Externships

Loyola's Externship Program is designed to provide students with practical experience under the supervision of a judge or attorney and a supervising attorney from the School of Law. This program provides students with the opportunity to develop practice ready and problem solving skills while working at an approved field placement outside of the classroom. An externship qualifies as Live Client Experience.

Students may select from a variety of externship opportunities at sites that have been pre-approved by the law school. Students may earn 1, 2 or 3 hours of academic credit per semester. After completing all required first year course work, a student may earn up to 8 hours of academic credit through the Externship Program. Students who have secured an externship field placement are also required to enroll in an externship seminar course. The externship seminar course has been designed to complement the field work performed by the student by incorporating and emphasizing professional responsibility and ethics in all classroom assignments and activities.

Eligibility

Externship field placement opportunities are available to all law students who have successfully completed all required first year course work. Certain approved sites may also have additional requirements which must be adhered to in order to apply to the site and to qualify for the externship field placement.

Externship and Practica Opportunities

Externship Application Process

The School of Law makes every effort to assist students throughout the school year in obtaining appropriate and approved externships. Information sessions are offered by Chipo Nyambuya, Director of Externships, each semester.  You may watch a virtual session on this page or you may schedule an appointment with Director Nyambuya.   During these sessions, students have the opportunity to learn about the various externship opportunities that are available to them, and the application process. A list of approved extern sites is included below, along with the internal School of Law application and Field Supervisor’s Participation Agreement. In most cases, students will directly contact the approved sites. Contact information is included with the list of approved sites. Students should also monitor law school announcements, Law School Student Sakai Page, Career Services Pearson Weekly, and this website for new externship opportunities, news and information as they become available.

Academic Credit

Students may earn 1, 2 or 3 credit hours for their work as an extern.  Students seeking to earn 1 credit hour are required to work a minimum of 55 hours in the field.  In order to earn 2 academic credits, students are required to work a total of 110 hours in the field.  Students seeking to earn 3 credit hours are required to work a total of 165 hours in the field.  All students participating in the Externship Program will also be enrolled in a seminar course during the semester that the student is working in an approved field placement.  The seminar course is graded pass/no pass.

Conflicts Policy-Circuit Court of Cook County Illinois

Students working in chambers for a state court judge (Circuit Court of Cook County) will need to disclose whether they also will be working or intend to work in any other legal capacity to the judge and law school. Students may not work in other legal capacity while working as an extern for a state court judge. This is a directive from the Office of the Chief Judge for the Circuit Court of Cook County. Conflicts should be disclosed in all cases with prospective supervisors. Certain federal court district court and magistrate judges may also have similar policies in place. It is important that you disclose this information.

Conflicts and Disclosures

Employment, co-curricular or extracurricular activities or volunteer responsibilities that present actual or potential conflicts will not be approved.  It is critical that you disclose any actual or potential conflicts that would jeopardize your duty of confidentiality and loyalty owed to your prospective externship placement.  Students have a continuing obligation to update their conflict disclosures with the Director of Externships and Course Instructor during the semester you are engaged in an externship placement.  Please be reminded that if you have accepted a position with the Circuit Court of Cook County, you are prohibited from working in any legal capacity, paid or unpaid.  Working as a research assistant or tutor are exceptions to the court’s policy. 

Students in federal judicial clerkships, externships, and internships are required to review and attest to their acceptance and compliance with the Code of Conduct for Judicial Employees, provided below:

https://www.uscourts.gov/sites/default/files/vol02a-ch03_0.pdf