Careers & Internships

Graduates of the law-medicine program are pursuing careers in all areas of health law, all across the country. They work at law firms, corporations, hospitals, government agencies, research and consulting organizations, legal aid offices and other public interest organizations. Some are advocates and litigators; others are transaction experts and advisors on policy and regulation.

Our Career Development Office complements our curriculum with programs and services that include on- and off-campus interviews, individual counseling sessions, participation in specialized job fairs, an extensive career library, year-round workshops, panel discussions and presentations on job-related topics, mock interviews, and an alumni mentor program. We also collaborate with the Cleveland Metropolitan Bar Association (CMBA) Health Law Council. Members of the council participate in health law career presentations at the law school and sponsor a health law scholarship.

Internships

The Law-Medicine Center offers summer internship stipends for students interested in a career in health law. Students research and apply for an unpaid (or nominally paid) summer health law position at public interest organizations or in government and sometimes abroad. Students then apply for a Law-Medicine summer internship stipend.

Awards, announced in the spring, have enabled students to work for a wide variety of organizations, including:

  • National Indian Health Board; Patients Not Patents (Washington, DC)
  • Tennessee Department of Mental Health & Developmental Disabilities
  • Ministry of Legal Affairs (Roseau, Dominica, West Indies)
  • Vermont Medical Society; Medical College of Wisconsin
  • SPARC: Society for the Protection & Rights of the Child (Lahore, Pakistan)
  • Physicians for Reproductive Choice & Health (NYC)
  • Northwest Community Hospital (Arlington, Illinois)
  • Senator Herb Kohl (D-WI) and the Special Committee on Aging (Washington DC)

Hospital Externships

Hospital Law Externships offered by The Law-Medicine Center allow students to gain hands-on, experiential learning in a top hospital legal environment, while earning course credit. The highly selective externships are with Cleveland’s top hospital systems: University Hospitals Cleveland Medical Center, Cleveland Clinic Foundation, MetroHealth System and Summa Health System.

Health Law Scholarships & Fellowships

Students specializing in health law may be eligible for one of two merit-based programs. Law-Medicine Scholars receive tuition offset. Law Medicine Fellows receive tuition offset and a position as a summer research assistant for a member of the Law-Medicine Center faculty.

Dean Lindsey Cowen Research Fellowship

Thanks to a generous donation from the Ferry Family Foundation, The Law-Medicine Center now offers a one-year Cowen Research Fellowship to a law school graduate who wishes to gain advanced experience and training in health law research skills. The fellow works directly with professors on scholarly projects. Preference in selection is given to graduates of the law school.