Law Firm Fellowships & Scholarships

In conjunction with the launch of the new Common Application for First-Year Diversity Fellowship Programs, NALP has made the listing of fellowship information available as part of the NALP Directory of Legal Employers. Employers can now provide information about fellowships and scholarships they sponsor directly on their employer profile in the NALP Directory, and students will be able to use these fields as search and comparison criteria.

Employers, you can update your organization's fellowship information at any time. Log in to the NALP Directory using your employer ID and password, then navigate to the Recruitment & Hiring tab and select Fellowships & Scholarships to enter the program description, along with opening dates and application deadlines.You can also indicate for each program whether you accept the Common Application for First-Year Diversity Fellowship Programs.

Students can search for fellowships right from the landing page of the NALP Directory of Legal Employers by selecting their class year from the "Offers Fellowships For" dropdown menu or refine their search further using the search filters on the results page.

Best Practices Guide

In January 2024, the NALP First-Year Diversity Recruiting Task Force provided a set of best practices for for employers creating diversity fellowships. As a reminder, all hiring programs should be reviewed by counsel for compliance with federal and state law.

Download Best Practices Guide for First-Year Diversity Fellowships (PDF)

Common Application

In September 2024, the First-Year Diversity Recruiting Task Force released a Common Application for First-Year Diversity Fellowship Programs, intended to simplify the recruiting process for diversity fellowship programs for firms and for students.

Read more in this September 2024 Bulletin+ article (PDF)

Download the Common Application for First-Year Diversity Fellowship Programs (fillable PDF)

The Common Application is protected by copyright. NALP grants legal employers who offer fellowship programs a royalty-free, limited license to link to, repost, make copies, and distribute the Common Application for the sole purpose of administering their fellowship program. This license does not include the right to alter or make derivative works of the Common Application.

Employers can download the fillable PDF form and send to students. Employers can also indicate on the NALP Directory Fellowships

Students can download, complete, and save the form for inclusion with their applications.

Employers can post this seal on their website to indicate that they accept the NALP Common Application for First-Year Diversity Fellowship Programs.

	Download seal (.PNG format)

Q&A on the NALP Common Application for First-Year Diversity Fellowship Programs

Q: Is there a deadline for firms to indicate that they are accepting the Common Application?
A: There is no set deadline. However, we ask that firms make the decision no later than the announcement/opening of their diversity fellow application cycle.

Q: How will firms indicate that they are accepting the Common Application?
A: Firms are asked to note that they are accepting the Common Application in their NALP Directory of Legal Employers (NDLE) profile in addition to adding the common application badge (above) to their website and/or application portal. Students can search for fellowships on the NALP Directory by selecting their class year from the "Offers Fellowships For" dropdown menu or refine their search further using the search filters on the results page.

Q: Are firms allowed to edit the Common Applications?
A: No, we ask that firms use the Common Applications as is to avoid any confusion. At the conclusion of the 2024-25 diversity fellowship application cycle, NALP will solicit and review feedback and make any necessary revisions or adjustments to the common application for the 2025-26 cycle.

Q: Is NALP forwarding completed common applications to law firms?
A: No, NALP does not accept the applications. The Common Application will reside on the NALP website as a downloadable, fillable PDF (above). Firms may also wish to post the application to their website and/or application portal. Students will then forward or upload their completed application for the firms to which they wish to apply.

Q: Are firms prohibited/discouraged from asking students additional information and/or asking them to complete additional essays questions if they are accepting the common application?
A: No, we anticipate that firms may ask students to prepare a secondary or supplemental application later in the process but the goal is that the initial application review would be based upon the Common Application alone. Then, if the firm wished to pose specific questions/essay prompts, they would request that after having eliminated some candidates from consideration. That way, students are only preparing additional, firm-specific materials for firms who have expressed some level of interest in them.

Q: The firm that I am applying to is not accepting the common application, is it therefore not relevant to me?
A: The common application essay question can be used as a template for the first draft of your fellow application essay whether you submit the form to a firm or not. You can then add additional information to be responsive to the question associated with the fellowship for which you are applying.