DePaul's inaugural Third Year in Practice class ready for real-world experience

​Members of the first class of students in DePaul’s innovative Third Year in Practice (3YP) program will begin their intensive legal field placements at government agencies, nonprofit organizations and corporations in fall 2016.

Following is an excerpt from a recent article about the 3YP program that appeared in Distinctions.

“3YP is the reason I came to DePaul,” says Clint Pierce. Rebekah Gonzalez agrees: “I learned about 3YP when I was researching law schools, and it’s why I decided to come here. I did not see anything like it at other schools in the area.”

The Third Year in Practice (3YP​)​ program allows law students to complete general course requirements in two years and then spend their third year immersed in the simulated and actual practice of law. 3YP students learn and practice professional litigation and corporate skills, while working under close supervision, at a law firm, government agency, corporation, nonprofit organization, or any one of DePaul’s legal clinics.

“3YP is a way to attract students, for sure, but it’s also just the right thing to do,” says David Rodriguez, the program’s director and a clinical instructor for the Poverty Law Clinic. "The first year out of law school is baptism by fire, as new lawyers struggle to do the work. It’s one thing to learn theory in the classroom, quite another to apply it on-the-job, with real-world pressures, deadlines, and expectations. Students who’ve done 3YP can hit the ground running after graduation—they’ll be confident and competitive.”