The 2014 Equal Justice Works Fellowship is Now Open (+ July Student Debt Webinars)!
by Ashley Matthews, PSJD Fellow
Post-graduate fellowship application season has officially begun!
The 2014 Equal Justice Works Fellowship Application opened yesterday, kick-starting the search for innovative public interest law projects that help close the American justice gap and provide legal assistance to those in need. Applications will close on September 17, 2013.
Hopefully, all you graduating 3Ls and recent law graduates have been checking for potential host organizations on PSJD.org. (Quick tip: Use the “Advanced Search” tab to limit job results to only “Fellowship – Legal: Project-Based” types.) Click here to view geographic and practice areas that are of particular interest to 2014 sponsors.
This year, Equal Justice Works plans on funding between 45-55 two-year fellowships. During their two-year tenure, Fellows receive a competitive salary, connections to their prominent sponsors and leaders of the private and public interest bars, participation in training and support programs and generous loan repayment assistance.
Speaking of loan repayment assistance, EJW also hosts a monthly series of student debt webinars targeted specifically to public interest law students. Check out the message below from Isaac Bowers (who writes for EJW on U.S. News & World Report’s Student Loan Ranger blog):
We hope everyone had a wonderful 4th of July and is enjoying the summer despite the fact (as of the time I’m writing this) Congress has allowed the rates on subsidized Direct Loans to double. I remain optimistic there will be a retroactive fix – in part because, as our friends at Campus Progress report, polls show that majority of Americans support a student loan interest rate freeze. You can help by contacting your Representative and Senators and letting them know they will lose your vote if they don’t “Un-Double My Rate!”
Even if Congress doesn’t act, you can help yourself by attending one of our free July webinars and learning about your options for student loan repayment and forgiveness:
Drowning in Debt? Learn How Government and Nonprofit Workers Can Earn Public Service Loan Forgiveness
Thursday, July 11, 3-4 p.m. EDT
Thursday, July 25, 3-4 p.m. EDT
A must attend for anyone with educational debt planning to work or currently working for the government or a nonprofit, this webinar explains how you can benefit from income-driven repayment plans, including President Obama’s new Pay As You Earn program, and how to earn Public Service Loan Forgiveness.
As usual, it’s been a busy month at our Student Loan Ranger blog. We took a look at a recent bankruptcy case that offers hope for distressed borrowers, reviewed how the dueling House and Senate budget proposals would impact student loans and examined why the federal government is currently making a $50 billion profit on student loans. This month’s topics include a close look at the paradox of parent PLUS Loans.