Internships and Externships

The law school provides generous funding to students for summer internship placements overseas. Students may secure their own placement or take advantage of dedicated placements the school has established in Cambodia and Nicaragua. The law school also has established externship programs with some of the premier international organizations in Europe in the areas of international criminal law and international environmental law, as well as judicial externships in Uganda. Students who are selected may work for these organizations and earn academic credit toward graduation.

The Externship Program may have part-time positions available in various countries in the summer and has full-time international externships available for spring and fall semesters in both The Hague and Geneva. For all the full-time positions, though, you must have completed 60 credits and be in the top 50 percent of your class. For more information, visit the International Externship page.

Cambodia

Since 2003, the School of Law has a dedicated space for an SU law student to intern at the Documentation Center of Cambodia, DC-Cam.Created in 1995 by a group of people at Yale University, DC-Cam is an independent Cambodian NGO dedicated in ensuring memory and justice in Cambodia with respect to the abuses of the infamous Democratic Kampuchea (DK) regime. In part as a result of their work, the United Nations and Government of Cambodia have created the Khmer Rouge Tribunal to prosecute certain former DK officials. With financial support from Congress, the DC-Cam continues to play a crucial role in the proceedings, acting as a resource for prosecutors, defense attorneys, and the general public (view the DC-Cam 2008 Intern Report).

A competitive selection process ensures internship position is awarded to an exceptional law student. Summer associates work with DC-Cam in connection with the ongoing prosecutions which started in 2008 and conduct work related to the Extraordinary Chambers in the Courts of Cambodia (ECCC), set up in 2006 to try senior leaders of the Khmer Rouge. This internship position comes with a stipend. Interested SU students should e-mail their resume, a 500-word statement of interest, and contact information for three references to Junsen Ohno at ohnoj@seattleu.edu.

Application materials for the 2009 internship are due Friday, February 13, 2009. You can find more information about this internship opportunity in the 2009 Summer Legal Job Opportunity Ad.

Nicaragua

Since 2001, Seattle University has been creating ties to the Universidad CentroAmericana (UCA), the Jesuit university in Managua. The UCA law school houses the pre-eminent law clinic in Central America.In the summer of 2003, a pilot project was created in which two SU law students worked alongside Nicaraguan law students in the UCA law clinic on criminal, civil, labor and/or human rights cases.The pilot was a success and the law school has been sending students since. This program is supported by the dean and the Center for Global Justice through Public Interest Law Foundation grants. Credit is not available for this project.Students who are reasonably fluent in Spanish, not committed during the summer months, and are able to adapt to Third-World conditions are encouraged to apply. For more information contact Junsen Ohno at ohnoj@seattleu.edu.

Application materials for the 2009 internship are due February 10, 2009. For more information about this internship opportunity: 2009 Summer Opportunity To Do Social Justice in Nicaragua.