Judges visit Rutgers Law School to give advice to students about getting externships.

Judicial externships are open to students who have completed the first-year curriculum and want to gain practical experience working in a judge's chambers.  Students may apply for judicial externships with municipal and state court judges in the civil, criminal, and family divisions; with federal judges in the district court, court of appeals, and bankruptcy courts; and judges who sit in administrative courts, including the EEOC and the Department of Labor.

Judicial externships allow students to gain exposure to the inner workings of a court. During an externship, students conduct legal research, write memoranda, attend court proceedings and research a variety of legal issues. Externships can help a student discover an interest in a particular area of law and may also help with job prospects. Some judges hire former externs as law clerks upon graduation (though we offer no guarantees), and many other legal employers think highly of judicial externships and the valuable research and writing skills that student externs develop. Judicial externships are unpaid; however, students who enroll in the externship program can receive academic credit for their work. 

For further information, Camden students should click on the link (below, left) for Judicial Externships in Camden, and contact Professor Barbara Gotthelf with questions at 856-225-6692 or barbara.gotthelf@rutgers.eduNewark students should click on the link (below, right) for Judicial Externships in Newark, or contact Dean Andrew Rossner at rossner@law.rutgers.edu or 973-353-5346.

Camden students can also Watch an Externship Information Session from 2017, or click on this link to a 2020 Camden externship information session.  

Here is a quick link to judges available to Camden students.

 

To Apply for a Judicial Externship
  • Requirements

The requirements:

  • Register for a judicial externship through website registration and include the number of credits for which you are registering.
  • Take part in an externship/field placement seminar.  Camden and Newark offer different seminars.  Check the program at your campus for details. 
  • Execute a Memorandum of Understanding that details the responsibilities of the three parties to the Externship agreement: the student, the court, and the law school. 
  • Submit an evaluation form completed by the judge or law clerk supervising the externship.
  • You may be asked to submit one or two examples of writing that have been done during the externship depending on the amount of school credits you are seeking.
  • Keep a journal of your externship activities.