A Look at Best Value Law Schools
preLaw magazine will be releasing its 2010 rankings of top 20 best value law
schools in its Fall publication due out in October, reports the National Jurist. The publication identified
60 institutions as providing the best law school value for the law school
buck.
It will rank the top 20 according to set criteria and provide details about the balance 40 in its report.
The 2010 report marks a few firsts for the preLaw rankings. It is the first time indebtedness has been taken into account. And, it is the first time the study has been done in consecutive years.
To "make the list" law schools had to satisfy the following criteria:
1. Have a higher bar pass rate than the state average;
2. Put their law students in debt less than $100,000;
3. Show that 85% or more of their J.D.'s found employment within 9 months of graduation; and
4. Charge in-state students less than $35,000 per year.
With the criteria it makes sense that the majority of the honorees are public schools. However, 11 of the 60 total are of the private variety.
In the meanwhile...
While you patiently count down the days until the October publication, you'll be relieved to know that preLaw did reveal the names of all 60 schools it recognized as best value law schools. So while you wait to see the top 20 rankings, below are a few that caught our eyes.
A look at best value law schools:
From the top 20 list
- Brigham Young University
- Phoenix School of Law
- University of Georgia
- University of Kansas
- University of Louisville (Brandeis)
- University of New Mexico
- See full listing
From the balance 40 list
- Arizona State University
- College of William and Mary
- Gonzaga
- Rutgers
- Temple
- UC Davis
- University of Florida
- University of North Carolina - Chapel Hill
- University of Texas
- University of Washington
- Willamette University
- See full listing
Related Resources:
- Magazine Names Best Value Law Schools (ABA Journal)
- Stacking Up Law School to Other Grad Programs (FindLaw's Greedy Associates)
- Law School Admissions Minority Report (FindLaw's Greedy Associates)
- 5 New Law Student Debt Relief Resources...and How to Apply (FindLaw's Greedy Associates)
- J.D. Fasts for Law School Transparency, Day 8 (FindLaw's Greedy Associates)