29th Annual AALAM/Dow Fund Scholarship |
The AALAM/Dow Fund Scholarship is awarded each academic year to a law student member of AALAM who demonstrates leadership potential, a commitment to making a contribution to the Asian American community, and an interest in pursuing public interest positions and other indicia of excellence, whether personal, professional or academic.
Priority consideration will be given to law students who have secured a public interest position for the summer, but it is not necessary to have a position lined up in advance of submitting an application. The recipient of the scholarship will be selected by the AALAM/Dow Fund Scholarship Committee (“Scholarship Committee”), with the approval of the Board of AALAM.
The AALAM/Dow Scholarship recipient will be announced on May 28, 2026 and recognized at this year’s AALAM Banquet and Annual Dow Fund Dinner.
If you have any questions, please email Ruoya Burns (Wang) (ruoyaburns@gmail.com).
Eligibility Criteria:
Consideration for the AALAM/Dow Fund Scholarship will be given to students who:
1. are enrolled at a law school in Massachusetts or another New England state, graduating in 2027 or later;
2. are current and active members of AALAM (students can sign up for a free membership here); and
3. submit a complete application on or before 11:59 PM ET on May 15, 2026.
Important Dates:
* The finalist(s) will be interviewed by one or more members of the Scholarship Committee. |
Application Process:
Follow the instructions below and submit your application to Ruoya Burns (Wang) (ruoyaburns@gmail.com) for the Scholarship Committee’s review.
Serving on this year’s Scholarship Committee are Committee Chairs Ruoya Burns and Jason Jose, and Members Alan Wong, Andrew Truong, Celene Chen, Chantal Choi, Jan Ryu Koo, Malinda Reed, and Tiffany Ko. Please provide all materials in a single PDF file titled "[last name], [first name] - AALAM Scholarship Application." We will not review incomplete or late applications.
Required Materials:
Part I
- Resume (one page)
- Full law school transcript. (2Ls should include 2L grades as well as 1L grades. If your grades are not yet available by the submission date, you may choose to supplement your application and submit your transcript when available)
- Basic biographical information (name, phone number, address, law school and graduation year)
- Reference information (name, email address, and phone number). You may submit one or more references who may be contacted by a member of the Scholarship Committee.
Part II
- Essay response (500 words or less): As a future lawyer, how do you think you can best contribute to the AAPI community?
- Short answer responses (one paragraph each):
- What are your current (or intended) plans for the upcoming summer?
- List and briefly describe your activities or commitments that are not included on your current resume.
- Describe an AALAM event that you attended that you found meaningful. What did you like about the event, and is there anything AALAM could have done to improve it?
- As a future lawyer, how would you engage with the AAPI community in Massachusetts? Do you have plans to stay in Massachusetts after graduation?
Part III
Terms and Conditions:
- Officers and directors of AALAM or the Dow Fund, and members of the Scholarship Committee, and their immediate family members, are ineligible for the scholarship.
- All application materials submitted will become the property of AALAM. By submitting an application, the applicant acknowledges that they may be asked to provide additional information and consents to the use of their name, likeness, and submitted materials for AALAM publicity and promotional purposes.
- The recipient of the scholarship will be selected by the Scholarship Committee with the approval of the Board of AALAM.
- The recipient of the scholarship will be required to attend the 2026 AALAM Banquet on June 10, 2026, and the 41st Annual Celebration of Harry H. Dow Memorial Legal Assistance Fund in December 2026.
- The Scholarship Committee shall have sole discretion and final say on the interpretation of any of the rules, terms and conditions.
I understand and acknowledge that I must be enrolled at least part-time and in good standing at a law school in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts or another state in New England during the 2025-2026 academic year in order to be eligible for and receive the award.
I understand and acknowledge that I must comply with all of the stated terms and conditions of the scholarship and that my failure to do so may result in the forfeiture of the entire scholarship award.
I certify that all of the information submitted with, and all of the statements made in, this application or in any document attached hereto are true and accurate to the best of my knowledge as of the date signed below. I further certify that the essay attached hereto was written solely by me, is my original work, and is prepared without the use of artificial intelligence or other automated writing tools. I understand that any misrepresentation or violation of these requirements may result in disqualification from the scholarship.
The following certification and acknowledgement, signed and dated: