The National Association for College and University Attorneys (NACUA) Legal Internship Program provides law students with an opportunity to build valuable legal and professional skills in research and writing in the field of higher education law, while learning about different areas of NACUA’s work, such as association management, collaboration, programming, services, and more.
You'll work at the nation's premier higher education law association, advancing the effective practice of higher education attorneys for the benefit of the colleges and universities they serve. You'll work with experienced, sophisticated attorneys and professionals on meaningful work regarding substantial legal issues and developments. You'll get to test your interest in entering the dynamic world of higher education as a legal professional.
We strive to develop your skills as a legal practitioner and association professional. We also provide our interns with professional, first-hand opportunities to attend workshops, conferences, and meetings on topics related to higher education. Interns will also be invited to attend virtual and in-person programming and/or events in which higher education experts and leaders are presenting. We work to integrate our legal intern program within the association and provide our interns with opportunities to work with leadership and other professionals across the organization.
Selected interns must demonstrate a strong commitment to NACUA’s core values, academic achievement, excellent legal research and analytical skills, strong writing and verbal communication skills, excellent interpersonal skills, and an interest in working in the field of higher education law.
Interns must be current second- or third-year law students. In select circumstances, we may consider a candidate who is in their first year of law school with a demonstrated interest in higher education law and policy.
Our internship program accepts up to two (2) law students per term in order to accommodate coursework and schedules. We prefer a commitment of at least fifteen (15) hours per week for one semester (approx. 12 weeks). For summer internships, we need a full-time commitment for six (6) weeks from mid-May through June. Regular visits to the office, primarily on Wednesdays and Thursdays, will be necessary for all terms. Some experience with legal research, analysis and writing is necessary for you to do the envisioned work. Excitement and interest in higher education law or practice will speed your way. While the program is contemplated as a paid internship, we are happy to work with institutions to explore whether interns can receive academic credit for their internship work.
Please note that specific qualifications for our paid internship opportunities may be found here.
Applicants should submit (1) a cover letter, (2) resume, and (3) brief writing sample (no longer than 10 pages) sent via attachments in Adobe PDF or Microsoft Word Document format to: jobs@nacua.org. Fall and spring positions are paid part-time positions (15-20 hours per week) for approximately twelve weeks. Summer positions are paid full-time positions (40 hours per week) for approximately six weeks. All legal interns are expected to be in the office for the majority of their term, with some remote work being permissible.
Given the large number of applications we receive for each deadline, to ensure full consideration, we encourage you to proofread your application to guarantee it is accurate and free of grammatical or typographical errors.
Applications are considered on a rolling basis, and positions may be filled before the deadlines indicated:
- Fall Term: Applications will be considered through June 15.
- Spring Term: Applications will be considered through October 15.
- Summer Term: Applicants will be considered through January 15.
Keep in mind that summer is our most competitive term as it is open to law schools outside the District of Columbia, Maryland, Virginia (DMV) area, so we welcome and encourage students who attend law schools within the DMV area to apply for spring and fall positions. If you have questions regarding our internship program, please email jobs@nacua.org.