Best law schools for public service

If you’re drawn to justice, equity or community impact, public service law may be the path you’re looking for, even if you don’t know exactly what it means yet.

At its core, public service in the legal profession is about using your legal skills to serve the greater good. That can look like representing low-income clients who can’t afford legal counsel, working in government to help develop fair policy or advocating for civil rights.

Public service lawyers work in many different environments: legal aid organizations, nonprofits, advocacy groups, government agencies and even the judiciary. Their roles vary, but they’re united by a common thread: a commitment to advancing justice for individuals and communities who are often underserved or marginalized.

CUNY Law earns the top spot in our latest ranking for Best Schools for Public Interest with Northeastern University School of Law at No. 2 and University of California Davis School of Law at No. 3.

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As the only law school located in New York State’s capital, Albany Law School benefits from unmatched proximity to state government institutions, including the governor’s office, legislature, courts and key agencies. We rank the law school No. 1 for Best School in Government.

Public service also branches into criminal law, with public defenders and prosecutors. We rank University of the District of Columbia David A. Clarke School of Law at No. 1, Brooklyn Law School at No. 2 and Case Western Reserve University School of Law at No. 3 for criminal law.

Read the full story here.

Best Schools for Public Service

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Category :

Rank	Category	School	Employment %	Final GPA
1	Public Interest	CUNY School of Law	54	4.2
2	Public Interest	Northeastern University	25	4.1
3	Public Interest	University District of Columbia	24	4.0
4	Public Interest	UC Davis School of Law	19	4.0
5	Public Interest	Yale Law	18	3.9
6	Public Interest	Roger Williams University	15	3.9
7	Public Interest	Seattle University	17	3.8
8	Public Interest	UC Berkeley	17	3.8
9	Public Interest	UCLA Law	15	3.8
10	Public Interest	Northern Illinois University	15	3.7
11	Public Interest	New York University	20	3.6
12	Public Interest	University of Oregon	16	3.6
13	Public Interest	UC Law SF	12	3.6
14	Public Interest	University of Washington	13	3.5
15	Public Interest	Temple University	11	3.5
16	Public Interest	Cardozo School of Law	12	3.4
17	Public Interest	Stanford Law School	15	3.4
18	Public Interest	Gonzaga University	12	3.3
19	Public Interest	University of Pennsylvania	9	3.3
20	Public Interest	Ohio State University	8	3.3
21	Public Interest	Case Western Reserve U.	11	3.3
22	Public Interest	University of Nebraska	11	3.3
23	Public Interest	Loyola University New Orleans	8	3.2
24	Public Interest	University of St. Thomas - Mn.	11	3.2
25	Public Interest	Loyola University Chicago	10	3.2
26	Public Interest	Western New England U.	13	3.2
27	Public Interest	Georgetown University	10	3.1
1	Government	Albany Law School	28	4.0
2	Government	George Mason University	20	3.9
3	Government	University District of Columbia	27	3.9
4	Government	McGeorge School of Law	19	3.8
5	Government	New York Law School	19	3.8
6	Government	Florida State University	21	3.7
7	Government	Indiana McKinney	22	3.7
8	Government	University Arkansas Little Rock	21	3.7
9	Government	Washburn University	20	3.6
10	Government	Regent University	25	3.5
11	Government	Widener Law Commonwealth	24	3.4
12	Government	Oklahoma City University	20	3.4
13	Government	Penn State - Dickinson Law	19	3.2
14	Government	Faulkner Law	21	3.1
15	Government	Catholic University	22	3.1
16	Government	George Washington University	16	3.1
17	Government	University of North Dakota	19	3.1
18	Government	Capital University	16	3.0
19	Government	University of Wisconsin	17	3.0
20	Government	Southern Univ. Law Center	22	2.9
1	Criminal	University District of Columbia	50	3.9
2	Criminal	Brooklyn Law School	27	3.9
3	Criminal	Case Western Reserve U.	27	3.9
4	Criminal	Oklahoma City University	30	3.9
5	Criminal	Albany Law School	39	3.9
6	Criminal	Northern Illinois University	35	3.9
7	Criminal	University of New Mexico	39	3.9
8	Criminal	University of Wisconsin	31	3.9
9	Criminal	New York Law School	27	3.8
10	Criminal	UC Berkeley	22	3.7
11	Criminal	University of Dayton	33	3.7
12	Criminal	University Buffalo School of Law	30	3.7
13	Criminal	CUNY School of Law	72	3.7
14	Criminal	Yale Law	25	3.7
15	Criminal	Indiana McKinney	32	3.6
16	Criminal	Lewis & Clark Law School	35	3.6
17	Criminal	Seattle University	35	3.6
18	Criminal	Cleveland State University	23	3.6
19	Criminal	Temple University	27	3.6
20	Criminal	Florida State University	30	3.6
21	Criminal	University of Baltimore	22	3.5
22	Criminal	UC Law SF	22	3.5
23	Criminal	Western New England U.	31	3.5
24	Criminal	Syracuse University	31	3.5
25	Criminal	University of Idaho	29	3.5
26	Criminal	Roger Williams University	28	3.5
27	Criminal	St. John’s School of Law	23	3.5
28	Criminal	University of Minnesota	21	3.5
29	Criminal	University of Utah	23	3.5
30	Criminal	Regent University	32	3.4
31	Criminal	University of Wyoming	31	3.4
32	Criminal	University of Oregon	30	3.4
33	Criminal	University of Nebraska	25	3.4
34	Criminal	University of Arkansas	24	3.4
35	Criminal	Capital University	24	3.4
36	Criminal	Touro Law Center	25	3.4
37	Criminal	University of Arizona	25	3.4
38	Criminal	University of Washington	25	3.4
39	Criminal	University of Colorado	25	3.4
40	Criminal	University of Hawai’i	29	3.3
41	Criminal	University of Florida	21	3.3
42	Criminal	University of Denver	25	3.3
43	Criminal	Ohio State University	20	3.3
	Category

Methodology

We rank the Best Schools for Public Service every two years into three categories: public interest, government and criminal.

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We grade each school on three factors: 1) employment in the field (50% for public interest and government); 2) curricula related to field (40% for public interest and government); and 3) debt and loan repayment options (10%). For public defenders/prosecutors, employment counts for 35% and curricula for 55%.

Curricula scores are based on the following in each field: concentration/certificate (35%), clinic (24%), externship opportunities (12%), centers (12%), student groups (9%) and student journals (8%). Other information, including the number of faculty and courses offered in the particular field, is reviewed with possible bonus points of up to 5%.

Debt and loan repayment scores are based on expected monthly loan payments for the average graduate who works in public interest or government and long-term debt. Expected monthly payment figures are based on an income-based repayment plan, taking the average salary for each field and subtracting the school’s expected loan repayment support.

Curricula scores are based on the following in each field: concentration/certificate (35%), clinic (24%), externship opportunities (12%), centers (12%), student groups, (9%), student journals (8%). Additional information, including the number of faculty and courses offered in the particular field, is reviewed with possible bonus points of up to 5%.

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Debt and loan repayment scores are based on expected monthly loan payments for the average graduate who works in public interest or government, and long-term debt. Expected monthly payment figures are based on an income-based repayment plan, taking the average salary for each field and subtracting the school’s expected loan repayment support.