The University of Idaho College of Law (Idaho Law) is thrilled to share the difference its school makes compared to general trends in enrollment across the board. While most schools are not only enrolling fewer students, but receiving 17.9 fewer applications, Idaho showed a rise of 11.9 percent increase in applications, with 685 complete applications in 2013, up from 580.
Of course, the school attributes this to the excellence of their program. Demographic contingencies could play a part as well: Idaho has a paucity of law programs, as compared to, say New York, and their school is a third tier ranking school, after all.
Nevertheless, their school boasted of their excellence, saying, “the excellence of our programs comes from the combined efforts of many people,” as Michael Satz, interim dean, said. “But the end result is that a law degree from the University of Idaho provides countless opportunities and a promising future. We are excited to welcome Idaho Law’s class of 2016 into our community.”
Not only did the school enroll 110 new first year students in 2013, up from 102 in 2012, but a higher percentage of them were women as well, comparing the same two years.
“Law school is a serious investment and even with scholarships offered by other schools, students selected Idaho Law because our tuition is the 13th most affordable in the country and our employment prospects are encouraging,” said Jeffrey A. Dodge, the associate dean who oversees admissions at Idaho Law. “We worked hard to promote the quality of our faculty and academic program during the last admissions cycle. We couldn’t be more thrilled to see increases in applications and enrolled students.”
Utterly thrilled as they are, their school promoters attribute the success to “excellence” in general, noting that a greater number of graduates passed the bar in 2012 as compared to 2011, and more were placed in legal positions. Nevertheless, they are no longer the only game in town, as the one law school of Idaho (with a 3L program split up and separated into Boise, which is about to expand), but Concordia University School of Law has also set itself up as the second law school in Idaho. The modest of that university, though their enrollment is down after their opening year, and the expansion of Idaho Law’s own second location in Boise, suggest that Idaho hasn’t saturated the market with law schools, unlike some other states and cities. Idaho Law is situated to be a successful university despite market turgidity.