Experiential Learning
A key differentiator of the California Western law school experience is our clinics and programs that serve the San Diego community and give students the opportunity to gain real-world experience working with real clients.
Clinics and Programs
California Western’s experiential courses allow you to learn and practice what lawyers actually do on a daily basis. That’s why our curriculum has been carefully designed to include clinics, externships, and simulation courses. We offer opportunities for you to learn through practice to prepare you for your legal career.
Our clinics and their faculty directors are nationally known for their work and innovation. Our clinics are another way that we prepare our students to graduate as practice-ready attorneys.
We offer 40 simulation courses that provide substantial lawyering experience through in-class practice with hypothetical facts. You’ll gain professional skills and subject area knowledge that prepare you for clinics and externship placements.
An essential component of the California Western experience, the Clinical Externship Program gives third-year students the opportunity to hone their practice-ready skills while earning between one to ten academic credits for legal work in nonprofit agencies, private law offices, courts, corporations, or government agencies in San Diego and around the world.
Pro Bono and Public Service Honors Programs
Explore the programsStudents in the Pro Bono Honors Program receive hands-on legal experience while helping address the unmet legal needs of disadvantaged or historically excluded individuals. Through the Pro Bono Honors Program, students work with organizations serving individuals in San Diego in a variety of legal fields. Along with training and professional growth experience, students who complete more than 50 hours of service through the program are inducted into the Pro Bono Honors Society. Inductees receive an official notation on their transcripts and will receive an award certificate.
Sharpen Your Skills
California Western prepares you to make an impact on the job from day one.
California Western’s Competitive Advocacy Program (CAP) provides students with the opportunity to develop real-world lawyering skills by working closely with practicing attorneys and experienced coaches.
We have two student-run journals: The California Western Law Review and California Western International Law Journal. Expand your legal knowledge by reading, editing, and publishing scholarly legal writings by judges, professors, practitioners, and current California Western students.
At California Western, our legal conferences and symposia look far beyond the traditional and into how the law is intersecting throughout society. At any point during your time here, you can attend a meeting and network with like-minded professionals and learn more about the future of law.