STUDENT TRAINEE (LAW) (LEGAL INTERN)

Defense Counterintelligence and Security Agency (DCSA); Quantico (VA); On-site; USD 28,000 - 34,000; Full time

Job summary

Defense Counterintelligence and Security Agency (DCSA) seeks a Law Student Trainee for the Summer ’27 Cohort. Open to full-time law students with a 3.0 GPA or higher, the program runs 10 weeks (400 hours) beginning late May or mid-June 2027. Duties include research, memo drafting, and supporting attorneys across security and administrative law topics.

Selected interns must be U.S. citizens, eligible for a secret clearance, and enrolled in a JD program; this temporary position offers exposure to

Qualifications

• Must be enrolled full-time in a law program leading to the first professional law degree.
• Cumulative GPA of 3.0 or above on a 4.0 scale.
• U.S. citizen; ability to obtain a security clearance.
• Must have completed 1st or 2nd year of law school by May 2027.

Responsibilities

• Plan, organize and conduct studies of legal issues and cases.
• Conduct research assignments for agency counsel.
• Examine and evaluate procedural and legal sufficiency of agency actions.
• Provide support on national security, civilian personnel, equal employment, and ethical matters.
• Draft and edit legal and non-legal memoranda and reports.
• Assist with research and preparation of legal opinions.
• Participate in defensive administrative litigation including depositions and hearings.

Job description

Summary

The DCSA Student Experience (DSE) '27 Cohort. Open to law students with a cumulative GPA of 3.0/4.0. Summer Cohort Start Date: 31 May 2027 (alternate: 14 June 2027); End Date: 20 August 2027. Students must attend for a minimum of 10 weeks (400 hours).

Summary

The DCSA Student Experience (DSE) '27 Cohort. Open to law students with a cumulative GPA of 3.0/4.0. Summer Cohort Start Date: 31 May 2027 (alternate: 14 June 2027); End Date: 20 August 2027. Students must attend for a minimum of 10 weeks (400 hours).

This position is selecting a student intern for the Office of the General Counsel.

Duties

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This is a temporary position NTE 1 year from appointment.

As a STUDENT TRAINEE (LAW) (LEGAL INTERN) you will be responsible for the following duties:

We are looking for capable and eager law students interested in being part of a Federal legal office that provides support in all areas of legal practice for an agency with a national security mission. Interns will apply analytic and critical thinking skills to work on research projects, draft memos, and assist attorneys with various assignments and projects. A final or interim secret security clearance is required for appointment to the position, but applicants are not required to have a security clearance to apply for the position.

• Plan, organize and conduct studies of legal issues and cases generally encountered in the assigned area.
• Conduct research assignments given by agency counsel.
• Examine and evaluate procedural and legal sufficiency of agency actions, policies and practices.
• Provide support in analyzing issues and actions related to national security law, civilian personnel law, equal employment opportunity matters, government information practices, administrative law, fiscal law, ethics, and acquisition law.
• Use manual and automated legal research methods and other available resources to locate and apply relevant legal references, including Federal statutes, regulations and publications, DoW issuances, case law, articles and legal treatises.
• Assist with the research and preparation of legal opinions for attorneys on the full range of legal matters presented by agency operations and administration.
• Participate in defensive administrative litigation including depositions, mediation, negotiations, and hearings.
• Draft and edit legal and non-legal memoranda, research reports, and correspondence. Ensure proper processing of completed actions.
• Analyze facts and legal questions and organize and prepare research material for attorney review.
• Identify pertinent facts and issues for research and discussion, suggest legal interpretations of reference material, and prepare initial summary recommendations for attorneys.
• Perform other duties as assigned.

Requirements

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Conditions of Employment

• Must be a US citizen
• Selective Service Requirement: Males born after 12-31-59 must be registered for Selective Service. For more information http://www.sss.gov
• Resume and supporting documents received by 11:59PM EST will be considered
• This is a Drug Testing designated position
• Position is a (DCIPS) position in the Excepted Service under U.S.C. 1601
• Work Schedule: Full Time
• Overtime: Occasionally
• Tour of Duty: Flexible
• PCS (Permanent Change of Station): Not Authorized
• Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA): Non-Exempt
• Financial Disclosure: Not Required
• Telework Eligibility: Supervisors may approve situational telework on a case-by-case, temporary basis for limited situations.
• If selected, the incumbent must obtain and maintain appropriate security clearance as indicated in job announcement.
• Must hold a bachelor's degree and be currently enrolled as a full-time law student in a program leading to award of the first professional law degree.
• To be appointed to a Law Student Trainee in the summer of 2027, you will also need to have successfully completed the 1st or 2nd year of law school by the end of May 2027, with the expectation of continuing law school studies in the fall of 2027.
• Must have and maintain a cumulative GPA of 3.0 or above on a 4.0 scale. Grade-point averages are rounded to one decimal place.
• DSE Summer ’27 Cohort Start Date: 31 May 2027 (alternate – 14 June 2027); End Date: 20 August 2027. Students must attend for a minimum of 10 weeks (400 hours).
• Students accepted to the internship program must send law school official transcript with spring 2027 semester/quarter grades to the Student Programs prior to their start date.
• Students who successfully complete the program may be eligible for non-competitive conversion to a permanent position after graduation if all requirements have been met. Funding availability, mission requirements, and other factors may apply.

Qualifications

To qualify for this position, you must meet the criteria specified below:

• Must hold a bachelor's degree and be currently enrolled as a full-time law student in a program leading to award of the first professional law degree.
• You must have a cumulative GPA of 3.0 or above on a 4.0 scale. Grade-point averages are rounded to one decimal place. For example, 2.95 will round to 3.0 and 2.94 will round to 2.9.

Note

To be appointed to a Law Student Trainee - Intern (Law Student) in the summer of 2027, you will also need to have successfully completed the 1st or 2nd year of law school by the end of May 2027, with the expectation of continuing law school studies in the fall of 2027.

Education

All applicants must submit college or university undergraduate transcripts (official or unofficial) AND law school transcripts (official or unofficial) that demonstrate the completion, (or for 1st year law student applicants, the anticipated completion), of the 1st year of law school by the end of May 2027 or earlier.

Official Transcripts and other required Official