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Law Students
Overview
Faegre Drinker was founded on core values of integrity, excellence, diversity and inclusion, shared commitment, teamwork and collaboration, mutual respect and service to others. Our culture is firmly rooted in relentless client focus and mutual trust that empowers collaboration. We are committed to our communities and to building a diverse and inclusive firm that reflects those communities and our clients.
What We Offer
Engaging work and supportive mentors make Faegre Drinker an ideal first — and hopefully last — place for law students to work. Beginning with our summer associate program, we provide support and training to help law students build the skills and behaviors to grow a sophisticated legal practice and develop rewarding client relationships.
Who We’re Seeking
Law students who have strong academic records, entrepreneurial spirits, diverse perspectives and collaborative mindsets will find opportunities to succeed and eventually develop into successful partners or long-term contributors with national reputations.
How You’ll Grow
Summer associates receive a hands-on, meaningful experience. We encourage your growth with challenging work, intensive professional development programs, personalized mentoring and coaching, and respectful yet candid feedback. You’ll be able to participate in pro bono work and connect with peers and our lawyers throughout the summer.
When and Where to Join Us
Our summer program will begin in May and is available in many of our U.S. offices. Programs include our Chicago, Dallas, Des Moines, Denver, Florham Park, Fort Wayne, Indianapolis, Los Angeles, Minneapolis, New York, Philadelphia, and Washington, D.C., offices. Our needs in each office vary so please be sure to check out our job openings for a list of offices seeking summer associates for this coming summer.
Faegre Drinker’s Summer Associate Program
Our summer associates build connections with peers, associates and partners throughout the summer, both in their respective local offices and during our firmwide in-person Summer Associate Summit. Check out the video above for a glimpse of the vibrant energy from this year’s summer class — it speaks for itself!
Career Development
Jumpstarting Your Practice
New associates participate in a firmwide orientation program to integrate into the firm and understand law firm life. In addition to covering benefits and technology, we hold interactive programs and panel discussions on topics such as the basics of lawyering and working with support professionals, so you can hit the ground running.
Building Your Career
We provide training on topics critical to success in today’s legal environment, including:- Practice and technical skill proficiency
- Development of behavioral competencies
- Understanding the business of operating a law firm
- Business development
- Client service
Mentoring for Success
We connect each associate with an advisor who focuses on career development and planning. Associates actively participate in their career planning by communicating practice goals and objectives. By collaborating closely with senior lawyers on legal work, associates experience valuable coaching.
Growing Through Feedback
Associates receive ongoing feedback from supervising lawyers so they can continually improve. Through our formal evaluation process, new lawyers are evaluated mid-year during their first year, and all lawyers are reviewed annually. Evaluations include a self-assessment, individual and group evaluations, and an in-person evaluation meeting with the lawyer's practice group.Community
Diversity & Inclusion
At Faegre Drinker, we promote a culture of diversity and inclusion to help us better understand and serve the needs of our clients and communities. By promoting the perspectives of professionals that span all dimensions of diversity, we create an inclusive workplace that fosters creativity, innovation and mutual respect.
Connected to the Community
Pro bono is part of who we are and what we do at Faegre Drinker, every day. Throughout our history, Faegre Drinker attorneys and staff have fought for the causes that appeal to their sense of justice and are important to our communities. Since 2015, we have devoted more than 230,000 hours to pro bono work, providing legal counsel, courtroom advocacy and skilled representation to a host of pro bono causes and clients.
Commitment to Justice
Together, we provided nearly 65,000 hours of pro bono service last year, working to ensure access to justice for all and making a positive difference in our communities.
Law firms are uniquely positioned to analyze and advocate to change laws and policies encouraging, perpetuating or allowing racial injustice, and much of our pro bono practice indirectly addresses the consequences of structural racism.
Faegre Drinker Women
Faegre Drinker has been recognized as a top law firm for women. We are committed to supporting the recruitment, retention, advancement and leadership development of the firm’s women professionals by:
- Building connections
- Facilitating business and client development opportunities
- Benchmarking progress
- Collaborating on policies
- Offering training and other development programs
Rankings & Awards
We are a high-performance culture at Faegre Drinker. View our Rankings & Awards.
What Our Summer Associates Say
Well-Rounded Experience
Megan Hamori (Duke University School of Law), 2024/2025 Summer Associate, 2026 First-Year Associate — Indianapolis / Washington, D.C.
“After two summers at Faegre Drinker, I can confidently say that I could not have chosen a better firm. From the attorneys to the program coordinators to my fellow summer associates, I was able to forge connections that will impact the rest of my legal career. Everyone is incredibly kind, welcoming, and supportive; and my experiences transformed my prior understanding of what life at a large firm could be like. Summers are given excellent mentorship, substantive work that fits their current interests and allows them to explore new ones, and programming (like the summit, for example) that furthers their development as future lawyers. I feel very fortunate to have been a part of the program and can’t wait to return as a full-time associate after graduation.”
Challenging Projects
Turner Koch (Notre Dame Law School), 2025 Summer Associate, 2026 First-Year Associate — Indianapolis
“This summer at Faegre Drinker, I had the opportunity to take on several complex and engaging projects. Early on, I was tasked with conducting research for a product liability case, preparing a memorandum on key legal issues. That project quickly evolved into a summer-long assignment involving legal research, document review, and letter drafting. In a separate project, I worked with an interoffice team on a brief, addressing unique issues in an international law context. These experiences pushed me to think critically about the law, drawing on my law school coursework to sharpen my research and writing skills. Throughout the process, I was grateful to have the guidance of mentors at the firm who helped me navigate the challenges presented by each assignment. I left the summer with a deep appreciation for the caliber of work and challenging legal projects that define Faegre Drinker.”
Summer Program Events
Ariauna Range (Howard University School of Law), 2025/2026 Summer Associate — Washington, D.C.
“As a summer associate at Faegre Drinker, I had an incredible experience gaining hands-on training and exposure to a variety of legal practice areas. This experience gave me meaningful insight into which practice groups I want to explore and helped to lay the foundation for my future as an associate. During the summer, I attended numerous firm events, including a Nationals game, a boat tour of D.C., museum visits, and Five Iron Golf, which connected me to different partners and associates at the firm. These events were amazing and memorable and demonstrated the firm’s welcoming and collaborative culture. I truly enjoyed my time as a 1L Summer Associate and cannot wait to return as a 2L!”
Mentorship
Jasmine Bolden (Georgetown University Law Center), 2024/2025 Summer Associate, 2026 First-Year Associate — Minneapolis
“Being with Faegre Drinker over the past two summers has provided me with incredible opportunities for mentorship and growth. From formal check-ins with assigned mentors to informal conversations with associates and partners, I always felt supported. What stands out most is the breadth of mentorship available — there was someone I could turn to for every aspect of my professional and personal development. Whether it was connecting with Black attorneys to discuss experiences as a minority in the legal field, seeking guidance from attorneys in my practice area, or finding someone to help get me involved in firm social events, each relationship offered something unique. These experiences not only helped me develop a deeper understanding of my career path but also showed me how to shape it intentionally to become a well-rounded attorney.”
Firm Culture & Inclusion
Liam Byrnes (University of Wisconsin Law School), 2025 Summer Associate, 2026 First-Year Associate — Chicago
“At Faegre Drinker, I found a place where I could work on sophisticated and interesting matters while enjoying the presence and personalities of my colleagues. Many senior attorneys went above and beyond to make me feel welcomed and included at everything from social events to unique projects and observational opportunities. Additionally, every attorney I worked with was deeply committed to their work and their clients but also demonstrated that they could also maintain other interests, family life, and community service outside of work as well. All of these factors made me very excited to accept an offer to return to Faegre Drinker full-time!”
Professional Connections
Riley McCoy (UCLA School of Law), 2025 Summer Associate, 2026 First-Year Associate — Los Angeles
“One of the biggest highlights from my time this summer was the connections I made with attorneys in my office. I saw a consistent effort from the attorneys to learn my interests, provide interesting work opportunities, and make themselves available for any questions I might have had. Particularly, my work coordinators went above and beyond to ensure I had a great experience. If I asked for assignments in specific areas, they went out and found them. They checked in on me, and I knew that I could go to them with questions as I got up to speed with firm life. It was quickly apparent that Faegre Drinker had lawyers who were not only great legal professionals, but great people. Creating these professional connections made me excited to return to the office after I graduate and get started building my legal career with Faegre Drinker.”
Firm Culture & Inclusion
Erin Maxwell (University of Pennsylvania Carey Law School), 2024/2025 Summer Associate, 2026 First Year Associate — Philadelphia
“I was lucky enough to spend two summers at Faegre Drinker in the Philadelphia office. From the minute I stepped into the office, the lawyers made it easy to connect. I received a flood of lunch requests from both associates and partners, and when I reached out on my own, I was never turned down. I was genuinely surprised by how down-to-earth and selfless the incredibly accomplished attorneys were. They were (and are) legitimately interested in my personal success and were willing to spend much of their own valuable time providing observational and hands-on experience as well as unfiltered personal advice. Their active engagement did not stop when I left the office at the end of the summer. I received many check-ins and met with lawyers for lunches during the school year. I am confident that when I begin my career next fall, I will have an incredible support system of lawyers who will provide constant advice and cheer me on every step of the way.”
Summer Associate Summit
Salma Mohamed (Seton Hall Law School), 2024/2025 Summer Associate, 2026 First-Year Associate — Florham Park
“The Faegre Drinker Summer Associate Summit in Chicago was an amazing opportunity to connect with fellow summer associates from across the country and gain valuable professional development. We received insightful training on topics such as effective networking, the importance of design thinking, and client perspectives, all of which deepened my understanding of the firm’s collaborative and client-centered approach. I especially appreciated the chance to meet and learn from Faegre Drinker attorneys across various practice areas, which highlighted the incredible range of resources and support the firm offers. Overall, it was both a professionally enriching and enjoyable experience.”
Mentorship
Alec Hubbard (University of Chicago Law School), 2024/2025 Summer Associate, 2026 First-Year Associate — Denver
"The mentorship at Faegre Drinker was exceptional and was a significant factor in my decision to accept my job offer. Having the combination of an associate and a partner specifically assigned to me was extremely helpful in getting a full picture of what life is like at the firm. My host and advisor both made sure that I had substantive projects to work on in the practice groups I was most interested in, and made time to get to know me personally. Beyond the formal mentorship program, the availability of all the partners and associates to get to know us summer associates made it easy to get to know everyone, learn what life is like at the firm beyond the 10-week summer program, and find work in a variety of practice groups. The work advisors also did a great job of checking in on us, making sure we remained in the right level of busy, and keeping an eye out for projects that we would be interested in. I want to work in Big Law while still having personal connections with the people I’m working with. Faegre Drinker did an exceptional job achieving that. It was also great to hear from the junior associates about how the mentorship will continue once we begin working; the mentorship is not just a summer program perk."
