Category: Announcements

OPIA's end-of-year survey is a key opportunity to tell us what's working well in OPIA -- and what isn't! We will use your thoughts to inform our planning for future years. All responses to the survey are anonymous.

Our goal is to help you find a great public interest job and avoid the common mistakes that can derail your job search. Take a look at our list of common job search mistakes and don’t let them happen to you!

OCS is seeking applications from current 2Ls to work as EIP Peer Advisers during August and September (and possibly longer). Peer advisers will help with EIP advising, creating resources and messaging on the EIP process, and advising OCS staff on student issues and concerns. Interested candidates may be able to stay on to help with school year advising (including one-on-one advising for international LLM students).

We are often asked by students interested in public service work about how to weigh their wide-ranging academic options while in law school. Our advice gives broad guidance on the choices you may be contemplating.

We strongly encourage you to apply for any fellowship that may help you reach the work you are excited about. Because many fellowships require you to pursue a project with a host organization, however, and because some fellowships have very early deadlines, it is important to begin preparing NOW for your fellowship search.

OPIA has compiled a few key dates that may be useful as you plan your summer internships and other commitments, including the confirmed 2022 EIP dates.

Read our advice on communicating with employers throughout the potentially difficult public interest hiring timeline to make it easier for you to manage your timeline and make your decision.

A last-minute seat has opened up in the Spring 2022 Transactional Law Clinics. Please contact Maggie Bay (mbay@law.harvard.edu) a.s.a.p. if you would like to claim the open seat. As a reminder, this clinic can be taken for 4 or 5 clinical credits, in addition to the 2-credit spring clinical course component, “Transactional Law Clinical Workshop.” […]

Advisers are available to help with whatever job search questions you may be facing. If you have questions or concerns about your summer internship search, please make an appointment or come to drop-in hours to discuss them with OPIA.

Networking is an essential part of getting to know the world of public interest law. But sometimes, it can feel intimidating to approach a potential contact, or hard to know where to plug in and get started. Review the Q&A below to help make networking a smoother part of your professional journey.

Please read below for more information about an independent clinical opportunity with the Data Privacy and Security Division of the Massachusetts AG’s office for Spring 2022.  This placement will be remote through March. Please note that independent clinical projects are open to 2L and 3L students who are U.S. citizens.  More information about the requirements […]

Harvard Defenders is accepting applications for Spring recruitment! Harvard Defenders is a student-run public defender office — we represent low-income clients in criminal hearings and provide criminal record sealing services. By joining Harvard Defenders, you will be part of a community of student advocates who are committed to challenging the violence of the criminal legal […]

The Massachusetts Public Banking campaign is seeking an intern for the Spring semester to work with them in demonstrating how the MA public bank will address the link between environmental justice and the climate crisis.  The intern would also assist the MPB in building active support for the public bank among these advocacy organizations and […]

Massachusetts Public Banking, the organization leading the effort to create a new public bank in Massachusetts is seeking research assistance for its efforts to identify both unmet credit needs for community development and minority economic development projects. The Massachusetts Public Bank mission is to support a range of economic development efforts with the overall goals […]

The Charles Hamilton Houston Institute for Race & Justice (CHHIRJ) at Harvard Law School is working with Mayer Brown to offer legal internships associated with the firm’s Project Equity initiative that includes pro bono legal work focused on advancing racial and social justice in a variety of key areas of life, including voting, criminal justice, […]

There are still a few opportunities available to get involved in clinical work this spring!  As a reminder, the add/drop deadline has passed for all spring clinics, so if you are already enrolled in another spring clinic, you cannot drop without penalty.  Unless otherwise indicated below, please contact Maggie Bay (mbay@law.harvard.edu) if you are interested […]

The Federal Reserve Bank of Boston seeks an intern to assist with analyzing the legal basis for including a policy goal of “financial inclusion” for the payments system as well as the potential for financial inclusion to be a policy goal of the distribution and creation of Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC). This internship would […]

An independent clinical opportunity is available in the Legal Department of the Federal Reserve Bank of Boston for the Spring 2022 semester.  The student will work principally on legal issues associated with a Central Bank Digital Currency.  As part of the Federal Reserve’s assessment of the safety and efficiency of central bank digital currency systems, […]

Happy new year and congratulations on completing your first semester of law school! We know that many of you have begun or will start planning for your 1L summer. So that you have the information you need, we are writing to provide information and key dates for 2L summer recruiting. You need to do nothing now but should be aware of this information as you plan for your 1L summer. In the meantime, be on the lookout for virtual networking opportunities with public and private sector employers in the coming weeks. We look forward to working with you during the J-term and beyond.

The Poverty Law Workshop is a new course offering for 2021-22 academic year, which is open to all students and has seats reserved for clinical students in the Safety Net Project of the Veterans Law and Disability Benefits Clinic. The Poverty Law Workshop can replace the clinical seminar co-requisite. There is still time to enroll […]