Shumaker, Loop & Kendrick, LLP is committed to fostering diversity and inclusion among our attorneys and other professionals, and believe that including attorneys and staff members from diverse backgrounds is a critically important element in providing quality legal services to our clients and a productive working environment for our team members.
In furtherance of our efforts to recruit, retain, and promote attorneys who contribute to the diversity of our firm, we are pleased to offer the Shumaker Diversity Scholarship. The Shumaker Diversity Scholarship is one example of how we seek candidates who demonstrate personal and professional excellence, and who bring diverse life experiences to our team.
The Shumaker Diversity Scholarship provides, in Shumaker, Loop & Kendrick, LLP’s discretion, a $7,500.00 scholarship to one (1) or two (2) outstanding first or second year law students who are enrolled at an ABA accredited law school and who participate in the firm’s summer associate program, to assist in offsetting law school expenses. The scholarship is in addition to the salary paid to the student for the Summer Associate position.
The Shumaker Diversity Scholarship is available to students who are members of underrepresented or minority groups. Applicants must have outstanding undergraduate and law school academic credentials, demonstrated leadership abilities, and community involvement. Applicants must also demonstrate a commitment to practice law after graduating from law school in the geographic area of one of our firm’s offices.
Eligibility for the Shumaker Diversity Scholarship requires that the recipient participate in and complete the firm’s summer associate program following the recipient’s first or second year of law school, for a minimum of six to eight weeks (depending upon office location). Shumaker will select the office in which the student will work, but will attempt to place the student in the office location of the student’s choice. The scholarship will be paid upon the student’s completion of the firm’s summer associate program.
Students who are interested in applying for the Shumaker Diversity Scholarship must submit the following documents:
- Current resume, including a description of the applicant’s academic and leadership skills, community involvement, and personal and professional accomplishments.
- Current law school transcript.
- A short essay (no more than 500 words) on the topic of how diversity improves the practice of law.
- Letters of recommendation from one to three academic or professional references.
Please note that if you are awarded a scholarship from Shumaker as part of your participation in a summer patent agent internship or summer associate program, you are not eligible to receive an additional scholarship should you participate in the program again the following year. For example, if you are awarded a 1L diversity scholarship as a summer associate, you would not be eligible to receive a 2L diversity scholarship the next summer.
Click here to submit your application and supporting documents.