Summary: What law schools will leave you the most in debt? The following list may surprise you.
Going to law school is a tough decision for everyone. Not only because it’s a guaranteed three years of your life in mental anguish, but also because the cost combined with the somewhat bleak job outlook would make any rational person pause.
- Related: 2017 U.S. News Best Law Schools List
Fortunately, potential law students can arm themselves with information about how expensive their future law school actually is. U.S. News and World Report analyzed the indebtedness of law school graduates in 2015, and they discovered a huge gap between the school with the highest student debt, Thomas Jefferson School of Law, and the least, University of Hawaii-Manoa. To no one’s surprise, the majority of graduates had student loan debt, but what was shocking about this list was that even the non-top ranked schools came with a heavy price tag for students.
For example, the number one law school with the highest indebtedness was Thomas Jefferson School of Law in San Diego. The expensive school made headlines earlier this year when its former student, Anna Alaburda, sued it for false advertising.The case had been closely watched in the legal community because the alumni claimed she was unable to get an attorney job after graduation and that the school inflated its employment data. The case went to trial and she lost; however, Alaburda may have won another victory. The accusations of Thomas Jefferson graduates not getting jobs combined with the average indebtedness of $172,726 will forever tarnish the school’s reputation to potential students who are able to Google.
Columbia University and New York University were the next law schools with the highest average indebtedness for 2015 graduates. However, unlike Thomas Jefferson, Columbia and NYU are top ranked, which somewhat justifies their students’ indebtedness of $168,627 and $166,022, respectively.
Columbia was the 4th Best Law School on U.S. News 2017 list and 1st on The National Law Journal’s Go-To Law School list. Harrison Barnes of BCG Attorney Search said that Columbia students tend to gravitate towards high-paying law firm jobs, which makes sense because so many of the majors are located nearby.
Like Columbia, New York University has close proximity to major law firms, which is a draw for the 96.7% of students who find employment ten months after graduation.
In addition to compiling indebtedness data, U.S. News ranks the top law schools based on factors such as how hard it is to get in and job prospects. Out of the 2017 list, Arizona State University is the most affordable out of the top 25 schools. Only 55% of its graduates have debt, and the average amount of debt is $106,426, which is much more affordable than Thomas Jefferson. According to JD Journal, ASU in Tempe, AZ offers in-state students a reduced rate of $27,074. Out-of-staters can expect to pay $42,794.
The large percentage of law schools on this list had average student indebtedness in the six figure range, and there was a good portion of schools with students in debt in the $80K and $90K range. On the low end, the cheapest schools still left their students with almost $60K in debt. Those were the University of Nebraska – Lincoln ($58,744), University of South Dakota ($57,170), Belmont University ($56,225), and University of Hawaii – Manoa ($54,988).
| School Name | Location | Average indebtedness of 2015 graduates who incurred law school debt | Percent of grads with debt |
| Thomas Jefferson School of Law | San Diego, CA | $172,726 | 90% |
| Columbia University | New York, NY | $168,627 | 59% |
| New York University | New York, NY | $166,022 | 69% |
| University of San Francisco | San Francisco, CA | $162,434 | 79% |
| The John Marshall Law School | Chicago, IL | $162,264 | 82% |
| California Western School of Law | San Diego, CA | $162,260 | 89% |
| New York Law School | New York, NY | $161,910 | 80% |
| Florida Coastal School of Law | Jacksonville, FL | $160,942 | 94% |
| Georgetown University | Washington, DC | $160,606 | 73% |
| American University (Washington) | Washington, DC | $160,274 | 80% |
| Vermont Law School | South Royalton, VT | $156,710 | 87% |
| University of Miami | Coral Gables, FL | $155,796 | 72% |
| Northwestern University (Pritzker) | Chicago, IL | $155,796 | 78% |
| Cornell University | Ithaca, NY | $155,025 | 77% |
| Tulane University | New Orleans, LA | $153,606 | 65% |
| Harvard University | Cambridge, MA | $149,754 | 72% |
| University of the Pacific (McGeorge) | Sacramento, CA | $149,470 | 83% |
| Fordham University | New York, NY | $149,058 | 60% |
| Pepperdine University | Malibu, CA | $148,959 | 74% |
| Widener University (Commonwealth) | Harrisburg, PA | $148,496 | 91% |
| Whittier College | Costa Mesa, CA | $148,316 | 84% |
| Loyola Marymount University | Los Angeles, CA | $148,035 | 80% |
| University of Virginia | Charlottesville, VA | $146,907 | 71% |
| Charleston School of Law | Charleston, SC | $146,230 | 65% |
| University of California-Berkeley | Berkeley, CA | $144,981 | 72% |
| University of Pennsylvania | Philadelphia, PA | $144,153 | 74% |
| Santa Clara University | Santa Clara, CA | $144,130 | 65% |
| Golden Gate University | San Francisco, CA | $143,740 | 88% |
| University of Michigan-Ann Arbor | Ann Arbor, MI | $142,572 | 76% |
| Howard University | Washington, DC | $141,044 | 90% |
| Lewis & Clark College (Northwestern) | Portland, OR | $140,025 | 81% |
| The Catholic University of America | Washington, DC | $139,803 | 75% |
| Syracuse University | Syracuse, NY | $139,753 | 88% |
| Suffolk University | Boston, MA | $138,724 | 81% |
| Mercer University (George) | Macon, GA | $138,575 | 88% |
| Marquette University | Milwaukee, WI | $138,549 | 86% |
| Barry University | Orlando, FL | $138,410 | 88% |
| University of Detroit Mercy | Detroit, MI | $137,047 | 62% |
| Widener University | Wilmington, DE | $136,992 | 88% |
| Seattle University | Seattle, WA | $136,889 | 82% |
| George Washington University | Washington, DC | $136,662 | 70% |
| University of California (Hastings) | San Francisco, CA | $135,886 | 90% |
| Baylor University | Waco, TX | $135,817 | 65% |
| University of San Diego | San Diego, CA | $135,433 | 81% |
| University of Southern California (Gould) | Los Angeles, CA | $134,673 | 70% |
| Ave Maria School of Law | Naples, FL | $134,071 | 77% |
| Willamette University (Collins) | Salem, OR | $133,318 | 80% |
| Loyola University Chicago | Chicago, IL | $133,052 | 85% |
| Seton Hall University | Newark, NJ | $133,000 | 69% |
| Stanford University | Stanford, CA | $132,970 | 79% |
| University of Denver (Sturm) | Denver, CO | $132,158 | 77% |
| DePaul University | Chicago, IL | $131,148 | 84% |
| Duke University | Durham, NC | $131,073 | 68% |
| Valparaiso University | Valparaiso, IN | $131,024 | 94% |
| Stetson University | Gulfport, FL | $130,079 | 82% |
| Pennsylvania State University-University Park | University Park, PA | $129,772 | 81% |
| University of Chicago | Chicago, IL | $129,636 | 68% |
| Mississippi College | Jackson, MS | $129,000 | 70% |
| Elon University | Greensboro, NC | $128,407 | 86% |
| Northeastern University | Boston, MA | $127,406 | 72% |
| University of California-Irvine | Irvine, CA | $125,473 | 71% |
| Gonzaga University | Spokane, WA | $125,347 | 79% |
| Hofstra University (Deane) | Hempstead, NY | $125,300 | 77% |
| Albany Law School | Albany, NY | $125,157 | 88% |
| Pace University | White Plains, NY | $124,823 | 86% |
| Southern Methodist University (Dedman) | Dallas, TX | $124,723 | 81% |
| Loyola University New Orleans | New Orleans, LA | $124,143 | 78% |
| Samford University (Cumberland) | Birmingham, AL | $124,106 | 96% |
| Nova Southeastern University (Broad) | Fort Lauderdale, FL | $123,798 | 95% |
| Roger Williams University | Bristol, RI | $123,332 | 84% |
| University of Notre Dame | Notre Dame, IN | $122,822 | 72% |
| Yale University | New Haven, CT | $122,796 | 76% |
| St. Mary’s University | San Antonio, TX | $122,560 | 89% |
| Western State College of Law at Argosy University | Irvine, CA | $122,315 | 64% |
| George Mason University | Arlington, VA | $121,910 | 76% |
| South Texas College of Law | Houston, TX | $121,767 | 75% |
| Oklahoma City University | Oklahoma City, OK | $121,607 | 71% |
| Emory University | Atlanta, GA | $121,278 | 69% |
| Yeshiva University (Cardozo) | New York, NY | $119,294 | 70% |
| University of California-Los Angeles | Los Angeles, CA | $118,874 | 73% |
| University of Illinois-Urbana-Champaign | Champaign, IL | $118,731 | 71% |
| Creighton University | Omaha, NE | $117,980 | 91% |
| Pennsylvania State University (Dickinson) | Carlisle, PA | $116,717 | 74% |
| Capital University | Columbus, OH | $116,283 | 84% |
| University of Dayton | Dayton, OH | $115,740 | 89% |
| St. John’s University | Jamaica, NY | $115,666 | 78% |
| Campbell University | Raleigh, NC | $115,128 | 83% |
| Illinois Institute of Technology (Chicago-Kent) | Chicago, IL | $115,040 | 80% |
| University of Maryland (Carey) | Baltimore, MD | $114,493 | 68% |
| Vanderbilt University | Nashville, TN | $114,447 | 70% |
| University of California-Davis | Davis, CA | $113,765 | 72% |
| St. Louis University | St. Louis, MO | $113,070 | 82% |
| Boston College | Newton, MA | $112,439 | 72% |
| University of Baltimore | Baltimore, MD | $112,008 | 82% |
| University of Washington | Seattle, WA | $111,003 | 73% |
| Villanova University | Villanova, PA | $110,792 | 72% |
| University of Richmond | Richmond, VA | $110,665 | 63% |
| College of William and Mary (Marshall-Wythe) | Williamsburg, VA | $110,140 | 80% |
| Washington and Lee University | Lexington, VA | $110,067 | 76% |
| Washington University in St. Louis | St. Louis, MO | $109,232 | 61% |
| Brooklyn Law School | Brooklyn, NY | $108,942 | 75% |
| University of New Hampshire School of Law | Concord, NH | $108,896 | 80% |
| William Mitchell College of Law* | St. Paul, MN | $108,678 | 88% |
| University of the District of Columbia (Clarke) | Washington, DC | $108,095 | 71% |
| Drake University | Des Moines, IA | $107,649 | 83% |
| Hamline University* | St. Paul, MN | $107,359 | 90% |
| University of Colorado-Boulder | Boulder, CO | $107,080 | 71% |
| University of Oregon | Eugene, OR | $106,540 | 84% |
| Arizona State University (O’Connor) | Tempe, AZ | $106,426 | 55% |
| Indiana University-Indianapolis (McKinney) | Indianapolis, IN | $106,114 | 83% |
| Case Western Reserve University | Cleveland, OH | $105,854 | 75% |
| Duquesne University | Pittsburgh, PA | $104,623 | 90% |
| University of Pittsburgh | Pittsburgh, PA | $104,484 | 79% |
| Texas A&M University | Fort Worth, TX | $104,200 | 88% |
| Chapman University (Fowler) | Orange, CA | $103,956 | 81% |
| University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill | Chapel Hill, NC | $102,828 | 72% |
| University of Massachusetts-Dartmouth | North Dartmouth, MA | $102,603 | 88% |
| Ohio Northern University (Pettit) | Ada, OH | $102,414 | 84% |
| Boston University | Boston, MA | $102,329 | 73% |
| University of Texas-Austin | Austin, TX | $102,101 | 68% |
| University of St. Thomas | Minneapolis, MN | $101,950 | 73% |
| University of Arizona (Rogers) | Tucson, AZ | $100,902 | 69% |
| Drexel University (Kline) | Philadelphia, PA | $100,362 | 81% |
| University of Maine | Portland, ME | $99,617 | 73% |
| Wake Forest University | Winston-Salem, NC | $97,550 | 88% |
| Quinnipiac University | Hamden, CT | $97,335 | 86% |
| University of Missouri-Kansas City | Kansas City, MO | $96,639 | 83% |
| Ohio State University (Moritz) | Columbus, OH | $96,253 | 83% |
| Lincoln Memorial University | Knoxville, TN | $95,495 | 60% |
| Florida International University | Miami, FL | $95,331 | 85% |
| University of Toledo | Toledo, OH | $94,295 | 88% |
| Cleveland State University (Cleveland-Marshall) | Cleveland, OH | $93,865 | 81% |
| Michigan State University | East Lansing, MI | $93,245 | 77% |
| Regent University | Virginia Beach, VA | $93,142 | 92% |
| University of Minnesota | Minneapolis, MN | $92,179 | 72% |
| Indiana University-Bloomington (Maurer) | Bloomington, IN | $91,020 | 77% |
| Southern Illinois University-Carbondale | Carbondale, IL | $90,727 | 92% |
| Louisiana State University-Baton Rouge (Hebert) | Baton Rouge, LA | $90,609 | 74% |
| University of Houston | Houston, TX | $87,602 | 69% |
| Temple University (Beasley) | Philadelphia, PA | $86,999 | 83% |
| SUNY Buffalo Law School | Buffalo, NY | $86,970 | 75% |
| University of Louisville (Brandeis) | Louisville, KY | $86,880 | 79% |
| Southern University Law Center | Baton Rouge, LA | $86,708 | 94% |
| Washburn University | Topeka, KS | $86,621 | 84% |
| University of Georgia | Athens, GA | $86,515 | 82% |
| University of Iowa | Iowa City, IA | $86,373 | 77% |
| West Virginia University | Morgantown, WV | $85,063 | 88% |
| Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey | $85,054 | 66% | |
| University of South Carolina | Columbia, SC | $85,006 | 78% |
| Northern Kentucky University (Chase) | Highland Heights, KY | $84,714 | 39% |
| University of Wisconsin-Madison | Madison, WI | $84,650 | 76% |
| University of Florida (Levin) | Gainesville, FL | $84,580 | 73% |
| University of Cincinnati | Cincinnati, OH | $82,988 | 78% |
| University of Tulsa | Tulsa, OK | $82,954 | 100% |
| University of Oklahoma | Norman, OK | $82,818 | 78% |
| Wayne State University | Detroit, MI | $82,397 | 77% |
| Florida State University | Tallahassee, FL | $82,102 | 84% |
| University of Idaho | Moscow, ID | $81,993 | 85% |
| University of Nevada-Las Vegas | Las Vegas, NV | $81,579 | 81% |
| University of Missouri | Columbia, MO | $81,149 | 83% |
| University of Kansas | Lawrence, KS | $80,884 | 81% |
| University of Montana | Missoula, MT | $79,304 | 80% |
| University of Utah (Quinney) | Salt Lake City, UT | $79,124 | 82% |
| University of Akron | Akron, OH | $78,575 | 84% |
| Northern Illinois University | De Kalb, IL | $77,975 | 85% |
| University of Kentucky | Lexington, KY | $77,793 | 72% |
| University of Memphis (Humphreys) | Memphis, TN | $77,752 | 74% |
| CUNY | Long Island City, NY | $77,751 | 86% |
| University of Wyoming | Laramie, WY | $77,421 | 88% |
| University of Alabama | Tuscaloosa, AL | $74,921 | 69% |
| Texas Tech University | Lubbock, TX | $74,673 | 75% |
| University of Mississippi | University, MS | $71,330 | 78% |
| University of New Mexico | Albuquerque, NM | $69,366 | 87% |
| University of Connecticut | Hartford, CT | $69,195 | 79% |
| University of North Dakota | Grand Forks, ND | $69,058 | 77% |
| University of Arkansas-Little Rock (Bowen) | Little Rock, AR | $68,960 | 77% |
| Liberty University | Lynchburg, VA | $68,667 | 84% |
| University of Tennessee-Knoxville | Knoxville, TN | $66,939 | 78% |
| Georgia State University | Atlanta, GA | $66,637 | 78% |
| University of Arkansas-Fayetteville | Fayetteville, AR | $64,901 | 74% |
| Brigham Young University (Clark) | Provo, UT | $62,423 | 68% |
| University of Nebraska-Lincoln | Lincoln, NE | $58,744 | 70% |
| University of South Dakota | Vermillion, SD | $57,170 | 83% |
| Belmont University | Nashville, TN | $56,225 | 78% |
| University of Hawaii-Manoa (Richardson) | Honolulu, HI | $54,988 | 75% |
Source: U.S. News and World Report
- Related: Business Insider’s List of the Best Law Schools
- Related: Best Law Schools by Salary Potential
What do you think of the price of law school? Let us know in the comments below.