Head-to-head · 20 cross-admits
When applicants got into both, 100% chose Duke. Side-by-side on admissions, costs, and outcomes — sourced from 20 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 Duke
Median scholarship (chose Duke)
Median scholarship (chose UMN)
View all-time (38 cross-admits)
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 Duke vs UMN
Across 20 applicants admitted to both schools and self-reporting on LSD, 100% enrolled at Duke University and 0% at University of Minnesota.
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.
Looking at a different matchup? Browse all comparisons or run a custom pair from the index.
Compare another pair
Detailed comparison narrative
This page compares Duke University and University of Minnesota across admissions data, cost of attendance, and employment outcomes — plus cross-admit decision data from 20 applicants admitted to both.
Based on 20 applicants admitted to both schools, 100% chose to attend Duke University. This cross-admit data reflects real enrollment decisions from verified law school applicants on LSD.Law.
In the U.S. News rankings, Duke University is ranked #7 compared to #22 — a gap of 15 positions that often correlates with differences in employment outcomes and peer assessment scores.
Duke University is significantly more selective, with an acceptance rate of 12.9% compared to University of Minnesota's 26.7%.
Duke University is located in Durham, North Carolina, while University of Minnesota is in Minneapolis, Minnesota. 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: Duke University places 67.9% of graduates into large law firm positions, compared to 16.1% for the other school. This 52 percentage point gap is significant for applicants targeting BigLaw careers.
On cost, University of Minnesota has lower tuition at $51,440 per year compared to $80,100. Combined with employment rates of 98.2% (Duke) and 95.2% (UMN), prospective students should weigh the cost-to-outcome ratio carefully.
Among cross-admitted applicants, University of Minnesota offered a median scholarship of $148,977 compared to $97,500, a difference of $51,477 that may factor into enrollment decisions.