Paid Spring Internship with Civil Rights Bureau
Social Justice Division
Civil Rights--New York City
Student Assistant
Reference No. CRB_NYC_PUGS_SPR_2025
Spring Paid Placements for Undergraduate Students | Application Deadline is January 31, 2025*
The Office of the New York State Attorney General’s (OAG) Civil Rights Bureau is seeking applications from undergraduate students for a paid placement during the 2025 Spring Program; this is an excellent opportunity for students who are either pursuing or are considering pursing a legal career. The selected student will support the bureau’s ongoing litigation docket, develop legal skills, and work directly with attorneys, support staff, and other professionals.
The duties of the Student Assistant may include, but not be limited to the following:
- Assisting with intakes
- Interviewing members of the public to obtain detailed information regarding complaints made to the bureau;
- Providing referrals and resources to members of the public.
- Assisting with witness interviews
- Providing eDiscovery support
- Searching for documents for deposition or oral examination preparation and preparing deposition and oral examination summaries;
- Tagging, reviewing, and organizing documents for production as well as incoming document production;
- Maintaining discovery request logs and tracking what has been received and what is outstanding; and
- Coordinating as needed with OAG’s Practice Technologies Group on technical issues.
- Assisting with legal filings
- Cite-checking, formatting, and proofreading briefs and other documents;
- Conducting searches using Westlaw, Lexis, or publicly available databases;
- Creating tables of contents and tables of authority; and
- Assisting with submitting filings.
- Assisting with research and writing assignments
- Assisting with other legal and office support function
Required qualifications:
- Enrollment in a full-time graduate or undergraduate degree program;
- Excellent organizational, proofreading, and multitasking skills;
- Strong research and analytical abilities as well as verbal and written communication skills;
- Proactive with the ability to self-manage assignments and deadlines;
- Capable of working well both independently and as a member of a team; and
- Strong technology skills and proficiency using Microsoft Word, Excel, and Outlook.
Preferred qualifications:
- Students who are pursuing degrees in a relevant area of study such as pre-law, legal/paralegal studies, criminal justice, etc.;
- Prior work experience in a legal setting;
- Familiarity with and experience using legal research and eDiscovery applications; and
- Fluency in other languages
Spring Program Details
- The format of this placement is hybrid. Students report to their designated workstation two or three (2-3) days per week. On the days students work remotely, they need a reliable computer, a secure internet connection, a phone, and a sufficiently quiet and private workspace to telework.
- To be eligible for a paid spring placement, applicants must be able to demonstrate they are full-time students in good academic standing as defined by their schools. Applications from student who will be starting college/university during the 2025 fall semester will not be considered.
- The undergraduate student hired for this placement will work part-time for the spring semester (15 hours/week for 12 weeks for a total of 180 paid hours). The undergraduate student will be hired as a student assistant and be paid the hourly rate of $17.23.
- Applications are accepted online until January 31, 2025, and paid placement offers are made on a rolling basis.*
- Students who are hired for the spring program may begin their placements on January 22, 2025, or after.
- United States (U.S.) citizenship and New York state residency are not required, but applicants must be eligible to be employed in the U.S.
- Applicants are encouraged to learn more about OAG bureaus and regional offices prior to submitting their applications by reviewing information that is available on the public website.
Candidates from diverse backgrounds are encouraged to apply.
The OAG is an equal opportunity employer and is committed to workplace diversity.
How to Apply
The following section provides detailed information about the application process and application requirements. Please review the complete list of instructions prior to preparing and submitting your application materials online.
- Applications for spring placements be submitted online. To apply, please visit
- Applications are submitted separately for each/regional office, and an applicant’s candidacy for each application is determined separately by each bureau/regional office.
- Applications are accepted online until January 31, 2025, and placement offers are made on a rolling basis.*
- The following four (4) documents must be submitted with your application:
Your documents should reflect your own thoughts/work product in text that was written by you.
- Cover Letter
- You may choose to address your letter to the Legal Recruitment Unit.
- Indicate why you are interested in a placement with OAG and what makes you a strong candidate.
- You may wish to include information about what life experiences you will bring to the position that will enhance OAG’s ability to better serve the diverse population of this state.
- Resume
- Ensure your resume is complete and current prior to submitting your application.
- List of three (3) references.
- Submit only professional (i.e., supervisor or professor) references.
- For each reference, indicate the nature and duration of your relationship.
- Include contact information and email addresses for each reference.
- Please note that your references will not be contacted until after you interview for the placement.
- Writing Sample
- Submit a paper completed for school or a writing sample that was prepared for a job or during an internship/externship.
- Submit a sample that demonstrates your ability to analyze and organize information into an effective document.
- We recommend submitting a sample that is 3-6 pages in length.
- If needed, please include a cover page providing the reviewer with any relevant background information or context.
- Failure to submit a complete application will delay the consideration of your candidacy.
- Once submitted, you will not be able to access or edit your application. Therefore, we strongly encourage you to have someone review/proofread your documents ahead of submitting your application online.
- Please submit your application for a spring placement at least three (3) weeks before any deadlines that could impact your candidacy and note this in your cover letter
- If a bureau wishes to schedule an interview, they will contact you directly to arrange this meeting.
If you have questionsabout a placement with OAG, the application process, or need assistance with submitting your application, please contact Legal Recruitment via email at recruitment@ag.ny.gov.