Yale Law keeps top place in US News rankings preview—but it is tied with another school
Yale Law School and Stanford Law School are tied for first place in a preview of refashioned rankings released Tuesday by U.S. News & World Report.
Last year, Yale Law was No. 1, and Stanford Law was No. 2. Many other law schools changed positions in U.S. News & World Report’s preview of its top 14 law school rankings, which aren’t considered final until the rankings are published in their entirety April 18.
The Georgetown University Law Center, ranked No. 14 last year, did not make this year’s top 14 preview list. The University of California at Los Angeles School of Law, ranked No. 15 last year, made the top 14.
The new rankings rely on data that must be disclosed to the American Bar Association by accredited law schools, according to U.S. News & World Report. The change is an effort to provide students with “a level playing field” after several law schools said they were boycotting the rankings and would not supply additional data to U.S. News & World Report.
The only law schools in the top 14 that are continuing to participate in the rankings are the University of Chicago Law School and Cornell Law School.
These are the top 14 law schools as ranked by U.S. News & World Report for its preview:
- 1. Stanford University and Yale University (tied) (Last year, Yale Law was No. 1, and Stanford Law was No. 2.)
- 3. The University of Chicago (the same as last year)
- 4. Harvard University and the University of Pennsylvania (tied) (Harvard was tied with Columbia University in the No. 4 spot last year, while the University of Pennsylvania was ranked No. 6.)
- 6. Duke University and New York University (tied) (Duke was No. 11 last year, while New York University was No. 7.)
- 8. Columbia University and the University of Virginia (tied) (Columbia University was tied for No. 4 last year. and the University of Virginia was No. 8.)
- 10. Northwestern University, the University of California at Berkeley and the University of Michigan at Ann Arbor (a three-way tie) (Northwestern University was No. 13 last year, the University of California at Berkeley was No. 9, and University of Michigan at Ann Arbor was No. 10.)
- 13. Cornell University (ranked No. 12 last year)
- 14. The University of California at Los Angeles (ranked No. 15 last year)
According to U.S. News & World Report, its methodology this year includes:
- • A significant increase in the weight given to bar passage. The “ultimate bar passage” rate—which measures bar passage success of a graduating class over two years—will also be considered.
- • A significant increase in the weight given to employment 10 months after graduation.
- • Full credit for full-time, long-term fellowships for which bar passage is required or a JD is an advantage. School-funded fellowships are included.
- • Maximum credit in employment outcomes for those enrolled in graduate studies.
- • A significant reduction in weights given to reputation surveys. Peer assessment and industry assessment surveys are being given equal weight.
- • A reduction in weight given to median LSAT, GRE and GPA scores.
Several law schools said they were pulling out of the rankings because of concerns about the metrics.
Among their complaints: U.S. News & World Report puts too much reliance on reputation rankings provided by lawyers, judge and professors who don’t have detailed knowledge about the schools. The metrics disincentivize support for public-interest careers. The weight given to median LSAT, GRE and GPA scores puts pressure on law schools to use financial aid to recruit high-scoring students, rather than those with the highest need.
Hat tip to Reuters and Law.com, which had coverage of the rankings preview.
