Clinics Enrollment Policy
- Timing of Enrollment. JD Students may enroll in any of the Law school's clinics as early as the first semester of their second year.
- Pre- or Co-Requisites. Some clinics require a pre- or co-requisite, most commonly the legal ethics course required to graduate. Before registration, students should check each clinic’s description in the Course Browser for the most up-to-date information on what’s required.
- Priority for Single Clinic Enrollment. In general, students are permitted to enroll in only one clinic per semester, excluding advanced clinic credits. Prior to enrolling in DukeHub, a student seeking to enroll in two clinics in a semester must obtain written permission from the director of each clinic and written approval from the Director of Clinics and submit both to the Office of the Registrar. If the written permission and approval have not been submitted, the student will be removed from the class roll of both clinics. Absent unusual circumstances, written approval for enrollment in multiple clinics will not be permitted, or will be rescinded, if either or both of the clinics in which the student wishes to enroll have or are expected to have waitlists.
- Variable Clinic Credits. For clinics with variable (4-6) credits available, students should enroll for four credits in the clinic during the regular registration process. Following registration, students should consult with the clinic director concerning caseloads and client needs to determine if additional credits and hours are available. If the clinic director approves, the student should submit the permission to enroll in an additional 1-2 clinic credits to the Office of the Registrar by the end of the drop/add deadline of the given semester. Credits for a given semester may not be adjusted after the end of the seventh week of classes.
Advanced Clinical Studies. Students interested in extending their work in a clinic beyond one semester may enroll in the clinic for additional semesters through the Law School’s advanced clinical course opportunities. To enroll in an advanced clinic, the student must obtain written permission from the appropriate clinic director. Requests for permission will be reviewed on a case-by-case basis at the discretion of the clinic director, subject to caseloads and client needs. Once permission is obtained, the student must submit it to the Office of the Registrar, who will subsequently register the student for the advanced clinic. Students cannot register themselves directly for advanced clinic credits. Most advanced clinic enrollments will be approved for 1-2 credits in a given semester.. To register for more than two advanced clinic credits in a single semester, students should work with the clinic director to develop a brief scope of work and summary of their learning goals and expectations and submit that information to Academic Affairs. Students are limited to four advanced clinic credits across all clinics absent extenuating circumstances and specific permission from the relevant clinic director and Academic Affairs.
Please note that advanced clinic credits do not automatically count towards the JD experiential graduation requirement. They do count towards the PIPS experiential requirement. In rare cases where students need advanced clinic credits to count toward their JD experiential graduation requirement, a classroom component must be added. Students who want their advanced clinic credits to count toward the experiential graduation requirement must confirm with the clinic director that a classroom component can be added prior to enrolling in the advanced clinic.
- LLM Eligibility for Clinics. In certain limited circumstances, LLM students may be eligible to enroll in a clinic. To enroll in a clinic, the LLM student must obtain written permission from the appropriate clinic professor prior to enrolling in the clinic. The written permission must be submitted to the Office of the Registrar, and the Registrar will subsequently register the LLM student for the clinic. Requests for permission will be reviewed on a case-by-case basis after Office of International Studies preapproval and will be granted at the discretion of the clinic professor.