The New 2008 U.S. News & World Report Law School Rankings: What They Tell the Law School Applicant

The law schools may hate the U.S. News & World Report ranking system, but in my opinion it is genuinely helpful to law school applicants. The new 2008 rankings, just published, reveal valuable pieces of information that law school applicants need to consider.

Here are some insights, school by school, focusing on the top 15 law schools. I'll compare 2008 versus 2007 USN&WR ranking data.

1. Yale: Remains on top. Achieves a stunning new advance to its 25-75 enrolling student LSAT band. Now, it's 170-176. Thus an enrolling student at Yale in the fall of 2006 at the 25th percentile of the class has an LSAT score at the 98.1 percentile of all LSAT takers. Yale really wants it all in terms of talent. LSAT. GPA. Life achievements. Definitely the toughest target in the world of law school admissions.

2. Harvard: Moves up from 3rd place to tied for 2nd with Stanford. Yet loses ground on its 25-75 LSAT band. It's now 169-175, down from 170-176. Slight increase in the admission rate, from 11.5% to 12.6%. To me this suggests that the most competitive students, with offers from both Yale and Harvard, moved more towards Yale, in the class that began in the fall of 2006.

3. Stanford: Tied with Harvard for 2nd. Had a slight increase in the admission rate, from 7.8% to 8.7%.

4. NYU: Overtakes Columbia for 4th place, a seismic event at the top of the law school rankings. Yet Columbia is still stronger in terms of LSAT band and lower admission rate.

5. Columbia: Falls to 5th place. Needs to look hard at every factor of its institution. Should never have been beaten by NYU, but now it has been. Ouch.

6. Chicago: The LSAT "price tag" goes up by one point, to 169 at the 25th percentile, for Chicago. A below-3.5 GPA appears also to now be unwelcomed.

6. Penn: Now ties for 6th place, with Chicago. Another point of LSAT performance is needed for the 25th percentile, which is now a 167.

8. Berkeley: Slips slightly to a 163 at the 25th percentile, down from 164.

8. Michigan: Drawing a slightly higher GPA at the 25th percentile, and a one-point increase in LSAT at the 75th percentile.

10. Duke: Moves into the top 10, from 11th place. Is now demanding a significantly higher GPA, from 3.54 to 3.66, at the 25th percentile.

10. Virginia: Falls from 8th place to tied for 10th. Ouch. Ends up with a slightly lower 25th pecentile GPA, falling from 3.53 to 3.49, while increasing its admission rate significantly, from 20.2% to 25.2%. This is surprising to me, as UVa boasts one of the most loyal law alumni populations in my experience (thus saying something very positive about its institutional culture and organizational competence).

12. Northwestern: Appears slightly easier to earn an offer from, as 25th-percentile GPA and LSAT numbers and the admission rate all softened just slightly.

13. Cornell: Gains another LSAT point, to 166, at its 25th percentile.

14. Georgetown: About the same as last year. A slight increase in the admission rate. Note that Georgetown's data in USN&WR do not include its large night program, which offers an easier path to admission there.

15. UCLA: About the same as last year.

In a future blog, I'll continue to share insights on changes in the USN&WR law school rankings farther down the list, and in the key areas of speciality programs. If you have questions, don't hesitate to contact me at BradDobeck@aol.com. Please see my website at www.PrelawAdvisor.com for more information about how to deal with the challenges of elite law school admission.