Career Resources

We know it may seem early to start thinking about your post-graduate job search as a 2L. However, your 2L spring is the best time to check out our 3L Guide to Entry-Level Post-Graduate Jobs, start monitoring fellowship and entry-level job deadlines, and make an appointment with an OPIA adviser to position you for success in your search.

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 this Q&A to help make networking a smoother part of your professional journey.

One of the toughest parts of a public interest job search is managing the timeline. The lack of a unified, consistent hiring timeline by public interest employers and the fact that every individual’s situation differs can complicate the search process. Consider the following tips about communicating with employers as you navigate interviews and offers.

Review some of the most common 1L job search questions in our Job Search FAQs, including how to navigate interviews, offers, and other communication with employers. 

Interviews take on particular significance with public interest employers, as they seek to learn about your interest in their mission and your fit with their office. The following resources can help you prepare to put your best foot forward in interviews with public interest employers.

Interested in learning more about public international law work? The following resources can help you begin your exploration.

If you’re interested in learning more about legal nonprofit work, check out the following resources.

Private public interest law firms (PPILFs) are involved in many of the same issues addressed by not-for-profit public interest legal organizations and government agencies – but in a law firm setting. Interested in learning more about PPILFs? The following resources can help you begin your exploration.

OPIA staff discuss factors to consider when choosing a 2L summer job.

A few plaintiffs’ firms and several litigation boutiques participate in EIP, but most plaintiffs’ firms and private public interest law firms (PPILFs) do not participate in campus recruiting programs like EIP or V-PIIP. Learn more about how the hiring processes differ with these types of firms.

Learn about entry-level and post-clerkship job search topics like how to get started, what hiring mechanisms different types of employers use, and how to find job opportunities.

Learn the ins and outs of the [link_to id=102023 title="Public Interest Interview Program"]Public Interest Interview Program[/link_to].

OPIA advisers and HLS students give advice on how to balance classes, clinics, and extracurriculars during your 2L year. Check out more videos of…

Missed the MLSC bidding deadline for the U.S. DOJ, Civil Rights Division, Disability Section? It's now extended to Friday, September 20, 2019! Learn more and submit your materials.

This Fund is intended to provide support for HLS students from any HLS degree program engaged in term time or summer public interest research or work pertaining to Taiwan, the People's Republic of China or Hong Kong.

Sign-up for one-on-one advising appointments with Matthew Colangelo, Civil Rights Advocate and Senior Government Official to discuss roles in non-profits and government, and what the future of non-profit and government lawyering may look like in the current political climate.

At OPIA, we know that a change in administration in Washington can create uncertainty and questions in students and alumni considering interning or working in…

Meet with Clarence Crafoord, the head of Centrum för rättvisa (the Centre for Justice, Sweden’s leading public interest law firm) and associate lawyer at the law firm Bratt & Feinsilber. Appointments are available on Monday, November 14, 1:30-3:30 pm. Be sure to schedule an appointment!

Alan Rozenshtein focuses on cybersecurity and foreign intelligence issues. Sign up for an exclusive one-on-one advising appointment!

Listen to the Office of Public Interest Advising (OPIA) and the Office of Career Services (OCS) for an introduction to our offices. Meet staff from OPIA and OCS and learn about career paths and hiring processes in the public and private sectors for JD students.

Recent events highlighting anti-Black state violence and police brutality around the nation spark the question: what can lawyers do in these moments of crisis?