Since 2003

Over 700

Temple, Villanova, Rutgers, Penn, Drexel, Delaware

No, there have been Fellows from Howard, GW, Harvard, Columbia, BU, BC, NYU, Emory, Michigan, U. Iowa, U. North Dakota, Duke, UVA, U. Maryland, Penn State, Dickinson, Wake Forest, Notre Dame, Roger Williams, Berkeley, U. Pittsburgh, American, Vanderbilt, Washington U. (St. Louis), Northwestern and Cornell, among others.

In recent years, around 40.

Absolutely.  PDLG has had Fellows from all over the country.

You can find out from Lois Kimbol, Chairperson of the Fellows Program and PDLG Vice President for Programs; however, the final decision on eligibility is made by the PDLG Fellows Program Committee. Email her at loiskimbol5647@gmail.com to set up a call.

PDLG is primarily looking for students who are getting A’s and B’s in law school. That generally equates to a 3.0 but in some situations, exceptions can be made.

While this varies from year to year, about 30.

Some are global firms with thousands of employees around the world; some are national firms with offices all over the US; some are regional firms, based in the mid-Atlantic states; some Philadelphia area firms.  Most are full service firms, with lawyers practicing in all areas of the law; some are boutique firms with a focus on one primary area.

Again, this varies a bit year to year, but around 10 in-house law departments participate such as the law departments at Comcast, Aramark, Chubb, Vanguard, GSK, Ikea, FMC,  Independence Blue Cross, Temple University Health System, Fox Chase Cancer Center,  Lincoln Financial and Jazz Pharmaceuticals.

The matches are made by lottery but all employers commit to fully including their PDLG Fellows in all aspects of their summer programs – providing significant legal work, feedback, training, exposure to senior lawyers and clients.

The choice is yours whether or not to accept.  Over the years, however, few offers have been declined.

2L offers are up to the employers and are based on employer policies and needs and the Fellow’s summer performance.  The Fellows Program has had a screening interview process providing interviews with several PDLG firms selected by each Fellow.

Each Fellow makes the same amount of money and works for the same number of weeks as any 1L summer associate at the Fellow’s firm or law department. PDLDG does not set salaries.

Yes, in several ways.  We have seminars with the hiring representatives of most of our member law firms where our Fellows get information about the firms’ hiring practices straight from the decision makers.  There are also opportunities for discussions with federal and state law clerks about whether to clerk, when to clerk, and how to get a clerkship.  And there are programs on professionalism, maximizing the chances of an offer for the next job, and making the most of networking opportunities.

Before work starts, PDLG has an all day seminar that talks about everything from the ten deadly sins for summer associates, to what summer associates actually do in law firms and law departments, to professionalism standards, to how to handle any issues, to how to get and use feedback. Fellows are also encouraged to get in touch with prior Fellows at the same employer for advice.

You can submit your application any time between December 1, 2024 and January 15, 2025 but decisions on invitations to interview aren’t made until later in January and when 1L grades are received. Decisions are not made on a rolling basis so there is no advantage to applying early. Take your exams, take some time off, then apply.

It is more important to ask a professor who knows you and can say something positive beyond you went to class and did well on the exam. Maybe about your work ethic or your intellectual curiosity or your use of logic or how much your work developed over the semester.

Some alumni of the Fellows Program speak about the Program at the law school presentations about the Fellows Program in late October and early November. To get in touch with them or others who are happy to talk with  interested 1Ls about their PDLG experiences please contact Lois Kimbol, PDLG Vice President for Programs and Chairperson of the Fellows Program.

No, F-1 students aren’t eligible to be Fellows. Being on an F-1 visa creates significant obstacles with placement. Although you may be eligible for a temporary period of work authorization after you graduate, many employers are unable or unwilling to provide sponsorship for an H-1B visa for work after expiration of your post-completion optional practical training.  If you feel that special circumstances exist to justify an exception to this policy, please let us know.