar. In addition, at the beginning of the semester each student must register on the Legal Externships TWEN page for that semester.

How many hours a week must a student work at a placement for credit?

You need to work 60 hours for each credit of fieldwork. For each semester that you do an externship for credit, you may sign up for two credits of fieldwork (120 hours) or three credits of fieldwork (180 hours). During the semester of your first externship, you will earn two additional credits for the Becoming a Lawyer seminar.

Are students required to turn in time logs to get credit for fieldwork?

Yes. Each semester, all student externs register on a TWEN site and turn in fieldwork time logs on the site every two weeks. Time logs should list the dates, hours worked, and the tasks accomplished during those hours. Each log should list a total of the number of hours logged during that period and a running total for the semester. Time logs should describe the work being done but should not disclose confidential information.

Students may "count" hours spent doing research or other work for the placement at the library or elsewhere. Students may not "count" hours spent traveling to and from the placement, or hours spent at the placement doing schoolwork, socializing, etc. Because the law school is awarding academic credit based on the hours worked, students must be careful in recording hours.

What steps must a student take at the end of a semester to ensure receipt of credit for an externship?

At the end of each externship semester, a student must:

· fill out the online placement evaluation form, which can be found at http://externships.law.edu/student/externshipevalform/.

· make sure that the supervisor has submitted a letter describing and evaluating the student's performance to Professor Lerman, Coordinator of Clinical Programs;

· be sure that he or she has completed the required hours and submitted time logs for those hours; and

· be sure that he or she has completed all work assigned for the externship seminar or for the tutorial.

Can students get credit and get paid or get stipends for externships?

No. Fieldwork for credit must be uncompensated. Students may not be paid in any form for fieldwork done for credit. You may not accept a stipend or tuition reimbursement. Your placement may reimburse you for reasonable out-of-pocket expenses related to the field placement such as parking or metro fare. If your placement offers to reimburse transportation costs, you should notify Professor Lerman and obtain approval of the planned reimbursement.

If a student works for an organization during the summer (either as a volunteer, for credit, or for pay), may he continue to work at the same organization during the fall semester and get course credit?

Perhaps. Most students have a more rewarding experience if they move on to new placements. But sometimes there are good reasons to continue at a single placement. If you would like to continue with a placement for a second season, you can fill out a placement approval form early. On the form, you will be asked to explain your reasons for wanting to continue. If you have questions about this, contact Professor Lerman.

May a student get course credit for a summer externship in another part of the US or abroad?

No. Because students must take seminars at the law school concurrently with their fieldwork, the law school cannot award credit for work done outside of the Washington, DC metropolitan area. You may do a summer externship elsewhere as a volunteer (or for pay) even if you can't get academic credit for it. These opportunities may have enormous educational value even if you do not earn academic credits.

Where can I get more information?

The Office of Clinical Programs is located in room 312, and staffed by Suraya Adam. You may visit her or call her at 202-319-6191. Information also is available on the law school webpage at http://www.law.edu/clinics/cle/externships.cfm. Also, you may email Professor Lisa Lerman, Coordinator of Clinical Programs, at lerman@law.edu.

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