USD School of Law Encourages Public Interest Law Alumni to Apply for Loan Repayment Assistance Program

SAN DIEGO (May 23, 2024) – The importance of public interest law practice in our society cannot be overstated. Public interest lawyers working for legal services and other nonprofit organizations ensure that these interests have access to representation in our legal system.

Many alumni chose to attend USD School of Law because of their interest in public service. The Centers for Public Interest Law, including Consumer Protection Policy Center, Children’s Advocacy Center, Energy Policy Institute Center and USD’s 12 Legal Clinics—educate law students and provide them with meaningful opportunities to gain important practical experience as legal interns who provide community clients with legal representation. As law school graduates, these well-trained advocates become lawyers for low-income individuals, the environment, children, and many other varied issues, whether through legal services or nonprofit organizations, is inspiring and the definition of what it means to be a leader and Changemaker.

USD School of Law students train to practice public interest law through existing civil, criminal, and immigration Legal Clinics and the Center for Public Interest Law. Students indicate their intent and support for public interest advocacy through membership in the Public Interest Law Foundation and Pro Bono Legal Advocates. This hands-on legal training and supportive community at USD prepares students to be thoughtful, well-trained advocates for vulnerable causes and people in need.

To fulfill the USD Promise associated with public interest education and support the selfless work of USD School of Law alumni who have chosen to serve their communities as public service advocates, the Loan Repayment Assistance Program (LRAP) Endowment provides law debt repayment assistance to alumni who have worked in full-time legal positions for a minimum of one year with a 501(c)(3) or 501(c)(4) nonprofit organization. 

View eligibility requirements on the LRAP Application Procedure Page and apply by Monday, June 10.

If you have questions, please connect with LRAP Coordinator Vonda Garcia at vondagarcia@sandiego.edu or (619) 260-4570.             

About the University of San Diego School of Law

Each year, USD educates approximately 800 Juris Doctor and graduate law students from throughout the United States and around the world.  The law school is best known for its offerings in the areas of business and corporate law, constitutional law, intellectual property, international and comparative law, public interest law and taxation.

USD School of Law is one of the 84 law schools elected to the Order of the Coif, a national honor society for law school graduates.  The law school’s faculty is a strong group of outstanding scholars and teachers with national and international reputations and currently ranks 30th nationally among U.S. law faculties in scholarly impact and 41st nationally in past-year faculty downloads on the Social Sciences Research Network (SSRN). The school is accredited by the American Bar Association and is a member of the Association of American Law Schools. Founded in 1954, the law school is part of the University of San Diego, a private, independent, Roman Catholic university chartered in 1949.