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Guide to securing an externship

Quicklinks Externship courses Student qualifications Selecting an externship site Applying to the selected site Choosing a faculty sponsor Acceptance by the site Classroom component of the externship Grading the externship course Frequently asked questions

Students who want to enroll in the Externship Course should complete the steps set forth below. Answers to frequently asked questions are available here.

Externship courses

To join the Externship Program, students must register for one of the Externship Courses, during the normal registration period scheduled by the Charleston School of Law. The School of Law offers two Externship Courses. Students may choose from either the three (3) credit hour Externship Course or the two (2) credit hour Externship Course.

The Externship Courses are electives offered in the Fall, Spring and Summer semesters to qualified Charleston School of Law students and are graded on a Pass (P) or Fail (F) basis. Students may apply up to six (6) credit hours toward graduation from the Externship Courses and, therefore, may take the Externship Course more than once. Students who register for the two (2) credit hour Externship Course must work 104 hours in the field over the semester. Students who register for the three (3) credit hour Externship Course must work 160 hours in the field over the semester.

Additionally, students in both courses must attend eight (8) hours of classroom sessions over the course of the semester. Externs working at Externship Sites outside of Berkeley, Charleston or Dorchester counties will fulfill their classroom requirements telephonically or electronically as individually arranged by the Externship Director and the student's School of Law Faculty Sponsor as explained below.

Student qualifications

Students who have completed their full first year curriculum and are in good academic standing are eligible to register for the Externship Courses. Typically, students enrolled in the School of Law full time program will have finished their full first year curriculum at the end of the second semester of their first year of law school, and, therefore, will be eligible to extern the summer immediately following the second semester of their first year of law school. Typically, students enrolled in the School of Law part time program will have finished the full first year curriculum at the end of the second semester of their second year of law school, and therefore, will be eligible to extern the summer immediately following the second semester of their second year of law school.

Selecting an externship site

Students may choose an Externship Site from the Externship Site List (the "Site List"). To receive a copy of the Site List, please contact Professor Elizabeth McCullough, Externship Director, at emccullough@charlestonlaw.edu or her assistant, Autumn Pippin-Jones at apippinjones@charlestonlaw.edu. The Site List provides a number of approved field placement sites of either an educational, charitable, judicial or governmental nature. The Site List describes the semester availability of each site. Should a student request an externship at a site not provided on the Site List, the student should submit to the Externship Director a written proposal which includes the following information:

New site requests must be submitted to the Externship Director for approval by the Externship Director at least 30 days prior to the start of the registration period for the semester during which the externship is to be completed.

Applying to the selected site

Once a site has been selected from the approved Site List, the student must apply to the site as if applying for a job. The Site List provides all of the necessary information for applying to the selected Site. Specifically, the Site List provides the names and addresses of the person (the "Site Supervisor") to receive the application materials and identifies the particular materials (resume, transcript and/or writing sample), which should accompany the cover letter sent by the student to the listed Site Supervisor.

The Site Supervisor will typically contact the student within three weeks of receipt of the student's cover letter and other application materials. Should you not hear from the Site Supervisor within three weeks after sending your cover letter and materials, you may call the Site Supervisor's assistant and (a) inquire whether your application materials were received and (b) offer to come for an interview. The Site Supervisor may or may not request an interview. All externs must select a site, apply to a site and be accepted by the site supervisor no later than twenty (20) days prior to the beginning of the term during which the externship is to be completed.

Choosing a faculty sponsor

After being accepted by a Site, the student must choose a School of Law Faculty Sponsor prior to the beginning of the term during which the externship is to be completed. The Faculty Sponsor will meet with the student over the semester to ensure that the student is fulfilling the requirements of the Externship Course. The Faculty Sponsor does not have to have practiced and/or have taught in the area of the law typically addressed at the student's Externship Site. School of Law faculty members may only sponsor two externs per semester. The extern must complete, and the Faculty Sponsor must sign, Externship Form 101 located in the Externship Manual and return the completed and executed form to the Externship Director before the commencement of the externship.

Acceptance by the site

After being accepted by a Site, the student should schedule a meeting with the Site Supervisor to determine an externship start date and a weekly work schedule. The student should start the externship during the first week of the semester in which the externship is to be completed. At this meeting, the student must complete, and the Site Supervisor must execute, Externship Form 102 and Form 103 located in the Externship Manual and return these executed forms to the Externship Director. Should the student desire to start the externship prior to the first week of the semester in which the externship is to be completed, the student must obtain permission from the Externship Director and attend an Orientation Session with the Externship Director prior to starting the externship.

Classroom component of the externship

The Externship Course has a required classroom component. Externs must attend eight (8) hours of class over the semester, four (4) hours with the Externship Director in a classroom setting and four (4) hours of meetings with their Faculty Sponsor. The Externship Director schedules the four (4) hour classroom meetings at noon and provides lunch. Prior to the beginning of the semester, the Externship Director will provide to the externs the specific meeting schedule. The first class conducted by the Externship Director is an orientation focusing on the Externship Course requirements.

The remaining sessions with the Externship Director may include guest speakers addressing topics associated with the legal profession or student discussions concerning the externship experience. The four (4) hours with the student's Faculty Sponsor will be fulfilled periodically over the semester as the student meets with his or her Faculty Sponsor to discuss the time logs, journals, writings, evaluations and other matters of interest to the extern. These meetings may vary in length and frequency over the semester. Fulfilling the classroom component is a part of the student's grade in the Externship Course.

Grading the externship course

Students taking the Externship Course will be graded on a Pass (P) or Fail (F) basis. The student's grade will be based on satisfactory completion and/or transmittal of the following:

The student's Faculty Sponsor will review the Course Materials and assign a grade of Pass (P) or Fail (F) in consultation with the Externship Director and other law school faculty members as applicable.