Every year, students at Georgetown Law take part in internships and externships. These pursuits add tremendous value to the law school experience. At CAROLA, we are committed to facilitating student opportunities throughout Latin America that are both stimulating and rewarding.

Reach out to us, if you are interested in exploring internship and externship opportunities in Latin America or in recruiting some of our students.

Student testimonials

Brucelee Sterile (2L)

Summer 2018 | PEMEX, Mexico City, Mexico

“PEMEX was the perfect internship for an individual looking to expand their horizon and vision.”

I enjoyed my experience because I was assigned projects that I was genuinely interested in, but even more so, because my colleagues made me feel welcome. Your first few days at PEMEX are an adjustment because you are learning the organization and networking, but as you begin to interact with people, more opportunities are provided. I did not speak Spanish, but I was still given pretty big assignments in English, such as working on a joint operating agreement and a non-disclosure agreement for a multi-billion-dollar deal. Everyone in the department took care of me, so I did not feel as if I was missing the guidance of an actual sponsor. I would certainly recommend this internship to someone that is interested in transnational opportunities. PEMEX and Mexico City helped me improve my Spanish-speaking capabilities and there is so much more that I now know about Latin America, as well as its oil and gas industry, that I did not know before this experience. Furthermore, the lifelong relationships that I have developed are unbeatable and I truly believe that this experience has brought me closer to my long-term aspirations. This internship experience has also increased my business savviness, enhanced my ability to build relationships, and challenged me to view life through the lens of someone who does not look like me or share a similar background.

Christina LaRocca (2L)

Summer 2017 | Inter-American Court of Human Rights, San Jose, Costa Rica

“My wonderful summer in Costa Rica afforded me a great deal of professional and personal growth that would not have been possible without being offered the opportunity by the Inter-American Court of Human Rights.”

My summer internship at the Inter-American Court of Human Rights in Costa Rica was an invaluable experience. Through it, I gained greater understanding of the mechanisms fueling progress in human rights in the Americas. It gave me a framework for comprehending some of my favorite courses I took after my internship, such as International Protection of Human Rights. The research and writing I conducted mattered and contributed to the clerks’ and judges’ analysis of contemporary human rights issues being adjudicated before the Court. The topics of my research were always relevant and contentious issues, and the work I was asked to do allowed me to compare how such issues are treated differently in various countries across the Americas. It further allowed me to use my own critical thinking and skills in application of law to develop and provide legal arguments which might justify progress for contentious issues, such as LGBTI rights in Latin America. Though I am a native Spanish speaker, living and working in Costa Rica during the summer enabled me to refine my language skills in a professional capacity like I never had before.

Sunny Dharod (2L)

Summer 2017 | Brigard & Urrutia, Bogota, Colombia

“This internship re-enforced my interest in real estate, as I had a good time working on the projects I was assigned to. Moreover, the experience motivated me to get out of my comfort zone and think about subjects from a more global perspective.”

We were assigned to supervisors, who made sure we felt like we were getting a good experience throughout the seven weeks. Whenever I had any questions, I felt very comfortable approaching my supervisor for help. I specifically worked with the firm’s real estate, tax, and insurance teams. The assignments we got were meaningful to their work, and I was able to understand how the projects I completed played a role in catering to their clients’ needs. I definitely felt outside of my comfort zone, being the only intern out of 25 who was not a native-Spanish speaker (My only experience with Spanish came from taking classes in high school and college). Nonetheless, all the interns and lawyers encouraged me to practice as much as possible and not be scared to make mistakes. If needed, they talked to me in English, but for the most part, I was pushed to speak in Spanish. This really helped me improve my skills.

Emely Toro (3L)

Summer 2017 | Dentons Muñoz, San Jose, Costa Rica

“The legal work I got was substantive, our housing was amazing, and my co-workers were mostly very nice.”

My sponsors were incredibly supportive and gave me substantive work. I got to do actual legal work. I drafted an internal investigation report for a multinational corporation, developed a presentation that compared public private partnership models in Latin America, and various memoranda for clients interested in investing in Costa Rica. […] I literally traveled every weekend. I got to see almost all of Costa Rica, and it was absolutely spectacular.

Naomi Glassman (L’18)

Summer 2015 | Universidad Alberto Hurtado, Santiago, Chile

“I fully believe that experience abroad, particularly through internship and work opportunities is fundamental for a career in international human rights. My time in Chile and Colombia enabled me to talk to the people who live there and experience and work on these issues daily as opposed to remaining in the secondary source world of the library.”

While at Universidad Alberto Hurtado, our project (I was there with another Georgetown Law student, Caroline Kelly ’17) was to contribute to a survey of the types of legal documents used by the Vicaria de la Solidaridad to fight for human rights during the dictatorship. We were granted open access to the Vicaria archives and it was amazing to see and read all of the original documents. It absolutely underlined the importance of keeping strong records of human rights violations and the value in persistence and working within a community. […] I was able to interview two Supreme Court Justices, two Appeals Court justices, several human rights lawyers, and government officials. These interviews were one of the absolute highlights of my time in Chile as they provided an unparalleled opportunity to talk to key players in the fight for human rights and transitional justice. The people I interviewed were all happy to talk with me as a Georgetown student. Additionally, my research culminated in a final paper that I later published – International Human Rights Treaties and the Chilean Dictatorship, 23 U.C. Davis J. Int’l L. & Pol’y 193 (2017).