Are 1L Public Defender Internships Competitive? Forum

[Anonymous User]

Non-prestigious county's public defender office.

Assuming they have a summer program at all, are these kind of positions somewhat difficult to get or is it more that anyone competent can pick one up if they want it? Considering they are almost always unpaid I can't see why a PD office would really be rejecting many people unless they get tons of applicants.

I'm talking something like Yolo County (Cali), El Paso County (TX), Bradford County (PA) etc etc... Not in BFE but probably not "prestigious"

[FlanAl]

not necessarily competitive in the sense that there are a ton of over qualified applicants, but difficult in the sense of them not having space or things for you to do. a lot of offices don't take on more than one of two interns because they simply don't have the space.

[Anonymous User]

I just landed a non prestigious 1L PD summer internship. I sent my resume and cover letter a little before Christmas. I got it because I was the first to apply. Not sure if they are taking any more on. I did have ties to the area and was able to relate to the PD while we had an informal chat. I know another 1L posted they had a similar experience with a PD office as well.

[Anonymous User]

Getting your foot in the door at a PD office is good because you can often get a student law license and do courtroom stuff the next summer.

[Anonymous User]

My sister did her 1L summer with a somewhat competitive, medium sized PD office in the south and got an unsolicited job offer from them during her 3L year. I don't think there's a whole lot of competition for these internships.