Guidelines for Students for Third Year Anywhere® Program

Overview

Beginning with fall 2019 enrollees, Washburn University School of Law (hereinafter “Washburn Law”) provides opportunities for third year law students to perform fieldwork at placements inside and outside of Kansas for academic credit through the Third Year Anywhere^® ("TYA") program. Students who participate in this option will reside and gain practical legal experience in the local market where the student seeks to practice after graduation from law school, thereby increasing the students' practice-readiness. (Placements are subject to limitations based on student safety and educational integrity). Student Externs will work under the direct supervision of a local Field Placement Supervising Attorney ("Supervising Attorney"), with oversight from the Faculty Supervisor who is a faculty member at Washburn Law.

Educational Objectives

The TYA program is designed to meet the objectives articulated by the American Bar Association's Standards on experiential learning outside of the classroom. To that end, TYA must provide a substantial lawyering experience that is reasonably similar to the experience of a lawyer and includes direct supervision, and opportunities for performance, feedback and self-evaluation.

Students will earn 12 academic credits while gaining real-world experience working 20 hours per week in one of the following six sectors or in underserved rural locations:

• Corporate
• Government
• Higher education
• Judicial
• Law firm, or
• Public interest

Steps for Registration and Enrollment

Enrollment in TYA is competitive and limited to students the faculty deem best prepared to benefit from an out-of-residence practicum and distance education. Students interested in the TYA program will:

• Submit a Declaration of Interest by the 6th week of the 3rd semester of law school and,
• Submit the Application by the 4th week of the 4th semester of law school.

Once enrolled in TYA, students must attend the TYA orientation session when announced. If a student cannot attend this meeting, the student must schedule an individual meeting with the Faculty Supervisor.

Field Placement Supervision

Field placements are asked to identify a lawyer who will be the Student Extern's primary supervisor and contact for the externship. While a Student Extern may perform assignments for multiple lawyers at an externship placement, the externship program requires that one person, the Supervising Attorney, is designated as the supervisor and mentor for the student.

Seminar Component

Each semester during the externship students must attend a one-credit seminar course taught via distance education, along with other online courses. The seminar will teach students legal competencies necessary for the practice of law and will engage the students in the following professional skills: interviewing, counseling, and negotiation; financial literacy; project management; understanding the business of law practice; conflict resolution; collaboration; document drafting; mindful leadership; self-evaluation; and cultural competency. The seminar may also integrate discussion topics that are relevant to the students' externship experiences. During the field placement, students will be required to submit the following assignments to the supervising Washburn Law School faculty member in order to successfully complete the course requirements:

• Reflective essays or journals related to field work;
• Discussion topics via the D2L distance education platform to facilitate communication between externs and foster experiential learning;
• A seminar paper on a topic related to the externship experience;
• An oral presentation on the extern's seminar paper;
• Weekly time sheets documenting hours and work performed;
• A final written report that addresses how the overall externship experience enhanced the student's legal education; and,
• Mid-semester and final evaluations.

Students must satisfactorily and timely complete the requirements set forth above, and any other program requirements, in order to receive a grade of "Credit." Failure to do so will result in a "No Credit" grade for the externship.

Paid Externships

ABA standards permit students to receive compensation for work performed in field placement courses, including externships. Student Externs placed in non-profit practice settings or corporate practice settings may receive compensation or undertake the work of the externship without compensation. Externs placed in a law firm must be compensated at a level compliant with local minimum wage laws. It is Washburn Law's preference that Student Externs placed in for-profit contexts outside of law firms also be compensated. All placements, paid or unpaid, are governed by this document and any other documentation provided by Washburn Law, and the ABA requirements related to for-credit field placements.

Short URL for this page:
http://washburnlaw.edu/thirdyearanywhereguidelines