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Pathway Programs and Projects

Access

The legal profession remains one of the least diverse industries in the nation. According to the ABA Model Diversity Survey, there are deficiencies with overall demographic representation as it relates to the role of racial minorities, women, LGBTQ+ and disabled lawyers.

At the Law School, we believe that representation of gender, ethnicity, and race matters and that the field of law must be as inclusive as the population it serves. For these reasons, promoting a more diverse, equitable, and inclusive community is a priority for our institution. A critical strategy to advancing equity is to actively support and design programs that serve as pathways that offer access to the law. Our pathway initiatives target students at every stage of their academic journey. Program participants learn about the law school experience, application process, and various legal practices available to them with a law degree. They also gain insight into the basic foundations of the legal system and have access to professional development supports. Read more about our programs and initiatives below. 

The Idea of Law: High School

Pre-College Academy

A rigorous three-week academic program that gives high school students from around the world the opportunity to experience law school.
Read more about the program

Provost Summer Mentorship Program

A four-week program that aims to inspire first-generation and underrepresented students in Philadelphia to view higher education as an achievable goal. 
Read more about the program

Youth Education Partnership (YEP)

Introduces high school students to the basics of law through weekly lessons and preparing students for a Mock Trial or Moot Court competition.
Read more about YEP

Legal Education Partnership

Provides comprehensive support to the students and community at the Boys’ Latin of Philadelphia Charter School through various activities including mock trial, debate, teen court, and student government coaching.

Ethics Bowl

The Ethics Bowl is an extra-curricular activity where students discuss and debate ethical cases studies with teams from other schools. They worked with 5 Philadelphia High Schools to help them prepare for their participation. This effort is assisted by a wide variety of Penn students, faculty and volunteers. Read more about the Ethics Bowl

Law and Social Justice Mentorship Project

LJMP connects Philadelphia School District students to critical pre-law opportunities and mentorship. LJMP is dedicated to increasing student exposure to and enrollment in local law schools.

Preparing for Law: Undergrad — Grad

Council for Legal Education Opportunity (CLEO) Sponsor

Six-week online program designed to prepare undergraduate and graduate students for law school enrollment. 
Read more about CLEO

Catalyst by SEO Law

A 9-month program that assists underrepresented students in applying, and gaining admission, to law school through workshops, JD Advising, attorney mentorship, and exclusive roundtable discussions with admissions officers at law schools nationwide.
Read more about Catalyst

Global Institute for Human Rights

A nine-day interactive program aimed at undergraduate and graduate students who are passionate about a career in human rights advocacy. 
Read more about GHR

Penn Carey Law Outreach Program

Focuses on students who are a historically underrepresented ethnicity, first-generation college attendees, or who have disadvantaged backgrounds, and aims to help them successfully complete their bachelor’s degrees, and apply to and enter law school.
Read more about the Outreach program

Future Leaders in Law: Law Students

Penn Carey Law Summer Diversity Professional Opportunities

Provides first and second-year law students the opportunity to spend their summer working at a law firm or corporate in-house legal department. 
Read more about the opportunities

Weil Gotshal Legal Innovators Program

A partnership with Penn Carey Law and paid public service fellowship that engages incoming law school students in addressing some of the most pressing social and legal challenges in our communities. 
Read more about the program

First Generation Center on Professionalism Fellowship

A program tailored for first generation students that provides professional development supports as well as opportunities to internalize concepts of belonging and mattering.
Read more about the Fellowship

Law in Practice: Professionals

U.S. Business Law for the Individual Practitioner 

A five-day, live, virtual course for lawyers trained outside of the United States seeking to expand or grow their practices, or U.S. trained lawyers without a corporate background who are seeking to gain a deeper understanding of business-centric practice areas.
Read more about the course

Summer U.S. Law and Technology

An executive education program is intended for practitioners from across the globe who wish to gain a deeper understanding of U.S. technology law

Recruitment efforts for historically underrepresented populations in the legal profession: