Legal education abroad is not cheap. But good news is the most prestigious schools at the same time the most generous in financial aid. We talk about scholarships for future lawyers, judges and criminologists.


There are few scholarship options specifically for lawyers. Most of them are available only to undergraduates and doctoral students.

However, even the top and most prestigious law schools have funding options available to all students – need-based, and merit-based.

First of all, lawyers should pay attention to university financial assistance. For example, the most prestigious law schools in the world are part of the Ivy League universities - Harvard and Yale [1] . They can fully pay for your education if your family income is below 60,000-100,000 USD per year.

First you need to survive the competition and enter, and only then the university will assess your financial situation and decide on the award of financial assistance.

Scholarships from universities

In addition to financial aid, universities also provide money for merit-based honors scholarships.

Verulam Buildings Scholarship

To: BCL Applicants - Bachelor of Civil Law

What it covers: 12,339 USD per year

Country: UK

Another leader in legal education abroad, Oxford , is not as generous as its American counterparts.

Need-based scholarship at Oxford is 24,679 USD and is available to undergraduate and graduate students in civil law. However, in addition to it, the university has many funding options for lawyers.

All applicants who have applied for a citizenship program at Oxford are automatically eligible for the scholarship . The duration of funding is 1 year.

The only special condition is to express a desire to work as a lawyer in the future.

Similar conditions and scholarship amount are available to applicants under the New Square Chambers Scholarship program .

Other funding options for Oxford law students can be found on the Faculty website .

Hill Foundation Scholarship

To: students of any undergraduate or graduate program from Russia

What it covers: tuition fees and payment once a year for other expenses - visa, medical insurance, flight

Country: UK

The Hill Foundation funds the education of Russian students in any undergraduate and graduate program at the University of Cambridge .

The main requirement is to spend at least a year in Russia after graduation.

Applicants do not need to submit a separate application for a scholarship - all eligible candidates automatically participate in the competition.

Other scholarships available for Russians can be found on the Cambridge website .

Law International PGT Merit Scholarship

To: international applicants for master's and doctoral programs in jurisprudence

What it covers: 3,702-6,170 USD per year

Country: UK

The University of Leicester in the UK offers a merit-based scholarship for international applicants applying for master's and doctoral programs in law.

Requirements:

be an international student;

study in a full-time program on the university campus from September 2023.

There are two types of scholarships:

6 170 USD per year - for excellent students with GPA 3.6 out of 4;

3,702 USD per year - for candidates with a GPA of at least 3.0 out of 4.

Other university scholarships can be found on the official website .

Radboud Master's Scholarship Program for Non-EU/EEA Students

To: Applicants and master students from countries outside the EU

What it covers: tuition discount, visa fee, health insurance

Country: Netherlands

Deadline: February 28

Number of scholarships: 9

The scholarship for undergraduates at the University of Nijmegen is awarded to students and prospective students of 8 faculties, including law.

Requirements:

passport of a country outside the EU / EEA;

enroll in a master's program for the fall semester of 2023;

the language of instruction is English;

do not have a degree from the Netherlands.

Scholarship holders pay only a fixed amount of tuition - 2,510 USD . In addition, the university takes care of the student's visa and health insurance costs .

Mr Julia Henriëtte Jaarsma-Adolfs Fund

To: graduate students from countries outside the EU

What it covers: $ 17,895 tuition and $ 9,219 miscellaneous expenses

Country: Netherlands

Deadline: January 15

The Amsterdam University School of Law Scholarship is awarded to graduate students with outstanding academic achievement.

To participate in the competition, you need to receive a letter of conditional admission to the English-language LLM program ( Master of Laws ) and fill out an application on the university website.

Requirements:

excellent grades in the bachelor's degree - the average score is not lower than 3.7 out of 4;

be in the top 10% of students in an undergraduate course ;

a 500-word motivation letter explaining the reasons for choosing a particular master's program and why the scholarship should be awarded to him;

a letter of recommendation from a teacher or supervisor;

interview - if necessary;

participation in extracurricular activities - volunteering, sports, work experience, organization of student clubs;

IELTS 7.0 / TOEFL iBT 100.

Amsterdam Merit Scholarship

Also law students at the University of Amsterdam can apply for the Amsterdam Merit Scholarship .

Law students are awarded 2-3 such scholarships annually. Size from 8 676 USD to 17 353 USD . The requirements are largely the same as the previous scholarship. But Amsterdam Merit Scholarship does not require volunteer experience and other extracurricular achievements.

Ohio Northern University Merit Scholarship

To: applicants and students of the master's program in law

What it covers: 3,000-30,400 USD per year

Country: USA

Deadline: May 1

All applicants to Ohio Northern Master's programs are automatically considered for the Academic Achievement Scholarship .

Selection criteria:

LSAT exam results ;

GPA bachelor's degree;

experience;

extracurricular activity.

The scholarship is awarded for 1 year. Students who continue to perform well after this period may apply for an extension of funding.

The university also has a William J. Brown Scholar Program . It covers tuition fees and a summer internship at the National Association of Attorneys General in Washington. Scholarship candidates are selected from among the best in the course and invitations are sent to them on April 1st.

Scholarships from private organizations

Also for lawyers, there are many so-called Outside Scholarships - scholarships from private organizations that are allocated to study at different universities in a particular country or world. They are also often published on the websites of universities in the relevant section. For example, Northwestern University in the United States offers a range of funding options.

World Bank Scholarship program

To: MA in Law students from developing countries

What it covers: tuition fees, medical insurance, flights, other expenses - accommodation, meals, study materials

Country: USA , Europe , Africa, Oceania, Japan

Deadline: January 16-February 28 / March 27-May 26

The World Bank Scholarship for Law Students from Developing Countries is available for 45 programs at 27 universities in the US, Europe, Africa, Oceania, and Japan.

Requirements:

be a citizen of one of the developing countries;

bachelor degree;

work experience in the specialty in their country of at least 3 years;

be employed at the time of application;

be "unconditionally" enrolled in the program.

The deadline for applying for a scholarship depends on the program. A list of participating programs and universities can be found on the scholarship website:

deadline in January-February ,

deadline in March-May .

Philanthropic Educational Organization International

To: applicants and students of universities in the USA and Canada

What it covers: up to 12,500 USD at a time

Country: USA , Canada

The Philanthropic Educational Organization (PEO) was created specifically for women in science. She helps them overcome the various barriers traditionally faced by female students and young female academics. Including financial.

The maximum amount of the PEO International Peace Scholarship is 12,500 USD at a time. It is allocated to study at universities in the United States and Canada.

Requirements:

study or be enrolled in a program at an accredited university in the United States or Canada;

after completing their studies, return to their home country.