Applying for My 1st Year Summer Judicial Externship

During the summer after my 1L year, I did a judicial externship at the District Court in Downtown L.A. Loyola helped me in finalizing my resume, preparing for interviews and deciding where to apply. But when the time came to apply, the process was very old-fashioned and involved mailing out a couple dozen packets to judges’ chambers. That process was fairly time-consuming, so I would recommend that a prospective extern allocate adequate time to get it all done before applications are due.

Once my packets were out, the process was simple. I got a phone call from a judge’s clerk to come in for an interview; a few days later I showed up, interviewed and got the position. The experience there was an invaluable legal education, and I often think about the things I learned there in my day-to-day legal life. The only downside is that the environment can be very dry and routine. But the work is rigorous and extremely interesting, and I think any serious law student should consider a judicial externship at some point during law school.

Regarding concentrations, I have not chosen one. My legal education has skewed toward criminal law, but I didn’t want to follow a specific track with prescribed classes. However, I think they’re perfectly suited for students who have specific career paths in mind and students should put serious thought into their concentration options.