College Students

The United States Attorney's Office for the Central District of California provides opportunities to undergraduate students on summer recess.  To qualify, you must be returning to an undergraduate institution in the fall.  This is known as an “extern” appointment and duty is on a volunteer (non-paid) basis.  Externs work in the Criminal Division. Assignments may include assisting AUSAs with trial preparation, organizing evidence (discovery), transcribing calls, and assisting paralegals.  Externs are encouraged to observe trials and other court proceedings in cases on which they have worked or in cases of general interest in the office.

For an externship during the summer (June through August), applications should be submitted no later than December 15 of the previous calendar year (e.g. applications for the summer of 2023 should be received by December 15, 2022). All externs undergo a partial background investigation before entering on duty. Undergraduate students wishing to apply for an externship should submit a resume, cover letter, and writing sample to the externship coordinator:

Undergraduate Externships
Jehan Pernas
Assistant U.S. Attorney
U.S. Courthouse, Suite 1300
312 N. Spring Street
Los Angeles, CA 90012

(Applicants are strongly encouraged to email their applications to Jehan.Pernas@usdoj.gov and to indicate in the subject line when they would like to serve as an extern (e.g., “Application for Summer 2022”)