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Akron Law Student Career Enhancement Fund

Purpose

The Law Student Career Enhancement Fund (the “Fund”) was established to help defray some of the travel costs and other expenses incurred by Akron Law students who participate in professional activities that are not otherwise funded by the law school. Professional development activities, including conferences, conventions, career fairs, interviews, and networking events are essential to law student professional development and help prepare students for their careers as future lawyers, particularly in this competitive legal market.

Eligibility and Potential Uses

A student must be registered at the law school during the semester the funds are to be used. Summer registration is not required if the student was registered for the prior spring semester and has not yet graduated. At the time of the application and at the time when the funds are used, the student must be in good academic standing and not on probation and must not be subject to any Honor Code or Student Professional Code of Conduct discipline or investigation.

Although a student may submit an application for any legal or law-related professional development activity, the Selection Committee has included the following non-exhaustive list of events the Committee would likely fund:

  • Students interviewing for law clerk or post-graduate clerkship or attorney positions, when the interview is more than 150 miles from campus.
  • Students attending professional conferences or CLEs, or other professional networking events in the course of a job search.
  • Students delivering paper or presentations at academic or professional conferences.
  • If the fund is used to support a paper or written presentation, the paper or presentation should indicate that funding was provided by The University of Akron School of Law. Students accepting awards.
  • Students on the planning committee or in a leadership role for academic or professional conferences.

Funding requests must be made in advance of the professional development activity and all awards will be reimbursements. Advance payment requests will not be considered.

Funding Limits and Criteria

The Fund will not cover the entire cost of a student’s activity (in most cases) so that we may provide awards to more students. In most cases, awards will range from $250 - $500, although awards could be larger or smaller depending on the number and quality of applications received. A student may submit multiple applications in a single year, although each student is limited to only one award during their educational tenure at Akron Law. Reimbursable expenses may include conference fees, training materials, travel and housing expenses, and presentation materials. No membership fees, entertainment, airport parking, personal expenses, food, or beverages will be covered. It is important that the applicant collects and turns in all pertinent receipts and documentation. Without documentation, the law school cannot reimburse the awarded applicant.

Award Administration

The award will be in the form of a reimbursement of expenses, and pursuant to University travel policies and procedures. Awards will be administered, documented, and tracked by the Career Services Office.

Selection Process

A Committee of members from the Akron Law Administration will review applications and make award decisions. The Committee may make its recommendations based solely on the applications received; it may also choose to interview any or all applicants or request additional materials from applicants. Applications will be considered on a case-by-case basis and are not ranked in any order of importance or preference based on the type of event. The Committee will announce the awards by the end of November (fall), February (spring) and by mid-June (summer).

Application Instructions and Deadlines

Applications for fall must be submitted by October 2; applications for spring must be submitted by February 16; and applications for summer must be submitted by May 24. The project or trip that is the subject of the application need not be limited to the semester in which the student applies but must take place within the fiscal year of the application. As such, a student could apply by October 2, 2024 to deliver a conference presentation in April 2025. We encourage early submissions. Students must complete an online application by clicking here.

The application will require submission of professional activity information, budget information, and a short personal statement about how the activity is likely to impact your professional development and enhance your career. Students who are granted an award from the Fund must electronically submit a reimbursement request within one month of the conclusion of the professional activity. The reimbursement requests must include:

  • Receipts totaling or exceeding the amount of the award.

AND any one of the following.

  • A one (1) page reflection essay. For the essay, identify and describe one important concept, research finding, theory, or idea that you learned at the professional activity. Reflect on why this idea is important to your intended area of practice or your personal learning. Finally, apply this idea to your own life by exploring how it will help you become a practice-ready lawyer or a more innovative legal professional.
  • A photo of yourself at the professional activity. Consider posing with a keynote speaker, by a banner advertising the event, or holding a program from the activity.
  • A brief description of someone you met at the professional activity and how she or he will/might be able to assist you in your professional development (examples: a session presenter, someone you networked with at a reception, someone who asked questions about your presentation or made recommendations about future research).