Head-to-head · 66 cross-admits
When applicants got into both, 86% chose UC. Side-by-side on admissions, costs, and outcomes — sourced from 66 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 UC
Median scholarship (chose UC)
Median scholarship (chose NU)
View all-time (248 cross-admits)
Trend · UC's share
Lowest cycle
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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 UC vs NU
Across 66 applicants admitted to both schools and self-reporting on LSD, 86% enrolled at University of Chicago and 14% at Northwestern University. The split has shifted -20 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 Chicago and Northwestern University across admissions data, cost of attendance, and employment outcomes — plus cross-admit decision data from 66 applicants admitted to both.
Based on 66 applicants admitted to both schools, 86% chose to attend University of Chicago. This cross-admit data reflects real enrollment decisions from verified law school applicants on LSD.Law.
In the U.S. News rankings, University of Chicago is ranked #2 compared to #9 — a gap of 7 positions that often correlates with differences in employment outcomes and peer assessment scores.
Both schools are located in Illinois — University of Chicago in Chicago and Northwestern University in Evanston — meaning graduates often compete in the same regional legal market.
Employment outcomes differ substantially: Northwestern University places 64.1% of graduates into large law firm positions, compared to 48.7% for the other school. This 15 percentage point gap is significant for applicants targeting BigLaw careers.
Among cross-admitted applicants, Northwestern University offered a median scholarship of $172,500 compared to $75,000, a difference of $97,500 that may factor into enrollment decisions.