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December 21, 2007
Government Employers: What To Do Over Winter Break
If you are a 1L with an interest in working within the local, state, or federal government this summer, winter break is a great opportunity to start doing your research and submitting applications. But what exactly should you be doing? The CSO recommends taking the following steps:
1) Check out the Government Honors & Internship Handbook 2007-2008 at: http://www.law.arizona.edu/career/honorshandbook.cfm . The Case Western Reserve University School of Law Username and Password for this website is available in the CSO or through the CSO course on Blackboard. This helpful handbook, which is updated on a regular basis, lists a variety of government opportunities for law students and provides a description of the opportunity, requirements, and information about the application process, including deadlines.
2) Do some research on your own – use online resources, the Inside Scoop (available through the CSO course on Blackboard), and the CSO to find out more about opportunities for law students. Often, government agencies list hiring and application information right on their own website and links to a variety of government website are also available through the CSO course on Blackboard. A list of additional government resources available in the CSO is posted at: http://law.case.edu/careers/students/content.asp?id=605 . And don’t forget to ask the CSO if we have alumni contacts working for the government in geographic regions that are of interest to you – alumni can be great sources of information about the types of opportunities available to law students.
3) Prepare cover letters, resumes, and other official application materials to send to government employers that interest you. Make sure to check to see if the employer’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 and application materials, send a draft to the CSO for review by a counselor.
4) Keep a spreadsheet or other list of the employers 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) Remember that fellowship funding is sometimes available to students doing unpaid government internships. Begin researching and 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.
6) Follow-up! Be sure to make follow-up phone calls to the employers to which you have sent materials approximately two weeks after sending your materials.
Posted by kcc17 at December 21, 2007 08:56 AM