Fellowships and Internships at the National Housing Law Project

NHLP’s Fellowship Program

NHLP encourages new public interest attorneys who have ideas within our broad, substantive focus areas to seek our sponsorship for a post-graduate fellowship.

Generally, NHLP serves only as the sponsoring organization, and does not provide fellowship funding. Common sources include Equal Justice Works, the Skadden Fellowship Foundation, and Soros Justice Fellowships. The NHLP application deadline will vary depending on the deadline imposed by the fellowship provider, but it is usually around the beginning of August for the funders’ annual fall cycle.

NHLP, with a staff of nationally recognized experts in federal housing law and an office strategically situated in San Francisco, California provides the ideal professional home for the design and implementation of innovative fellowship projects. NHLP’s home city of San Francisco and the surrounding San Francisco Bay Area communities are rich in diversity, energized by community activism, and grounded in progressive public policy. The staff of NHLP works closely with other national, regional and locally-based advocacy organizations that share our vision of improving the living conditions, and advancing the housing rights of low-income people.

Fellowships at NHLP have helped to launch the public interest law careers of many dedicated attorneys. Recent projects have included a national study and subsequent publication that evaluated the success of the HOPE VI program. Another fellowship project, focused on implementing and enforcing federally mandated housing protections for women affected by domestic violence. This fellowship expanded to include a role for the fellow as a technical assistance provider to the U.S. Department of Justice domestic violence grantees.

NHLP’s David B. Bryson Student Internship Program

NHLP is committed to training and nurturing law students who are making a commitment to careers in the public interest and we offer a supportive and rewarding experience. Our attorneys provide supervision, training, and unique work opportunities in the multi-faceted area of housing law and policy. Because our housing work extends out into other areas—domestic violence, predatory lending, racial discrimination, public health, equal access — we offer a broad and dynamic arena in which to learn and grow. Several recent NHLP summer interns have returned to our organization as two-year fellows supported by Equal Justice Works or New Voices.

Most recently, NHLP’s student interns worked with leading housing attorneys and policymakers to:

The Bryson student internship program is supported, in part, by NHLP’s memorial fund program, which was established in 2006 to honor NHLP’s former staff members David B. Bryson and Sylvia Brennan. The program provides support and opportunities for new advocates considering careers in public interest housing law. The generous support of the Bryson family made it possible for NHLP to launch the David B. Bryson Student Internship Program in 2007, as NHLP continues efforts to build a permanent fellowship endowment fund.

Learn more about NHLP’s student internship program.