Loan Repayment Assistance Program (LRAP)

In order to build on its pioneering tradition of encouraging students to pursue public interest careers, Rutgers' School of Law-Newark established a Loan Repayment Assistance Program (LRAP) for graduates who make a long-term commitment to public interest employment. This program was developed to provide financial assistance to help defray law school debt obligations for graduates who have chosen to pursue lower-paid public interest/public service careers. It is intended to support and increase the number of Rutgers' School of Law-Newark graduates serving the public sector and the people and causes traditionally underrepresented by the bar. The continuing commitment of our students, support of our faculty and administration, and generosity of our alumni have helped to build and strengthen our program over the years. In fact, in their Financing the Future: 2004 Report, Equal Justice Works cited our program as having the largest percentage of growth of any law school LRAP in the country. They also recognized Rutgers' School of Law-Newark, along with the University of California-Berkeley, the University of Michigan, and the University of Virginia as the top four public law schools in per student LRAP spending.

The LRAP is available to all Rutgers' Law School-Newark graduates from the class of 1997 and forward who are employed in law-related public interest/public service positions, and whose income does not exceed maximum levels established by the LRAP board. Graduates are eligible to receive program assistance for a maximum of five years. The LRAP board's current policy is to ensure that each applicant who qualifies receives a proportionate share of the LRAP funds available for disbursement.