Competition for admission is not limited to undergraduates; prospective graduate students also face stiff challenges. The legal profession is no exception, with top law schools demanding high GPAs and competitive LSAT scores, among other factors. For aspiring law students, gaining entry into a prestigious law school is daunting, as exemplified by the 12 law schools with the lowest acceptance rates.
Data from the American Bar Association on 196 U.S. News ranked law schools for fall 2022 revealed that the national average acceptance rate was 41%. However, this figure pales in comparison to the 11% rounded average acceptance rate among the 12 most selective law schools.
Renowned for its academic excellence, Yale Law School emerged as the most exclusive law school among the 12, admitting only a single-digit percentage of applicants. Close on its heels was Stanford Law School in California, boasting a similarly challenging 7% acceptance rate, accepting just 336 students out of a staggering 4,882 applicants.
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While some may find solace in the knowledge that the University of Michigan—Ann Arbor Law School and the University of Chicago Law School held the highest acceptance rates among the 12, each at 14%, these figures still illustrate the rigorous competition that candidates face.
Looking beyond these 12 institutions, the University of North Dakota School of Law took the spotlight with the highest acceptance rate among all law schools in fall 2022, standing at an astonishing 73%. This resulted in 274 out of 377 applicants securing admission, showcasing a sharp contrast to the stringent entry requirements of the top law schools.
Among the 12 law schools with the lowest acceptance rates, only three were public institutions: the University of Michigan, the University of Virginia, and the University of California, Berkeley. California emerged as the leader in hosting such highly selective law schools, claiming three spots on the list, followed closely by Massachusetts with two.
The 12 law schools with the lowest-rounded acceptance rates for the fall 2022 intake are as follows:
- Yale Law School 6%
- Stanford Law School 7%
- Boston College Law School 10%
- Harvard Law School 10%
- University of Pennsylvania Carey Law School 10%
- Duke University School of Law 11%
- Columbia Law School 12%
- University of California, Berkeley School of Law 12%
- University of Southern California Gould School of Law 13%
- University of Virginia School of Law 13%
- University of Chicago Law School 14%
- University of Michigan—Ann Arbor Law School 14%
For aspiring law students, the road to success involves a relentless pursuit of academic excellence and outstanding LSAT scores. Understanding the competitive landscape and the standards these top law schools set is vital in charting a path towards a rewarding legal career. With such fierce competition in the legal education domain, aspiring lawyers must prepare themselves thoroughly and take advantage of all available resources to gain admission into their dream law schools.
See the full details here: 12 Law Schools That Are Hardest to Get Into