Global Teaching Fellows

The Office of J.D. Academic Services is now accepting applications for Global Teaching Fellows ("GTFs") to assist in teaching the first-year course, Week One: Law in a Global Context ("Week One"), from January 7-11, 2013.  We encourage upperclass J.D. students, LL.M., and S.J.D. students who will be enrolled students through Spring 2013 to apply. The deadline for GTF applications is Thursday, October 4, 2012.

Overview of Global Teaching Fellow Program

Week One, now in its eighth year, is a mandatory, one-week, problem-based course designed to introduce first-year students to a complex legal problem that involves not only U.S. law, but also international and/or foreign law in a transnational setting so they can begin to understand how legal problems increasingly transcend national boundaries and involve more than one legal system.  First-year students will be assigned to one of three transnational legal problems:  a contract dispute between parties from different countries; a tort (defamation) dispute involving a defamed foreign party; and a public law dispute involving extradition of persons living overseas and suspected of terrorism to the United States (to face, for example, the death penalty).  For a description of each problem, please see the summary provided here.  Each problem is structured as a simulation and students are assigned to specific roles (e.g., advocate, client, judge) for the week. In their roles, students collaborate with others on their team, negotiate with those on opposing sides, and participate in an arbitration or judicial hearing. The courses will each be taught through a closed packet of materials and will not include a research component.

The Global Teaching Fellows play an important role in the success of Week One.  In the fall, the GTFs meet with the faculty members leading their section to discuss the problem and to receive training on their role as facilitators during Week One. During Week One, the GTFs attend all of the plenary (lecture) sessions and monitor and/or facilitate the small-group breakout sessions in which students engage in intensive legal problem-solving in a transnational legal setting.  Some of the breakout sessions may be facilitated by GTFs alone and some may include a faculty member.  GTFs play an important role in helping the first-year students prepare for some of their breakout session activities, such as a mock oral argument before a court or arbitral body. The faculty members leading the problem also meet and/or consult regularly with their GTFs during Week One itself, to offer and receive feedback from them on the plenary sessions and to discuss student progress in breakout sessions.   

Groups of 6 to 12 Global Teaching Fellows are assigned to each of the six first-year sections. Week One runs from roughly 9:00 am to 5:30 pm for the five day sections, and from roughly 5:45 pm to 10:00 pm for the one evening section.

Responsibilities and Requirements for 2013 Global Teaching Fellows

Global Teaching Fellows must:

1. participate in all training session(s) and faculty-led meetings in the Fall semester and during Week One;
2. attend all Week One classes for their section and be available to assist first-year students during non-class hours;
   
3. help monitor and/or facilitate breakout sessions; and
4. write a substantive 6-8 page reaction paper assessing: (i) how the problem worked; (ii) how it could be improved (legal issues, factual issues, structure of exercise, timing, etc.); (iii) student reaction to the experience; and (iv) how the first-year students' experience could be improved.  The paper will be due by 5:00 p.m. on Monday, February 11, 2013.

Credit

Global Teaching Fellows may elect to receive one academic credit, on a pass/fail basis, for their participation in Week One.  They may also elect to participate for no credit. The pass/fail credit will not count toward the 7-credit pass/fail limit applicable to J.D. students, and J.D. students may take another eligible course pass/fail in the Spring semester.  All students selected to serve as a GTF may also, if their schedule permits, enroll in an upperclass Week One course, but are encouraged to speak to Margaret Gerety, Director, J.D. Program, and/or an academic advisor.

Students who have already been Global Teaching Fellows are encouraged to apply again (please click here for more information on receipt of academic credit for returning GTFs).  If you are a part-time student, please click here for additional information regarding credit/tuition options.

Application Process

Applications to serve as Global Teaching Fellows should be submitted to the Office of J.D. Academic Services by Thursday, October 4, 2012. As described in the application form, provided below, please be sure to include a resume, a transcript, and a brief statement of why you are interested in becoming a GTF and any special qualifications or experiences you believe are relevant.  If you have experience in oral advocacy, negotiation, mediation or arbitration, please be sure to note this in your application.  We are looking for students who have been successful at Georgetown Law, who have knowledge of and/or interest in foreign countries and/or international or comparative law, and who are interested in facilitating groups of students as they analyze a legal problem in a complex area of law.

If you completed the Week One exercise in your first year, you are encouraged to consider applying to be a Global Teaching Fellow for the problem you had as a first-year student, but you are also welcome to indicate your preference for a different problem. Students who are enrolled in a Spring clinic should determine when any mandatory clinical trainings or meetings will take place during Week One and be sure their service as a GTF will not conflict with these meetings.

Global Teaching Fellow Application (PDF)

Global Teaching Fellow Application (Word)

If you have questions about the GTF role or application, please contact Margaret Gerety, Director, J.D. Program, at meg239@law.georgetown.edu.