Civil Externship Placement

Catalog description

This course emphasizes practice skills and professional identity development in a format that includes 140 field placement hours with a weekly two-hour seminar. Students work approximately 10-12 hours per week for 13-14 weeks in private law firms, corporate law departments, government legal offices, or non-profit/public interest legal groups. Students develop their placement goals, and the assignments, opportunities, and experiences to achieve their goals with input from both their seminar teacher and their placement supervisor. Opportunities may include observing judicial and administrative proceedings; participating in business transactions; interviewing, negotiating, and counseling; and researching and drafting legal documents and memoranda. The seminar component, which focuses on professional development, provides opportunities for written and oral reflection as well as a forum for students to discuss issues arising in their field placements. The seminar portion of the externship experience is 2 credits; the field placement portion is 2 credits. Students must successfully complete both components to receive credit for either.