Find Your Externship

Find an externship that’s right for you.

  • Click the “Search the Database” button on the sidebar of the Externship website to access the Externship Site Database.
    • You must sign into your Seattle University email account to view the database.
  • The Externship Site Database lists 750+ approved externship sites.
  • Sites are searchable by location, type, and seminar.
    • Note: We are still working on the database so some seminar information is in the process of being corrected. Please email the Externship Office with any questions about which sites fall under which seminars.
  • Seattle University Law School does not have externships at for-profit law firms.
  • Use the information on the site profile to draft your cover letter.
  • To apply to international externships, please contact the Director of Externships to learn about options and the process of applying.
  • Externships at other sites:
    • You may extern at a site not listed in our database if it meets ABA accreditation standards and you could not get a similar experience at an existing site.
    • The Director of Externships must review and approve the site before we can register you.
    • Contact the office early so we have sufficient time to consult with the proposed supervisor and assess the substance of the proposed work.
  • You may not extern at an agency where you have previously worked or volunteered. Exceptions are made if the future work will be substantially different (subject to approval). To find out if your externship can be approved, you will need to send a list of the different tasks and skills for both the previous time period and the future semester.

Contact

Externship Program
206-398-4128
externships@seattleu.edu

Make an appointment with Externship Program Faculty on Microsoft Bookings.

When should I start applying to externships? Is there a deadline?

It is best to apply for externships about three to five months before the start of the semester. Here are a few things to be aware of.

  • To apply you must email a completed Externship Application Form (PDF) to the Externship Program Office and send cover letters for your three top sites.
  • Most sites do not have a deadline but fill their positions on a rolling basis. Some have lengthy background checks that can take 4 to 5 months.
  • A few sites have deadlines and won't accept applications after that point. If the sites have told us about these deadlines, we will include them in our Externship Clinic Newsletter.
  • Each seminar has a cap and seminars often fill up well before the start of the semester. Once the seminar is filled, you won’t be able to earn credit, even if you found the site on your own,
  • It generally takes two to four weeks to get through the whole process — this includes sending a resume and cover letter, scheduling an interview, receiving an offer, and asking the externship program to register you for the seminar. Because of this time frame, we don't usually take applications in the last month before the semester starts.
  • There are always more externships looking for students than students looking for externships, so if you start early and keep applying to sites, you are guaranteed to find a position!