OPIA

Prosecutors tend to be unpopular and often distrusted, unless popular culture agrees with who is being prosecuted (which isn’t how prosecutorial decisions work). Sometimes there is good reason for distrust, but despite that, it is hardly wise to paint with a broad brush and vilify or glorify an entire group of public servants. Join Wasserstein Fellow Fara Gold as she discusses why being a prosecutor means upholding the Constitution, wielding power fairly, and doing so with humanity. She will explain why she cringes when she reads about prosecutors who have "notched wins" or "scored convictions," because that isn’t how principled prosecutors talk about their careers. Fara will discuss this in the context of her own career first as a state prosecutor, then as a federal prosecutor for the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division where she specialized in prosecuting law enforcement sexual misconduct, and now as an attorney with the Office on Violence Against Women where she focuses on policy and training to address gender-based violence. Lunch provided. Please RSVP below. Open to the HLS community.

1L International Job Search Strategy Date: 9/24/2025
Runtime: 48:18 Speaker: Jillian Tuck, Associate Director for J.D. and LL.M. Advising, Programs, and Community Building This event…

1L Domestic Job Search Strategy Date: 9/15/2025
Runtime: 44:36 Speaker: Elizabeth Shirey, Associate Director for J.D. Advising and Communications This presentation was designed to help…

Too many lawyers end up in jobs they don’t particularly enjoy. Not so for Wasserstein Fellow Kirby Thomas West, who is an attorney at the Institute for Justice, a libertarian public interest firm. Join OPIA for a community discussion with Kirby, where she will discuss her journey from BigLaw to public interest work, and how she found a job that is both rewarding and a lot of fun. Kirby will share what her day-to-day looks like as a public interest litigator, and why it’s a career path worth pursuing. Lunch provided. Please RSVP below! Open to the HLS community.

by Joan Ruttenberg
Director, Heyman Fellowship Program
Assistant Director for Government Advising, OPIA Introduction The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) is the law firm for…

International JD Students have unique concerns when seeking summer, and ultimately post-graduate, employment. Bring your lunch and your questions to an informal meeting with OCS’s…

Have a quick question about the public interest job search? Come to OPIA for drop-in office hours. Please note that drop-in office hours are for quick questions only on a first-come, first-served basis.

Have a quick question about the public interest job search? Come to OPIA for drop-in office hours. Please note that drop-in office hours are for quick questions only on a first-come, first-served basis.

Have a quick question about the public interest job search? Come to OPIA for drop-in office hours. Please note that drop-in office hours are for quick questions only on a first-come, first-served basis.

Believe it or not, there is a role for lawyers in the work of international development beyond the general counsel’s office. Join Wasserstein Fellow David Bernstein ’88 for a community discussion about the career options for lawyers interested in working internationally to help strengthen and build democratic institutions in developing countries. David, recently retired after 20+ years at the World Bank, will discuss his career supporting democratic institutions, reforming judiciaries and combating corruption in countries across the globe while working for the U.S. State Department, the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development and the World Bank. Lunch provided. RSVP below. Open to the HLS community.

It is easy to feel uncomfortable and melt away as microaggressions and majorative views overwhelm your confidence and make you feel "less than". Join Wasserstein Fellow Amrith Kaur Aakre in a discussion about the importance of advocating for yourself and others to combat systemic discrimination and create equal opportunity for advancement for all. Amrith, a first generation American, dedicated public servant, and civil rights litigator, will discuss her own work advocating for culturally competent laws, policies, and her own professional development while breaking barriers along the way. Lunch provided. RSVP below. Open to the HLS community.

Have a quick question about the public interest job search? Come to OPIA for drop-in office hours. Please note that drop-in office hours are for quick questions only on a first-come, first-served basis.

Join Wasserstein Fellow Angelica Salceda as she shares insights on building a public interest career in regions with great needs but limited legal resources. Angelica will discuss how to grow professionally even when you’re one of the few attorneys in the region, strategies to balance local demands while continuing to develop legal expertise, and how to leverage available resources to bridge the gap. She’ll also cover ways to navigate unique joys and challenges of place-based practice. Lunch provided. Please RSVP below! Open to the HLS community.

Join Wasserstein Fellow Sapna Khatri to learn how to view reproductive justice through a wide-angle lens, recognizing that issues such as economic justice, racial equity, and environmental justice are all interconnected in the pursuit of reproductive justice. Using her own career as an example, Sapna hopes to provide students with insight navigating legal pathways and developing skills that can enhance one’s ability to advocate effectively for reproductive justice, regardless of where they practice. This session will both provide an overview of integrating reproductive justice into various aspects of legal practice, while also offering practical advice to aspiring advocates on identifying and pursuing opportunities that make a meaningful impact in the field. Lunch provided. RSVP below. Open to the HLS community.

Law school is full of conventional wisdom—including that as a 1L you need to pick an area of the law in which to specialize and that appellate litigation is the pinnacle of the profession. Join OPIA for a conversation with Wasserstein Fellow Bradley Girard, Senior Counsel at Democracy Forward, on why you should ignore that conventional wisdom. Bradley is a public-interest appellate generalist who has litigated cases involving the First Amendment, Title VII, habeas corpus, police violence, bankruptcy, and much more. As a first-generation law student, Bradley didn't know what to focus on—he didn't even know what lawyers actually did. Bradley will share how he figured out that impact and appellate work was his path, and will offer you advice on getting there if that's what you want. But he will also talk about how conventional wisdom obscures that different approaches to the law and career paths are just as important. Lunch provided. Please RSVP below! Open to the HLS community.

Have a quick question about the public interest job search? Join Catherine's Zoom meeting room during her virtual drop-in office hours. Please note that virtual office hours are for quick questions only on a first-come, first-served basis.

Peter O’Meara from the Harvard International Office will hold drop-in office hours in the OPIA suite to offer quick consults and answers questions about travel and work authorization as an international student. No need for an appointment; students will be served on a first-come, first-served basis.

Join Wasserstein Fellow and union attorney Pamela Devi Chandran for a discussion on using law as one (important) tool in the larger fight for working people’s rights. Unionized workplaces comprise people of diverse backgrounds who are united in a struggle to improve their worklife. At a time when the contours of labor law seem bent against the labor movement, Pamela will share how lawyers must rely on strategy, advocacy, and the power of numbers to effect change – including change in the law. Open to the HLS community. Lunch provided. RSVP below.

Join OPIA to learn more about the Public Service Leaders Program (“PSL”). PSL is designed to build supportive relationships among Harvard Law School’s public interest community. It offers 1L participants the opportunity to connect with other public interest-oriented students and receive mentorship from like-minded alumni and upper-class students. This welcome event will introduce interested students to one another and begin to co-create our community. Stick around after the program for a happy hour in the HLS pub. RSVP to attend. Haven't yet registered for OPIA's Public Service Leaders Program? Register here by September 19!

Navigating a career in international human rights may be daunting, particularly during the first few years after law school. Join Wasserstein Fellow Niku Jafarnia ’20, as she describes the path she took to build a career in international human rights while a student at HLS and immediately following graduation. Niku will discuss working as a post-graduate fellow with a Yemeni human rights organization, making the jump from fellowship to a staff position, considerations for living/working abroad, and how to build a skillset (and mindset!) that will ready you for this challenging but rewarding practice area. Lunch provided. Please RSVP below!

Join OPIA for a community discussion with Wasserstein Fellow Tara Koslov, Deputy Director of the Bureau of Competition at the Federal Trade Commission and a member of the Federal Senior Executive Service. Tara will discuss her 27+ year career at the FTC, where she has served in a variety of enforcement, policy, and leadership roles. She will share her insights on career-track and political-appointment opportunities within the federal government, the best ways to grow one’s legal skillset at each stage of development, and the “joys” of management and executive leadership in a public interest setting. She will also discuss her passion for competition law, what makes it an intellectually stimulating discipline, how it has changed over the years, and why vigorous antitrust enforcement is so important to our economy. When Tara began the practice of law as a baby antitrust associate at a BigLaw firm, she found it challenging to explain her work to her extended family. But antitrust has now become so mainstream that she can even talk about it around the Thanksgiving table. Lunch provided. Please RSVP below!