Recruitment Strategies: Educational Pipelines and Financial Incentives

A basic tenet of American liberty is that no one is jailed without access to the courts and a lawyer to represent them. But there are many political and practical obstacles to realizing it. Across rural America, one problem lies at the heart of these obstacles: there are no lawyers. 

In 2020, there were roughly four lawyers of any kind for every 1,000 people in America.  But lawyers were concentrated in cities, so that, in about 40% of all counties, there was not even one lawyer per 1,000 people.  In 54 counties there were no lawyers at all.  Rural populations are getting smaller and older,  and when their lawyers retire, they are finding there is no one to replace them. 

In these “legal deserts,” it is difficult for people to get help with everyday issues like reviewing a contract or crises like keeping their home. In criminal legal deserts, the effects are severe and far-reaching; when no lawyer is available to prosecute or defend a case, people stay in jail without legal recourse or are released without consequences. Communities lose trust in the courts.

Fortunately, the medical and educational fields provide proven models for greening criminal legal deserts. To attract criminal lawyers to rural areas, states and their partners should build educational pipelines, starting in high school, or earlier, and offer compelling economic incentives that make rural practice a straightforward choice.

 

A. The Rural Higher Education Gap

A rural upbringing is among the strongest predictors of rural professional practice.[i] Yet, a peculiar paradox decreases the likelihood that people from rural areas will become doctors, lawyers, or even college graduates. On the one hand, rural public high school graduation rates are roughly comparable to suburban rates (89%) and noticeably higher than urban rates (82%).[ii]  On the other hand, rural students are less likely to attend college than students from other areas. Only 71% of rural students enroll in college, as compared to 76% of suburban students, and 73% of urban students.[iii] 

Absent some intervention, this higher-education gap is likely to grow. According to the National Center for Education Statistics, in 2019, only 25% of rural residents and 22% of “town” residents had a bachelor’s degree, as compared to 37% of urban and suburban residents.[iv] This gap is even larger for younger adults—25% of rural adults between 25 and 34 years old have a bachelor’s degree, compared to 44% among the urban young adults.[v]

No single factor accounts for this rural education gap. Sheer access is one factor. Rural students are often geographically isolated from, or entirely deprived of, programs that give them postsecondary credit.[vi] Availing themselves of courses farther afield means contending with a dearth of transportation options[vii] and uncertain access to high-speed internet.[viii] College-readiness is another hurdle. Rural students are less likely to have college-educated parents to guide them through application and attendance.[ix] Their schools may also have fewer resources to help prepare them to apply. For example, a 2016 report found that access to even one counselor can increase four-year college enrollment by 10%,[x] but 14% of rural schools lacked a school counselor (compared to 6% of urban schools),[xi] Besides counselors, rural schools’ smaller budgets may mean more difficulties in recruiting and retaining high quality teachers who can assist their students in making the transition to college.[xii]

Rural students who are reluctant to move from their close-knit communities may have to choose between staying close to home or attending college.[xiii] Rural areas tend to be both physical and online educational deserts.” (Physical education deserts have no college or university, or only one public broad-access community college, within 25 miles. Online education deserts have no broadband access.)[xiv] Indeed, rural residents account for 82% of people who live in the United States’ education deserts.[xv] So, rural students who commit to retaining their rural residence may have to forego a college education.

Rural students can also be priced out of higher education. Higher education costs have grown considerably, such that students borrow, on average, over $35,000 for college[xvi] and over $100,000 for law school.[xvii] These costs may be daunting for rural students. Rural areas, on average, have higher rates of poverty than urban areas, [xviii] and first-time rural college students use financial aid at a higher rate than their urban peers.[xix]


[i] D. G. Patterson, et al., Growing a rural family physician workforce: The contributions of rural background and rural place of residency training, 59 Health Servs. Rsch. 1, (2023); A. B. Parlier, et al., The Road to Rural Primary Care: A Narrative Review of Factors That Help Develop, Recruit, and Retain Rural Primary Care Physicians, 93 Acad. Med. 1, at 130–140 (2018); see also R. L. Phillips, Jr, et al., Specialty and Geographic Distribution of the Physician Workforce: What Influences Medical  Student and Resident Choices?, Robert Graham Ctr., (2009); K. Burbach, UNMC’s impact on rural Nebraska, U. Neb. Med. Ctr., (Jan. 28, 2019) [Last accessed: Jun. 16, 2026].

[ii] For the years 2019-20. National Center for Education Statistics, Public High School Graduation Rates in Rural Areas, (2023) [Last accessed: Jun. 16, 2026]. But, National Center for Education Statistics, Private School Universe Survey for 2021-22, [Last accessed: Jun. 16, 2026]; an opposite trend in private school graduation rates of 94.7% for rural students, 94.6% for suburban students, and 97.4% for “city” students. But rural students are significantly less likely to attend private school than their suburban and urban counterparts. For 2021-22 (the most recent available years), 5.6% of rural elementary and secondary school students attended private schools, as compared to 10.3% of suburban students, and 13.7% of “city” students. National Center for Education Statistics, 205.90 Private School Education, (2023) [Last accessed: Jun. 16, 2026]. In the most remote rural communities, private school enrollment rates were only 2.9%. Id.

[iii] National Center for Education Statistics, 302.46 Enrollment Rates, (2019) [Last accessed: Jun. 16, 2026].

[iv] National Center for Education Statistics, Educational Attainment in Rural Areas, Condition of Education, (2022) [Last accessed: Jun. 16, 2026].

[v] Id. See also A. Sanders, Educational attainment improved in rural America but educational gap with urban areas grew for bachelor's degrees and higher, Charts of Note, USDA Economic Research Service, (Mar. 3, 2023) [Last accessed: Jun. 16, 2026]. “In 2017–21, the share of working-age adults (ages 25–64) with at least a bachelor’s degree was 37 percent in urban areas and 21 percent in rural areas, while the share of younger adults ages 25–44 with at least a bachelor’s degree was 40 percent in urban areas and 22 percent in rural areas.”

[vi] National School Boards Association, Educational Equity for Rural Students: Out of the Pandemic, but Still Out of the Loop, Part 3: Thinking Broadly and Deeply about Rural Student Achievement and Teacher Pipelines, Center for Public Education, at 33 (2023). (discussing unequal access to dual enrollment programs that provide both high school and college credit); P. D. Grant, et al., Access Is Progress: Understanding Rural Secondary Student Access and Outcomes of Advanced Placement Courses, 15 Eur. J. Investig. Health Psych. Educ. 7 (2025). (finding rural schools are significantly less likely to offer Advanced Placement courses).

[vii] U.S. Department of Transportation, The Critical Role of Rural Communities in the U.S. Transportation System, (Mar. 17, 2025) [Last accessed: Jun. 16, 2026].

[viii] E. A. Vogels, Some digital divides persist between rural, urban and suburban America, Pew Research Center, (Aug. 19, 2021) [Last accessed: Jun. 16, 2026].

[ix] D. Quintero & Y. Gu, Rural schools need career counselors, Brookings, (July 13, 2019) [Last accessed: Jun. 16, 2026].

[x] M. Hurwitz & J. Howell, Measuring the Impact of High School Counselors on College Enrollment, College Board Advocacy & Policy Center, (2013).

[xi] D. J. Gagnon & M. J. Mattingly, Most U.S. School Districts Have Low Access to School Counselors, National Issue Brief #108, Carsey School of Public Policy, University of New Hampshire, at 3 (2016).

[xiii] P. J. Carr & M. J. Kefalas, Hollowing out the Middle: The Rural Brain Drain and What It Means for America, (2009); J. Sherman & R. Sage, Sending Off All Your Good Treasures: Rural Schools, Brain-Drain, and Community Survival in the Wake of Economic Collapse - ProQuest, 26 J. of Rsch. in Rural Edu. 11, (2011).

[xiv] Id.

[xvi] M. Hanson, Average Student Loan Debt for a Bachelor’s Degree, Education Data Initiative, (Nov. 24, 2025) [Last accessed: Jun. 16, 2026].

[xvii] LSAC Law School Transparency, Law School Debt in the United States, (2026) [Last accessed: Jun. 16, 2026].

[xviii] T. Farrigan, Data show U.S. poverty rates in 2019 higher in rural areas than in urban for racial/ethnic groups, Charts of Note, USDA Economic Research Service, (Aug. 23, 2021) [Last accessed: Jun. 16, 2026].

[xix] National Center for Education Statistics, Financial Aid: What is the percent of full-time, first-time students awarded financial aid?, Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System, [Last accessed: Jun. 16, 2026].

B. A Roadmap to Effective Strategies for Recruiting Rural Criminal Lawyers

The road to law practice is long and expensive. Would-be lawyers must obtain a college degree, sit the Law School Admission Test (LSAT); gain admission to, then graduate from, law school; take a professional ethics exam; and pass the bar exam. Creating pipelines and financial incentives that bridge these phases is an indispensable step to increasing the number of rural lawyers. Happily, the medical profession has provided a blueprint for these measures. Medical practice, like law practice, requires many years of credentialing, from an undergraduate degree, to a standardized graduate school admissions test, to medical school, to licensure exams, residency, and fellowship. Rural medical candidates have a number of tools to help them navigate this path that their legal counterparts still lack. 

    1.  Educational Pipelines

Successful education pipelines aimed at creating new rural professionals share several common characteristics. Programs with demonstrated success usually rely on strategies that:

  • Engage in targeted outreach to rural students, exposing students to college opportunities, teaching them about professional career pathways, and providing them students with academic readiness courses and college campus tours.
  • Help rural students navigate the complicated college applications process for both admissions and financial aid.
  • Create college-to-graduate school partnerships with graduate schools in rural shortage professions such as healthcare or teaching.[i]
  • Locate a “meaningful portion” of graduate students’ professional education in rural areas.[ii]
  • Offer financial assistance with the costs of college and graduate school.

Many rural professional pipeline programs combine these strategies. Some of the most promising programs are in the medical space, rather than the legal space.

The University of Alabama’s healthcare and dentistry pipelines begin in junior year of high school, with summer coursework for students interested in healthcare and dentistry through the RHS (Rural Health Scholars) and RHDS (Rural Dental Health Scholars) programs. Students come to campus for the summer to take college-level Chemistry and Creative Writing courses. They receive free tuition, books, housing, access to campus facilities, and food. High School Seniors intending to attend college are eligible for the MOORE (Medical Opportunities and Outreach in Rural Education) program. Through MOORE, students again spend a summer at the University of Alabama, enjoying the same benefits available through RHS and RHDS. They take college courses and field trips related to rural medical practice, and receive training in how to succeed in pre-medical majors in college. The MOORE program aims to act as a funnel to the Rural Medical Scholars Program, a pipeline from college to medical school.

Other healthcare pipeline programs begin during a student’s college years, but continue through professional school. The University of Missouri’s Rural Medicine Pathway helps both college students and working professionals from rural backgrounds apply to medical school. Program participants receive regular admissions coaching and are exposed to rural clinical practice. Other incentives and supports include discounted MCAT preparation courses, reimbursement of medical school application fees, and evaluation for a medical school interview.

Some of the most successful programs offer dedicated rural practice tracks. For example, students in University of Illinois’ four-year doctoral pharmacy RPHARM Program have an extensive rural curriculum that includes “six interprofessional elective courses, three rural healthcare professional shadowing experiences, a community-based research project, and three advanced pharmacy practice experiences (APPEs) in a rural Illinois community.”[iii]   RPHARM students also shadow rural pharmacists, attend programs about rural health care issues, such as “Agricultural Hazards, Toxicology, & Farm Safety” and “Rural Ethics Scenarios.” An evaluation of RPHARM’s first decade concluded that between 33 and 57% of RPHARM graduates serve in rural locations.[iv]

At Pennsylvania’s Thomas Jefferson Medical School’s Physician Shortage Area Program (PSAP), there are reserved admissions slots for undergraduates from rural areas who intend to practice rural medicine. PSAP students receive mentoring and help with clinic placements. PSAP graduates are eight times as likely as their peers to become rural family doctors, and 79% of PSAP graduates remain in rural medical practice for 11-16 years.

College- and university-based programs for rural teachers appear likely to produce similar results. The Rural Student Success Initiative (RSSI), at Texas A&M University draws on its AgriLife Extension Service and network of county agents, community leaders, school districts, and national nonprofits. The program provides high school students with campus tours, part-time local college coaches, college fairs, and financial aid application assistance, all with a focus on Texas’ flagship universities, community colleges, and technical schools. RSSI also offers resources to students’ families, teachers, and guidance counselors. While more evaluation is underway, early RSSI results are promising: between 2019 to 2020, ten of the first cohort of 11 rural school districts saw applications to college and postsecondary training increase. In eight schools there was an increase of five percent or greater.

The University of Kansas’ Scholars in Rural Health program offers a college-to-graduate school blueprint that could easily be adapted to recruit rural law scholars. Interested upper class KU college students are assigned to a mentor, who they shadow for 100 hours over the summer. Participants attend regular program meetings and complete a capstone project. Program graduates who receive a satisfactory Medical College Admission Test (MCAT) score are automatically admitted to the University of Kansas Medical Center.

In medical school, the pipeline continues with programming by the KU Medical Center’s Office of Rural Medical Education. 

  • All years: Students can join the Rural Medicine Interest Group, the largest student interest group at KU Medical Center. 
  • First Year: Students can spend a week with a rural family doctor during a Rural Enrichment Week.
  • Second Year: Students can complete clinical training and practice-based research in rural primary care through the Summer Training Option in Rural Medicine (STORM).
  • Third Year: Students can elect a Rural Clerkship (up to six weeks) or Extended Rural Clerkship (up to 12 months) for their required third-year clerkship (clinical experience).
  • Fourth Year: All students are required to complete a month-long Rural Preceptorship, during which they are hosted by one of 200 rural doctors who serve as volunteer faculty, or “preceptors.” Host sites are expected to provide housing. Students can then complete a two-week Rural Family Medicine Elective in a rural community.

Policymakers, educators, and practitioners are slowly realizing the importance of developing their legal pipelines. Scrappy startups have launched rural legal pipeline initiatives often in partnership with state supreme courts, state bar associations, and state legislators. These innovative new programs must be funded, studied, replicated, and scaled to meet the growing national need. They must also be expanded to include a strong focus on pipelines for prosecutors and indigent defense providers.