Available in: Spring 2027
Spring 2027 Notice and Application
Columbia Law School participates in New York State’s Pro Bono Scholars Program (PBSP). PBSP gives students the opportunity to combine full-time work in a public interest legal office with an innovative course focusing on the development of professional identity and values. Pro Bono Scholars earn 12 credits, which satisfy their experiential learning requirement and their pro bono hours, all in their last semester of their 3L year.
Pro Bono Scholars will sit for the February 2027 Bar Examination and, upon successful passage, gain early admission to the New York Bar in the summer following graduation. CLS graduates receive their diploma/graduate certification in June 2027 and so may be sworn into the bar as early as July 2027.
Approximately 12 students will be accepted into the program.
The PBSP officially begins at the start of the Spring 2027 semester, although students will begin studying for the bar exam before the Spring semester begins. Students will prepare for the bar exam during January and February of 2027. To abide by federal regulations concerning financial aid eligibility and to receive federal loan disbursements during the time students are studying for the bar, students in the PBSP are required to participate in a small number of meetings and/or assignments during the study period.
A requirement of the program is that students sit for the spring bar exam, which is expected to be February 23-24, 2027. Afterwards, students will begin full-time participation in the PBSP in March 2027, exact date to be determined. Students will work and prepare for/attend class approximately 45 hours per week (about five hours of class time a week, and the remainder of time in their placements). On class days, students will work at their placements in the morning only. In the afternoon, they will meet at CLS to prepare for class discussion and activities and then attend the class itself. PBSP seminar is designed to support students in their professional development and identity. Course materials and experiences will be structured around the participants’ planned work settings as well as social justice issues more broadly.
Classes will likely end on May 20 and placements will likely end on May 21, 2027. Given the timing of the bar exam and the PBSP hours requirement, participants will be working through Spring Break. While the PBSP finishes just after CLS graduation, students will be entitled to participate in all graduation activities (though they receive a June degree).
Students may be able to negotiate with their placements to finish their work/hours requirements before graduation by working additional hours earlier in the placement and/or to work an additional week following graduation if they have not completed their hours.
Classes in the PBSP will create space for participants to consider the meaning of professional life and the role of professional responsibility obligations and values within that life. The classes will draw on the students’ experiences working in their public interest placements as well as build on students’ previous summer employment and experiential, doctrinal and theoretical law school courses. One of the key goals of the PBSP is to help students begin to create a meaningful professional identity as they enter fully into their careers. Work in public interest settings provides not only a significant opportunity for service but also a unique opportunity to explore the challenges and rewards of providing effective and ethical legal representation to low-income individuals and communities.
Riti Singh ([email protected]) is the PBSP instructor and students may contact her with questions. They can also contact the Director of Externships and Placement-Based Learning, Jessica Valdes Jimenez ([email protected]).
The PBSP is also dedicated to facilitating equal access for students with disabilities and to cultivating a culture that is sensitive and responsive to the needs of students.
There will be an informational meeting for interested students on Thursday, March 26 from 12:10 to 1:10 pm in JGH105. Students unable to attend can view a recording that will be sent via email and also available at the top of this page after the event. Applications for the 2027 PBSP class will open on April 8, 2026 and are due by April 20, 2026 by 5 pm. Interviews will be scheduled for April 24 and 28. Acceptance notifications will be issued on May 15.