The 2016 U.S. News Law School Rankings Are Finally Here!

The 2016 U.S. News & World Report law school rankings are finally here! We know that the top law schools in the country all want to be known as the best, and they’re all vying for that number one spot, so we thought we’d give you an exclusive sneak peek at what you can expect on Wednesday when the official report goes live.

Here’s how we ranked them this year, plus some insider tips on how each school can move up in next year’s ranking.

What does this ranking mean?

The US News rankings are just one way to evaluate the quality of your law school but should not be the sole factor when choosing where to apply for legal education.

The rank is an overall assessment of a law school’s quality as determined by a variety of measurements, including a measure of selectivity and reputation within the legal profession as well as graduation rate and professor ratings among other criteria, but doesn’t take into account more subjective information such as lifestyle preferences or cost factors.

Which Schools are in the top 10?

Stanford and Harvard tie for first place, both earning a spot in the top five for the 22nd consecutive year. Duke University and the University of California Berkeley follow closely at third and fourth, respectively. Yale, Columbia, New York University (NYU), University of Chicago,

Georgetown and Massachusetts Institute of Technology round out the top 10 schools in this year’s rankings.

All-Time Best Law Schools

Consistently ranked in the top ten best law schools, Stanford and Harvard are number one and two respectively in this year’s list of the best schools across the nation. For those who desire to live in the San Francisco Bay Area,

Stanford’s campus is a few blocks from Google headquarters and offers unparalleled support for students interested in entrepreneurship and start-ups through their Entrepreneurial Law Clinic Program.

Likewise, The Harvard Law Review is a nationally recognized publication with both faculty members and alumni that have become some of the most influential people in America – from Ruth Bader Ginsburg to Barack Obama. Your connections can be found at these leading institutions more than anywhere else in America – even with $600,000 per year in tuition fees.

How do you get into a Top 10 law school?

Now that the U.S. News rankings have been released, it is important to know how to get into a top law school. First, you need a 4-year undergrad degree from an accredited university with a strong GPA and standardized test scores such as LSAT or GRE, in addition to strong references and research experience.

When you submit your application you need to think about what sets you apart from other applicants in terms of diversity, such as background or international experiences, to show them how they will benefit from having a diverse class of students.

Where should I go to law school if I want to make $200K?

With all of the uncertainty in our world, prospective law students might be wondering: should I go to law school? One question prospective law students have is how much will I make?

If a prospective student is interested in joining the workforce as soon as possible and wants to make $200K per year on average, he or she should consider going to one of these schools that are ranked well by U.S. News and feature strong employment numbers:

Columbia University (#5), New York University (#9), UCLA (#22), and University of California Berkeley (#30).

Is it worth going to the bottom of my Tier 1 schools?

You may be one of the lucky ones who gets accepted to a Tier 1 school that you only dreamed about going to before you applied. Congratulations! I’m sure this is an amazing moment for you and your family, but it’s not the end of the world if you don’t get into a top-tier school,

or even if you just miss out on your top choice by one spot. All of these schools are reputable in their own right, so it may be worth applying to a lower-tier school where it is easier to match than at a more competitive institution with fewer available spots.

Which low-ranked law schools do you like? Section: So if rankings don’t matter, why do people talk about them so much?

Just because a school is ranked low doesn’t mean that it’s the wrong school for you. Many factors determine where a law school is ranked, and simply due to their rank does not make it less than another school.

Factors such as peer reviews, bar passage rates, salary expectations, and alumni connections can impact what the rating should be and may not be factored in at all when this ranking system is used by US News and World Report.

That being said, one of the main benefits of these rankings is they help provide applicants with some data on different programs to see if they might want to reach out to a particular school or discuss an offer with an employer who might offer them a scholarship because they are focused on someone going to their particular institution.

Keep browsing Law Scribd for more updates.