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December 18, 2007
Public Interest Organizations: What To Do Over Winter Break
If you are a 1L with an interest in working for a public interest organization this summer, winter break is a great opportunity to start doing your research and reaching out to these organizations. But what exactly should you be doing? The CSO recommends taking the following steps:
1) Register for PSLawNet – NALP’s Public Service Law Network at http://www.pslawnet.org/. Once registered, use the database to search organizations and job postings, looking for organizations and positions that interest you. As another starting point, the CSO also has a list of organizations where our students have spent past summers and a Cleveland-specific guide to public interest organizations.
2) Do some research on these organizations – use online resources, the Inside Scoop (available through the CSO course on Blackboard), Equal Justice Works, and the CSO to find out more about opportunities for law students. (A list of additional resources available in the CSO is posted at: http://law.case.edu/careers/students/content.asp?id=606 .) And check with the CSO to see if we have alumni contacts at any of the organizations that interest you.
3) Prepare cover letters and resumes to send to organizations that interest you. Ask about opportunities for law students and express your desire to work for the organization. Make sure to check to see if the organization’s website has any information about law student hiring on its website. If the website specifies other application procedures, be sure to follow all instructions. And, as always, if you have questions or concerns about your cover letters, send a draft to the CSO for review by a counselor.
4) Keep a spreadsheet or other list of the organizations to which you have sent materials, noting the date on which you sent the materials. The CSO has an application tracker/ log available in the office and on Blackboard to help you track your job search.
5) Begin applying for fellowship funding keeping in mind the deadlines for funding that is specific to Case Western Reserve University School of Law. Additional information about this funding is available in the CSO. The CSO also has a list of other available summer grants and fellowships – stop by the CSO to pick up a copy and begin researching the application procedures and deadline dates for this funding. (Remember that oftentimes you can create your opportunity with a public interest organization simply by being willing to volunteer your time for free. Fellowship funding can help you do that.)
6) Follow-up! Be sure to make follow-up phone calls to the organizations to which you have sent materials approximately two weeks after sending your materials.
Posted by kcc17 at December 18, 2007 05:31 PM