Summer Internships
A full guide to landing your 1L and 2L summer jobs, across the three paths that matter: biglaw, courts and government, and public interest. Each one runs on its own timeline, so the trick is knowing when to apply and how each process really works.
Your summer job is where law school turns into a career. The hard part is that the three big paths run on completely different clocks. Biglaw recruits painfully early, courts and government agencies have their own fixed deadlines, and public interest hiring is mostly rolling. The goal of this guide is to help you pick a lane, hit the deadlines, and not get left behind because no one told you when to apply.
Biglaw and firms
Paid summer associate jobs at large firms. The money is the draw, and the timeline is brutal. Applications now open in the fall, and the process is mostly direct now, not on-campus interviews.
Courts and government
Judicial internships and agency work like the Department of Justice. Often unpaid or modestly paid, but they teach you more about how law actually works than almost anything else, and they build references.
Public interest
Legal aid, nonprofits, and advocacy groups. Hiring is mostly rolling, the work is hands-on, and the main challenge is usually funding, which is where summer grants come in.
The big picture
How the three timelines compare
| Path | When to apply | How you apply | Pay |
|---|---|---|---|
| Biglaw (2L summer) | Fall of 1L through early spring; some portals open as early as late September | Mostly direct applications now; some on-campus interviews | Paid, and paid well |
| Biglaw (1L summer) | Applications generally open December 1; decisions in February and March | Direct applications and diversity programs | Paid |
| Judicial internship | Federal judges often look starting December and January; state judges run later, into spring | Apply directly to chambers, usually by mail or email | Usually unpaid; use a school grant |
| Government (e.g. DOJ SLIP) | Early, with the main DOJ deadline in early September | Online application through the agency | SLIP is paid; many agency roles are volunteer |
| Public interest | Rolling, often from October through spring; career fairs in the winter | Direct applications and public interest job fairs | Often unpaid; funded by grants |
The one rule that saves people
The biggest mistake students make is assuming every job runs on their school's calendar. It does not. Biglaw moves first and fast, government has hard cutoffs in the early fall, and public interest will quietly fill its spots while you wait. Make a single list of every deadline that matters to you, sort it by date, and work backward from the earliest one. The students who get good jobs are usually the ones who started early, not the ones with the best grades.
Before you apply anywhere
Get your materials ready first
Almost every application asks for the same things. Build them once, polish them, and have them ready so a deadline never catches you off guard.
- A clean, one-page resume. See the resume guide for the format firms and judges expect.
- A cover letter you can tailor quickly to each employer. The cover letter guide walks through the structure.
- A writing sample, usually five to ten pages. A legal memo or brief from your legal writing class works well, and you can trim a longer piece down.
- Your law school transcript, official or unofficial depending on what they ask for.
- A short reference list of professors or employers who would speak well of you. Ask them before you list them.
Biglaw means the large firms that pay the highest salaries and hire most of their lawyers through summer programs. A summer associate job is a paid ten-week position between your 2L and 3L year, and it is really a long job interview, since offer rates at the end of the summer are very high. The catch is the timeline. It has moved earlier every year, and it now starts before most students feel ready.
Read this first: the timeline is earlier than you think
Recruiting for the 2L summer used to happen in the fall of 2L year. It has crept so far forward that students now apply during their first year, sometimes while studying for their very first exams. Some firms open their application portals as early as late September, and a large share of summer classes are filled before the traditional on-campus interview season even begins. The lesson is simple. If you want biglaw, you cannot wait for your school to tell you it is time.
By the numbers
What the data says about the market
Before June of 1L
In recent NALP data, most 2L summer offers were made before June of the first-year of law school. The timing keeps moving earlier each cycle.
Direct over OCI
For the first time in decades, firms made most offers outside on-campus interviews. Offers through OCI fell sharply while direct-application offers rose.
90%+
End-of-summer offer rates at firms typically sit above ninety percent. Once you are a summer associate, the job is mostly yours to keep.
2L summer recruiting
The realistic timeline for a 2L summer associate job
Get your foundation ready
Build your resume, start researching firms and practice areas, and note which firms hire in your target city. Some firms host coffee chats and webinars before classes even start.
Research and early portals open
Firms begin direct outreach, and some application portals open as early as late September and October. Make your list of target firms now and track each one's opening date.
Applications and pre-recruiting
A large portion of summer classes get filled here through direct applications, before formal on-campus interviews. Apply as portals open rather than waiting for a single deadline.
On-campus interviews and screeners
Many schools now run their interview programs in the spring or early summer. Screening interviews are short, often around twenty minutes, and the strong ones lead to callbacks.
The callback and the decision
Callbacks are longer interviews at the firm's office. Offers follow, and you usually have a set window, often a few weeks, to decide. Schools set their own acceptance deadlines now.
Dates shift every year and vary by school and market. Treat this as the shape of the process, and confirm the exact dates with your career office and each firm.
How it works now
Direct applications, not just on-campus interviews
For a long time, the on-campus interview, or OCI, was the main road into biglaw. That has changed. Direct application is now the most common way firms hire 2L summer associates, and on-campus offers have dropped sharply. What this means for you is that you cannot rely on your school's program alone. You have to track firms yourself and apply directly through their portals.
- Direct applications. You apply straight to the firm through its own website or recruiting portal. This is now the most common method, so build a tracker and watch each firm's opening date.
- On-campus interviews (OCI). Your school collects your materials and firms pick who to interview. It still matters, but it is no longer the whole game.
- Pre-recruiting and networking. Coffee chats, receptions, and webinars are not just small talk. Firms use them to spot candidates early, and a good impression can move your application to the top.
- Diversity programs and fellowships. Many firms run 1L diversity positions and scholarships with their own applications. If you are eligible, these are a strong and slightly earlier way in.
1L summer
Can a 1L get a biglaw job?
Some can, but the number of 1L summer associate spots is small, and firms that hire 1Ls usually look for strong grades, a clear tie to the city, or a diversity program. For most students, the 1L summer is better spent at a court, an agency, or a public interest job, which builds the experience and the writing sample that make your 2L applications stronger. If you do want to try for a firm as a 1L, here is the rule to know.
- The traditional date for applying to large firms as a 1L is December 1. Many firms will not formally accept 1L applications before then, and most 1L hiring decisions come in February or March.
- That December 1 date applies to large NALP firms. Smaller firms and anything outside the firm world have no set season, so you can apply whenever they post.
- Firms can now network with 1Ls earlier than they once could, so go to the events, but check what your own school advises before you start reaching out.
- Treat strong 1L grades and a genuine geographic tie as your best assets, since those are what most 1L firm hiring turns on.
Getting it right
Do and avoid
Do
- Build a tracker of target firms and the exact date each portal opens. A tool like Flo Forward aggregates summer associate listings from large firms and tracks when each application opens.
- Apply as portals open, rather than waiting for one big deadline.
- Tailor your cover letter to each firm and its practice areas.
- Go to the coffee chats and receptions, and follow up afterward.
- Prioritize long-term fit, not just the firm that moves fastest.
Avoid
- Assuming recruiting starts in the fall of 2L year. It does not anymore.
- Waiting for your school's program before you apply directly.
- Sending the same generic letter to fifty firms.
- Letting one bad first-semester grade stop you from trying.
- Accepting an offer you are unsure about just because it came first.
Courts and government agencies give you some of the best legal training you can get as a student. A judicial internship puts you inside a judge's chambers, researching and writing alongside the law clerks, and an agency like the Department of Justice puts you on real matters with real responsibility. The pay is often low or nothing, but the experience, the writing sample, and the references are worth a great deal, especially if you later want to clerk.
Judicial internships
How to get a judicial internship
A judicial internship, sometimes called a judicial externship, is a summer spent working for a judge. You will do legal research, write memos, help prepare for hearings, and sometimes watch trials and draft parts of opinions. It is a great way to sharpen your research and writing, and to figure out whether you want to clerk after graduation. One thing to know going in is that judges generally do not write recommendation letters for their interns, but they will often serve as references if you do good work.
How I actually landed mine
I got my federal judicial internship by cold outreach, plain and simple. There was no neat portal and no single deadline. I put together my cover letter, resume, transcript, and writing sample, and I sent that package to a long list of federal judges, one after another, until one of them got back to me. That is genuinely how a lot of these jobs work. You apply directly to chambers, you apply to many judges, and you only need one yes. Do not get discouraged by silence, because most judges simply will not respond, and that is normal.
The steps
Pick your courts and region. Decide whether you want federal or state, and which city or area. Federal district courts are a common target, and there is no central job bank, so you build your own list.
Build a list of judges. Use your career office's chambers lists, the federal OSCAR system, and simple searches for judges in your chosen area. Read up on each judge's background so your letter can be specific.
Assemble the package. The standard set is a cover letter, resume, a short writing sample of roughly five to ten pages, and your transcript. Address the letter to the specific judge and court.
Apply directly to chambers, in volume. Send your package to many judges. Some still expect a mailed hard copy, while others accept email, so follow each chambers' stated preference. Only apply to judges you would actually work for.
Follow up and be patient. Expect a low response rate. One offer is all you need, so keep sending and do not take the silence personally.
Deadlines
- For a 1L summer, plan to apply in December and January. Many federal judges start looking at applications as early as December and early January.
- A widely used informal target for federal applications is December 1, so aim to have your package ready before Thanksgiving.
- State judges usually hire later, often into the spring, as late as April and May, so they are a good second round if the federal round does not land.
- Some courts and programs post structured opportunities, including diversity pipeline programs that send one application to many judges, which can be an easier way in than cold outreach alone.
- Do not confuse an internship with a clerkship. A clerkship is a paid, full-time job for a year or two after graduation, and most federal judges hire for it through the online OSCAR system on the schedule set by the Federal Law Clerk Hiring Plan. A summer internship is the best way to build toward one.
Government agencies
How to get a government legal internship
Federal and state agencies hire law students for the summer and the school year. The best-known program is the Department of Justice, which runs both a paid, competitive program and a large set of volunteer roles. The key thing with government is that the deadlines are early and firm, and many roles require a background check that takes weeks, so you cannot apply at the last minute.
| Program | Who | Deadline | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| DOJ Summer Law Intern Program (SLIP) | Rising 2Ls mainly; you need at least one semester done, so first-semester 1Ls cannot apply | Early September (the application opens in late August) | Paid and competitive. The main DOJ summer program. |
| DOJ Volunteer Law Intern Program | Rising 2Ls and graduating students; some roles for 1Ls | Applications open in late summer and close in early September | Unpaid, but you can often earn academic credit. About 1,800 volunteer interns a year. |
| U.S. Attorney's Offices and agencies | Varies by office; some take 1Ls | Varies; many windows open up to six months ahead | Look for paid Pathways roles, which also build federal time-in-grade. |
| State and local agencies | Often open to 1Ls | Varies, frequently rolling | State attorneys general, public defenders, and district attorneys are great 1L options. |
- Start your background and clearance paperwork early, since checks can take eight to twelve weeks and will hold up your start date if you wait.
- Use a stable, non-school email on government applications, because .edu addresses sometimes get caught in spam filters during a months-long hiring process.
- Government almost never accepts late applications, so put the early-fall deadlines on your calendar now and treat them as fixed.
- For a writing sample, a short memo or brief of a few pages that fits the office's work is usually the right choice.
- To see the scale of the deadlines, the DOJ SLIP application for a given summer opens in late August and closes in early September of the year before. Individual U.S. Attorney's Office postings often run later, with some closing in January, and many are reviewed on a rolling basis, so applying early helps.
- To find agency deadlines in one place, ask your career office about the Government Honors and Internship Handbook, a directory many schools subscribe to that collects federal and state agency summer and honors deadlines.
Why courts and government are worth it
The pay is rarely the reason to take one of these jobs. You take them for the training, the writing sample, and the people. A judge or a supervising attorney who has seen your work up close becomes a real reference, and a judicial internship in particular is one of the best ways to set yourself up for a clerkship later. If money is the obstacle, look at the funding section, because a school grant can make an unpaid public job possible.
Public interest means working for legal aid groups, nonprofits, and advocacy organizations that serve people who could not otherwise afford a lawyer. For many students, this is the most hands-on work you can do early in your career, since you often help real clients from day one. The hiring is mostly rolling, which is good news, because it means you are not locked out by a single missed date. The real challenge is usually funding, since most of these jobs do not pay.
How hiring works
Finding and landing a public interest job
Most public interest organizations review applications on a rolling basis and hire when they find the right person, so applying earlier genuinely helps. Many also welcome 1Ls, though some research-heavy groups lean toward 2Ls and 3Ls. The work tends to reward students who can show they care about the mission, not just the resume line.
- Start with PSJD, the Public Service Jobs Directory run by NALP, which is the central database for nonprofit and government legal jobs. Idealist and the NLADA job board are good additional sources, and you can filter by location and class year.
- Apply early and on a rolling basis. Many organizations open applications in the fall, often around October, and fill spots as strong candidates come in.
- Go to a public interest career fair. The largest is the Equal Justice Works Conference and Career Fair in the fall, where hundreds of public interest and government employers meet students, and other fairs run through the winter. These are one of the main ways 1Ls connect with employers.
- Show genuine commitment to the work. A cover letter that speaks honestly about why you care about the organization's mission goes a long way here.
- Look at your own school's clinics and externship programs, which often place students with these organizations for credit.
- Watch the calendar on funding. School summer fellowship applications are often due in late March or early April, and outside funders set deadlines anywhere from mid-January to mid-April. Line the money up at the same time as the job.
The funding problem
How to get paid for an unpaid job
Most public interest internships are unpaid, but that does not mean you have to work for free. There is a whole world of summer funding built exactly for this, and many students put together a grant that covers the summer. The key is to start looking for funding at the same time you start looking for the job, not after.
Your school's summer fund
Most law schools offer a summer public interest fellowship or grant for students who take unpaid public work. This is usually the first and largest source, so ask your public interest office early.
Outside fellowships
Groups like Equal Justice Works and issue-specific funds offer stipends for summer work, sometimes tied to a focus area like workers' rights, immigration, or child welfare.
Bar associations and affinity groups
Local and specialty bar associations often have scholarships that fund a public interest summer. These are smaller and less known, which can mean less competition.
The organization itself
Some larger nonprofits and unions do pay interns, and a few offer their own named stipends. Always ask whether any funding is available before you assume it is not.
A realistic plan for the 1L summer
For most students, the 1L summer is a public sector summer, and that is a good thing. A judicial internship, an agency role, or a public interest job gives you real legal work, a strong writing sample, and references, all of which make your 2L applications far stronger. Chase the experience that teaches you the most and gets you a great writing sample, line up a grant to pay for it, and let the firm money come later if that is the path you choose.
Every path here runs on a different clock, so the single most useful thing you can do is keep one list of every application and its deadline. Use this tracker to do exactly that. Add each employer, set its deadline and status, and the table sorts by what is due next and flags anything due within two weeks. Your list saves in this browser, so it is here when you come back.
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© 2026 Surviving Law School · Timelines move every year and vary by school and market. Always confirm dates with your career office and the employer.