The Externship Manual provides greater detail, but broadly, the process to participate in the Externship Program is as follows:
- Get Hired by an Externship Site. Students must first apply to, and be hired by, an Externship Site. Externship Site postings are available on the law school career services site, Vincent. As part of this process, students should determine whether the Externship Site is a currently approved Externship Site or whether the Externship Site is not yet approved. A list of approved Externship Sites is posted on the main Externships webpage. If your preferred Externship Site is not yet an Approved Externship Site, please encourage the Externship Site to submit an application to become an Approved Externship Site as soon as possible. Please complete this in sufficient time for the Externship Site to submit the application, for the application to be reviewed and approved by the Externship Program, and for the propsosed Externship Site to execute an Affiliation Agreement. This process can take a minimum of two weeks and will take longer if the proposed Externship Site requests modifications to the standard Affiliation Agreement.
- Apply to the Externship Program. After a student is hired by an Externship Site, the student then applies to the Externship Program for approval to join the Externship Program. Students must apply to the Externship Program by submitting the Externship Application available below under Externship Forms.
- This application must be submitted prior to the beginning of the semester in accordance with the timeline set forth in the Experiential Learning Calendar - Experiential Learning Application Calendar. For instructions on how to apply to the Externship Program, please see the Externship Manual.
- Externship Director Then Approves or Rejects Student Application. After a student applies to the Externship Program, the Externship Director will review the student’s application and determine whether the student qualifies to join the Externship Program and whether the student’s proposed Externship Site is an Approved Externship Site. After the student is approved to join the Externship Program, the Externship Director will inform the student that he or she is approved to join the Externship Program pending the Externship Director’s review of the student’s Externship Site. If the Externship Site was not previously designated as an Approved Externship Site, the Externship Director will review the Externship Site and approve, reject or further investigate the Externship Site.
- Externship Director Verifies Execution of Affiliation Agreement. After the student is approved to join the Externship Program and the Externship Site has been approved, the Externship Director will verify that the Externship Site has executed the Affiliation Agreement. Externship Sites that do not execute the Affiliation Agreement prior to the first day of classes will disqualify the student from receiving academic credit for the Externship for that semester. Thus, it is vitally important that the student coordinate with the Externship Site to ensure the Affiliation Agreement is executed promptly upon receipt. For more information on the Affiliation Agreement, please see the Externship Manual.
- Externship Director Enrolls Approved Student in Externship Course and Seminar. After (i) the student is approved to join the Externship Program and (ii) the student’s Externship Site is approved, the Externship Director will enroll the student in the Externship course for academic credit and enroll the student in the applicable Externship Seminar. For more information about the Externship Seminar, please see the Externship Manual. Please note that students cannot register themselves for the Externship; only the Externship program registers students for Externships. The Externship Program will keep students updated on the registration process.
- Student Arranges Start and End Date with Externship Site. To begin the Externship, the student should arrange a start date and end date with the Externship Site supervisor that corresponds with the academic calendar. The first day of work should be no later than the first week of classes and the last day of work should be no later than the last week of classes.
- Student Attends Externship Seminar. Externship Seminar attendance is mandatory and excessive non-attendance can result in a failing grade.
- Student Submits Daily Logs and Progress Reports During Externship. During the semester, the student, now an Extern, must complete and submit the Daily Logs and the Progress Reports in the timeframe required. For more information about these submissions, please see the Externship Manual.
- Student Receives Pass/Fail Grade at End of Semester. By the end of the semester, the student must have satisfied all the requirements of the Externship to receive a passing grade for the Externship fieldwork component and the Externship Seminar.
*Unless otherwise noted, all provisions described here relate only to Standard Externships, not Intensive Externships obtained from enrollment in the Third Year in Practice Program (3YP). For more information on 3YP, please visit the program’s webpage.