When loans are originated for first year law students the graduation date is left blank.  As a result, Direct Lending sets a default graduation date for the end of the semester. 

Several of you have received letters or e-mails from Direct Loan stating that you will begin repayment of your Stafford Loans in December 2008.  Please disregard these notices.  Your graduation date was updated with Direct Lending by the Registrar's office on November 6.  However, if you would like to confirm that Direct Loan has received your updated graduation date, you may contact them by calling 1-800-848-0979. 

Best wishes as you head into finals!

This year we are proud to offer the fifth annual Thurgood Marshall Alumni Scholarship for first year law students.  The Thurgood Marshall Alumni Scholarship was established as a means of enabling future alumni of Santa Clara Law to continue the efforts of Justice Marshall in expanding equality and seeking social justice for the disadvantaged in our society.

Completed applications are due in the Law Admissions Office no later than 5 p.m. on Friday, September 19, 2008. The Law Admissions Office is located in Heafey Room 150.  For more information and selection criteria, please download the scholarship application.

Scholarship Application

"When I was chosen to receive the Thurgood Marshall Alumni Scholarship in 2004-2005, I was touched.  I had received a number of scholarships previously, but never specifically in recognition of my commitment to underrepresented communities." 

Braeden Sullivan

2005 Scholarship Winner

Through the College Cost Reduction and Access Act of 2007, Congress established a new federal student loan forgiveness program for borrowers who hold full-time public service jobs.

SCU law students planning a career in public service after graduating from law school may have many questions about the program.  The SCU Law Financial Aid Office, therefore, has prepared a list of FAQs, which is available under Student Finances on the following SCU School of Law web site page:

http://law.scu.edu/current/index.cfm

Essentially, it is the U.S. Department of Education that will administer the federal student loan forgiveness program.  It expects to finalize more detailed rules for how the program will work by November 1, 2008.  Included in the FAQs is a web site (www.ibrinfo.org), where you can register to receive updates via e-mail about the program.

*Law students who will attend the SCU Summer Law Study Abroad programs can disregard this blog*

All law students planning to enroll in the summer 2008 session at SCU can use the Cost of Attendance (COA) calculation below to determine the maximum amount of loan for which they will eligible. 

The majority of law students will fund their summer session with federal Grad PLUS loans, given that the majority has already borrowed the maximum allowed in the federal Stafford loans, which is $20,500 per academic year including the summer session.

Students must be enrolled in at least 3 units for the summer session to be eligible for the federal Grad PLUS loan.  Students who enroll in less than 3 units will need to apply for a private alternative (non-federal) student loan.

To start the loan application process, please apply for the Grad PLUS or private alternative student loan online with the lender of your choice.  When applying for the loan, where indicated on the application, please enter a loan period of May 2008 to August 2008 so that it is clear that the loan is intended for the summer.   Upon pre-approval, the lender will notify SCU to certify the loan. 

The financial clearance deadline for students attending summer at SCU School of Law is May 21, 2008.  If you will be paying tuition with a Grad PLUS or private loan, to meet the financial clearance deadline, please complete an online loan application with the lender no later than May 4, 2008.

The COA calculation for the total amount you can borrow in summer is your tuition charge plus other allowable expenses as follows:

Tuition                                                $1,175 per unit

Plus Other Expenses: 

Room/Board                                        $3,132

Books                                                       169

Transportation                                         481

Personal                                                   926

Loan Fees                                                187

Total Other Expenses                        $4,895

For example, a student taking 3 units will be eligible for $8,420 in loans (because $3,525 in tuition plus $4,895 = $8,420).  A student taking 6 units will be eligible for $11,945 in loans (because $7,050 plus $4,895 = $11,945).

Units will be verified upon loan certification or loan disbursement, and your loan funds may be adjusted if required, depending upon how many units you end up taking and how much in loan funds you have requested.

If you have any questions, please contact the Law Financial Aid Office at (408) 551-1719.

Current Law Faculty, Emery Merit, or Public Interest scholarship recipients must reapply for their scholarship for the 2008-09 academic year.

Law Faculty scholarships will be awarded based on continued financial need and satisfactory academic progress.  Law Faculty scholarship recipients must provide a one page statement detailing their financial need and potential for serving the community.

Emery Merit scholarships may be renewed if the academic conditions in the original scholarship letter are met and funds are available.

**Current students without a scholarship may apply for a possible scholarship using the application below.  Please note that new awards are limited by the availability of funds.

The scholarship application deadline is Friday, May 30, 2008 at 5:00 p.m. Applications received after this date will not be considered. 

For more information, please download the scholarship application.

Download Scholarship Application