Costs and Funding

The LSAT fee is $123, as of 2007-2008; the LSDAS subscription fee is $113. Individual applications to law schools typically cost $30 or more. If you are in dire straits you may be able to have all or part of these fees waived by writing directly to the individual schools.

Most questions about money and law school can be answered by, "It varies." Tuition and living costs at law schools vary from school to school, and so does the amount of financial aid available. Information on costs can be found in the Official Guide to U.S. Law Schools but information on aid must be obtained from the schools to which you apply. Most law school financial aid is given in the form of loans. If you are expecting to "work your way through" law school, you should be warned that this will be extremely difficult (almost impossible) for your first year because of the academic burden of law school. Exceptions to the above statement would be:

  1. If you attend a night program (these have a reduced workload.)
  2. If you attend a work/study law school. Currently there are two work/study law programs: Northeastern in Boston, and Drexel in Philadelphia.
  3. If you make it a point after graduation to locate your residence in one of the states that has a low tuition, state university law school, and you plan on attending law school a full year after graduation, once you have established residency there. Many of the top law schools in the country are state schools, and such a one year delay can save you many tens of thousands of dollars.

If you are a Delaware resident AND you are in financial need, you can obtain some scholarship aid from the state. To apply just fill out and file the FAFSA form by April 15 (i.e.- it must be received by April 15) in the spring prior to entering law school. You will be notified by the state of Delaware as to your eligibility. After you have been accepted to a law school write to:

The Delaware Higher Education Commision
Wilmington, Delaware 19806

The amount available up to $1000 per year as of 2007 is determined strictly by need.