Scholarships

This page will pass on information about scholarships for professional legal study/training or other career development.  For information on scholarships for postgraduate academic study please see the ‘Postgraduate Study’ page of the blog.

Inns of Court Scholarships

Perhaps the best known of all legal scholarships, the 4 Inns of Court give approx. £6million worth of awards a year to aspiring barristers to help pay for their GDL and Bar courses.  Kent has a great track record of students receiving awards including full scholarships which pay for the course in it’s entirety.   To find out more see https://www.barcouncil.org.uk/becoming-a-barrister/students-and-graduates/student-funding-and-scholarships.html 

You should check the relevant Inns’ website – Gray’s Inn, Inner Temple, Lincoln’s Inn and Middle Temple – to find out more information about specific scholarships.

Every October the Careers and Employability Service organises a presentation by a KLS alumnus scholar who will talk you through what is on offer and how to apply with great advice for success.

Aspiring Solicitors Scholarships

AS has a range of interesting scholarships including:

1st year black scholarship from AS
1st year Asian scholarship
1st year LGBT
Disability – any year group
You will need to register to access the information – this is a free service.
Register here – https://www.aspiringsolicitors.co.uk/ 

Academic

  • The Law Society’s ‘Diversity Access Scheme’

…could help you to finance your LPC.

What is the DAS?

The DAS is a scholarship for students who would otherwise be unable to fund the cost of their LPC fees. It also provides excellent all-round support for students who are successful in their application. The DAS package includes:

  • Finance:  funding for up to the full cost of your LPC fees.
  • Professional contacts: a professional mentor to help with queries relating to a future career in law.
  • Opportunities to gain work experience: work experience placements brokered through the Law Society.

This year, there will also be a DAS PLUS award, which will provide LPC funding plus a guaranteed training contract to be undertaken at a national Law Centre. DAS PLUS is only open to students who are currently employed at a Law Centre.

Who should apply?

Applications are encouraged from graduates and those in their final year of a law degree, including mature students.

 Application criteria

You have to fulfil certain criteria to be eligible for the DAS. Eligibility criteria will be available to view on the Law Society website

How many awards are available?

Up to 10 standard DAS scholarships will be available this year, plus one DAS PLUS award.

When do applications open?

Applications usually open in early February and close in early April but do check online.

Further information

If you would like to find out more about the DAS, including information about past students and their experience of DAS then please:

Kalisher Trust awards – for mature students intending to practice at the Criminal Bar

The Kalisher Trust awards.   Applicants must demonstrate “exceptional promise but modest means” and will be judged against the Trust’s criteria for awards. Find out more by emailing administrator@thekalishertrust.co.uk.

Inderpal Rahal Memorial Trust – women from immigrant/refugee background

For women experiencing financial hardship to further their legal education. The trust applies to women who are from an immigrant or refugee background and who intend to practise or teach law in the UK.  Usually, 1 or 2 awards of £2,000 towards the Bar or solicitors’ exams, pupillage, solicitors’ training, or other legal placement or research in the UK or abroad. Not applicable for UG law degree.  Email irmt@gclaw.co.uk to obtain an application form.

Law Society Graham Rushton Award for blind and partially sighted law students 

A grant of around £7,000 annually for blind and partially sighted people.   You must be studying English law in the UK (UG or PG). Priority is given to applicants who have reached a stage in their studies where government-funded student loans are not available, such as a Legal Practice Course (LPC) or Bar Training Course (BTC/BVC).
How do you apply?  Contact Kudirat Adeniyi at RNIB on 020 7391 2057 or e-mail kudirat.adeniyi@rnib.org.uk  to request a Graham Rushton Grant application pack in your preferred format.
The deadline for completed applications is usually the end of March. The grant is usually allocated by 31 July.
If you need further information or require this information in large print, Braille or electronic format please call 020 7391 2057 or email kudirat.adeniyi@rnib.org.uk

The Aziz Foundation Scholarships 

The Aziz Foundation is offering 100 masters’ scholarships this year to British Muslims who we want to support in making a positive impact on their communities and society as a whole – more info available here.   Aziz Foundation, a family foundation set up in 2015 to reduce educational inequalities and aims to increase access to postgraduate education, are currently offering 100% tuition fee Masters scholarships to British Muslims committed to improving British society in the following six areas:

*Media & Journalism, Technology, Sustainability/Environment, Law, Policy and Creative Content (Creative Writing, Film etc.)

There are 100 scholarships available:

⭕ 6 categories 🗞️💡🌱⚖️📄🎭

⭕ at 20 universities 🏛️

⭕ for Muslims with Home Fees status 🇬🇧🧕🏾🧔🏻

The Foundation is looking for Muslims who are active in their communities and can show how they want to combat Islamophobia and improve perceptions of Muslims or raise aspirations in British Muslim communities.

Learn more and apply here: https://azizfoundation.org.uk/scholarships

The 2022 application window is 11 Jan – 11 July.

Vocational

Justice First Fellowship

The Justice First Fellowship Scheme was established in 2014 to support the next generation of students committed to public interest and social justice issues who want to pursue a career in social welfare law.

The Scheme has been established by The Legal Education Foundation and is supported by the Esmée Fairbairn Foundation, Unbound Philanthropy, City Bridge Trust and a number of law firms.

The aim is that the Fellowship Scheme will come to be seen as a route to a career in this important area of law, with Fellows going on to become leaders in their field and important advocates for access to justice and the rule of law.

The Fellowship consists of three parts. To provide:

  1. Pupillage, Training Contract and CILEx Qualifying Employment placements for law graduates seeking to pursue careers in social welfare law;
  2. Fellows with time and resources during their training period to develop and implement a project that will advance access to justice in some way;
  3. Additional support, training and opportunities for Fellows to gain skills and feel part of a wider movement of people committed to access to justice.

Positions will be advertised from May. Applications will open in August and close in September (nb:  these dates were 2020 dates so do check each year). The full timetable can be found here.