Certificate in Public Interest Law and Policy

The Certificate in Public Interest Law & Policy is offered through the College of Law Center for Access to Justice. The certificate prepares law students to serve traditionally underserved populations.

Experiential courses and pro bono volunteer opportunities put theory into practice. With real world connections and guidance from faculty conducting research in the Center for Access to Justice, students build a foundation for serving the public interest.

HIGHLIGHTS

1 of 12 schools to receive an A+ for public interest law
16+ credit hours to complete a PILP certificate
3,000+ hours of student pro bono service since 2017

Benefits

Faculty guidance: Faculty advisers are assigned to every student enrolled in the certificate program. Advisers can assist with course selection and provide career guidance or suggestions for professional development.
Hands-on learning: Experiential courses and pro bono volunteer opportunities allow students to build on their legal skills and knowledge.
Preparation for practice: Certificate students may focus on an area that aligns with their interests and career goals.

Potential Careers

Prosecutor
Public defender
Immigration attorney

Civil rights attorney
Legal aid lawyer
Policy development and advocacy

Government agency attorney
Staff attorney at nonprofit organization

Atlanta Advantage

Located in the heart of downtown with access to Atlanta’s landmarks, professional sports, global cuisine, cultural events and more.

A FEW STEPS

Southern Center for Human Rights
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission
Atlanta Legal Aid Society
Atlanta Immigration Court
Georgia Watch
Center for Civil and Human Rights
State Capitol
Federal and state courts
Prosecutor and public defender offices

A FEW MILES

Georgia Innocence Project
Georgia Legal Services Program
Department of Veterans Affairs
130 state agencies
Four immigration detention centers

Certificate Requirements

(minimum 16 credit hours)

A minimum of 16 hours is required for certificate completion. The total number of credit hours completed will depend on the courses the student elects to take to satisfy the course requirements.

Foundations Coursework

Law 7117. Constitutional Law II: Individual Liberties; and
Law 7010. Administrative Law OR Law 7225. Federal Courts

Underrepresented Communities Coursework

Choose ONE of the following:

Law 7006. Access to Justice: Law Reform I
Law 7007. Access to Justice: Law Reform II
Law 7180. Disability Discrimination
Law 7245. Immigration Law and Practice
Law 7251. Law and Social Welfare
Law 7252. Human Rights and Children
Law 7283. International Human Rights Seminar: Self-Determination of Indigenous Peoples
Law 7330. Law and the Elderly
Law 7433. Race, Ethnicity and the Law
Law 7434. Racial Justice Seminar
Law 7471. Sexual Identity and the Law
Law 7495. Refugee and Asylum Law
Law 7515. Women and the Law

Experiential Learning

Choose ONE of the following:

Law 6040. Landlord Tenant Mediation Clinic I
Law 6041. Landlord Tenant Mediation Clinic II
Law 6050. Capital Defenders Clinic I
Law 6090. HeLP Legal Services Clinic I
Law 6091. HeLP Legal Services Clinic II
Law 6092. Olmstead Disability Rights Clinic I
Law 6093. Olmstead Disability Rights Clinic II
Law 7094. Bankruptcy Assistance and Practice Program
Law 7247. Health Legislation and Advocacy I
Law 7248. Health Legislation and Advocacy II
Law 7336. Fundamentals of Law Practice/Transition to Practice
Law 7600. Philip C. Cook Low-Income Taxpayer Clinic I
Law 7601. Philip C. Cook Low-Income Taxpayer Clinic II
Law 7606. Immigration Clinic I
Law 7607. Immigration Clinic II
Externship with a public interest law and policy organization (to be approved through the externship program)

Electives

Electives – choose TWO of the following (this may include a course listed under another category not already used to fulfill that requirement):

Law 7006. Access to Justice: Law Reform I
Law 7007. Access to Justice: Law Reform II
Law 7025. Wrongful Convictions
Law 7031. Advanced Criminal Litigation
Law 7113. Capital Punishment Law
Law 7116. Constitutional Tort Litigation
Law 7145. Constitutional Law: Survey of First Amendment
Law 7151. Constitutional Law Seminar
Law 7155. Consumer Protection
Law 7165. Criminal Procedure: Investigations
Law 7167. Criminal Procedure: Adjudication
Law 7169. Criminal Appellate Practicum
Law 7172. Philosophy of Criminal Law
Law 7173. Criminal Law in the Supreme Court
Law 7174. Criminal Regulation of Vice
Law 7180. Disability Discrimination
Law 7183. Domestic Litigation
Law 7184. Domestic Violence Law
Law 7186. Education Law
Law 7190. Seminar in Education Law
Law 7193. General Employment Law
Law 7195. Employment Discrimination Law
Law 7199. Law of Democracy
Law 7200. Environmental Law
Law 7201. International Environmental Law
Law 7203. Natural Resources and Water Law
Law 7204. Urban Environmental Law Seminar
Law 7216. Family Law
Law 7220. Family Law Seminar
Law 7243. HIV/AIDS and the Law
Law 7244. Public Health Law
Law 7256. Independent Research [on a relevant topic, by petition]
Law 7261. Global Perspectives on Children and the Law
Law 7274. International Criminal Law
Law 7277. International Human Rights
Law 7278. International Human Rights Seminar – Immigration
Law 7282. International Human Rights: Practical Applications Seminar
Law 7289. International Law and U.S. Foreign Relations
Law 7293. Seminar on Judicial Power
Law 7300. Juvenile Justice
Law 7306. Juvenile Law
Law 7315. Labor Law
Law 7328. The Law and Business of Immigration
Law 7331. Law and Health Equity
Law 7341. Law and Mental Health
Law 7357. The Law of Social Enterprise
Law 7375. Legislation
Law 7380. Legislative Drafting Seminar
Law 7385. State and Local Government Law
Law 7411. Nonprofit Organizations
Law 7468. Sentencing
Law 7507. Rights of People in Prison
Law 7521. Workers Compensation
Law 7664. International and Comparative Equality Law Seminar
Other College of Law courses or courses in other GSU departments, subject to approval by your faculty advisor and the Faculty Director and Assistant Director of the Center for Access to Justice.

Writing Requirement

Students must complete a substantial writing project on a public interest law and policy topic, which may also be used to satisfy the College of Law’s writing requirement. Written projects for Moot Court or writing competitions DO NOT satisfy the certificate writing requirement unless they otherwise meet the College of Law writing requirement. The writing project must be pre-approved by your faculty advisor and the faculty member who will supervise the project (if different). For substantial writing projects completed in courses or independent study credits not listed above, you should coordinate in advance with your certificate faculty advisor to ensure that the project will meet the writing requirement for this program.

Extracurricular Activity

Students must participate in 40 hours of approved pro bono work through the student-run Pro Bono Program and report these activities on the report form. Pro bono legal work done outside the student-run Pro Bono Program is eligible, subject to approval.

Coursework (including externships) and summer internship hours may not be counted.

Donating money to a cause or organization will NOT be counted as an approved extracurricular activity.

Grades and Honors

A minimum GPA of 3.00 is required for all courses taken in satisfaction of the certificate requirements. A minimum grade of 3.00 is required for the writing requirement. If you take more than the minimum number of courses needed to fulfill certificate requirements, the Assistant Director will use the highest grades in courses that fulfill the certificate requirements when calculating GPA for the certificate. If a course includes both a pass/fail and graded component, the graded component will be counted. For example, externships taken pass/fail can fulfill the lawyering-skills requirement and will not be included in GPA calculation, but the grade in the one-hour externship course will be counted. If you take multiple courses that may count for a single requirement, the highest grade fulfilling that requirement will be counted for GPA purposes.

If you do not pass Constitutional Law II: Individual Liberties, you must take it again to earn the certificate. Both the failing grade from the first attempt and the passing grade from the second attempt will be calculated in the GPA for the certificate, and you must still meet the minimum GPA of 3.00. If you fail another course taken toward other certificate requirements, you may take a different course that satisfies that component instead, and the passing grade will be counted toward your certificate GPA. For example, if you select a course from the underrepresented communities list and do not pass it, you may take a different course satisfying that component, and the higher of the two grades will count.

Honors will be awarded for achievement of a GPA of 3.60 or higher in all public interest law and policy courses taken for the certificate and any additional public interest law and policy electives taken above and beyond the requirements. If you do not pass a course taken toward the certificate and you retake the course, both the failing grade from the first attempt and the passing grade from the second attempt will be calculated in the GPA, and you must still maintain a 3.60 to receive honors in the certificate program.

Application

Verification for Graduation

It is the student’s responsibility to submit a Certificate in Public Interest Law & Policy Verification Form confirming satisfactory completion of certificate requirements no later than the drop-add date of the student’s last semester in the J.D. program. The faculty advisor must sign the verification form before it is submitted to the assistant director. The assistant director will then verify grades after graduation when available from the Registrar.

The verification form must be accompanied by the extracurricular activities report, which must also receive pre-approval from the faculty advisor. Each extracurricular activity should be reported in sufficient detail to document attendance or participation, including the time, date, location and people or organization overseeing the activity.

Every effort should be made to submit these forms in a timely manner. The faculty director or assistant director of the Center for Access to Justice, at their discretion, may choose not to accept late, incomplete or unsigned forms.

The PILP certificate helped me choose courses that aligned with my interests while ensuring that I stayed well-rounded. The certificate was also an efficient and effective way to demonstrate to employers, both on my resume and during interviews, my commitment to public interest and service.

– Andy Navratil (J.D. ’18)

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