Every summer, the Law Financial Aid Office accepts applications for law school scholarships for continuing Berkeley Law students. Each scholarship is awarded based on its specific eligibility requirements such as demonstrated financial need or academic focus. Continuing students are encouraged to apply for scholarships that match their academic and career interests.
The online application will be made available on the Forms page following an email announcement in early summer.
Awards range from $500 to $12,000. Through the generosity of the below donors who have given to Berkeley Law and the UC Berkeley Graduate Division, various scholarships are awarded to support high-achieving students with exceptional academic capacity. Applicants will be asked to discuss how their academic achievements or leadership skills have influenced Berkeley Law and/or the community.
- Class of 1961 Scholarship Fund
- Tracy K. Edmonson Students Scholarship Fund
- The Carol Ross Scholarship Fund for Single Parents
- The Joel Sanders Scholarship Fund
- The Donald S. Greenberg and Norman S. Oberstein Scholarship Fund
- The Daniel S. Floyd Scholarship Fund
- The Douglas R. and Terry F. Young Scholarship Fund
- The Laura Wen-yu Young Scholarship Fund
- The Holly and Mitchell ’96 Zuklie Law Student Excellence Fund
This typically $5,000 to $10,000 scholarship is for a 2L or 3L JD student who demonstrates financial need and a committed interest in the field of law and technology. Examples of committed interest include a technical degree or technical work experience, summer job in intellectual property or related field during law school, participation in BTLJ, enrollment in a Law and Technology Writing workshop (2L or 3L), enrollment and grade in Introduction to Intellectual Property, enrollment and grade in other courses listed as “Intellectual Property and Technology Law” in the course listings (2L or 3L).
This $5,000 to $12,000 scholarship is for a 3L JD student with a demonstrated commitment to a career in public interest or public service. Successful candidates will submit a statement demonstrating their eligibility for this scholarship in terms of the work they plan to pursue, why they want to pursue that work, and how this scholarship will help them achieve their goals.
This typically ranges from $5000 to $8000, and this fellowship is for a 2L or 3L JD student who demonstrates financial need and an interest in pursuing a career in trial advocacy. If the recipient is a 2L, the award may be renewed if he or she is enrolled and of good academic standing during his or her third year of law school.
This typically $5,000 – $8,000 scholarship is for a 2L or 3L JD student who demonstrates financial need and experience or interest in educational career fields.
This typically $5000 – $7500 scholarship is to provide financial aid to a 2L or 3L JD student pursuing a career in the city, county, or state government.
This typically $800 scholarship is for a 2L or 3L JD student to help toward the purchase of her or his law books. The successful applicant must demonstrate a connection to California Central Valley (Kern, Tulare, Fresno, Kings, Madera, Merced, Mariposa, Stanislaus, San Joaquin, Tuolumne, or Calaveras Counties).
This typically $2000 scholarship is for a 2L or 3L JD student with a demonstrated interest in public interest law, defined as the promotion of human rights, pacific settlement of international disputes, health care law, and the promotion of the rights of women, workers, the disabled, children, and racial, ethnic, and national minorities.
This typically $4,000 scholarship is for a 2L or 3L JD student who demonstrates financial need and a commitment to the practice of labor law on behalf of unions and working people. Preference will be given to a student from an economically disadvantaged background and who is, or has been, a labor union member.
This typically $1,500 scholarship is for an academically exceptional 2L or 3L JD student who is pursuing a career in environmental law with an emphasis in land use or planning.
This typically $5,000-$10,000 scholarship is awarded annually to a student with financial need who is committed to pursuing a career in public interest and social justice.
This typically $4,500 scholarship is awarded to a student interested in pursuing legal studies related to domestic or international philanthropy and/or non-profit organizations. May be appropriate for students who intend to be an attorney who represents charities or grant-making foundations from a philanthropic perspective.
This typically $3,500 scholarship is awarded annually to a student who will be specializing in the corporate, securities, and/or banking law areas, and intend to take courses in the second and third year devoted to one or more of those areas.
Two to three awards of typically $5-10K will go to students interested in environmental justice, defined as the cross section between civil rights and environmental law and the impact on lower socio-economic communities.
One award, typically $5,000, for aspiring second- and third-year students with a preference for students specializing in green technology, business, energy or environmental law areas, and intend to take courses in the second and third year devoted to one or more of those areas.