Frequently Asked Questions

Standard Externship

Intensive Externship (3Ls Only)

Q. Can I apply for MCLE credit?

A. Yes, as a part-time teaching instructor, though only certain activities apply, such as when the attorney field supervisor participates in instructing a law student by attending client meetings with students, instructing or mentoring students during meetings, or reviewing work product with students. This is considered your presentation time.

Q. What kinds of activities do not count?

A. Presentation time does not include reviewing written work when the student is not participating with the attorney in that process, meeting with others to discuss the student or his/her work, reading documents written about the student or his/her work, or completing reports that focus on evaluating the students' work. Those hours are subsumed in the allocated preparation time. Completing administrative paperwork for the Field Placement Program, such as confirming hours worked by the student, does not qualify for MCLE credit either.

Q. How do I calculate my total MCLE credit?

A. Total MCLE credit is actual presentation time plus preparation time. To calculate preparation time, multiply the actual presentation time by three. You should then round down to the nearest quarter hour.

Q. Can more than one attorney field supervisor receive MCLE credit?

A. Yes, but the total time earned by each field supervisor must be added and split equally between the field supervisors.

Q. Is there a cap on how much MCLE credit I can earn?

A. Yes. Attorney field supervisors can earn up to 150 minutes of total presentation time per week, which when preparation time (3x presentation time) is included, equals a maximum of 140 MCLE credits per 14 week semester.

Attorneys can use this time toward their reporting requirements, which require 30 total hours with at least 6 of those hours to be professional responsibility credits. Attorneys can also carry-over an additional 10 credit hours toward the next reporting period.

The attorney earns full credit the first time teaching a course, then earns half credit for teaching the same course a second time. After the second time, no more credit is earned for teaching that same course.

Q. Can I earn professional responsibility MCLE credit?

A. Professional responsibility hours must be approved by the Commission on Professionalism on an individual attorney basis. 

Attorneys can apply via this link: http://www.2civility.org/programs/cle/attorney-applications-for-cle/attorney-application-non-traditional-cle/. Please refer to the Commission’s website www.2civility.org, or call the Commission’s telephone number, 312-363-6210 for more information.

Q. How do I keep track of my time?

A. The attorney needs to keep contemporaneous time records of the hours spent with the law student or law students. Please use the form provided below on page 3. Please submit this form to Steven Wiser, lawexternships@depaul.edu.

Q. When will I receive my MCLE certificate?

A. Please allow about 2-3 months processing time after the end of the semester.

Field Placement MCLE Credit

Instructions:

Calculating MCLE credit: Total CLE credit is actual presentation time plus preparation time. To calculate preparation time, multiply the actual presentation time by three.

For example, if the actual presentation time is 150 minutes, then calculation of the actual preparation time is 3 times 50 minutes = 450 minutes. Total CLE hours earned is 150 minutes plus 450 minutes = 600 minutes/60 minutes = 10 CLE hours. (Must round down to the nearest quarter hour.)

Please return the completed form to Steven Wiser, lawexternships@depaul.edu  

No, students do not need the Externship Director’s approval to apply to an Externship posting. However, students are encouraged to contact the Externship Director for questions about the Externship Program.

After the student has been offered an Externship and wishes to receive academic credit for the Externship, he/she must apply by submitting the Externship Application available under Externship Forms on the Student Information page of the Externship website (click below).

Externship Student Information Page

First, please review the Externship Manual (click below) for an understanding of the Externship requirements. For a quick overview, you can also review the Externship Process and Registration Overview on the Student Information page of the Externship website (click below). Please note that students do not register themselves for the Externship program. Instead, the Externship Program will register the student once the student has been approved as set forth in the Overview and the Externship Manual.

The Externship Manual

Externship Program Student Information Page (Externship Process and Registration Overview)

Students should apply for an Externship early enough prior to the beginning of the semester to enable the Externship Program to review the student’s application, vet the Externship Site, and execute an Affiliation Agreement with the Externship Site. 

Standard Externships are available for the following credit hours: 2, 3, and 4. Intensive Externships are available for the following credit hours: 5, 6, 7, 8, and 9. A student may only participate in an Intensive Externship if they are entering their final fall or spring semester of law school. 

No, students are not required to complete Externships as a condition of graduation. Please note that students are required to complete a minimum number of experiential learning credits as a condition of graduation and Externships count toward those experiential learning credits. Externships are a valuable means of learning a new practice area, gaining work experience and building the best possible resume. Students are encouraged to find an Externship that best fits the students' background and practice interests.

Yes, students can work an an Externship out of state. Please note, however, that students are limited in the number of distance education credits they can take. Please see the Student Handbook (click below) and the law school Academic Advisor for more information.

Student Handbook

Academic Advisor

Students may receive both compensation and course credit for an Externship. However, subject to the requirements of the federal Fair Labor Standards Act, for-profit firms are not required to pay students as a condition of an Externship. We strongly encourage our for-profit Externship Sites to compensate our students for their hard work and contribution to the Externship Site’s work. 

Students may not complete more than three (3) Externships for credit (a maximum of 2 during the Fall and Spring semesters). If a student elects to complete three (3) Externships, one of those Externships must take place during the summer. For example, an eligible student may enroll in the Externship Program during Fall and Spring semester of their 2L year, but may not take an Externship during the Fall or Spring semester of their 3L year; the only additional Externship can occur during the Summer term.

Students can work at the same Externship Site during subsequent semesters. However, students may not complete more than three (3) Externships for credit during their time at the College of Law (a maximum of 2 during the fall and spring semesters). If a student elects to complete three (3) Externships, one of those Externships must take place during the summer. For example, an eligible student may enroll in the Externship Program during fall and spring semester of their 2L year, but may not take an Externship during the fall or spring semester of their 3L year. The only additional Externship can occur during the summer term.

Yes, students must take the Externship Seminar during every semester of an Externship. If the Externship Seminar conflicts with another class, the student must choose between the Externship and the conflicting class.

Students are not permitted to retroactively receive Externship credit for work completed in a prior semester or for work that was completed prior to being enrolled in the Externship Program. If a student is not: (i) approved for the Externship Program; (ii) enrolled in the Externship courses, and (iii) approved to work with an approved Externship Site that has executed an Affiliation Agreement prior to the first day of classes, the student will not be able to receive Externship academic credit.

If students have a job or volunteer position in addition to their Externship in the same semester, the student must inform the Externship Site and the Externship Program prior to commencement of the Externship so that the Externship Site and the Externship Program can be aware of any potential ethical conflicts. If there are potential conflicts, the student, the Externship Director and the Externship Site may be able to resolve the conflict, but students should be aware that the student may not be permitted to do both.

Yes, students are permitted to enroll in an Externship and a law school clinic during the same semester.

Yes, Externships are considered non-classroom credits. The law school caps the credit hours a JD student can earn for non-classroom courses. For information on the policy governing maximum non-classroom credit hours, please see the Student Handbook available on the Student Affairs webpage. Students are encouraged to meet with the law school Academic Advisor to review the student’s current and anticipated accumulation of non-classroom hours.

Externship Site positions are posted on the Externship website (click below). Please note that many Externship Site positions have firm application deadlines so please review the listings carefully. You are also encouraged to meet with the Externship Director to discuss your career interests to help determine which Externship opportunities might be a good fit for your career goals.

Externship Position Listings