How to Put Your Judicial Internship on Resume

Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere! – Martin Luther King.

Law is everywhere around us and the best way to make sure that it works for us and not the other way around is to slide it through the judicial system. This way, we can make sure that enforcing it has a stronghold far and wide.

Every judge, every attorney, lawyer or anyone else in the area of law that has aspirations to continue working out on the field goes through the process of a judicial internship at one point.

Now the question is, how to put a judicial internship on a resume? Well, if you are planning a career in the court or any law firm for that matter, here is how you can put all the valuable experience you’ve gained from a judicial internship in a resume.

Judicial Internships vs. Judicial Clerkships

Putting a judicial internship on a resume is a sure way to boost your employment probabilities. But before we hop onto the next steps, you have to know whether what you did was an internship or a clerkship.

Judicial internships and judicial clerkships are two different kinds of internships that are both done in the court. Yet, there are little to no similarities among them.

Judicial internships are volunteering positions. However, this doesn’t mean that you won’t get paid. For the time that you are an intern, the average pay is $14 per hour. Putting this aside, the knowledge that one can accumulate during their judicial internship is of high importance.

Most judicial interns are people that are still in law school, which means that this is a great opportunity for them to learn more about the judicial system outside of their textbooks. More often than not, judicial internships also lead to clerkships.

Judicial clerkships, on the other hand, are reserved for attorneys. These are some of the most prestigious job opportunities that exist in the world of law. During a clerkship, the attorney has a rare chance to experience firsthand how the judicial system works – from the judge’s point of view.

By taking part in a hearing, they learn the procedural rules and get a more detailed understanding of various legal practice areas. Usually lasting for a year or two, clerkships include many duties for the attorney – legal research, drafting orders, proofreading, assisting the judge in the courtroom, etc.

The position is what makes attorneys with clerkships in their resumes more appealing to employers. Nonetheless, don’t fret if you only have “judicial intern” on a resume. If you have placed it correctly, your chances are as high as theirs.

Should You List Judicial Internship on Resume?

Listing a judicial internship on a resume can bring you on the shortlist for the next free spot in a law firm or other firms that require legal assistance. Similar to putting fraternity on resume – which you should always include – telling that you have gone through a judicial internship is only a huge plus.

While having a case competition on resume may land you a job in a nearby firm, a judicial internship takes you much higher than this. With it, in the eyes of the employer, you are ready in every way – textbook knowledge and practical experience!

A judicial internship is also a step closer to a clerkship that, as we referred, brings the complex realm of law even closer to you. Ergo, listing more internships on your resume, next to your judicial internship will certainly show your future employer that you are ready to tackle anything in the world of law.

Long story short – don’t be afraid to add a judicial internship to a resume!

How & Where to Put Judicial Internship on Resume

In order to add your judicial intern to a resume, you first have to distinguish where you would place it. If this type of internship is not your only one, then you can list it in a separate section that would be dedicated to your internships – or externships, if you have some.

When doing so, be careful that you list the most important internships first. The chances are that your judicial internship is going to be the highest one, so you can list this as your first one and then continue with the rest. If your judicial internship is going to start in the near future, then you can add it but only with a brief description of it. The rest will follow once you have finished it.

Now if you don’t have other internships, then you can add this in the “work experience” section. The best way to style this part is to go in chronological order so that your future employer can have a clear view of the path you’ve undergone to get to where you are.

And if you are still a law student or near the finish line – before or after – you can add a judicial internship in your professional overview section. This goes straight to the point – shows that even though you might be new to the market, you are backed up with everything that would make someone a good attorney or judge.

More Tips on Writing a Judicial Intern Resume

There are some other tips that you should take note of when writing your judicial internship resume .Here are the most important ones that would help you in perfecting your resume:

• List your title – be careful when you list your title. Placing a judicial intern in resume means that you have the title of “judicial intern.” Do not mistake this with “judicial clerk.” This is a higher step that requires a Ph.D., full-time work, and a pile of responsibilities that overthrow the shadowing an intern does.
• List the name of the judge – this can bring you points if the judge has a good reputation and a name that is far known. The way you place it is as “Judicial internship for the honorable First Name+Last Name”.
• List the location where you had your internship – it’s important that everyone knows where you had your judicial internship considering that there are a few court instances. You should place this information in the employment part, right below, after mentioning the judge. Then simply add the time frame.
• Include your working duties – always make sure that you list the most important tasks you had to do while on that internship. It’s best to add them as bullet points, considering it is a simpler and easier way for your future employer to spot them right away.
• References – last but not least, it shows a great working relationship if you add someone from the judicial internship, like a judge or a clerk as your reference in case the employer wants to check it out. This will prove that you did your job splendidly and they can back you up on it if your resume doesn’t convince them.

Conclusion

There you have it – the easiest way to wrap up your resume and add your judicial internship. If you follow the tips provided above, you can be confident that your judicial internship stands out in your resume.

As we mentioned, putting a judicial internship on a resume can land you many job offers and open many doors to the legal world. However, putting a job qualification is not always the easiest of tasks.

If you are not sure whether your resume is done right or not, it may be best to consult a professional legal resume writer who can check it out for you. In case you might be asking yourself how to even begin writing a resume, don’t worry because resume writers can cover that part for you too!

You don’t want anyone else to write your resume? Well, by now you should have a broad picture of how to wrap up your resume. Our best advice is to use a resume format that would guide you through the whole process. Take the LinkedIn resume format for example!

Simply put, don’t fret to add your judicial internship. Whether you do it by yourself or with the help of a professional, this mark on your resume will demonstrate your will and ambition to work in the world of law!