Pre-Law Summer Programs
Below are a list of a summer programs that are here to help students from underrepresented backgrounds prepare for law school in a concentrated, professional, and supportive environment. All programs have various application deadlines, and usually take place over the summer. If you have any questions about application materials, please reach out to your pre-law advisor.
University of California Davis School of Law – King Hall Outreach Program The King Hall Outreach Program (KHOP) helps college students from underrepresented communities prepare for the law school admissions process. In addition to providing mentoring and pre-law advising during the school year, the program hosts eligible college juniors and seniors for a series of weekend summer sessions in which students gain valuable knowledge about the law school admission process, learn writing, analytical, and logical reasoning skills, develop study techniques for taking the Law School Admission Test (LSAT), and explore career paths available to law school graduates.
CLEO (the Council on Legal Education Opportunity) is committed to diversifying the legal profession by expanding legal education opportunities to minority, low-income and disadvantaged groups. CLEO provides training and workshops to college students who are interested in attending law school and pursuing a career in the legal profession. Offerings include 1 and 2-day, weekend, and 6-week summer programs for students of different college years.
Florida State College of Law Summer for Undergraduates Program The Summer for Undergraduates Program brings to campus undergraduate students from throughout the country for a month-long immersion into legal study. The largest and oldest of its kind, the primary goal of the program is to acquaint students with the study of law and to assist them in acquiring skills that will benefit their undergraduate and future law school studies.
UHLC Pre-Law Pipeline Program Six-week residential program held at the University of Houston Law Center, with internship locations within the Houston metro area and environs. The program is specifically designed to provide resources to undergraduate students who are first generation, low income, or members of groups underrepresented in the legal profession who are interested in pursuing a career in law.
IIT Chicago-Kent College of Law Pre-Law Undergraduate Scholars (PLUS) Program The IIT Chicago-Kent Prelaw Undergraduate Scholars program (“PLUS”) is a three-week summer institute which will: (1) introduce participants to law school and the legal profession; (2) provide participants with substantive skills to strengthen their preparation for law school; and (3) educate and prepare participants for the law school application and admission process. The program is primarily directed at undergraduate college students from disadvantaged groups that are underrepresented in the legal profession.
LSAC Prelaw Undergraduate Scholars (PLUS) Programs LSAC PLUS programs are targeted, but not restricted, to college students from racial and ethnic minority groups underrepresented in the legal profession. These four-week programs provide an intense focus on the skills required to succeed in law school, the law school admission process, and legal career opportunities.
LAWbound LAWbound, a LatinoJustice PRLDEF program of the CAP LEADERSHIP INSTITUTE sponsored by Nixon Peabody LLP, aims to increase the number of Latinos who successfully stay on the path to law school. The program provides targeted services that address some of the most common barriers to admission to law school, and helps students effectively navigate the law school admissions process. The program is offered in the summer (late July-early August) as well as in the winter (January).
PLSI–Pre-Law Summer Institute for American Indians and Alaska Natives PLSI is an intensive two-month program which prepares American Indian and Alaska Native individuals for the rigors of law school by essentially replicating the first semester of law school. The course load consists of three substantive law courses, including Indian Law, Torts, and one other core curriculum subject which varies from year to year. Participants also will be enrolled in an advocacy/legal writing course in which they will prepare a complete appellate moot court case including the writing of a legal memorandum and brief, and presenting an oral argument at the end of the two months.
SEO Law Fellowship The SEO Law Fellowship provides academic and career development training to underrepresented students entering their first year of law school. The Fellowship starts in the summer prior to the Fellow’s law school matriculation and includes an academic and career development training program, a paid internship, tutoring sessions during the first year of law school, and access to the SEO alumni network for mentorship opportunities.
Suffolk Law School Summer Pre-Law Pipeline Program The Suffolk Law School Summer Pre-Law Pipeline Program is free to attend and is designed to equip participants who come from diverse or nontraditional backgrounds with the tools they will need to prepare successful applications to law school and succeed once they are admitted. The 2-week program includes mini-law school classes and an application workshop. It’s intended for students who are 1-2 years away from applying to law school (juniors or seniors in college).
TRIALS Training and Recruitment Initiative for Admission to Leading Law Schools Trials is a five-week fully subsidized residential summer study program for students of modest means whose backgrounds are currently underrepresented at the nation’s top law schools. The program is a partnership of NYU School of Law, Harvard Law School, and the Advantage Testing Foundation. The location alternates between Boston and New York City from year to year.
GENERAL PRE-LAW SUMMER PROGRAMS – OPEN TO ALL
Cornell University Pre-Law Summer Program in New York City This intensive, six-week program taught in New York City features a four-credit course, “Introduction to the American Legal System,” taught using the Socratic method used at most U.S. law schools. The program also may include an internship placement at a law firm or in the legal department of a corporation, government agency, or nonprofit organization. The program is designed for undergraduates who have completed their sophomore year or higher by the summer of entry, and for college graduates who wish to gain an accurate, comprehensive understanding of America’s legal system.
Duke Law D.C. Summer Institute on Law and Policy The Duke D.C. Summer Institute offers short (two-week) courses taught by Duke Law faculty on topics of broad interest to college and graduate students, as well as professionals working in D.C. Launched in 2013, the Institute is designed for individuals considering law school or careers in the public sector and others interested in how the law shapes policy and regulation in the United States. Courses taught in the evening accommodate students and professionals as a complement to Capitol Hill and other D.C.-based positions and summer internship
