Law School Rankings
Law school rankings matter because what school
you attend (1) predicts your likelihood of
completing the program and passing the bar, and
(2) is used by others to evaluate your abilities.
It is true that the best students go to
the best schools and get the best jobs.
Everyone assumes that for the most part, students
attend the best school they can and that if you
didn't attend a Tier One program that's because
you're not Tier One material. That may be a false
assumption and a hasty generalization,
but...that's life.
At this point, this may not matter much to
you. You may not be planning a career that
requires you attend the best law school.
Nonetheless, you should still consider going to
the best law school with the best reputation in
your field. It will always open more doors and
you cannot necessarily predict your future
desires. It's easy to move down, but very
difficult to move up. You may want to be a public
defender today, but in ten years, you may have
your eye on being a judge. It will be a whole lot
easier to be appointed to the bench with a Tier
One law school behind you than a Tier Two (or
Three or Four)--if it is possible at all.
Finally, don't take rankings too seriously.
They are important, but only as general guides.
Some schools are better at certain things than
are others. Some schools have a strong local
reputation. And, rankings disagree. Overall, it's
a general guide that can help you make an
informed decision.
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Accredited law schools are typically grouped
into four different 'tiers'. Ranking is
determined by a schools reputation among law
professors, the GPAs and LSAT scores of the
entering class, the percentage that graduate and
pass the bar, and so forth.
According to U.S. News and World Report (a
more-or-less respected source for graduate
program rankings), here are the rankings for
Southern California.
Tier One:
#16, UCLA Law School
#18, USC Law School
Tier Two:
None
Tier Three:
Loyola Law School
Pepperdine Law School
Southwestern University School of Law
Tier Four:
Whittier
In the rest of California, there are
four other Tier One law programs: #2, Stanford;
#9, Berkeley; #32, UC Davis; #36, UC Hastings
(S.F.). The only Tier Two law school in
California is University of San Diego. Santa
Clara and the University of San Francisco are
Tier Three schools.
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Suppose you were accepted to a local Tier
Three law program, but to a school with a
substantially higher ranking out of state. Which
should you choose?
It depends on two factors: your career goals
and where you desire to live. All things
considered, you should attend a law program in
the geographical region in which you intend to
live. Schools have regional reputations and
this makes finding work and making contacts
easier. On the other hand, your career goals may
require a school with a stronger reputation. If
possible, try to stay in the state.
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