Merit Scholarship Programs for Incoming Students
Hofstra Law has a robust merit scholarship program. 92 percent of our students who entered the Law School in fall 2018 received some award. All applicants are automatically considered for a merit scholarship upon admission to Hofstra Law; no separate application is required.
Entering students may receive one of a couple of types of merit scholarships for their first year. The scholarship will be applied in equal portions to the fall and spring semesters.
Legal Scholars Award
Hofstra Law offers our highest-achieving applicants a Legal Scholars Award, which goes up to full tuition. (This award is available to entering law students, beginning with the class entering in fall 2016.)
Recipients of a Legal Scholars Award will retain 100 percent of their scholarship provided they remain in good academic standing (maintain a minimum cumulative grade-point average of 2.2).
Additional Merit Scholarship Awards
Each year, Hofstra Law also offers a number of merit scholarship awards, which range from $5,000 to full tuition.
Beginning with the class entering in fall 2017, the retention policy for such awards is:
- Students ranked in the top 50 percent of their class after each academic year will retain 100 percent of their award.
- Students ranked greater than 50 percent up to 65 percent of their class after each academic year will retain 50 percent of their scholarship.
- Students ranked greater than 65 percent up to 80 percent of their class after each academic year will retain 25 percent of their scholarship.
Please note: At the end of their first year, full-time and part-time students are ranked together. In subsequent years, students must maintain a cumulative academic rank that places them in the top 50, 65, 80 (not rounded) of their entire graduating class.
The cumulative academic rank used to determine students’ eligibility for renewal is calculated at the conclusion of the spring semester each year and is not reviewed again until the conclusion of the spring semester of the following year.
For purposes of merit scholarships, grades earned in the summer sessions, study abroad programs or the winter intersession are counted as if they occurred in the following fall or spring semester.
Merit scholarships cannot be used to cover tuition expenses related to the summer sessions, study abroad programs or the winter intersession.
| Students Matriculating in | Number Entering With a Conditional Scholarship | Number Whose Conditional Scholarships Have Since Been Reduced or Eliminated | % Whose Conditional Scholarships Have Since Been Reduced or Eliminated |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fall 2023 | 226 | 118 | 52% |
| Fall 2022 | 219 | 109 | 50% |
| Fall 2021 | 227 | 111 | 49% |
Fellowships
The Maurice A. Deane School of Law offers fellowship programs in Business Law Honors; Child and Family Advocacy; Environmental Law; Health Law and Policy; Legal Ethics; LGBTQIA+ Rights, and Minority Rights Advocacy. Fellows are selected each year from students in the incoming class.
The Business Law Honors, Child and Family Advocacy and LGBTQIA+ Rights fellowship awards are renewed after the first year subject to the guidelines of the Merit Scholarship Program for Incoming Students. In order to maintain all the benefits of the fellowship, fellows are required to fully participate in program activities and meet all satisfactory academic progress requirements of the fellowship and the J.D. degree.
The Dwight L. Greene Memorial Scholarship, a fellowship created for minority rights advocacy, is renewable after the first year. Scholars must remain in good academic standing as stated in their scholarship agreement.
The Health Law and Policy Fellowship is not automatically renewable for their second year. All recipients are eligible to apply for an Advanced Fellowship in Health Law and Policy after the first year.