Humanities and Communication
Legal Studies Internships
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Legal Studies Internships
Students interested in attending law school might consider an internship to explore what working in the legal field is all about. At CSUMB there are two kinds of internships--ones you obtain for personal and professional enrichment or ones you pursue for academic credit. See below for more details about your options, and some resources for how to begin your search.
Internship Options
If you want to explore internship options on your own--whether during the semester or during winter or summer breaks, you can certainly do so. Some internships are paid, others are not, so do you homework as you begin the process of exploring your options
To find out more, check out the the Career Development website which advertises possible internship opportunities in our region.
For more information, see the Academic Internships website and/or contact the CSUMB pre-law advisor, Dr. David A. Reichard at dreichard@csumb.edu
If you want to explore internship options for academic credit, there are a few options offered in the School of Humanities and Communication which might be of interest to pre-law students. These include:
- HCOM 398: Legal Studies Internship provides students an opportunity to earn academic credit for a hands-on learning experience in the community, in any area related to legal studies. Working with the course instructor, students research and secure their own internship sites, then complete 100 hours on site. (Offered in Fall)
- 498: Legal Aid Internship is a partnership between HCOM and local civil legal aid organizations. After several weeks of workshops and hand-on training sessions, students complete internships with such organizations as the Watsonville Law Center, Legal Services for Seniors, California Rural Legal Assistance and the United Farm Workers Foundation. (Offered in Spring)
How to Start the Search
For either internship option--professional enrichment or academic internships, these resources may be a good place to start your search for an appropriate site.
Law-Related Sites
- There are a a variety of civil legal aid organizations in the region, all partners of CSUMB, which often mentor interns during the semester (through one of the academic internship courses) or the summer (for professional enrichment). These include the Watsonville Law Center, Legal Services for Seniors, California Rural Legal Assistance, the United Farm Workers Foundation and the Monterey College of Law legal workshop program.
- Civil legal aid organizations in the Santa Cruz area include the Santa Cruz Immigration Project and Senior Citizens Legal Services,
- For those interested in criminal law, the Monterey County Sheriff's Department, the District Attorney for Monterey County and the Public Defender for Monterey County all have internship programs which require applications well in advance. See their websites for more details.
General Internship Sites
- CSUMB Placements is a database of all the university's community partners. Some of these sites are available for internships, others for service learning, some for both. This database gives you a good idea of the kinds of possible internship sites available in the local community
- Monterey Bay Internships advertises a variety of internships in the local community., especially for options in fields like business, human resources, local government, and media, rather than a law specific site.
- Indeed is another site that advertises internships and job opportunities in a variety of fields.