Scholar Entries - Hispanic Lawyers Scholarship Fund of Illinois

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Are you a past recipient of an Hispanic Lawyers Scholarship Fund award?

Name

Nick Solis Pereda

Current Mailing Address

2226 West Cermak Road
Apt 1R
Chicago, IL 60608
United States
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Phone

(630) 414-5877

Connection to Illinois

Native Illinoisan, born and raised, with every intention to stay.

In what city do you intend to practice law upon graduation?

Chicago

Name of Law School

DePaul University College of Law

Class year

2nd year law student

Full Time or Part Time Student?

Full Time

Date you began attending THIS law school

08/19/2024

Anticipated Graduation Date

05/22/2027

Current GPA

2.678

Name of Undergraduate Institution

Columbia College of Chicago

Degree (BA, BSE, etc.) and Concentration/Major

Bachelors Degree in Music and Audio Engineering

Undergraduate Graduation Date

05/18/2024

GPA

3.35

Undergraduate Honors, Awards, or Special Recognitions

Deans List, Presentation Speaker at Manifest 2024

Were you employed in 2025?

yes

If yes, please identify your employer(s).

Cook County State's Attorney, Maywood Courthouse
Wells & Kappel LLP

What was your immediate family’s (including you and your spouse or domestic partner, if applicable) estimated income from all sources for the 2025 Tax Year?

$12,000

Do you expect to be employed in 2026?

yes

If yes, please identify your employer(s).

Wells & Kappel LLP

Please estimate your immediate family’s (including you and your spouse or domestic partner, if applicable) income from all sources for the 2026 Tax year

$6,000

Please estimate your parent's average annual household income over the last five years

$100,000

Do your parents own or rent their home? Please describe, if necessary

One parent rents, one parent owns

Describe your parents' health insurance situation. Do they have employer-sponsored health insurance, health insurance through the exchange, or no health insurance?

Employer-sponsored health insurance

LIST below your total EXPENSES for attending law school for ONE YEAR (Please refer to example in FAQs)

Total Tuition Cost $

53,716

Books Cost $

1,650

Fees Cost $

508

Housing Cost $

$20,000

Food Cost $

$6,000

Total Expenses $ (add above entries)

81,874

LIST below your total FUNDING sources you plan to use to pay for these expenses (Please refer to example in FAQs)

Student Loans $

83,126

Scholarships and Grants $

35,000

Personal Contribution (Savings/Employment) $

6,000

Family Contribution $ (include parents, spouse, partner, etc.)

Total Funding $ (add above entries)

124,126

For 2Ls and 3Ls, what is your current TOTAL loan debt from the previous law school years?

80,000

Please list any community service activities with which you have been involved in the last ten years, paying particular attention to activities in support of the Hispanic community. For each activity, please include the dates of your participation, a short description of the organization and the community they serve, and a description of the activity you performed to help them. (Please read FAQs before completing)

Volunteer work at a Pilsen food pantry, and volunteer activities within the Puerto Rican Bar Association and DePaul's Latino Law Student Association focused on community clean up and outreach to youths.

Please provide a statement describing your background and focus your statement on your reasons for pursuing a legal career and your legal career goals. This statement is important. Please give it appropriate attention. (min. 1000 characters) (Please read FAQs before completing)

My desire to practice intellectual property and entertainment law is rooted in my personal experience and cultural identity. Before law school, I studied music and audio engineering, which placed me in creative spaces with independent artists and studio engineers. I often saw the imbalance of bargaining power between emerging creators and large entertainment companies, where talented individuals lacked the legal knowledge or resources to protect their work. These experiences shaped my goal of becoming an attorney who ensures creativity is respected and fairly compensated. I aspire to build a reputation as a meticulous and compassionate attorney who advocates for clients while remaining grounded in community engagement. I hope to work at a firm that allows me to develop strong expertise while dedicating time to nonprofit and pro-bono efforts. To me, legal practice is about accessibility and trust as much as transactions or litigation.

My path to law school has been shaped by financial responsibility and resilience. I was raised by a single immigrant mother who sacrificed endlessly for my brother and me, and I learned early that opportunity comes with responsibility. I worked throughout high school, undergrad, and law school to offset expenses and reduce debt. Balancing employment with academics strengthened my discipline and appreciation for every opportunity. My Hispanic heritage is inseparable from my motivation. I was raised in a household where music, food, and family gatherings expressed love and unity. My mother’s journey as an immigrant raising two children alone is my greatest inspiration, teaching me that education is both personal freedom and a tool to uplift others. My brother, an artist like myself, reminds me that passion gives life meaning and fuels my drive to merge creativity with advocacy.

I seek opportunities to serve my community through leadership and volunteering. I am on the executive board of the Latino Law Student Association and a member of my law school’s Law Review editorial board, focusing on mentorship and growth. I also volunteer at local food pantries and organize annual holiday food drives funded through music events that I organize. Receiving this scholarship would ease financial strain and allow me to dedicate more time to service-oriented legal work. I hope to give back to the Hispanic legal community by representing Latin American artists in a global entertainment industry. I strive to be an attorney who understands both the language of contracts and creativity while honoring my heritage and advocating for voices that deserve to be heard.

Please upload a copy of your financial award letter labeled as follows: LastName.FirstName.FinAwardLtr*

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2025-2026-Financial-Aid-Award-Letter.pdf

Please upload a copy of your resume labeled as follows: LastName.FirstName.Resume*

Please upload a copy of your law school transcript labeled as follows: LastName.FirstName.LSTranscript*