Diversity Initiatives
Seton Hall Law is an active participant in building diversity within the legal profession through its pipeline programs that prepare diverse populations of students to attend and succeed in law school.
Legal Education Opportunities – An alternative admissions program for those who do not meet traditional law school requirements but who nonetheless, possess the motivation and the intellectual acumen to succeed in law school.
Legal Education Opportunities
The Legal Education Opportunities (LEO) program at Seton Hall Law has been opening the doors to a legal education for more than 30 years to diverse populations of students. Designed for those who possess the intellectual acumen and motivation to succeed, but who do not meet traditional law school requirements, LEO offers both the skills and opportunity to pursue a career in law. Students admitted to the program take part in an intensive, two-week summer program of classes and workshops—the LEO Institute—to prepare them for law school. Participants who enroll at Seton Hall Law then may qualify for renewable $10,000 scholarships toward tuition and fees. Additional academic support also is provided during the first year of law school through the Academic Success Program.
Initiated by several forward-thinking professors at Seton Hall Law in the late 1970s, the program is a key element in fulfilling the law school’s mission of assisting students who have suffered from an economic, educational, or social disadvantage. Since its founding, more than 600 students have graduated from the program. Today LEO graduates are found serving as state and federal judges, as partners and associates at major law firms, and as high-ranking government officials and advisors.
Those interested in the program should complete the application process for alternative consideration through the Disadvantaged Applicant Screening Committee.
- Summer Institute for Pre-Legal Studies – A program for college students to encourage and support the study of law among diverse populations.
- NJ LEEP-College Bound Program– A joint program with Seton Hall Law to provide urban students starting in eighth grade with the skills to achieve academic success in college and law school.
- NJ LEEP Summer Law Institute – A five-week session of legal study for students between their eighth and ninth grade year.