Students Intern at Los Angeles City Attorney’s Office

It’s one thing to take classes at Los Angeles Mission College (LAMC); it’s another to see day-to-day activities and receive hands-on training alongside professionals such as the attorneys and law staff at the Los Angeles City Attorney’s Office.  

LAMC students Jesus Alondra Aguilar and Xochitl Tabares were recently selected as interns at the L.A. City Attorney’s Office and were excited to share their internship experiences.    

“You get to see trials which are very interesting – from the selection of the jury, opening statements, questioning of witnesses, cross-examination, and closing arguments,” said Aguilar. Aguilar started interning at the L.A. City Attorney’s Office on November 3, 2023, working 32 hours a week while carrying a full load at LAMC.  Although she is working towards earning her Certificate in Medical Billing and Coding offered by the Allied Health Department, when she heard about the internship, she wanted to see what it was like to work in the legal field. So far, she has learned a lot, and what she likes the best, aside from assisting the attorneys, data entry, and updating court files, are the people she works with, which she says are all very nice and helpful.  “I am very thankful that Los Angeles Mission College gives this opportunity to the people of our community,” said Jesus.   

Administration of Justice major Tabares also started her internship last November. Like Aguilar, Tabares works eight hours a day, four days a week, while taking classes to earn her Associate's Degree. Her duties involve assisting attorneys with trials, including keeping court files organized and updated. “I love it here; I get to see first-hand how attorneys prepare for trial. I also go to arraignments, pre-trial, and sometimes get to sit in on actual trials,” said Tabares. She plans to go to law school after getting her bachelor’s in criminal justice and become a prosecutor. “UC Berkeley is my dream law school, a lot of the attorneys that have gone there tell me about their experiences.” Tabares is especially thankful for the knowledge of all the court processes she has gained in her internship since it will help her when she enters the practice ‘officially.’ What does she like the best? “The connections I have made with the attorneys, their stories give me an inside perspective of what it's like to be a prosecutor.” 

“The importance of an internship for students in Career Education programs such as Administration of Justice, Allied Health, and the Paralegal Program at LAMC cannot be overstated. An internship makes the classroom’s abstract theories tangible by placing the student in a real-life work situation providing invaluable professional experience – experience which you get to put down on your resume increasing your success in the job market once you obtain your AA or Certificate” said Sylvia Macias, Associate Professor of Law.  

The LA City Attorney’s Office offers volunteer opportunities for all students enrolled in an undergraduate program and paid internships to LA Promise Students. The paid Internship Program is 16 hours a week, a seven-week program that pays $16.04 per hour in an in-person environment. Responsibilities may include general office/clerical tasks, data entry, records retention, answering telephones, photocopying and organizing, correspondence/documents, and other duties as assigned. Interested students must be enrolled as Los Angeles College Promise students to apply. For more information on becoming a volunteer, visit the Careers section of the City Attorney's website; for information about a paid internship, contact LA College Promise Program Counselor Diana Bonilla Hein, at (818) 945-9645.

The Los Angeles Mission College’s Paralegal AA and Certificate Program and the Pathway to Law School Program are open to all students who plan to pursue their studies in law. For more information, visit our Law program webpage.