Fresh Perspectives, New Opportunities: The Power of Alternative Externships
An externship outside Nevada can provide students the opportunity to broaden their career prospects by gaining legal experience in an area of law or in a federal placement not available in Nevada. These externships offer practical involvement in various legal settings, allowing students to explore different career paths and expand their professional networks.
- Alaska Department of Law, Anchorage, AK
- American Federation of State, County & Municipal Employees (AFSCME), Washington, DC
- County of Maui Prosecuting Attorney, HI
- DOJ Aviation Space & Admiralty Litigation Office, Washington, DC
- DOJ Environmental & Natural Resources, Washington, DC
- DOJ Office of Environmental Justice, Washington, DC
- Environmental Law Institute, Washington, DC
- Family Violence Appellate Project, Bellevue, WA
- Georgia Appellate Practice & Education Resource Center, Atlanta, GA
- JAG Army, Fort Hood, TX
- Law Library of Congress, Washington, DC
- Legal Aid Center of San Diego, CA
- Maricopa County Attorney, Phoenix, AZ
- Maricopa County of Public Defender, Phoenix, AZ
- NASA Office of General Counsel, Cape Canaveral, FL
- New Mexico Immigrant Law Center, Albuquerque, NM
- Pioneer Public Interest Center, Boston, MA
- Portland Family Court, Oregon
- Salt Lake County District Attorney, Utah
- Superior Court, Judiciary of Guam
- Third Judicial Circuit Court, Detroit, MI
- U.S. Bankruptcy Court, Houston, TX
- U.S. Court of Federal Claims, Washington, DC
- U.S. District Court, Eastern District of California, Sacramento, CA
- U.S. District Court, Western District of Washington, Bellevue, WA
- U.S. District Court, District of Utah
- U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, Phoenix, AZ
- Utah County District Attorney, Provo, UT
- Utah Supreme Court, Salt Lake City, UT
- Washington State Supreme Court
- Wyoming Guardian Ad Litem
Extern Spotlights
Rebecca Whetten (‘25)
County of Maui Prosecuting Attorney (Spring '25)
I learned a lot about the process a criminal case will go through, from how it starts at charging to sentencing at the end. I got to watch a couple of trials all the way through and gave feedback to the lead attorney on how witnesses were coming off and how the jury seemed to be reacting.
I also was able to learn a lot about different styles of doing things, from court demeanor to interactions with defense counsel. By being able to work with many different attorneys, I was able to learn different things from each and begin to figure out what kind of attorney I want to be.
Emily Espinoza ('24)
Department of Justice - Aviation, Space, and Admiralty Section in Washington, D.C. (Spring '23)
This externship solidified my desire to pursue a career in the public interest sector. Serving in the federal government is fast- paced, challenging, and everything I was looking for when pursuing a legal career. This externship gave me an opportunity to experience the environment of a federal government career in Washington, D.C., which alone made me grow as a person, student, and lawyer. The benefit of having gotten out of my comfort zone has changed my career-trajectory.
Jacquelyn Zuniga-Calderon (‘24)
Legal Aid Center of Southern Nevada (Fall and Summer '22)
Legal Aid Center of San Diego (Spring '24)
I worked in a lot of clinics, including the expunging clinic, domestic violence/restraining order clinics (which included elderly abuse), unlawful evictions, and the conservatorship clinic. Throughout all, I really found the experiences to be invaluable, as I worked with individuals one-on-one, provided legal information, helped individuals file forms, and overall helped people get through tough situations. My writing skills also improved, and I was able to help individuals structure and tell stories in the expungement clinic. If someone were able to get their criminal records expunged, it would be life changing. For domestic violence temporary restraining orders, it was helping someone get out of a bad situation. I really enjoyed helping everyone; it was rewarding to see how the clinics definitely assisted people in need.
Kyle-Matthew Taylor ('24)
U.S. Department of Justice, Environment and Natural Resources Division, Office of Environmental Justice
I became even more aware of how underserved communities can benefit from our legal services and I will carry that perspective into my career as an aspiring environmental attorney. I built a mentor relationship with my supervising attorney that is invaluable. Overall, I highly recommend an externship with USDOJ because you learn an incredible amount, you build invaluable relationships with attorneys doing important work on behalf of the American public, and your commitment to federal-public service will be attractive to future employers, especially government employers.
Maria Thompson ('23)
NASA Kennedy Space Center
It was very cool getting a glimpse behind the firewall and learning about an evolving area of law. Whenever I got off the phone with a NASA employee, they always ended the call with, ‘Thank you for contributing to the mission,’ and hearing that was pretty surreal.
Southern Nevada is a really special and unique community, and there are so many ways you can make an impact here through the legal profession. It’s amazing how Boyd School of Law has cultivated a strong network of professionals who understand the local legal landscape and want to use their skills to give back and empower the community.