Head-to-head · 40 cross-admits
When applicants got into both, 88% chose UCLA. Side-by-side on admissions, costs, and outcomes — sourced from 40 self-reported decisions and ABA 509 filings.
Choice, not ranking
These are decisions, not opinions. Scholarship offers, location, intended practice, and personal fit are all priced into the split.
Cross-admit decision
Chose UCLA
Median scholarship (chose UCLA)
Median scholarship (chose BU)
View all-time (118 cross-admits)
Trend · UCLA's share
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Admissions
Rankings, LSAT/GPA, acceptance & yield 2025 ABA 509
Financial
Sticker price, scholarships, and debt burden 2025 ABA 509
Employment & outcomes
Post-graduation placement and bar passage 2024 ABA Employment
Cross-admit by cycle
How preferences shifted over recent cyclesRelated comparisons
Other popular cross-admit matchups
Overview
About UCLA vs BU
Across 40 applicants admitted to both schools and self-reporting on LSD, 88% enrolled at University of California—Los Angeles and 12% at Boston University. The split has shifted -3 points across the tracked cycles.
These numbers reflect every factor that goes into a real decision: scholarship offers, geographic preference, intended practice area, and fit. Choosing one school doesn't mean it's "better" — it means the pool of cross-admits, weighing their options, ended up there more often. Pair this with the scholarship distribution and employment outcomes above for full context.
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Detailed comparison narrative
This page compares University of California—Los Angeles and Boston University across admissions data, cost of attendance, and employment outcomes — plus cross-admit decision data from 40 applicants admitted to both.
Based on 40 applicants admitted to both schools, 88% chose to attend University of California—Los Angeles. This cross-admit data reflects real enrollment decisions from verified law school applicants on LSD.Law.
In the U.S. News rankings, University of California—Los Angeles is ranked #13 compared to #24 — a gap of 11 positions that often correlates with differences in employment outcomes and peer assessment scores.
University of California—Los Angeles is located in Los Angeles, California, while Boston University is in Boston, Massachusetts. Regional placement matters: graduates tend to find employment near their law school, so location should factor into your decision alongside rankings and cost.
Employment outcomes differ substantially: University of California—Los Angeles places 50.5% of graduates into large law firm positions, compared to 35.7% for the other school. This 15 percentage point gap is significant for applicants targeting BigLaw careers.
On cost, University of California—Los Angeles has lower tuition at $59,084 per year compared to $69,870. Combined with employment rates of 94.4% (UCLA) and 91.2% (BU), prospective students should weigh the cost-to-outcome ratio carefully.
Among cross-admitted applicants, Boston University offered a median scholarship of $90,000 compared to $60,000, a difference of $30,000 that may factor into enrollment decisions.