Head-to-head · 132 cross-admits
When applicants got into both, 94% chose HLS. Side-by-side on admissions, costs, and outcomes — sourced from 132 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 HLS
Median scholarship (chose HLS)
Median scholarship (chose UPenn)
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Trend · HLS'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 HLS vs UPenn
Across 132 applicants admitted to both schools and self-reporting on LSD, 94% enrolled at Harvard University and 6% at University of Pennsylvania.
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 Harvard University and University of Pennsylvania across admissions data, cost of attendance, and employment outcomes — plus cross-admit decision data from 132 applicants admitted to both.
Based on 132 applicants admitted to both schools, 94% chose to attend Harvard University. This cross-admit data reflects real enrollment decisions from verified law school applicants on LSD.Law.
Both schools are closely ranked in U.S. News: #4 and #6, separated by just 2 positions, making cross-admit data especially useful for deciding between them.
Harvard University is located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, while University of Pennsylvania is in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. 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 Pennsylvania places 64.1% of graduates into large law firm positions, compared to 51.4% for the other school. This 13 percentage point gap is significant for applicants targeting BigLaw careers.
Among cross-admitted applicants, University of Pennsylvania offered a median scholarship of $136,368 compared to $116,980, a difference of $19,388 that may factor into enrollment decisions.