Through placements in international law settings, students gain valuable insight and experience, making the externship an essential component of the certificate program. Students are required to complete fieldwork for either two or three hours of academic credit during at least one semester in conjunction with the classroom component.

Legal Externship:

Becoming a Lawyer. Though students need only complete one externship for academic credit in order to receive the Institute certificate, students are encouraged to take advantage of the numerous opportunities to gain international experience while they are in Washington, D.C.

CILI recognizes the difficulties faced by working students in the Law School's evening division. With permission from the director, evening students may conduct directed research in a relevant field in lieu of the externship.

In addition to externship opportunities in traditional law firms, students in the Institute have completed externships at international and governmental agencies, nongovernmental organizations, international banking institutions, and corporations, including:

American Bar Association's Central and Eastern European Law Initiative
American Immigration Law Foundation
Amnesty International
Center for International Environmental Law
Center for Justice and International Law
Embassy of the Republic of Poland, Consular Division
Environmental Protection Agency
Federal Communications Commission-International Bureau
Immigration & Naturalization Service
International Anti-Counterfeiting Coalition
Inter-American Development Bank
International Center for Not-for-Profit Law
International Justice Project
International Labor Rights Fund
International Management Group
International Wholesalers Corporation
International Trade Commission
Kile Goekjian Reed & McManus PLLC
The Nature Conservancy
Organization of American States
Reed Smith
Tahirih Justice Center
Tax & Trade Bureau - International Trade Division
United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees
United States Agency for International Development
United States congressional committees
United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit
United States Department of Commerce: Office of European Union & Regional Affairs
Office of Chief Counsel, Bureau of Export Administration
United States Department of Defense, International Affairs Division
United States Department of Justice, Office of International Affairs
United States Department of State
United States Department of Transportation, U.S. Coast Guard
United States Senate Government Affairs Committee on Special Investigation on Campaign Finance
U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID)
U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom
U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops
U.S. Department of Commerce
U.S. Federal Trade Commission
U.S. International Trade Commission
U.S.-Russia Business Council
U.S. Trade Representative U.S. Trade & Development Agency
World Jurist Association