Clerkships & Summer Funding

Since public interest organizations and some government offices are often running on shoestring budgets, summer fellowships are a common way to fund your public interest clerkship.  Summer fellowships come in different forms.  Some fellowships are paid positions with a particular organization, some are positions that come with a stipend from another source and some fellowships are simply stipends for which you apply after you secure a qualifying summer position (also called a clerkship).  These clerkships are often contingent on funding (i.e., you are not committed to the position if you fail to get funded).  Many summer fellowships have application deadlines falling between January and March.

1. How do I get a public interest clerkship before I apply for fellowship funding?
2. Where do I find summer clerkships that already have fellowship funding?
3. I have a public interest clerkship, how do I get summer fellowship funding?

_______________________________________________________

How do I get a public interest clerkship before I apply for fellowship funding?

Many times, public interest summer clerkships are offered to students contingent on funding, i.e., you are not committed to work at the agency or organization unless you obtain a summer fellowship so you can get paid.  

• If you want to work in Minnesota, volunteering with Minnesota Justice Foundation is a great place to start!  Contact Sara Sommarstrom to get started.
  If you are interested in clerking outside of Minnesota, visit www.pslawnet.org, login and search for summer clerkships or attend a public interest job fair like: the Equal Justice Works Conference & Career Fair in D.C. in October, the Midwest Public Interest Law Career Conference in Chicago in February.

_______________________________________________________

 Where do I find summer fellowships that already have funding?

• CPD highlights summer fellowships in the bi-weekly Public Interest Press, opportunities will occasionally be posted on CPD’s Career Center and you can also find them on the websites of your favorite public interest organizations.
• The Minnesota Justice Foundation (MJF) sponsors approximately 20 summer fellowships (called MJF clerkships) at Minnesota legal aid, nonprofit and public defender offices each year.  You can learn about the potential employers by attending the Quad Schools Public Interest Expo (the QPIE) in mid-November, going to the Minnesota Justice Foundation website, or making an appointment with MJF Staff Attorney, Sara Sommarstrom.
• There are opportunities to work for nonprofit organizations with funded fellowships in the Midwest and across the nation listed on www.pslawnet.org. You can find a list by clicking on “community resources” on the home page and then “summer funding” or by logging in and searching for “fellowship-summer.” A hard copy of the list is also available in the CPD Office.

_______________________________________________________

I have a public interest clerkship, how do I get summer fellowship funding?

• The University of St. Thomas Student Chapter of the Minnesota Justice Foundation funds a few such clerkships each year (go to the Minnesota Justice Foundation website, click on “Student Chapters”).
• The UST Amnesty International Student Organization.
• The University of St. Thomas School of Law class gift: UST Public Interest Law Fellowship Grant.
• The list of fellowships listed on www.pslawnet.org includes a few summer funding sources that apply to qualifying public interest work (for example, work that affects poverty and homelessness or civil rights) at nonspecific organizations. Your clerkship may qualify! You can find the list by clicking on “community resources” on the home page and then “summer funding” or by logging in and searching for “fellowship-summer.”
• Equal Justice Works also provides a $1000 stipend to roughly 300 law students each summer that are working for public interest organizations.  
  

Public Interest Perspectives
Shannon Duffy, Class of 2009	Recipient of UST PILF Grant for Summer 2007
Public Interest Work: Legal Services Advocacy Project “I have really enjoyed working for Legal Services this summer.  It has given me a chance to learn more about the legal issues that disadvantaged people are faced with, as well as the legislative process.  The research and projects I have worked on have been extremely rewarding and beneficial for my future career in public service.”