The University of Pennsylvania Law School, located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, is the law school of the University of Pennsylvania. A member of the Ivy League, it is among the oldest and most selective law schools in the nation. It is currently ranked 7th overall by U.S. News & World Report, and 1st in terms of career prospects by the Princeton Review, a rank awarded also by the National Law Journal based on placement of graduates in top law firms. It offers the degrees of Juris Doctor (J.D.), Master of Laws (LL.M.), Master of Comparative Laws (LL.C.M.), and Doctor of the Science of Law (S.J.D.).
Penn Law has a medium-size student body with each entering class consisting of approximately 250 students. The class of 2013 had a median LSAT of 170 and a median GPA of 3.85. Penn Law's July 2012 Pennsylvania Bar Examination passage rate was 96.08%. Admission is highly competitive as more than 6,000 applications are typically received for the available spots. The Princeton Review ranks Penn Law 6th in admission selectivity. According to ABA data Penn Law's admission and yield rates are generally on par with its peers, and in some cases better relatively to the school's general rank (e.g. NYU and Chicago have higher admission and lower yield rates than Penn Law). Penn Law is also one of the "T14" law schools, that is, schools that have consistently ranked within the top 14 law schools since U.S. News & World Report, began publishing rankings.
Penn Law emphasizes cross-disciplinary education, both within the law school and through courses, certificates, and joint/dual degree programs with the other graduate and professional schools on the Penn campus, such as the Wharton School. The school also prides itself on its collegiality and the importance it places on diversity. Over a third of students identify as persons of color, and 12% of students enrolled with an advanced degree.
Although the school is particularly well known for its corporate and criminal law faculty, it offers a very extensive curriculum and hosts various student groups, research centers and activities. Penn Law students also publish the University of Pennsylvania Law Review, the oldest law journal in the country. Among the school's alumni are a US Supreme Court Justice, several state Supreme Court Justices and supreme court justices of foreign countries, as well as several founders of law firms, university presidents and deans, business entrepreneurs and politicians.
Read more about University Of Pennsylvania Law School: History, Campus, Notable Faculty, Notable Alumni, Toll Public Interest Center
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