Head-to-head · 57 cross-admits
When applicants got into both, 72% chose UCBerkeley. Side-by-side on admissions, costs, and outcomes — sourced from 57 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 UCBerkeley
Median scholarship (chose UCBerkeley)
Median scholarship (chose NU)
View all-time (159 cross-admits)
Trend · UCBerkeley's share
Lowest cycle
Highest cycle
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 UCBerkeley vs NU
Across 57 applicants admitted to both schools and self-reporting on LSD, 72% enrolled at University of California—Berkeley and 28% at Northwestern University. The split has shifted -19 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—Berkeley and Northwestern University across admissions data, cost of attendance, and employment outcomes — plus cross-admit decision data from 57 applicants admitted to both.
Based on 57 applicants admitted to both schools, 72% chose to attend University of California—Berkeley. This cross-admit data reflects real enrollment decisions from verified law school applicants on LSD.Law.
In the U.S. News rankings, Northwestern University is ranked #9 compared to #16 — a gap of 7 positions that often correlates with differences in employment outcomes and peer assessment scores.
University of California—Berkeley is located in Berkeley, California, while Northwestern University is in Evanston, Illinois. 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: Northwestern University places 64.1% of graduates into large law firm positions, compared to 52.2% for the other school. This 12 percentage point gap is significant for applicants targeting BigLaw careers.
On cost, University of California—Berkeley has lower tuition at $62,532 per year compared to $79,772. Combined with employment rates of 93.6% (UCBerkeley) and 95.6% (NU), prospective students should weigh the cost-to-outcome ratio carefully.
Among cross-admitted applicants, University of California—Berkeley offered a median scholarship of $120,000 compared to $90,000, a difference of $30,000 that may factor into enrollment decisions.