Externship Guidelines

INTERNSHIP REQUIREMENTS, APPROVAL OF NON-CREDIT INTERNSHIPS, AND LIMITED EXEMPTIONS FOR APPROPRIATE EVENING DIVISION STUDENTS

The LEL Concentration requirements include an internship requirement equivalent to a 3-credit placement in the Suffolk internship program, representing a minimum of 135 hours of field placement work (45 hours per credit).  For most LEL Concentration candidates, this will involve enrolling in a supervised, for-credit internship through Suffolk’s Internship Program that includes a field placement supervised by an attorney and the completion of time logs and narrative journals under faculty supervision.

For students who are unable to complete a for-credit internship, it is possible to satisfy the internship requirement in one of two ways.  The first is through completion and approval of an equivalent non-credit internship during the summer or academic year.  The second option, which is only applicable to Evening Division students, is to seek an exemption from the internship requirement by presenting proof of work in a full-time position that exposes the Evening Division student to labor and employment law, and that engages the Evening Division student in work assignments and projects involving LEL issues.

Because we do not formally supervise non-credit internships, or Evening Division students working full-time in labor and employment law positions, we require documentation and description of that experience, as well as formal reflection upon how that experience relates to the student’s career interests. 

Students who seek approval of a non-credit internship, or exemption from the internship requirement by virtue of work experience, should note that they must complete the 3 credits which would have come from an internship in an additional LEL concentration elective course in order to meet the requirement of 21 concentration credits.

The Guidelines which will be applied to applications for exemption from the LEL Concentration’s internship requirement are as follows. 

GUIDELINES FOR APPROVAL OF QUALIFYING NON-CREDIT INTERNSHIP FOR LEL CONCENTRATION

Supporting Memorandum

Your formal request for approval of a non-credit internship to satisfy the internship requirement of the Concentration must include a Supporting Memorandum that covers the following:

  1. Name and address of your internship placement.
  2. Name(s) and contact information of your supervising attorney in the internship.
  3. Your position, the dates of the internship, and approximate number of hours spent in that internship.  The hours must meet a minimum of 135 hours over no more than a 14-week period, approximating the time spent in an equivalent 3-credit legal internship.
  4. Narrative explanation of the work that serves as the basis of your request, including an explanation of specific assignments or projects, subject matter and legal issues covered, and tasks you performed.

Reflective essay

In addition, please write an essay of at least 1,000 words, reflecting on your work, the specific assignments you undertook, and the relevance of that experience to your career objectives and your completion of the LEL Concentration.

Supporting documents

  1. Current professional resume.
  2. Copies of materials you wrote during your internship, such as legal memoranda, research reports, pleadings and other advocacy documents, and articles.    (Important note: Any materials provided should be appropriately redacted and edited as to preserve any confidential information.  We also advise you to obtain permission from your employer if there is the slightest bit of doubt over whether or not you may provide these materials to us for the purpose of reviewing your work experience under this exemption.)
  3. A letter, from a supervisor and printed on your employer’s letterhead, verifying the representations in your Supporting Memorandum.

Decision

It is the student’s responsibility to satisfy the requirements of description, documentation, and reflection so as to qualify for approval.  The LEL Concentration co-directors reserve the right to deny requests that do not meet the Internship requirement.

A granting of the exemption does not relieve the student of the obligation to enroll in sufficient credits to meet the overall LEL Concentration requirements.  Completion of a qualifying non-credit internship does not relieve the student of the obligation to enroll in sufficient credit hours to meet the overall LEL Concentration requirements.

GUIDELINES FOR APPROVAL OF LEL CONCENTRATION INTERNSHIP EXEMPTION FOR EVENING STUDENTS WITH EQUIVALENT WORK EXPERIENCE

The LEL Concentration requirements include an internship requirement equivalent to a 3-credit placement in the Suffolk internship program.  Recognizing that Evening Division students with full-time job responsibilities often face challenges in gaining practical internship experiences during the course of their law study, we offer a limited exemption to the LEL Concentration internship requirement to those Evening Division students who are working full-time in positions that expose them to labor and employment law and that engage them in work assignments and projects involving LEL issues.  Some obvious examples might include human resources administration, labor union advocacy and administration, and legislative policy work specializing in employment and labor issues, among others.

Supporting Memorandum

Your formal request for an exemption to the internship of the Concentration must include a Supporting Memorandum that covers the following:

  • Name and address of your employer
  • Name(s) and contact information of attorney(s) in your organization who supervised or are familiar with your work.
  • Your position, the dates of employment covering the time for which you are seeking the exemption of the internship requirement, and approximate number of hours spent on work that justifies the exemption.
  • Narrative explanation of the work that serves as the basis of your waiver request, including an explanation of specific assignments or projects, subject matter and legal issues covered, and tasks you performed.

    • Reflective essay

    In addition, please write an essay of at least 1,000 words, reflecting on your work, the specific assignments you undertook, and the relevance of that experience to your career objectives and your completion of the LEL Concentration.

    Supporting documents

    1. Current professional resume.
    2. Copies of materials you wrote during the period covered by this experience, such as legal memoranda, research reports, pleadings and other advocacy documents, and articles.    (Important note: Any materials provided should be appropriately redacted and  edited as to preserve any confidential information.  We also advise you to obtain permission from your employer if there is the slightest bit of doubt over whether or not you may provide these materials to us for the purpose of reviewing your work experience under this exemption.)
    3. A letter, from a supervisor and printed on your employer’s letterhead, verifying the representations in your Supporting Memorandum.

    Decision

    It is the student’s responsibility to satisfy the requirements of description, documentation, and reflection so as to qualify for the exemption.  The LEL Concentration co-directors reserve the right to deny requests that do not qualify for the exemption.

    A granting of the exemption does not relieve the student of the obligation to enroll in sufficient credit hours to meet the overall LEL Concentration requirements.