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If you are a BU Law student interested in a externship, please contact Externship Director Kate Devlin Joyce (kdevlin@bu.edu<\/a>) or Corporate Counsel Externship Director Cecily Banks (cbanks@bu.edu<\/a>).\u00a0We will work with you to find an externship placement!\u00a0 Please see the How to Apply\u00a0page<\/strong><\/a> for more information about the 2026-2027 Externship Program.<\/p>\n Through an externship, students work in the field at a legal office, handling real legal work under the supervision of an attorney mentor. Boston\u2019s vibrant legal community offers a vast array of placements in countless practice areas. Students have recently worked at organizations that handle affordable housing, education, microfinance, IP, health law, biotech, and environmental law, to name a few.<\/p>\n Students may work with one of BU Law\u2019s many partnering organizations, or students are welcome to cultivate a new placement. Placements may be at a nonprofit, with a government agency or state legislator, with a judge, in a corporate legal department, or at a law firm of any size\u2014small, medium, or large.\u00a0 For students who have previously interned or externed at the placement, they will need to complete the Second Experience Request Form. <\/em>All placements require prior approval from the Externship Director. All work must be performed under the direct supervision of an attorney. Placements may be paid or unpaid.<\/p>\n Each student\u2019s field experience is supported by a required seminar. An externship therefore consists of a pair of courses: the fieldwork (P\/F) and the academic component (graded). Please see below for more information about credits and the seminar options.<\/p>\n Please note that students may not participate in both a clinic and an externship during the same semester.<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n The educational objectives of the program are to help students develop their legal skills and substantive knowledge of the law; develop the ability to solve legal problems in real-life situations; learn the day-to-day of legal practice, generally and at the specific placement; and learn to engage in reflective practice, so they can improve for the future.<\/em><\/p>\n The fieldwork component of an externship is the time spent at the legal organization itself. The fieldwork begins the first week of classes and students commit to working until the last week of classes (14 weeks). The Students may not count hours spent at the placement before the semester begins. Students receive variable credits (P\/F), determined as follows:<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Students select their fieldwork credits based on their overall class schedule, and in consultation with their fieldwork supervisors. Some placements require students to work a minimum number of hours per week, such as 16 or 20.<\/p>\n Please note that the fieldwork component of the externship counts towards the 17-credit cap on non-GPA credits.<\/i><\/b><\/p>\n Each of our seminar offerings is designed to complement and support each student’s field experience. Each student must register for the fieldwork component corresponding to their selected seminar.<\/p>\n Criminal Justice Externship<\/strong>\u00a0(Offered fall, 3 cr.)\u00a0<\/strong>— Focuses on critical analysis of selected issues in the practice of American criminal justice. Placements are at crime-related positions, such as a district attorney’s office, a public defender, police departments, or the Office of the Attorney General.<\/p>\n\n
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Fieldwork Credit Information<\/h2>\n
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Seminar Offerings<\/h2>\n