Choosing where to apply to law school can feel a little like opening too many browser tabs.
One school has the ranking. Another has an attractive scholarship. Another is in the city where you hope to practice. One has an impressive program in the area of law that interests you, while another has employment numbers that are hard to ignore.
Eventually, you need to turn all that information into an actual application list.
Over the years, preLaw has asked admissions professionals and law students what applicants should consider when choosing a law school. Their advice points to one overarching lesson: There isn’t one “best” law school for everyone.
Instead, the goal is to identify schools that fit your career goals, finances, academic interests and the life you want to have during and after law school.
Start with the schools that initially interest you, then put each one through a series of filters. Some will move up your list. Others may fall off entirely. By the end, every school that remains should have a clear reason for being there.
Start with you, not the schools
Before researching individual schools, write down the three things that matter most to you.
Maybe it’s graduating with as little debt as possible. Maybe it’s practicing in California. Maybe it’s access to strong public interest opportunities. Your priorities might also include a particular area of law, experiential learning opportunities, class size or access to a specific legal market.
Those priorities become your first filter.
If you already know what type of lawyer you want to become, work backward from that goal.
“The match between a student’s career goals and the opportunities at the school is one of the most important factors,” Sarah Zearfoss, then senior assistant dean at The University of Michigan Law School, told preLaw in an earlier interview.
That doesn’t mean you need your entire legal career mapped out before submitting your first application. Interests change.
Trevor Ivy, then a student at Northern Illinois University College of Law, told preLaw that he entered law school expecting to become a litigator. While the school’s trial advocacy and moot court opportunities aligned with that goal, exposure to other areas broadened his interests.
“Through the practical opportunities and the extensive professional network NIU College of Law provides, particularly in civil law, my interest broadened,” Ivy said.
Look for schools that support what you think you want to do without locking you into it. If you’re undecided, look for enough breadth to let you explore.
Put location through the five-year test
It’s easy to think about location in terms of where you want to live for the next three years. Think further ahead.
Where might you want to be five years from now?
Law schools often have particularly strong employment and alumni networks in their regions. If you know you want to practice in a particular city or state, schools with established connections there deserve a closer look.
“The conventional wisdom says you should go to a school in an area where you want to practice law,” Zearfoss said.
Look at where recent graduates actually work. Employment disclosures can help you determine whether a school’s graduates remain primarily in the region or disperse more widely.
Location also affects your experience as a student. An urban school may provide easier access to law firms, courts, government agencies and nonprofits. A school in a smaller community may offer a lower cost of living or simply an environment in which you know you’ll perform your best.
Some students also need to be near family or an established support system. Others are ready to experience a completely new part of the country.
Ivy said location was important in his decision because he had already begun building a career in Chicago. Attending law school in Illinois allowed him to continue developing his professional network while maintaining a manageable cost of living.
Before a school survives this filter, ask two questions: Would I want to spend three years here? And could this location help me get where I want to be after graduation?
Look past the ranking
It’s tempting to scroll through a ranking and start circling schools. Resist that urge.
Rankings can introduce you to schools and provide another point of comparison, but they can’t tell you whether those schools make sense for your particular goals.
“Many factors go into evaluating a school, and I don’t think one ranking can establish a school’s value. It is just one piece,” Zearfoss told preLaw.
Once a school makes your initial list, dig into the numbers that matter to you.
Look at bar passage and employment outcomes. Find out what kinds of jobs graduates obtain and where they’re working. Examine median LSAT scores and undergraduate GPAs to see how your credentials compare with those of recently admitted students.
ABA-required disclosures provide information including admissions data, tuition, scholarships, bar passage and employment outcomes.
The numbers can help answer a more useful question than “How highly ranked is this school?”
Ask: What are students getting from their investment?
A school with the biggest name isn’t automatically the school that gives you the best chance of reaching your particular goals.
Calculate the real price
Sticker price only tells part of the story.
Tuition matters, but so do housing, transportation, food, fees, books and other living expenses. A school with lower tuition in an expensive city could ultimately cost more than expected. A scholarship can dramatically change the financial equation.
“Look beyond the sticker price,” Ivy told preLaw. “Tuition is only one piece of the puzzle — cost of living, availability of scholarships and long-term loan repayment all matter.”
Research scholarships carefully too.
Find out how many students receive merit aid and whether scholarships come with conditions. If maintaining your scholarship requires a particular GPA or class standing, investigate what happens to students who don’t meet those requirements.
Then put potential debt into the context of your career plans.
Someone hoping to work in a high-paying large law firm may make a different calculation than someone pursuing public defense, government or nonprofit work.
Sadie Shah, then a student at the University of Arkansas at Little Rock William H. Bowen School of Law, told preLaw that affordability extends well beyond tuition.
“Housing, food access and transportation are as important as the books required for law school,” Shah said. “If you are not able to live in a stable environment due to affordability, your law career could suffer.”
The cheapest school isn’t necessarily the best choice. Neither is the most expensive. What matters is whether the cost makes sense for what the school can help you achieve.
Look inside the classroom and beyond it
Once you’ve narrowed your options, look at what your three years at each school would actually entail.
If you know you want to study environmental law, intellectual property or another specialty, investigate the depth of the school’s offerings. But don’t become so focused on a specialty that you overlook the broader education you’re going to receive.
“Review the curriculum, but remember at the end of three years you are going to take the bar exam, and the bar exam is not specialized,” Ann Killian Perry, then associate dean for admissions and financial aid at The University of Chicago Law School, previously told preLaw.
Consider how you learn best, too. Do you want extensive clinics, externships and simulations? Smaller classes? Close faculty relationships? A large university with a wide range of resources? A part-time, hybrid or online option?
When preLaw spoke with Shah, she said smaller classes were important to her because she wanted to develop relationships with professors and classmates.
The right learning environment is personal. A school doesn’t earn a spot on your list simply because it offers more. What matters is whether it offers more of what matters to you.
Investigate who will help you get a job
Career services may not be the first thing you think about when deciding where to apply, but don’t wait until you’re enrolled to investigate it.
Look beyond a school’s description of its career services office and examine the results. Where are graduates working? Which employers recruit from the school? What kinds of internships do students secure?
Consider whether the school’s employer relationships and alumni network align with your interests. A school that places graduates primarily in one region or type of practice may be a great fit for one applicant and a poor fit for another.
Career services should also support the path you’re considering, whether that’s a traditional law firm, government, public interest, in-house work or another field.
You’re not just choosing a place to earn a J.D. You’re choosing part of the network that will help you put that degree to work.
Find your fit
Data can tell you a lot about a law school. It can’t tell you everything.
School culture, atmosphere and your own comfort level matter when you’re choosing where you’ll spend three demanding years.
If possible, visit. Talk with students. Sit in on a class. Walk through the library. Explore the neighborhood. Ask students what they like and what they would change.
When Shah was deciding where to attend, she had seven acceptances in seven states and scholarship offers from each school. She toured multiple campuses and talked with students and administrators before visiting Bowen.
“When I walked into Bowen, I knew it was where I wanted to enroll,” she told preLaw. “Everyone was extremely friendly, willing to answer questions, excited to see me and passionate about the law.”
You may not experience an immediate “this is it” moment, but you can ask yourself a more practical question: Can I see myself succeeding here?
If you can’t visit before deciding where to apply, look for virtual tours and admissions events, talk with current students and explore the surrounding community. Try to imagine what an ordinary day there might actually feel like.
Now build the list
After you’ve considered careers, location, outcomes, finances, academics, career support and culture, it’s time to turn your research into applications.
There’s no magic number of law schools everyone should apply to. The size of your list will depend on your credentials, goals, budget and willingness to relocate. What’s more important is balance.
Compare your LSAT score and undergraduate GPA with each school’s recent entering class. Build a list that includes reach schools, target schools and schools where your credentials make admission more likely.
But add one more category: Schools I would actually attend.
There’s little benefit in spending the time and money to apply to a school if you already know you wouldn’t go there.
For every school left on your list, try one final test:
If this were the only law school that admitted me, would I be happy to attend?
If the answer is no, ask yourself why you’re applying.
Before paying an application fee, you should also be able to answer one deceptively simple question about every school on your shortlist: Why is this particular school on my list?
The goal isn’t to build the longest list or one with the most prestigious names. It’s to give yourself a range of realistic options that could each lead somewhere you genuinely want to go.
There may not be one perfect law school. But every law school you apply to should have a reason for making your shortlist.
The shortlist test
Before paying the application fee, ask:
- Would I actually attend if admitted?
- Does it support the career I’m considering?
- Does it place graduates where I may want to work?
- Can I realistically afford it?
- Are its employment and bar passage outcomes acceptable to me?
- Does it offer the academic and experiential opportunities I want?
- Why is this school on my list?
