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General Information

Field placements and field placement supervisors are, of course, the linchpin of the Externship Program. Externships afford our students a tremendous opportunity to develop their legal skills, receive invaluable mentoring, consider a wide variety of career opportunities, and work on issues that are important to them personally and professionally. Our field placement supervisors receive high quality unpaid legal assistance from enthusiastic students who are eager to take on challenging work assignments.

How is an externship different from an internship?

The term “externship” is used to describe an academic program through which students earn credit for unpaid legal work outside of the law school. An “internship” might include any type of work experience while an externship must meet requirements set by the ABA and the law school. Externs must participate in related seminars and/or close faculty supervision. Students must commit to working between 10 and 20 hours per week during the Fall and Spring semesters and may work full time during the Summer semester.

What qualifies as an Externship field placement?

Students may extern with:

• Not-for-profit organization;
• Federal, state, or local government agencies;
• Federal, state, or administrative courts/tribunals; or
• In-House Corporate Counsel
• Students may not extern with law firm unless they are assigned exclusively to pro bono projects or CJA cases.

What are the requirements for an extern?

• Externs must be engaged in substantive legal work
• Externs must be supervised by a licensed attorney
• Externs must be unpaid

Can students work remotely?

Students must work a minimum of 50% of their field credit hours on-site at the same time as their attorney supervisors. Remote students are permitted in limited situations.

Exceptions include:

1. Pre-selected federal government agencies in the DMV that have not yet returned to working on-site.
2. Select organizations in practice areas for which remote work has become standard practice and onsite opportunities are not available (international, tech, engineering, etc.)
3. Evening Students are permitted to do remote externships

Attorney supervisors must agree to integrate remote students into the work of the office on a regular basis and must meet with remote students at least once per week via video conference. It is not sufficient for students to extern remotely simply because the field placement is outside of the metropolitan DC area.

When can law firms qualify as field placements?

For-profit law firms will be approved for field placement only if the student is assigned exclusively to pro bono matters or CJA matters. Firms may not charge for students’ time.

What are my responsibilities as an Attorney Supervisor?

To ensure that the students’ educational goals are being achieved in the field placement, the field placement supervisor must assign substantive legal matters, must provide regular supervision and feedback on assignments, and must meet with the student periodically throughout the semester to discuss such matters as the student's goals and self-assessment. 

How can I host externs at my organization?

Please contact the externship office at externship@wcl.american.edu or 202-274-4200 for information on how to join our database or post a job opportunity! 

How do I advertise to students that my organization is hosting externs?

We welcome notification of new or existing positions with your organization at any time of the year. To ensure your organization secures externship applications from Washington College of Law students on a regular basis, we offer the following suggestions:

• Email the Externship Program at externship@wcl.american.edu to publicize opportunities with your organization
  • For Spring semester externs, contact our office in mid-October and we will announce that the position is available.
  • For Fall & Summer semester externs, contact our office in mid- March. Check in with us again in early August. We will publicize the position each time.
• Ask your current extern(s) to recommend your placement(s) to friends.
• Attend our annual Externship Fair! 

What do I do if I have concerns regarding an extern's performance?

Students participating in externships are closely supervised by faculty. If the matter cannot be resolved between you and the student, the faculty supervisor is available at any time to discuss any questions or concerns you may have. You should report significant issues regarding the extern’s performance to the faculty supervisor and/or the Externship Program Director.

Policy on Discrimination & Sexual Harassment

The American University Washington College of Law requires that organizations who wish to participate in the Externship Program not discriminate on the basis of race, color, national origin, religion, age, sex, marital status, sexual orientation, or disability. We also require that field placements maintain a policy against sexual harassment. By participating in the Externship Program, field placements are deemed to agree with this policy. By participating in the Externship Program, field placements are deemed to agree with this policy.