$1,500 Award | Deadline February 1, 2027

Inner Circle Open Doors Scholarship

A $1,500 scholarship for students who are willing to stop and think about where their decisions are leading, and to write about it.

Apply for the Scholarship

A Note From Bryan Etter

Planning Is a Skill Nobody Teaches You

Every year, young adults make some of the biggest decisions of their lives. Choosing a career. Taking a first real job. Managing money on their own for the first time. Almost nobody asks them to think about where those decisions are leading.

Planning is rarely taught as a skill. For a lot of people, the first honest conversation about the future does not happen until a crisis makes it necessary.

I see a version of this every day at Inner Circle Legal Planning. Most of the families who sit down with me are building a plan only after life has already gotten complicated, a health scare, a new baby, the loss of a parent, rather than before it. I built this firm on a simple belief: showing up for the people you love means preparing before you need to.

That belief applies just as much to a young adult choosing a path or starting a career as it does to a family writing a will or setting up a trust.

I created the Inner Circle Open Doors Scholarship to give students a reason to stop and think about what planning for the future means to them, and why it matters right now, at this stage of their lives. Every student brings a different perspective to that question, shaped by their own goals, family, and experience. I am looking forward to reading yours.

Bryan Etter
Licensed in CT & NY | Member of WealthCounsel

Who Can Apply

Eligibility

This scholarship is open to any student who meets the requirements below, regardless of major or field of study.

You are a current high school senior, vocational student, college student, or graduate student.
You are a legal resident of the United States, residing in one of the 50 states or the District of Columbia.
You have a minimum GPA of 3.0 and are in good overall academic standing.

Employees of Inner Circle Legal Planning, their immediate family members (parent, child, sibling, and spouse), and anyone living in the same household as an employee, whether related or not, are not eligible to apply.

The Essay Prompt

Answer This in 750 to 1,000 Words

What does planning for the future mean to you, and why do you think it matters for young adults?

There is no right answer and no expected major. Write from your own experience.

Your Essay

A 750 to 1,000 word response to the prompt above. Write it in your own voice, about something real in your own life. There is no right answer and no advantage in telling a law firm what you think it wants to hear.

Your Resume

A professional resume covering your academic and professional experience. Include jobs, internships, volunteer work, activities, and any honors you have earned. One or two pages is plenty. It does not need to be designed, only current and accurate.

Your Transcript

A transcript from your current school. First-year college students, graduate students, and recent transfers may send an unofficial transcript along with the most recent official one from their prior school. High school seniors may send proof of acceptance instead.

Selection

How the Winner Is Chosen

Applications close on February 1, 2027. Every entry is read and reviewed against the requirements above.

The recipient of the Inner Circle Open Doors Scholarship will be selected during the month following the application deadline, and the winner will be contacted directly using the email and phone number provided on the application.

We are looking for honest, specific thinking. The strongest essays tend to come from students who write about something real in their own life rather than something they think a law firm wants to hear.

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