The Thurgood Marshall Summer Law Internship Program places high-achieving inner-city high school students with legal employers for the summer. This Program is part of the New York City Bar’s continuing efforts to enhance the diversity of the legal profession.

Students are selected to participate in the Program based upon personal interviews and demonstrated academic excellence. They are first nominated by their schools and then interviewed at the City Bar; this process consists of face-to-face meetings with the students and a written test that is administered to determine comfort with challenges common in an office environment. Job assignments in firms vary depending on the needs of the employer, but typically include assisting paralegals, filing, record keeping, assisting library and back-office personnel, data entry and document and exhibit organization.

In addition, the students participate in weekly development programs including a law class at Columbia University School of Law, a visit to a NYS Supreme Court judicial chamber and multiple career development workshops with a diverse group of attorneys. The workshops allow the students to explore career opportunities and develop professional networking skills. At these programs, students are given materials on how to apply to college, request financial aid and prepare for employment, including materials on resume writing, interview preparation and networking skills.

Since the program's inception in 1993, the Thurgood Marshall Summer Law Internship has placed 2,000 students in law firms, corporate law departments, non-profit/government organizations and law schools throughout the city.

Pre-Employment Training

Prior to interviewing at firms, students undergo a comprehensive pre-employment training at the City Bar with Human Resources Directors from participating firms and Career Counselors from local law schools. This training includes resume and cover letter writing, mock interviews and workshops on professional etiquette and attire.

Job Shadow Week

This program allows participants in the Thurgood Marshall Summer Law Internship Program to spend the final week of the program shadowing attorneys in companies and organizations that most closely align with their career aspirations. It was created to provide students with an engaging and experiential afternoon by giving them career perspectives while demonstrating the connection between academics and careers. In 2009, its pilot year, 36 companies from a diverse pool of practice areas hosted students in their offices.

Alumni Networking Group/Mentor Program

To encourage continued participation in the Thurgood Marshall Program, the City Bar implemented an Alumni Networking Group to provide opportunities and forums for past participants. Under this, the City Bar will launch a two-part Mentor Program in which current and past participants will be mentored in small groups by law students from various law schools in New York City. In return, the participating law students will have the opportunity to be matched with attorney mentors.

LSAT/Law School Preparation Series

This two-day series, co-sponsored by LSAC, Kaplan, Powerscore and Barron’s, will provide students with presentations and panels to help prepare them for taking the LSAT and applying to law school. Representatives from LSAT prep companies will provide materials and presentations with sample exams and strategy sessions while the panels will focus on selecting and applying to law school, as well as expectations and recommendations for first-year students.