Each year Brooklyn Law School offers a number of prestigious fellowships to highly qualified incoming students interested in pursuing careers in public interest law and international business law. Brooklyn Law School’s Edward V. Sparer Public Interest Law Fellowship Program and the International Business Law Fellowship Program offer students the unique opportunity to expand on their educational experience by participating in these programs.

Edward V. Sparer Public Interest Law Fellowship Program
The International Business Law Fellowship Program

Edward V. Sparer Public Interest Law Fellowship Program
The Edward V. Sparer Public Interest Law Fellowship Program offers highly qualified students unique opportunities to explore the practice of public interest law. The Fellowship Program was established in 1985 to honor the life and work of the late Edward V. Sparer, class of 1959, a scholar, teacher, activist, and pioneer in the fields of poverty and health law. The Program promotes the public interest work to which Mr. Sparer devoted his life, and seeks to encourage students to pursue public service careers. The Program also provides needed legal services to underrepresented constituencies. Under the direction of Professor Elizabeth M. Schneider and the Sparer Fellowship Committee, the Program serves as a public interest law resource for the entire law school community. Each academic year it sponsors at least one forum or symposium, bringing nationally recognized lawyers and public policy advocates to the school to discuss current issues in public interest law.

The fellowship is available for legal work under the supervision of an attorney at any non-profit public interest law organization. Sparer Fellows receive a stipend of $5,000 for ten weeks of full-time work during the summer after their first or second year of law school (for part-time students, the Fellowship placement also can take place after their third year of law school). With the assistance of faculty and the Career Center, Fellows are placed in organizations that match their interests. The fellowships have given students broad experience, assisting in state and federal litigation, drafting legislation, commenting on proposed laws and regulations, organizing communities, counseling clients, and negotiating with adversaries and government agencies.

In the past, Sparer Fellows have been placed with a variety of organizations including: American Civil Liberties Union; Center for Constitutional Rights; Center for Reproductive Law and Policy; Children's Defense Fund; HIV Law Project; Indian People's Human Rights Commission (Bombay, India); Lambda Legal Defense and Education Fund; Lawyers Committee for Human Rights; National Immigration Law Center; New York Civil Liberties Union; Planned Parent hood Federation; Puerto Rican Legal Defense and Education Fund; South African Truth and Reconciliation Commission; Urban Justice Center; Volunteer Lawyers for the Arts; and several legal aid and legal services units. Travel subsidies may be available for international human rights placements.

Selection of Sparer Fellows
Demonstrated academic achievement and the applicant's interest and commitment to public interest issues are important selection criteria. All information in a candidate's admission application is made available to the Selection Committee. In addition, applicants must submit information about their scholastic and employment records, community service and outside activities related to public interest, and submit a personal statement. Based on this information and an interview, the Selection Committee makes a designation of Sparer Fellows. Students who are not awarded Fellowships prior to matriculation are encouraged to reapply during the fall application period of their first or second years.

Download and print application materials or read more about the Edward V. Sparer Public Interst Law Fellowship in the Academic Program section of our Web site.

The International Business Law Fellowship Program
The International Business Law Fellowship Program provides a unique educational experience for students pursuing a career in international business law. Student Fellows attend all programs of the Center for the Study of International Business Law, including special programs to introduce them to the many facets of international business law. Full-time fellows have the option of joining the Brooklyn Journal of International Law after their first year. Each Fellow is required in the second and third year to take a wide assortment of classes in the international and business fields to provide the necessary background for successful practice. Prior to graduation, all Fellows are required to complete a publishable research paper on an international business law topic of their choice that is intended to satisfy the Law School's upperclass writing requirement.

Fellows receive a scholarship, which replaces any other merit scholarship awarded by the Law School. If a Fellow is awarded a more generous merit scholarship, the Fellow will receive the higher amount. Each year, one of the Fellows is specially designated as the Charles Evan Fellow in International Business Law, in memory of Charles Evan, Class of 1940, who practiced international law. Renewal of Fellowship scholarships is contingent upon the Fellow maintaining a standing in the top 20 percent of the class at the end of each academic year and fully participating in Fellowship activities and internships.

Incoming full-time students who are selected as Fellows will receive a guarantee of paid employment after the first year. This experience during the summer provides Fellows with early direct involvement in international or business law issues and practice opportunities. The employment may be with a financial institution, a governmental internship or as a research assistant with a faculty member. In the past, Fellows have been employed at institutions such as the New York Stock Exchange, Equitable Insurance, Merrill Lynch, and SalomonSmithBarney.

Selection of International Business Law Fellows
Demonstrated academic achievement an the applicant's interest and background in international business law are important selection criteria. All information in a candidate's admission application is made available to the Selection Committee. After interviewing the finalists, the Committee chooses the entering students who are designated International Business Law Fellows. Students are also selected from the upper classes. Full-time students are eligible after their first year and part-time students are eligible after their second year.

Download and print application materials or read more about the International Business Law Fellowship in the Academic Program section of our Web site.