Clinics

Applying to a Clinic

Clinics and externships combine work in the field with seminars. Through these complementary activities, students develop systematic methods of learning from experience, as well as gain insight into a lawyer's functioning as advocate and counselor, investigator, negotiator, and planner. Legal ethics and professional responsibility in the practice of law are emphasized throughout these courses.

Before You Begin

  • The faculty has promulgated the following guidelines for clinics and externships, in part to comply with New York Court of Appeals rules concerning the admission of attorneys:
  • Clinics and externships will, in most cases, require substantial amounts of time outside of usual course hours. Students with substantial commitments to journals, outside activities, work or other responsibilities should satisfy themselves through discussion with the respective teachers that they will definitely have sufficient time for a particular clinic or externship. Expect to devote anywhere from 10 to 20 hours per week on average to fieldwork, and that number may be higher in a week in which a student has a trial, hearing, deposition, appellate argument, or other type of court appearance or presentation. This time commitment is above and beyond the time spent in weekly classes (which may be 2 or 4 hours per week or sometimes more), the readings and preparation for class, and out-of-class work related to simulations. Students with substantial commitments to journals, outside activities, work or other responsibilities should satisfy themselves through discussion with the respective teachers that they will definitely have sufficient time for a particular clinic or externship. 
  • Please determine whether you have fulfilled the requirements for a particular clinic/externship before submitting your application. If you have questions regarding any of the requirements, please direct them to the teachers of the relevant clinic/externship.
  • Registration for clinics/externships is by application and permission only. No student may register for more than one clinic/externship in a term. Matriculated students will be given priority over non-matriculated students.
  • Admission to the clinics in Buenos Aires and Paris is administered by NYU Law Abroad.
  •  Of the 83 credits for graduation no more than 19 credits may be earned in “non-classroom” activities, which include some clinics and externships. Courses designated as “Clinic,” “Clinic Seminar,” and “Externship Seminar” do not count towards the non-classroom credits; the fieldwork portions of “Externships” do count towards the non-classroom cap. Please see JD Program Degree Requirements for the rules for determining whether credits earned in a clinic or externship are subject to the 19-credit maximum for “non-classroom credits.” Questions about these requirements may be sent to Vice Dean Randy Hertz.

How to Submit Applications

  • All applications should be submitted using the Clinic Application and Matching System (CAMS). An NYU NetID and a Law School-issued password are required to access the system. Log in to upload the general application form, resume and unofficial transcript required by all clinics. (LLMs have a separate application form.) Some clinics may request additional materials to supplement the basic application; these should also be submitted online via CAMS. 
  • See Clinics Open to LLMs for a list of clinics available to LL.M. students in the current year.

Maximum number of clinic applications

  • You may apply for a maximum of six clinics/externships—i.e., any combination of year-long and/or semester-long clinics/externships.

  • You may apply for one or both semesters of a given one-semester clinic/externship, but each semester counts separately toward the maximum.
  • Students may in rare instances be able to take two consecutive semester-long clinics/externships in the same academic year, but will only be admitted to one in the first round of admissions. They may then apply for another in the other semester if any openings still exist.

Interviews

  • Not all clinics and externships conduct interviews. Check the individual course descriptions for details.
  • If conducted, interviews will take place in March-April each year. Interviews may be conducted remotely.

Indicate Your Preferences for Clinic Matching

  • Please complete all other parts of the application process—including any required interviews—before you submit the order of your preferences among the clinics/externships to which you applied. 
  • Communicate those choices through the Clinic Application and Matching System (CAMS)
  • Faculty do not have access to students' preferences when making their acceptance decisions.
  • You may apply for one or both semesters of a given one-semester clinic/externship, but each semester should be indicated as a separate preference.
  • You may not rank separate clinics or externships with the same number; the match does not accommodate placements in two semester-long clinics in an academic year.
  • If you are applying to only one clinic/externship, you must indicate that preference affirmatively on CAMS in order for us perform the matching.
  • The deadline for JDs to submit their preferences on CAMS is 5:00 p.m. on Thursday, April 11, 2024. The deadline for LL.M.s is TBD.
  • For further details, please see Clinic Matching and Selection Process.