Law School Scholarships

For many students, the amount of financial aid and scholarships received plays a huge role in determining which school to attend. Law school is expensive, and student debt is a very real thing. The more money you receive through scholarships means less money that you will eventually have to pay off.

I was very fortunate to receive scholarships from every school I applied to, and I also received an outside scholarship that I will use to cover other education essentials, like textbooks. Here are important information and some tips to help you receive the most amount of scholarship money possible:

First of all, most law schools consider your admissions application to be your scholarship application as well. This means that you do not need to submit a separate application if you want to be considered for scholarships and that many schools send out their scholarship offer with your acceptance letter. Receiving acceptances and scholarships at the same time makes it easier to compare schools because you will know the total scholarship amount each school offers you well in advance.

Since your admissions application often doubles as your scholarship application, the more impressive your application is, the higher your scholarship will be. Law schools give scholarships to the students who will increase their average LSAT score and GPA. So to receive the most money, apply to schools whose average numbers are lower than yours. This does not mean that you will only get money from schools that are “safety schools.” Scholarship committees also look at the rest of your application, so if you are impressive all around, but don’t have an LSAT score 5 points higher than their average; you can still receive a large scholarship.

Just as much as your education is an investment to you, schools look at you as investment to them. Schools offer money to students who will provide a good “return,” whether that is in boosting their rankings, raising the average LSAT scores and GPA, or endowment opportunities in the future. As long as you can show you are a promising investment to a law school, you should receive some form of scholarship money.

Schools may reach out to you offering you one scholarship and the opportunity to compete for a larger scholarship. In this case, you may have to interview with a faculty member or provide some other application materials. I interviewed with one school for a full tuition scholarship and received it. In order to prepare for these interviews, I recommend researching your interviewer as well as looking up common interview questions. At the very least, be prepared to talk about your plans and goals while in law school and immediately afterward.

On top of school scholarships, there are tons of organizations that provide scholarships. Many financial aid offices have lists of these organizations, so contact schools you have been accepted to see their lists. If not, Yale Law School provides a great resource to students, which can be reached by clicking here. My recommendation is to apply for scholarships that have a smaller pool of applicants, as this will increase your chance of receiving one. For example, organizations you are involved with, such as a fraternity or sorority, your or your parent’s employer, or scholarships specifically for law students are all good places to look. With outside scholarships, you will probably have to submit an essay or other application material. When applying for these, I recommend you take an honest look at your chances of receiving the award, the amount of the award, and the work required to apply so you can determine if it is truly worth your time to apply. If a scholarship requires two essays, is only worth $500, and many people apply for it, your time may be better used applying for some other award.

Law school is expensive, but with a little bit of work, you can receive scholarships that will help offset the cost. Good luck on your scholarship search, and feel free to leave any scholarships you may find in the comments!