South Africa Externship Application Process

Each student proposing an externship program must secure, in advance of submitting a proposal, a faculty sponsor who will be responsible for determining whether academic credit should be awarded for the externship in light of the student's performance at the host agency. Credit-worthy performance should be evidenced by the student's performance evaluations, biweekly reports, and final research project.

After the student has secured a faculty sponsor, he or she must submit a South Africa externship application package. Application packages consist of both paper forms and electronic documents.

The Application Form, Placement Preference Sheet, and Transcript Release Form should be hand-delivered, along with the South Africa Externship Application Checklist, to Dean Gregory's office (307 HH).

Electronic documents for the application package include the student's Essay of Interest, Resume, and a Cover Letter for each Preferred Placement, as well as the Faculty Sponsor statement. These electronic submissions should be sent as email attachments to Trudy Feldkamp (tfeldkam@umich.edu) to complete the student's application package.

The essay of interest

The essay provides an opportunity for the student to persuade the Law School that the externship will enable the student to fulfill educational objectives that cannot be achieved through Law School classes or in the ordinary course of professional opportunities available to the student. It also provides a way for host sites to evaluate and distinguish student applications, as well as develop a sense of the student's background, interest areas, and expertise. Students are advised to highlight their particular strengths, relevant experiences, and practice area interests. Students should also include how the externship builds on work he or she has done, or how it will contribute to the student's educational pursuits.

The essay of interest must be submitted as an email attachment to Trudy Feldkamp (tfeldkam@umich.edu) to be included as part of the application package.

Preferred placement cover letter

A cover letter must be provided for each preferred placement identified by the student. The letter should state the specific reasons why the student is interested in working at that particular site.

Cover letters must be submitted as email attachments to Trudy Feldkamp (tfeldkam@umich.edu) to be included as part of the application package.

Faculty Sponsor Statement

The faculty sponsor must discuss the proposed program with the student prior to committing to serve as a faculty sponsor. The faculty member should be satisfied that the training and work the student will receive will be substantive and that there will be a substantial educational component to the experience which relates to academic work previously undertaken by the student or which will be pursued upon the student's return. The faculty member should then submit a statement indicating that he or she has agreed to serve as the student's faculty sponsor.

The faculty sponsor statement should be submitted as an email to Trudy Feldkamp (tfeldkam@umich.edu) to be included as part of the application package.

Deadline

The deadline for submitting complete application packages is set by Dean Gregory's office each year. It is the student's responsibility to make sure that all parts of the externship proposal have been received by this deadline. Students are encouraged to consult with Ms. Gregory early in the process of developing plans for an externship.