Selected candidates will be assigned work with the criminal, civil, appellate, or administrative divisions consistent with their areas of interest and mission priorities. Our goal is to introduce students to the federal system and litigation involving the United States. We strive to assist students in developing general office support skills including operating various automated software applications as well as provide opportunities to improve research and writing skills. Students will assist Assistant U.S. Attorneys ("AUSAs") in various aspects of handling cases. Students may perform legal research and writing; draft various pleadings, motions, briefs, and other documents; and assist with witness preparation, depositions, and hearings or trials. Students will also be provided with several opportunities to meet members of the judiciary, representatives of various federal agencies, and to participate in substantive programs to familiarize them with the federal legal system. The Criminal Division may give students an opportunity to work on a wide variety of practice areas, including narcotics, public corruption, healthcare fraud, cybercrimes, terrorism, and other federal crimes. Within the Civil Division, students may work in a wide variety of defensive and affirmative litigation, including employment discrimination, medical malpractice, general torts, constitutional torts, immigration, prisoner litigation, commercial, financial, and civil fraud.
Responsibilities will increase and assignments will become more complex as your training and experience progress.
Initial appointment is conditioned upon a satisfactory pre-employment adjudication. This includes fingerprint, credit and tax checks, and drug testing. Continued employment is subject to a favorable adjudication of a background investigation
You must be registered for Selective Service, if applicable.
You must meet half-time student enrollment requirements.
You must submit a transcript or proof of enrollment with your application.
You must be at least 16 years of age or older.
You must meet all qualification requirements upon the closing date of this announcement.
Qualifications
To be eligible for this internship ALL of the following requirements must be met:
Student Status: Definition of a student - applicant must be enrolled or accepted for enrollment in an accredited high school, technical or vocational school, two-year or four-year college or university, graduate/professional school, or certificate program equivalent to at least one academic year of full-time study (go to http://www.ed.gov/accreditation to verify accreditation status) pursuant to 5 CFR 362. You must be considered in good academic standings by the school. Individuals must be taking at least a half-time academic, vocational, or technical course load leading to a degree, diploma, or certificate. "Half-time" is defined by the school in which the student is enrolled.
Grade Point Average: You must have at least a 2.5 GPA.
Citizenship: Student Interns must be United States citizens or owe permanent allegiance to the United States. (Currently, natives of American Samoa, Swains Island and certain inhabitants of the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands are the only groups that owe permanent allegiance to the United States.)Background Investigation: You must successfully complete a background investigation to determine your suitability for Federal employment.
Participant Agreement: All interns are required to sign the Participant Agreement.
Qualification requirements as outlined below.
Education
All academic degrees and coursework must be completed at an institution that has obtained accreditation or pre-accreditation status from an accrediting body recognized by the U.S. Department of Education in order for it to be credited towards qualifications. For a list of schools that meet this criteria, see http://www.ed.gov.
Foreign Education Note: You may use foreign education to meet qualification requirements if you send a Certificate of Foreign Equivalency in with your transcript. It is your responsibility to timely provide such evidence by submitting proof of creditability of education as evaluated by a credentialing agency with your application materials. More information may be found at http://www2.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ous/international/usnei/us/edlite-visitus-forrecog.html. All documentation must be in English or include an English translation.
Additional information
Salary: These are uncompensated positions. Students may earn academic credit for working at our Office. Information on academic credit programs can be obtained and may require approval from student's school placement office.
A Benefits package is not authorized for this position.Additional positions may be selected and filled from this vacancy.
Veterans' Preference: If you are entitled to Veterans' Preference, you must indicate the type of preference you are claiming by checking the appropriate box in the assessment questionnaire to indicate your preference and submit the documentation as specified in the "Required Documents" section of this vacancy announcement.
Selective Service: If you are a male applicant born after December 31, 1959, you must certify that you have registered with the Selective Service System, or are exempt from having to do so under the Selective Service Law. See http://www.sss.gov.
Reasonable Accommodation Statement: Federal Agencies must provide reasonable accommodation to applicants with disabilities, where appropriate. Applicants requiring reasonable accommodation for any part of the application and hiring process should contact the hiring agency directly. Determinations on requests for reasonable accommodation will be made on a case-by-case basis.
EEO Statement: The United States government does not discriminate in employment on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, pregnancy, national origin, political affiliation, sexual orientation, marital status, disability, genetic information, age, membership in an employee organization, retaliation, parental status, military service or other non-merit factor.
A career with the U.S. government provides employees with a comprehensive benefits package. As a federal employee, you and your family will have access to a range of benefits that are designed to make your federal career very rewarding. Opens in a new windowLearn more about federal benefits.
Eligibility for benefits depends on the type of position you hold and whether your position is full-time, part-time or intermittent. Contact the hiring agency for more information on the specific benefits offered.
How you will be evaluated
You will be evaluated for this job based on how well you meet the qualifications above.
Your resume and supporting documentation will be used to determine whether you meet the job qualifications listed on this announcement. If you are basically qualified for this job, your resume and supporting documentation will be compared to your responses on the Occupational Questionnaire. If you rate yourself higher than is supported by your application materials, your responses may be adjusted and/or you may be excluded from consideration for this job. If it is determined you meet minimum qualification requirements you may be referred to the selecting official or if Veterans' Preference must to be adjudicated, your application will be placed in one of three grouping categories: Best Qualified, Highly Qualified, or Qualified. Within each of these groupings, applicants eligible for Veterans' Preference will receive selection priority over non-veteran preference eligibles. All CP/CPS preference eligibles that meet minimum qualification and eligibility requirements will be included in the "Best Qualified" grouping.
You will be rated on the following Competencies:
Go to OPM Website for the definition of each competency.
The Occupational Questionnaire will take you approximately 10 minutes to complete.
A career with the U.S. government provides employees with a comprehensive benefits package. As a federal employee, you and your family will have access to a range of benefits that are designed to make your federal career very rewarding. Opens in a new windowLearn more about federal benefits.
Eligibility for benefits depends on the type of position you hold and whether your position is full-time, part-time or intermittent. Contact the hiring agency for more information on the specific benefits offered.
You must provide a complete Application Package, which includes:
Required: Your responses to the Online Occupational Questionnaire (This is completed automatically during the apply online process).
Required: Your resume showing relevant experience and dates (for full consideration you must include month/day/year) of employment and work schedule for each (e.g., part-time XX hours per week or full-time). Experience refers to paid and unpaid experience, including volunteer work done through National Service programs (e.g., Peace Corps, AmeriCorps) and other organizations (e.g., professional; philanthropic; religious; spiritual; community, student, social). Volunteer work helps build critical competencies, knowledge, and skills and can provide valuable training and experience that translates directly to paid employment. You will receive credit for all qualifying experience, including volunteer experience. (cover letter optional)
Required: Current Unofficial transcript or proof of current enrollment, e.g., recent letter from the registrar's office. (Note: If you are selected for this position, an official transcript will be required prior to your first day.)
Required, if applicable: Veterans' Preference documentation. (See also required Veterans' Preference Documentation below.) Please note, if you are entitled to Veterans' Preference, you must indicate the type of preference you are claiming by checking the appropriate box in the assessment questionnaire to indicate your preference and submit the required documentation as specified below.
Required Veterans' Preference Documentation: -In order to verify your Veterans' Preference entitlement, you must submit a copy of the Member Copy 4 of your DD-214 (Certificate of Release or Discharge from Active Duty); or if you are a current Active Duty member you must submit a certification on appropriate military branch letterhead that indicates: 1) your service dates, 2) expected discharge or release date from active duty with a release/discharge date no later than 120 days from the closing date of this announcement, and 3) the character of service (e.g., Honorable); In addition, if you are a disabled veteran, a Purple Heart recipient, or widow/widower if a veteran, the spouse of a disabled veteran or the parent of a disabled or deceased veteran, you must submit a Standard Form (SF) 15, "Application for 10-Point Veteran Preference," dated October 2013 and the required documentation identified on the reverse side of the SF-15 to support your preference claim.
Current or Former Political Appointees: The Office of Personnel Management (OPM) must authorize employment offers made to current or former political appointees. If you are currently, or have been within the last 5 years, a political Schedule A, Schedule C, Non-career SES or Presidential Appointee employee in the Executive Branch, you must disclose this information to the Human Resources Office by providing a copy of your applicable SF-50, along with a statement that provides the following information regarding your most recent political appointment:
Position title;
Type of appointment (Schedule A, Schedule C, Non-career SES, or Presidential Appointee);
Agency; and
Beginning and ending dates of appointment.
If you are relying on your education to meet qualification requirements:
Failure to provide all of the required information as stated in this vacancy announcement may result in an ineligible rating or may affect the overall rating.
To apply for this position, you must complete the occupational questionnaire and submit the documentation specified in the Required Documents section below. The complete application package must be submitted by 11:59 PM (ET)on 05/30/2025 to receive consideration.
1. To begin, click Apply Online to create a USAJOBS account or log in to your existing account. Follow the prompts to select your USAJOBS resume and/or other supporting documents and complete the occupational questionnaire.
2. Click the Submit My Answers button to submit your application package. (It is your responsibility to ensure your responses and appropriate documentation is submitted prior to the closing date.)
3. To verify your application is complete, log into your USAJOBS account, http://my.usajobs.gov/Account/Login, select the Application Status link and then select the more information link for this position. The Details page will display the status of your application, the documentation received and processed, and any correspondence the agency has sent related to this application. Your uploaded documents may take several hours to clear the virus scan process.To return to an incomplete application, log into your USAJOBS account and click Update Application in the vacancy announcement. You must re-select your resume and/or other documents from your USAJOBS account or your application will be incomplete.
You are encouraged to apply online. Applying online will allow you to review and track the status of your application. If you are unable to apply online, contact Lisa Dinwoodie at 5098356335 or Lisa.Dinwoodie@usdoj.gov as soon as possible to arrange an alternative application process.
Eastern District of Washington
920 W. Riverside Avenue
Suite 340
Spokane, WA 99201
US
Next steps
We will notify you of the outcome after each step of the recruitment process has been completed. After making a tentative job offer, we will conduct a suitability/security background investigation, to include a credit check, and a drug test by urinalysis. We expect to make a final job offer within 80 days after the closing date of the announcement.
The Federal hiring process is set up to be fair and transparent. Please read the following guidance.
You must provide a complete Application Package, which includes:
Required: Your responses to the Online Occupational Questionnaire (This is completed automatically during the apply online process).
Required: Your resume showing relevant experience and dates (for full consideration you must include month/day/year) of employment and work schedule for each (e.g., part-time XX hours per week or full-time). Experience refers to paid and unpaid experience, including volunteer work done through National Service programs (e.g., Peace Corps, AmeriCorps) and other organizations (e.g., professional; philanthropic; religious; spiritual; community, student, social). Volunteer work helps build critical competencies, knowledge, and skills and can provide valuable training and experience that translates directly to paid employment. You will receive credit for all qualifying experience, including volunteer experience. (cover letter optional)
Required: Current Unofficial transcript or proof of current enrollment, e.g., recent letter from the registrar's office. (Note: If you are selected for this position, an official transcript will be required prior to your first day.)
Required, if applicable: Veterans' Preference documentation. (See also required Veterans' Preference Documentation below.) Please note, if you are entitled to Veterans' Preference, you must indicate the type of preference you are claiming by checking the appropriate box in the assessment questionnaire to indicate your preference and submit the required documentation as specified below.
Required Veterans' Preference Documentation: -In order to verify your Veterans' Preference entitlement, you must submit a copy of the Member Copy 4 of your DD-214 (Certificate of Release or Discharge from Active Duty); or if you are a current Active Duty member you must submit a certification on appropriate military branch letterhead that indicates: 1) your service dates, 2) expected discharge or release date from active duty with a release/discharge date no later than 120 days from the closing date of this announcement, and 3) the character of service (e.g., Honorable); In addition, if you are a disabled veteran, a Purple Heart recipient, or widow/widower if a veteran, the spouse of a disabled veteran or the parent of a disabled or deceased veteran, you must submit a Standard Form (SF) 15, "Application for 10-Point Veteran Preference," dated October 2013 and the required documentation identified on the reverse side of the SF-15 to support your preference claim.
Current or Former Political Appointees: The Office of Personnel Management (OPM) must authorize employment offers made to current or former political appointees. If you are currently, or have been within the last 5 years, a political Schedule A, Schedule C, Non-career SES or Presidential Appointee employee in the Executive Branch, you must disclose this information to the Human Resources Office by providing a copy of your applicable SF-50, along with a statement that provides the following information regarding your most recent political appointment:
Position title;
Type of appointment (Schedule A, Schedule C, Non-career SES, or Presidential Appointee);
Agency; and
Beginning and ending dates of appointment.
If you are relying on your education to meet qualification requirements:
Failure to provide all of the required information as stated in this vacancy announcement may result in an ineligible rating or may affect the overall rating.
To apply for this position, you must complete the occupational questionnaire and submit the documentation specified in the Required Documents section below. The complete application package must be submitted by 11:59 PM (ET)on 05/30/2025 to receive consideration.
1. To begin, click Apply Online to create a USAJOBS account or log in to your existing account. Follow the prompts to select your USAJOBS resume and/or other supporting documents and complete the occupational questionnaire.
2. Click the Submit My Answers button to submit your application package. (It is your responsibility to ensure your responses and appropriate documentation is submitted prior to the closing date.)
3. To verify your application is complete, log into your USAJOBS account, http://my.usajobs.gov/Account/Login, select the Application Status link and then select the more information link for this position. The Details page will display the status of your application, the documentation received and processed, and any correspondence the agency has sent related to this application. Your uploaded documents may take several hours to clear the virus scan process.To return to an incomplete application, log into your USAJOBS account and click Update Application in the vacancy announcement. You must re-select your resume and/or other documents from your USAJOBS account or your application will be incomplete.
You are encouraged to apply online. Applying online will allow you to review and track the status of your application. If you are unable to apply online, contact Lisa Dinwoodie at 5098356335 or Lisa.Dinwoodie@usdoj.gov as soon as possible to arrange an alternative application process.
Eastern District of Washington
920 W. Riverside Avenue
Suite 340
Spokane, WA 99201
US
Next steps
We will notify you of the outcome after each step of the recruitment process has been completed. After making a tentative job offer, we will conduct a suitability/security background investigation, to include a credit check, and a drug test by urinalysis. We expect to make a final job offer within 80 days after the closing date of the announcement.
Fair and transparent
The Federal hiring process is set up to be fair and transparent. Please read the following guidance.
