Financial Aid | Columbia Law School
Awards from External Sources
All students are encouraged to seek funding outside the Law School.
Locating External Funding
Many law students apply for funding from sources such as private foundations, governmental agencies, local bar associations, civic associations, professional organizations, or parental/spousal employers. To assist you in locating such funding, the Financial Aid Office has compiled a brochure entitled "Sources of External Funding for Law Students" which is available on request. Most scholarship deadlines are in the spring preceding the award year. Criteria such as place of residence, membership in an identifiable ethnic group, and area of legal interest are often the basis for these awards. Additional sources of funding are listed in publications available in local and university libraries, in college career service centers, and on the Internet.
Some useful sites are:
The Impact of External Awards on Other Aid
Students receiving awards from external sources must notify the Financial Aid Office of the source and amount of the award. The external award, plus any financial aid (loans and/or grants) cannot exceed a student’s cost of attendance, and may affect eligibility for federal loans (Direct Stafford, Perkins, Direct Graduate PLUS), institutional aid, and private educational loans. In some cases, the Columbia Law School grant will need to be adjusted. For external awards with an academic year aggregate of $15,000 or less, the external award(s) will be applied to reducing the student’s loan borrowing. For external awards totaling more than $15,000 for an academic year, fifty percent (50%) of the amount above $15,000 may be used to reduce the Columbia Law School grant award. Again, regardless of the size of the external award, students must immediately notify the Financial Aid Office of the source and amount of the award.