The LSAT is quite different from other academic tests in a number of important ways. When it comes to the best law schools, some people are surprised to learn that a perfect score on the LSAT isn’t necessarily an ideal goal. Read more

U.S. News & World Report yesterday released the 2016 Best Graduate School rankings.  Like our friends at jdMission have reminded us, all rankings should be approached with skepticism and that “fit” (be it academic, personal or professional) is far more important.

That said, here’s how the top 15 American law schools stack up this round:

1. YaleUniversity

2. Harvard University

3. Stanford University

4. Columbia University

4. University of Chicago

6. New York University

7. University of Pennsylvania

8. Duke University
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It seems everyone is ranking law schools these days. This year was the first that three institutions put their hats in the ring: Above the Law, Tipping the Scales, and to an extent although it prefers not to use the term “rankings” but Score Reports, Law School Transparency. Below is a look at the differences between them.

*HERE is more info on US News’ Quality Assessment

*Law School Transparency allows you to compare schools on a variety of metrics and makes clear that this list of employment scores shouldn’t actually be viewed as rankings: “Treating the Score Reports like rankings may produce bad decisions. For example, sorting schools by Employment Score on a state Score Report will not provide a quick answer as to the school with the best outcomes in that particular state.”

A few things interested me about these comparisons. First, why does Tipping the Scales rank Stanford over Yale?
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Happy Friday all! Here’s our weekly roundup of law school news and tips:

How to Evaluate Law School’s Job Data (U.S. News Education)

Job availability is a major factor when it comes to choosing where to go to law school. This week U.S. News covers how to analyze a law school’s employment stats.

Should People Still Care About Law School Rankings? (Lawyerist)

U.S. News recently released its law school rankings for this year and now Lawyerist takes a look at the reality of the rankings and whether or not people should care.

The Bar Exam is About to Get Harder (The Wall Street Journal)

The bar exam currently tests constitutional law, criminal law and procedure, evidence, real property and torts. Beginning in February 2015, it will also include a new multiple-choice section on civil procedure.
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Many schools enter, but only one makes it to the top

It’s that time of year again, when all the hard work that law schools do gets acknowledged, along with the work their students put in before they were ever accepted.  The US News and World Report 2010 Law School Rankings are up for your review!

What is all of that hard work that schools and their students do?  If you’re an LSAT student (aspirant?), you might think it’s all about you, your LSAT score and your GPA.  It turns out that we in the LSAT game are not the center of the universe! LSAT scores and GPAs, while perhaps representing 90% of how a law school measures its applicants, are only 25% of how US News measures a law school.

Here’s what US News look at and how important each factor is to a school’s overall ranking: Read more

A recent article in the National Law Journal raises some critical issues about the effects of US News & World Report’s annual rankings.  What I found most disturbing are some of the tricks that law schools play to increase their rankings (accepting students as part-timers, hiring graduates so those grads are not unemployed), and the ranking’s effect on how law schools spend their money is disheartening.  According to a GAO study, tuition at law schools has risen because of the need to hire top faculty amidst an increasingly competitive market.

If you’re on the fence about where to set your sites, one thought to consider when you’re facing the rankings game is whether you’d like to be in the top 10% of the 20th school on the list, or in the bottom 10% of the school ranked number 8.   Your ranking within your class can make a difference in terms of your experience at school and how potential employers view you.