Eligibility:

This course is open only to international JD students who will be doing an internship in the United States during the summer following their first or second year of law school. International students on the F-1 student visa should be able to use Curricular Practical Training (CPT) work authorization to accept summer employment, and enrollment in this academic component is required. Please see the International Office for additional instructions regarding CPT.

Summer internships may be paid or unpaid. The internship may not begin until the end of your HLS exam period and must end before the beginning of the following fall term.

Academic Requirements:

At the end of the internship, students must submit a 15 to 20-page paper on (1) a law topic related to but not directly overlapping with legal issues explored and worked on during the summer internship, or (2) on a comparative law or legal profession topic related to the country in which the internship took place. Students are encouraged to include a comparative dimension in their papers.

• Papers must be supervised by a full-time HLS faculty member. Eligible faculty can be found in the “Full-time Faculty” section of the Faculty Directory.
• A 15 to 20-page paper will earn one writing credit. Students may choose to write a 2-credit paper provided it meets all regular requirements for written work and the faculty supervisor approves the work for 2 credits. To increase the credit value, please be in touch with the Registrar’s Office directly.
• The writing credit will be registered in the fall term following the summer of the internship.
• Students must submit to the Registrar no later than the Tuesday following Labor Day in the fall term following the internship a confirmation from the employer(s) verifying completion of the internship(s).
• The paper must be submitted no later than September 30th, 2020.

Students will receive one written work credit for Independent Written Work in Connection with Summer Work Experience provided the academic requirements noted above are met. The credits for Independent Written Work in Connection with Summer Work Experience will count toward a student’s graduation requirements but are subject to the School’s regular rules for written work, including the maximum number of writing credits a student may apply toward the graduation requirements.

Papers will be graded in accordance with the Law School’s regular grading system. Grades will not be recorded on the transcript until the letter from the employer verifying completion of the internship has been submitted to the Registrar. If a student fails to turn in a paper and/or submit a letter from his/her employer, the student will receive an “F” for the written work on his or her transcript.

Students may not enroll in Independent Written Work in Connection with Summer Work Experience after graduating from the Law School or completing the requirements for the JD degree.

Petition Process:

Students wishing to enroll must complete the petition form found below, including a faculty signature, by April 1 and submit it to the Registrar’s Office. Additionally, along with the petition form, students must submit a description of the internship, including employer’s organization and nature of work, and a brief proposal for the paper to be completed after the internship. Students must have confirmation of their summer employment, including the exact dates of employment, before submitting this form.

The petition can be found here.