 PROGRAMS
Click for information on:
Breakfast with Judges and Judicial Clerks | Building Blocks | Career Colloquia | Fall Recruiting | First Year Mentor Program | First Year Law Firm Receptions | Fall Recruiting Program | Legal Specialties Lunch | Mentor Program | Northwest Public Service Career Fair | Practice Interview Program | Pro Bono Honors Program
Each fall, the Office hosts a Breakfast with Judges and Judicial Clerks, which brings 25-35 state and federal judges to campus for an informal breakfast with students. It is an excellent chance to meet and talk with several judges and clerks, and to learn about the courts and judicial clerkships. Throughout the academic year, Career Services presents information sessions on a variety of topics, including application material (resume, cover letter, etc.) preparation, interviewing skills and various other career planning workshops. The annual Success Strategies Workshop, presented in August and featuring a panel of students, alumni and the Career Services staff, offers students an overview of application material preparation, interviewing skills, dress for success and business etiquette and an introduction to the Fall Recruiting Program. During the academic year, Career Services organizes numerous panel discussions that include members of the legal community who present information on different legal and career related topics. Most Career Colloquia focus on specific areas of practice. Refer to the Career Services Calendar of Events for details and dates of upcoming Career Colloquia. Many prospective employers from Oregon, the West Coast and beyond, visit campus each fall to recruit Lewis & Clark law students, for summer law clerk positions that will begin the following summer and/or for attorney positions that begin the following fall.
All first year students are eligible to participate in the First Year Mentor Program in which the students are paired with Attorney Partners (attorneys practicing locally). The purpose of the Program is to offer first year law students advice and counsel on law school "survival," how to manage competing time commitments and to assist law students, early in their careers, to develop into responsible, ethical attorneys. Participating students will have a contact in the legal community, almost from the beginning of their law school experience. With the assistance of the Alumni Board Career Services Committee, the Office organizes a series of receptions at the offices of local legal employers for the purpose of giving first year students the opportunity to visit law firms, government agencies, public interest organizations and corporate environments and to hear from attorneys what it is like to work in various settings. First year students receive information about the particulars of this program in January and the Receptions are held in February and March.
Each spring, Career Services hosts a Legal Specialties Lunch. Attorneys from different practice areas have lunch on campus with small groups of students who are interested in different areas of law. The lunch provides students with an opportunity meet informally with an attorney, to ask questions, learn more about possible career paths, hear about a particular legal specialty/practice or about the types of work available within a legal specialty.
Through the Mentor Program, participating second, third and fourth year students are matched with volunteer Mentor Attorneys based, primarily, on areas of legal interest and/or geographic location. The Mentor Program is designed to assist with the challenge of bridging the gap between law school and a professional career and to provide students with a unique opportunity to meet and observe practicing lawyers. The Program also gives them someone to consult with regarding the legal profession, career options and life as a lawyer. Matching is done each fall and participation is voluntary. In the Spring, Career Services, in cooperation with ten other area law school, sponsors the Career Fair providing students and graduates the opportunity to meet representatives from 50-60 government agencies or public service organizations in order to learn more about the agency or organization and their work. Participating offices are also invited to interview students and graduates for law clerk or attorney positions. More detailed information is posted on the website in late fall of each year. The Practice Interview Program is offered twice each year and gives students the chance to do videotaped practice interviews with local attorneys. The program is structured to provide a realistic interviewing experience, and to provide students with immediate verbal feedback with suggestions for improvement. The Pro Bono Honors Program is a project designed for students of the Law School to encourage and foster community-based volunteer legal service projects. The Program offers students an opportunity to become involved in the community and also enhance their law school experience and practical legal skills. In addition to the personal satisfaction of volunteering much needed assistance and gaining valuable legal experience, participating students are eligible to receive a Pro Bono Honors Program award from the Law School. To qualify for the award, students must complete at least 30 hours of volunteer, not-for-credit and not-for-compensation work between May and April. Students do not have to complete all 30 hours with a single employer. To learn more about the Program, please pick up the Pro Bono Honors Program packet (which contains the Program Verification Form and Project Work Completion Form which must be completed for participation) from the Career Services Office. Information on organizations to volunteer with can be found in the Career Services Office or by contacting the Public Interest Coordinator at probono@lclark.edu.
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