Criteria, Instructions, and Conditions for the Diversity Scholarship

The California Bar Foundation is committed to building a California legal profession representing the communities it serves and serving the communities it represents.  

The Foundation’s Diversity Scholarship financially supports newly admitted law students from groups historically underrepresented in the legal profession and committed to attending law school in California.  Rising first-year law students are invited to apply by the beginning of the summer prior to commencing their first semester of law school.

The Diversity Scholarship provides $7,500 in restricted funding intended to cover costs associated with attending law school (i.e., tuition, fees, books and related education expenses).

The 2013 Application Deadline is 4:30 p.m., Wednesday, June 5, 2013.  Scholarship recipients are notified no later than September 1, 2013.  Recipients must use scholarship funding for the 2013-14 academic year. 

Criteria 

1. Candidate must be:
   - Accepted and committed to matriculating in a California law school at the time of submitting an Application, and
   - Starting his or her first year at a California law school in the 2013-14 academic year.
   
   
2. Candidate must self-identify as being from a racial or ethnic group historically underrepresented in the legal profession.
   
   
3. Candidate must demonstrate financial need, as shown by financial aid eligibility and outstanding educational debt.
   
   
4. Candidate must demonstrate a commitment to making an impact through community leadership (there is no requirement Candidate intends to pursue a career in public interest). 
   
   
5. Candidate must submit two current signed letters of recommendation (letters may be copies of letters submitted with Candidate’s law school applications). If possible, at least one letter should address Candidate’s leadership qualities and/or community involvement.
   
   
6. Candidates are not nominated by their law school and should send application materials directly to the Foundation by the Application Deadline.
   
   
7. Candidates from online law schools must be California residents.
   
   
8. Candidate must intend to practice law in California after graduation from law school.
   
   
9. Students in LLM programs are not eligible.

Instructions

1. All portions of the Application must be uploaded as one (1) PDF ("Application Packet") by 4:30 p.m. on Wednesday, June 5, 2013 (the “Application Deadline”). Please upload your Application Packet at www.calbarfoundation.org/2013-diversity-scholarship-application.html. At the time you upload your Application Packet, the Online form must be completed. 
   
   
2. Letters of recommendation must be included with the Application Packet. Incomplete Application Packets received by the Foundation by the Application Deadline will not be considered. 
   
   
3. All documents associated with Candidate’s Application, including law school documents and letters of recommendation, must include the name of Candidate on each page.
   
   
4. Applicants should not send their tax returns with their Applications Packet. 
   
   
5. See the Application Checklist for a complete list of documentation required for the Application Packet.      
   

Conditions

1. Diversity Scholarship Recipients must:
   
   - Attend a reception in their honor, currently scheduled for September 26, 2013 in San Francisco. The Foundation provides stipends to defray travel costs for attending this event for Recipients not attending law school in the Bay Area.  Failure to attend may result in forfeiture of Recipient’s Diversity Scholarship, without notice.
   
   - Provide the Foundation, in a timely fashion, contact information for dates between the Application Deadline and the date of the Scholarship Reception.  Failure to do so may result in forfeiture of Recipient’s Diversity Scholarship, without notice.
   
   - Report to the Foundation on the progress of their legal education at the end of their first year of law school.
   
   
2. Diversity Scholarship Recipients must provide a recent digital photograph of themselves upon receiving notification of their award.  Do not send photos with Application.
   
   
3. The Foundation reserves the right to use information from the Application Packet as part of its publicity of Diversity Scholarship Recipients and general marketing efforts.
   
   
4. Diversity Scholarship Award Recipients receiving named scholarships may be asked to contact funding organizations and may be invited and are expected to the extent possible to attend donor events.