Government Shutdown 2025 Leaves Law Students in Limbo: ‘Incredibly Disruptive’ to Externships and Careers
WASHINGTON — As the U.S. government shutdown stretches into its 32nd day, law students across the nation are watching prized externships evaporate, trading courtroom briefings for classroom cramming. “It’s incredibly disruptive,” says Georgetown Law professor Elena Vasquez, whose students have lost weeks of hands-on federal experience that could define their post-grad paths.
The partial shutdown kicked off at midnight on September 30, 2025, after Congress deadlocked on a funding bill, furloughing 670,000 federal workers and halting non-essential operations. For law schools, the fallout hits hardest in externship programs—semester-long immersions in federal agencies, courts, and congressional offices that offer academic credit and resume gold. At Georgetown University, over 50 students in federal internships, including roles at the House Appropriations Committee and Department of Commerce, face indefinite pauses.
Timothy Cole-French, a Georgetown senior interning for a Massachusetts congressional delegation, sums up the sting: “I want to work as a ‘leg’ aide in a law firm or lobbying group, and you explicitly need Hill experience for those roles.” His placement halted abruptly, robbing him of policy briefings and networking that he says are irreplaceable. Fellow student Anita Tun, who interned for Rep. Lou Correa (D-Calif.), laments the closed doors: “One of my favorite parts was attending briefings on issues I’d never known—now that door is kind of closed.”
The ripple effects extend to judicial clerkships and Department of Justice postings. Federal courts, deemed essential, soldier on with skeleton crews—law clerks work without pay, but externs from schools like George Washington University Law are sidelined. GW Law reports at least 45 students affected, with many scrambling for private-sector alternatives through alumni networks. “We’ve been lucky to pivot to pro bono projects,” notes assistant dean Jessica Tillipman, but she warns the scramble adds stress to already debt-burdened students.
Public reactions on X and LinkedIn pulse with frustration and solidarity. A viral post from @LawStudentLife garnered 2,000 likes: “Shutdown isn’t just politics—it’s stealing our futures. #EndTheShutdownNow.” Legal educators echo the alarm; American Bar Association President Maria Gonzalez calls it “a betrayal of the next generation of advocates,” citing delayed filings and hearings that clog summer clerkship pipelines.
For U.S. readers, this isn’t abstract policy—it’s a gut punch to legal education and the economy. With 1.3 million lawyers practicing nationwide, externships bridge classroom theory to real-world grit, boosting bar passage rates by up to 15% per ABA data. Disruptions here could widen access gaps for underrepresented students, slow innovation in public interest law, and strain firms reliant on fresh talent. As small businesses lose federal contracts and SNAP benefits lapse, the shutdown’s $1.5 billion daily tab—per CBO estimates—trickles down, hitting law grads entering a job market projected to grow just 8% by 2032.
Experts predict mounting pressure could force a resolution by mid-November, with unpaid congressional staffers facing their first missed paycheck on November 5 and TSA furloughs snarling holiday travel. Until then, schools like Georgetown urge students to document lost hours for potential retroactive credit, while alumni step up with mock trials and virtual mentorships. Lukas Pitman, another furloughed Georgetown intern, captures the bittersweet limbo: “It was a needed break at first, but now it’s gone on too long—time to get back to work.”
Yet as deadlines loom—Obamacare enrollment opens November 1 amid service cuts—the shutdown’s scars on aspiring lawyers may linger, underscoring the human cost of gridlock in a divided Capitol.
By Sam Michael
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