People love to ridicule this profession, but they should well remember that many of America’s presidents were lawyers. Usually after nearly a decade of intense training, lawyers perform an important and difficult service: tending the rule of law.
The rule of law is perhaps the difference between order and chaos. While the U.S. legal system is by no means perfect — the institution may work in favor of those with the power to direct its authority, for example — any justice that is to take place rests on the bedrock of these rules. And it is always evolving. The law of the land must be constantly written and rewritten, interpreted and deployed, to keep up with societal shifts and resolve disputes.
Hundreds of law schools churn out an army of lawyers to courtrooms, offices, classrooms, and corporate boardrooms across the United States. Various academic institutions accept hundreds of thousands of applications every year, and not all have the same quality and prestige.
24/7 Wall St. reviewed data — including LSAT scores, average GPA of accepted applicants, and acceptance rates — for over 200 top law schools from the American Bar Association to determine the hardest law schools to get into.
Click here to see the hardest law schools to get into.
Click here to see our detailed findings and methodology.
Source: Thinkstock
50. University of Nevada-Las Vegas
> Acceptance rate: 34.4%
> No. of applicants: 665
> Median GPA: 3.52
> Median LSAT: 157
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Source: Thinkstock
49. Arizona State University
> Acceptance rate: 41.9%
> No. of applicants: 1,860
> Median GPA: 3.64
> Median LSAT: 161
Source: Piotrus-Wikimedia Commons
48. Northeastern University
> Acceptance rate: 38.2%
> No. of applicants: 2,951
> Median GPA: 3.55
> Median LSAT: 161
Source: Nightryder84-Wikimedia Commons
47. University of Tennessee
> Acceptance rate: 36.5%
> No. of applicants: 1,003
> Median GPA: 3.59
> Median LSAT: 158
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Source: Jackson Myers/Flickr
46. Florida State University
> Acceptance rate: 34.3%
> No. of applicants: 1,855
> Median GPA: 3.52
> Median LSAT: 159
Source: https://www.flickr.com/photos/evandidier/
45. Boston College
> Acceptance rate: 37.1%
> No. of applicants: 4,520
> Median GPA: 3.50
> Median LSAT: 163
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Source: Wikimedia Commons
44. Indiana University-Bloomington
> Acceptance rate: 41.6%
> No. of applicants: 1,633
> Median GPA: 3.71
> Median LSAT: 161
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Source: Howchou / Wikimedia Commons
43. Fordham University
> Acceptance rate: 37.4%
> No. of applicants: 4,637
> Median GPA: 3.53
> Median LSAT: 163
Source: Michael Barera-Wikimedia Commons
42. Baylor University
> Acceptance rate: 33.3%
> No. of applicants: 2,904
> Median GPA: 3.55
> Median LSAT: 159
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Source: https://www.flickr.com/photos/kenlund/
41. Georgia State University
> Acceptance rate: 27.3%
> No. of applicants: 1,952
> Median GPA: 3.41
> Median LSAT: 158
Source: Fisher uhoustonlib-Wikimedia commons
40. University of Houston
> Acceptance rate: 32.3%
> No. of applicants: 2,508
> Median GPA: 3.53
> Median LSAT: 159
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Source: Wikimedia Commons
39. Southern Methodist University
> Acceptance rate: 39.0%
> No. of applicants: 1,831
> Median GPA: 3.67
> Median LSAT: 161
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Source: Thinkstock
38. University Florida
> Acceptance rate: 35.6%
> No. of applicants: 2,703
> Median GPA: 3.60
> Median LSAT: 160
Source: Thinkstock
37. University of Minnesota
> Acceptance rate: 44.5%
> No. of applicants: 1,960
> Median GPA: 3.76
> Median LSAT: 164
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Source: Jaren Wilkey-Wikimedia Commons
36. Brigham Young University
> Acceptance rate: 43.8%
> No. of applicants: 436
> Median GPA: 3.80
> Median LSAT: 162
Source: Wikimedia Commons
35. University of Arizona
> Acceptance rate: 34.5%
> No. of applicants: 1,392
> Median GPA: 3.57
> Median LSAT: 161
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Source: Wikimedia Commons
34. William and Mary law school
> Acceptance rate: 40.6%
> No. of applicants: 4,227
> Median GPA: 3.75
> Median LSAT: 162
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Source: https://www.flickr.com/people/stuseeger/
33. Texas A&M University
> Acceptance rate: 23.9%
> No. of applicants: 1,893
> Median GPA: 3.41
> Median LSAT: 157
Source: Bev Sykes-Wikimedia Commons
32. University of California-Davis
> Acceptance rate: 32.8%
> No. of applicants: 2,852
> Median GPA: 3.52
> Median LSAT: 163
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Source: https://www.flickr.com/people/48417175@N00
31. University of Richmond
> Acceptance rate: 31.0%
> No. of applicants: 1,872
> Median GPA: 3.55
> Median LSAT: 161
Source: Comayagua99-Wikimedia Commons
30. Florida International University
> Acceptance rate: 28.7%
> No. of applicants: 1,901
> Median GPA: 3.64
> Median LSAT: 156
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Source: Ingfbruno-Wikimedia Commons
29. George Washington University
> Acceptance rate: 38.9%
> No. of applicants: 6,943
> Median GPA: 3.71
> Median LSAT: 165
Source: https://www.flickr.com/photos/kenlund/
28. University of Colorado
> Acceptance rate: 34.3%
> No. of applicants: 3,280
> Median GPA: 3.69
> Median LSAT: 162
Source: Wikimedia Commons
27. University of California-Irvine
> Acceptance rate: 27.2%
> No. of applicants: 2,035
> Median GPA: 3.54
> Median LSAT: 163
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Source: Daniel Mayer-Wikimedia Commons
26. Emory University
> Acceptance rate: 36.9%
> No. of applicants: 4,016
> Median GPA: 3.78
> Median LSAT: 165
Source: Josh Hallett / Flickr
25. University of Georgia
> Acceptance rate: 29.5%
> No. of applicants: 2,225
> Median GPA: 3.73
> Median LSAT: 162
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Source: Photo by Conor Doherty for Boston University Photography
24. Boston University
> Acceptance rate: 29.3%
> No. of applicants: 4,804
> Median GPA: 3.68
> Median LSAT: 164
Source: Thinkstock
23. University of Notre dame
> Acceptance rate: 30.3%
> No. of applicants: 2,612
> Median GPA: 3.71
> Median LSAT: 164
Source: Business Insider
22. Vanderbilt University
> Acceptance rate: 32.3%
> No. of applicants: 4,380
> Median GPA: 3.70
> Median LSAT: 167
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Source: goodfreephotos.com
21. Washington University
> Acceptance rate: 31.9%
> No. of applicants: 4,113
> Median GPA: 3.67
> Median LSAT: 168
Source: Thinkstock
20. University of Washington
> Acceptance rate: 26.9%
> No. of applicants: 2,517
> Median GPA: 3.68
> Median LSAT: 163
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Source: Warconstruction.com
19. University of Alabama
> Acceptance rate: 31.5%
> No. of applicants: 1,624
> Median GPA: 3.82
> Median LSAT: 163
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Source: Nicolas Tan-Wikimedia Commons
18. George Mason University
> Acceptance rate: 23.8%
> No. of applicants: 2,587
> Median GPA: 3.66
> Median LSAT: 162
Source: Padsquad19-Wikimedia Commons
17. University of Southern California
> Acceptance rate: 30.0%
> No. of applicants: 4,526
> Median GPA: 3.76
> Median LSAT: 165
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Source: Jr1038-Wikimedia Commons
16. University of Texas at Austin
> Acceptance rate: 27.1%
> No. of applicants: 4,424
> Median GPA: 3.70
> Median LSAT: 16
Source: Wikimedia Commons
15. University of California-Los Angeles
> Acceptance rate: 28.0%
> No. of applicants: 5,353
> Median GPA: 3.74
> Median LSAT: 167
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Source: Jonathan71-Wikimedia Commons
14. New York University
> Acceptance rate: 29.8%
> No. of applicants: 6,245
> Median GPA: 3.81
> Median LSAT: 169
Source: Wikipedia
13. Cornell University
> Acceptance rate: 24.1%
> No. of applicants: 4,101
> Median GPA: 3.73
> Median LSAT: 167
Source: Thinkstock
12. University of California-Berkeley
> Acceptance rate: 24.9%
> No. of applicants: 5,336
> Median GPA: 3.79
> Median LSAT: 166
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Source: Daderot-Wikimedia Commons
11. Georgetown University
> Acceptance rate: 23.5%
> No. of applicants: 9,862
> Median GPA: 3.77
> Median LSAT: 167
Source: Thinkstock
10. University of Michigan
> Acceptance rate: 23.7%
> No. of applicants: 5,076
> Median GPA: 3.78
> Median LSAT: 168
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9. Duke University
> Acceptance rate: 20.2%
> No. of applicants: 5,095
> Median GPA: 3.76
> Median LSAT: 169
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Source: Thinkstock
8. Columbia University
> Acceptance rate: 20.8%
> No. of applicants: 5,877
> Median GPA: 3.70
> Median LSAT: 172
Source: Madcoverboy-Wikimedia Commons
7. Northwestern University
> Acceptance rate: 17.8%
> No. of applicants: 4,625
> Median GPA: 3.81
> Median LSAT: 168
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Source: Mark Lagola and Ben Lunsford-Wikimedia Commons
6. University of Virginia
> Acceptance rate: 19.9%
> No. of applicants: 4,794
> Median GPA: 3.86
> Median LSAT: 169
Source: Wikimedia Commons
5. University of Chicago
> Acceptance rate: 20.7%
> No. of applicants: 4,380
> Median GPA: 3.90
> Median LSAT: 170
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Source: Thinkstock
4. University of Pennsylvania
> Acceptance rate: 17.0%
> No. of applicants: 5,593
> Median GPA: 3.90
> Median LSAT: 169
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Source: Joseph Williams / Wikimedia Commons
3. Harvard University
> Acceptance rate: 16.6%
> No. of applicants: 5,454
> Median GPA: 3.86
> Median LSAT: 172
Source: Thinkstock
2. Stanford University
> Acceptance rate: 10.7%
> No. of applicants: 3,821
> Median GPA: 3.87
> Median LSAT: 171
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Source: Thinkstock
1. Yale University
> Acceptance rate: 9.5%
> No. of applicants: 2,735
> Median GPA: 3.89
> Median LSAT: 173
Detailed Findings
There are around 780,000 lawyers in the United States, and the typical lawyer earns well over $100,000 annually. As is generally the case for other degrees, graduates of some institutions tend to earn more than others, and this is often tied to how much students end up paying to receive that education. Of the 50 hardest law schools to get into, 23 report average tuition for full-time students of over $50,000 per school year. Only one of the 50 bottom-ranked schools costs so much.
For the privilege of paying to attend some of these schools, one must first be accepted. LSAT scores and GPA of prospective students were factors in this ranking, but the acceptance rate is the main determination of how difficult it is to attend a given school. Fifteen of these 50 law schools accept fewer than 25% of applicants. None of the 50 accept more than half of people who wish to attend.
At the same time, because Americans interested in becoming lawyers typically apply to numerous schools, only a few of these top school report matriculation rates greater than 50%. Yale University, Harvard University, Brigham Young University, and the University of Nevada are the only institutions on this list where accepted students are more likely than not to actually attend the school.
Methodology
To determine the hardest law schools to get into, 24/7 Wall St. constructed an index using data from the American Bar Association. Half the index relied on a law school’s acceptance rate. The other half of the index consisted of the median LSAT score and median undergraduate GPA of those accepted to the school.
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