Loan Repayment Assistance Program | Apply by May 15
The Pepperdine Caruso School of Law believes that lawyers best serve their clients, communities, and society with genuine commitments to excellence, integrity, and professional responsibility. Caruso Law imparts knowledge of the law, expert skills, and professionalism to prepare lawyers for careers of purpose, service, and leadership. The Loan Repayment Assistance Program is among Caruso Law’s important commitments to empower our graduates and alumni in public interest and public service careers.
The Caruso Family's generosity supports a generational commitment to alumni who are dedicated to careers in public service and public interest practice. The Caruso Family Loan Forgiveness Fund was established in March of 2003 to relieve law school debt.
Judge Harry T. and Ruth Shafer have established a loan repayment assistance fund for Pepperdine University Caruso School of Law graduates who have entered careers in public service. The Caruso School of Law is grateful to Judge and Mrs. Shafer for their generosity.
These loan repayment programs are exclusively for Caruso School of Law graduates working in qualifying JD-required or JD-advantage public service and public interest positions that meet income limitations as determined by Caruso School of Law.
Only Pepperdine University Caruso School of Law Juris Doctor graduates in qualifying employment are eligible for this program. The qualifying applicant's income level must not exceed the newly expanded, adjusted gross income of $85,000 individually, or the qualifying applicant's combined family income must not exceed an adjusted gross income of $170,000. Eligible graduates may receive loan repayment assistance for a maximum of ten calendar years after completing a full year of eligible employment.
Applicants must apply annually for reimbursement of payments they made toward their student loans the previous calendar year while they were working in qualifying employment and making less than the maximum gross adjusted income. Applicants must certify their employment and provide financial statements to substantiate their student loan payments and income. Applications open in April each year and are due by May 15th, 2025. The application is available on the Loan Repayment Assistance Program webpage. Documents may be submitted electronically or mailed and postmarked on or prior to the year's standard tax deadline.
Application deadline is May 15, 2025.