At the start of the law school admissions season, students start to whether they should apply for early decision knowing they might receive less financial aid. This is one of the disadvantages of early decision in comparison to regular decision.
Applying to ED is different from your normal admissions. As it says in its name, early decision means earlier deadlines. Most early decision programs have deadlines as soon as November 1st or to the end of December whereas regular decision applicants can apply anytime after.
The most major difference between the two is that early applicants are more restricted as they must attend the program they apply to. This means that they cannot accept any other offer from another school if they are accepted through the early decision program by one law school. Early decision contracts are considered binding and it is not recommended to apply to multiple early decision programs as it could cause conflict. With that said, it is important to be careful when considering what early decision school to apply for.
Having to commit to one school as well as the possibility of receiving less financial aid can be worrisome, however, law schools know that and several of them offer full scholarships to those who do apply early! In this blog, we’ll go over which law schools cover full tuition for early decision applicants to help find what school is best for your law education and your financial need.
- UCLA Law Distinguished Scholars Award: UCLA offers full tuition scholarships for three years to the most exceptionally qualified students who are committed to UCLA as their top choice. This scholarship award is an early-binding admission program which is different from their regular Early Decision Program to which students cannot apply to both. Recipients of this award will receive full resident tuition for three years if they are a California resident, whereas, non-residents will receive full non-resident tuition for their first year and then full California resident tuition for their second and third year. Applicants must submit by November 15.
- Boston University Distinguished Scholar Binding Early Decision Program: Applying early to Boston University’s program can grant you a three-year, full tuition scholarship if accepted. Requirements for this program is to have a LSAT score before submission which is the October 2024 administration for those entering the 2025 class. Application deadline is November 11 and you will be notified on December 20.
- ASU Law Binding Admission – O’connor Honors Program: The O’connor Honors Program is looking to award students who have leadership skills, motivation and are determined to attend ASU Sandra Day O’Connor College of Law. If accepted, they will get a full ride for tuition and fees for three years. This program requires students to be of good academic standing with a GPA of 3.89 and a LSAT score of at least 165 in order to apply.
- Scalia Law School Scholars Early Decision Program: George Mason University’s law school offers a full-tuition scholarship for those who apply to the Scalia Law Scholar Early Decision Program. The university also has a normal Early Decision Program and students are welcomed to apply to both. Students applying must have demonstrated exceptional academic and leadership character as well as ensure they are committed to Scalia Law School.
- Belmont Law Dean’s Scholar Program: Students who know Belmont is their first choice for law school must apply online by December 1. The results will be announced two weeks after submission. Candidates may be eligible for the Dean’s Scholar Program that offers a full tuition scholarship. However, only a selected number of qualified applicants will receive this award.
- Cardozo Scholars Early Decision Program: Applying to Cardozo Scholars Early Decision Program is a competitive process where only the most qualified and impressive applicants will be selected. Although not all selected applicants will receive a full scholarship, applying to the early decision program grants you a chance to be one of the five lucky scholars to be guaranteed three years of full tuition scholarship. As Cardozo has multiple early decision programs, they may only apply to one.
- GW Law Binding Presidential Merit Scholarship Program: GW Law offers a full tuition scholarship for those who are accepted to the Binding Presidential Scholarship Program. This is aimed for applicants either full time or part time, who are certain that GW law is their top choice.
- W&L Law Dean’s Scholar: Applicants that are admitted from their early decision program are granted a full tuition scholarship of six semesters as long as they are good standing throughout their education. Recipients of this award are ideally the top 25% in their entering JD class. Submissions due December 1st.
While some institutions offer full-tuition scholarships to early decision applicants, there are others that may not. Instead, they might offer partial scholarships towards those who apply early to support them on their law journey. Click on the links below to learn more:
- Northwestern Pritzker School of Law Early Decision Program
- USC Gould Binding Early Decision
- UC Davis School of Law Early Decision Program
- UCI School of Law Early Decision Program
- Vanderbilt Law School Binding Early Decision
- Emory Law Early Decision Program
- Brooklyn Law School Academic Excellence Early Decision Program
- Penn State Law Early Decision
- Berkeley Law Early Decision Program
Choosing to apply ED is a significant decision because it is legally binding and you might not receive enough financial support. If you opt to apply to one of these programs and are admitted, you are committed to attending that institution, with exceptions granted only in exceptional, unforeseen circumstances. We hope you find this list of full-ride and partial scholarship opportunities to help with your decision on applying for ED.
This article first appeared on https://barrier-breakers.org/ Read full piece here
