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How Law Students Must Approach Internships

published February 22, 2013

By Author - LawCrossing
Published By
( 9 votes, average: 3.8 out of 5)
What do you think about this article? Rate it using the stars above and let us know what you think in the comments below.
Not all schools arrange and confirm internship offices in exactly the same way. Some schools provide upcoming interns with a list of offices with which a tentative understanding may already have been reached. Other schools require students to locate and schedule their own internships, subject to the approval of the program director. And many use a combined approach, having ongoing internship arrangements with several offices and also guiding students toward finding new ones.

No matter how your school approaches internships, the same basic steps are usually required of students:
  1. Research and identify the best offices for you,
  2. Contact several of those offices,
  3. Provide a resume and interview with each of them, and
  4. Follow up to confirm placement.
If this sounds very much like job hunting, your intuition is correct. The steps needed to arrange an internship closely parallel the steps you will later. As you contact offices and arrange a position, think of this process as an "internship in job hunting." The experience you gain in the search process may be as important as the internship itself.

Begin by mapping out a personal plan of action to ensure that you meet your school's deadlines. For example, how many weeks or months you need to secure internship placement. You should follow the four numbered stages listed below.

Students' levels of confidence and preparedness for this process vary widely. Many will proceed on their own without having to contact their director until internship placement is confirmed. Others need occasional advice along the way. Generally, students may need to consult the program director at any one of four stages in the internship-placement process:
  1. Acquiring background on several internship positions
  2. Preparing resumes and cover letters
  3. Preparing for and conducting interviews
  4. Evaluating three or more internship offices for final acceptance (if your school permits this)
When you do need to consult your school's internship director, bring all relevant information with you. If your question is about your resume or cover letter, bring your best draft.

Think of your program director as the coach for an entire team of players. Relegated to the sidelines, your director cannot go out and play the game for you. Each player has to do that on his or her own. But your director is the expert on overall planning and strategy-a valuable resource who should be consulted whenever an unusual or difficult decision has to be made.

Working From Your School's List

In some schools, students are given a list of prospective offices by their program director. The offices on this list may be drawn from the following:
  • Past internships that were successful
  • New offices that recently requested an intern
  • New offices that your program director has solicited for internship placement
If you are given a prearranged list of offices, you are fortunate. Part of your job has already been done for you. However, you still need to ask: are internships limited to offices on this list? In schools where a long list of reliable offices has been developed, the answer is sometimes yes. Past experience with known offices reduces the risk of unsuccessful internships. If, on the other hand, the answer is no, then you are free to pursue offices that do not appear on the list-subject to your program's guidelines and your director's approval.

Many schools let students pursue untried offices when the student's particular career interests would be better served in an employment setting not on the list. Some non-law-office settings such as government agencies, insurance companies, corporations, legislative offices, or nonprofit associations may be better suited to a student's personal career goals. Experimentation can also lead to increased opportunities for future interns. Mention these advantages to your program director if you need to negotiate greater freedom to search on your own.

Evaluating Offices on Your School's List

First, identify the office type. Sometimes this information is evident on your school's list. If not, you can consult your program director. The second consideration is your specific learning objectives. For some students, a third issue is the question of compensation. It can be taken as a sign that money means more to you than career or your education, and it can preclude you unnecessarily from able internship opportunities.

As a student, you must also remember that you are not an independent agent pursuing purely personal interests. You are part of a student community- a representative of your school. Many besides yourself will be affected by how you conduct this internship search. Your actions and your words can affect the internship searches of your classmates and colleagues for years to come. Fairness, professionalism, and clear communications are crucial.

A few simple rules should be followed:
  • Before leaving an interview, clarify your understanding about whether the internship is being offered to you. If it is not, then ask when a decision will be made and contact them again at that time. If the internship is being offered and you are not yet prepared to make a decision, say so. Agree on a date when you will respond with a definite answer.

  • Never let two or more offices believe you are accepting an internship with them, hoping to choose between them later. You (as well as someone else) could lose both positions.

  • Keep your director informed of your progress, including what offices you are contacting and which one is your final choice.

  • Never circulate false or inaccurate reports about an internship office to discourage competition.

  • Rely on your own good qualifications for competitive internship positions. Downgrading other students reflects negatively on your school- and also on yourself.

  • When you confirm acceptance of an internship, promptly notify all the other offices you have contacted, so that they may consider other candidates.
Finding Your Own Internship

For a majority of students, independently finding an internship office is one of the most exciting challenges of their paralegal education. Sometimes it is a matter of necessity. In a rapidly growing program, for example, the school may not have created enough internships to guarantee a place for everyone. Some schools provide no leads at all, believing the internship search to be every student's personal responsibility.

Other times, it is a matter of students' preference. As the paralegal profession expands into more diverse settings, so do students' aspirations. Whatever your reason for seeking placement on your own, check with your program director before interviewing at an office that is new to your school to ensure its consistency with your program's objectives.

How to Find Internship Offices

The resources that are most helpful in finding offices depend on the kind of work setting you prefer. The following guidelines will help you locate prospective offices in the following categories: law offices, corporate business offices, nonprofit associations, and government offices.

Whom Should I Approach First?

After selecting your target offices, the question arises: "Whom in this office should I speak to first?" When job hunting, successful candidates are usually those, who zero in on the person who has the power to make a hiring decision. In internship hunting, the same rule applies. For example, career counselors often warn job hunters to avoid personnel or human resources offices in large organizations because the normal function of these offices is to screen out candidates-not to hire them. Instead, many counselors recommend going directly to the person for whom you want to work. This strategy is usually effective for internships as well.

A major exception is when an in-house internship program already exists in your target office. In this situation, the personnel director or human resources manager may be the person who oversees the selection of student-interns. He or she may have even designed the in-house program and, as a result, may know more about it than anyone else in the office.

published February 22, 2013

By Author - LawCrossing
( 9 votes, average: 3.8 out of 5)
What do you think about this article? Rate it using the stars above and let us know what you think in the comments below.

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