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Effective | Ethical | Fulfilled
Effective | Ethical | Fulfilled
The vision of the Experiential Learning Program is to graduate law students with the experience and judgment necessary to be effective, ethical, and fulfilled legal practitioners.
ANNOUNCEMENTS:
The Spring 2026 cycle is underway. Please join the TWEN page for the 2025-26 Experiential Learning Program course.
Students are able to obtain academic credit while gaining real life work experience at a site that furthers their own personal learning goals. Belmont Law has sponsored student placements in judicial chambers, non-profits, in-house legal departments of corporations, governmental agencies, prosecutors, and public defenders, among others. Students attend two class sessions taught by Professor Arth at the beginning and end of the experiential learning cycle, which support the student's field work. One hundred hours of field work at the placement site takes the place of a traditional weekly class and earns students two academic credits per placement. Why not build your resume and earn credit toward your law degree at the same time?
SY 2025-26 Dates
2025-26 Experiential Learning Program Dates.pdfWhat is experiential learning?
Legal externships (summer opportunities), field placements (in-semester opportunities), and clinical courses all fall under the umbrella of "experiential learning." Experiential learning courses integrate doctrine, theory, skills, and legal ethics, and engage students in performance of one or more professional skills while working on-site in a live legal setting. An experiential learning placement provides a student with a substantial lawyering experience under the supervision of a licensed attorney. A substantial lawyering experience may include a variety of tasks as long as it is reasonably similar to the experience of a lawyer advising or representing a client or engaging in other lawyering tasks.
Prof. Patrick Riley, Director of Field Placements, Asst. Prof. of Legal Practice
About Prof. Riley
I owe a large part of my own success as a lawyer to Belmont Law's Experiential Learning Program. I have worked as a government attorney, worked in private practice, and worked as a judicial law clerk. But, I got my start right here as a student extern doing two different field placements as part of my 2L and 3L year. I am thrilled to be teaching seminar courses to deepen the learning you will be doing on site.
Prof. Kristi W. Arth, Asst. Dean for Experiential Learning, Assoc. Prof. of Law
About Prof. Arth
I am a huge believer in experiential learning. Nothing prepares you for practice like practice! Prior to becoming a law professor, I was a partner at Bradley, an AmLaw 200 law firm, where I came up through the ranks starting as a summer associate. My experience with simulation courses, externships, and clinical legal education in law school gave me the confidence I needed as a young associate, and I am passionate about giving you that same boost of confidence through Belmont Law's Experiential Learning Program.
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