Financial Considerations

Law schools establish a Cost of Attendance (COA). It includes both the fixed costs of tuition and fees, books and supplies, as well as living expenses, transportation, and personal expenses. Consumer debt, such as credit card debt, is not included in your COA and should be paid before you attend law school.

The COA is set by the law school and will vary from school to school; it represents the maximum financial aid you may receive from any source for the academic year. For example, below is the 2021-2022 Cost of Attendance for the University of Oregon School of Law

2021-22 Law Student Cost of Attendance

The vast majority of law students will take out some form of federal financial aid during their time as a student.

Federal Direct Unsubsidized Loans: 

• Law students may borrow up to a total of $20,500 in the Federal Direct Unsubsidized Loan program each academic year from the US Department of Education.
• Interest starts accruing as “simple” interest (it is not compounding while you are in school) once the loan is disbursed.
• This loan has a six-month grace period that delays the start of repayment until six months after you graduate.
• Flexible repayment plans exist, including options based on your household income; payment relief (deferment or forbearance) is available when needed if you are experiencing financial hardship during repayment; and refinancing is possible through the Federal Direct Consolidation Loan program.
• This loan also qualifies for potential forgiveness in the Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF) program.

Federal Direct PLUS Loan for Graduate Students:

• Law students with no adverse credit may borrow the Direct Grad PLUS Loan from the US Department of Education to help cover their education costs.
• If you do have adverse credit, you can apply with an “endorser,” who must be a US citizen or permanent resident and who does not have adverse credit.
• You can borrow this loan in an amount up to the school’s Cost of Attendance (COA) minus the amount of all other financial aid you are receiving (including scholarships, grants, and all other loans) for the academic year.
• Interest accrues as “simple” interest once funds are disbursed.
• Repayment of this loan is deferred while you are in school and for six months after you are no longer enrolled in law school at least half-time.
• Flexible repayment plans exist, including options based on your household income; payment relief (deferment or forbearance) is available when needed if you are experiencing financial hardship during repayment; and refinancing is possible through the Federal Direct Consolidation Loan program.
• This loan also qualifies for potential forgiveness in the Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF) program.

Law School Merit-Based Scholarships and Awards:

Law schools award merit-based financial aid based on various factors including, most commonly, an applicant’s GPA and LSAT score. Law schools will make the decisions whether to offer aid and what types of aid to offer based on your law school application. You do not have to submit any additional documentation initially in order to be eligible for most merit-based financial aid. Exceptions include a limited number of public interest scholarships and other named scholarships for which certain schools may require an additional essay, letter(s) of recommendation, and/or an interview.

Typically applicants find out whether they are being awarded merit based financial aid and the amount at the same time they find out they have been accepted to the law school. However, some schools may let you know that they will be making those decisions at a later date.

Be cautious of conditions that some law schools may place on their offers of merit-based financial aid. Overly restrictive conditions could be difficult to satisfy, and you could be at risk of losing your aid award. For example, a scholarship that is conditional on receiving a certain GPA in law school could be risky due to the fact that law schools grade on a sharp curve.  It is very likely that not everyone who is awarded a conditional scholarship can be successful, and some applicants will lose their scholarship by design. Be proactive in seeking to understand all conditions of your aid offers.

Law School Internal Need-Based Scholarships and Awards Aid:

In addition to having a pool of merit-based financial aid to allocate, law schools may also have a pool of need-based aid. It is important to know that there is far less need-based aid available at the law school level than at the undergraduate level, and that many students who recieve significant need-based undergraduate scholarships or awards are surprised to find a significant drop in those awards when they receive their law school financial aid package! In order to be eligible for a need-based scholarship award, you will need to submit documentation establishing your need. The documentation law schools require to establish your level of need varies from school to school. Consult the financial aid page of each law school that you are admitted to for school-specific information on need-based aid.

Law School “Special” Scholarships

Most law schools have a select number of scholarships that require a separate application, which often has a different deadline than the law school application deadline. For example, the University of Washington School of Law offers the Gates Public Service Law Scholarship, Seattle University School of Law offers the Scholars for Justice scholarship, and Gonzaga University School of Law provides the Thomas More Social Justice Scholarship Program, each of which has its own application process. Make sure to review the scholarship opportunities at each school to which you hope to apply and note any scholarships that require a separate application or a different application timeline!

External Scholarships and Awards

In addition to scholarships provided by individual law schools, there are many opportunities for external scholarships and awards. Please contact Cindy Schaarschmidt, Director of Student Fellowships, to learn more about how to begin your search for external scholarship opportunities!

There are a number of costs associated with applying to law school, including CAS registration fees and LSAT exam fees. In addition, most law schools have application fees which range between $50-100, which you must pay in order to complete your applications.

Students for whom application fees represent a financial hardship may apply for application fee waivers. Using the LSAC Website, you may either complete the online fee waiver application (which becomes available in September) or download the fee waiver packet and submit the completed form via hard copy. You will be required to provide a copy of your financial aid status statement.  If you are an alumna/us, then you will need to provide last year's tax information.

Keep in mind that it will take some time to complete the necessary financial information for the waiver, and that LSAC will require at least six weeks to process your application. The service applies stringent criteria, so it is important to be realistic about your chances of receiving a fee waiver.

Additionally, many law schools may extend fee waivers to attract strong candidates, regardless of demonstrated financial need. In order to be eligible for these fee waivers, applicants must subscribe to the Credential Assembly Service (CAS) with LSAC when they register for the LSAT.

External Scholarship Resources:

LSAC Law School Scholarship Resources

AccessLex Scholarship Databank

Learning More about Financial Your Legal Education:

Access Lex: Financing Your Legal Education

Understanding Your Debt:

AccessLex Student Loan Calculator 

Law School Transparency presents helpful data on projected debt owed for law school students.