Head-to-head · 23 cross-admits
When applicants got into both, 74% chose WFU. Side-by-side on admissions, costs, and outcomes — sourced from 23 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 UTKnoxville
Median scholarship (chose UTKnoxville)
Median scholarship (chose WFU)
View all-time (39 cross-admits)
Admissions
Rankings, LSAT/GPA, acceptance & yield 2025 ABA 509
Financial
Sticker price and scholarship aid 2025 ABA 509
Employment & outcomes
Post-graduation placement and bar passage 2025 ABA Employment
Cross-admit by cycle
How preferences shifted over recent cyclesRelated comparisons
Other popular cross-admit matchups
Overview
About UTKnoxville vs WFU
Across 23 applicants admitted to both schools and self-reporting on LSD, 26% enrolled at University of Tennessee and 74% at Wake Forest University.
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 Tennessee and Wake Forest University across admissions data, cost of attendance, and employment outcomes — plus cross-admit decision data from 23 applicants admitted to both.
Based on 23 applicants admitted to both schools, 74% chose to attend Wake Forest University. This cross-admit data reflects real enrollment decisions from verified law school applicants on LSD.Law.
In the U.S. News rankings, Wake Forest University is ranked #30 compared to #57 — a gap of 27 positions that often correlates with differences in employment outcomes and peer assessment scores.
University of Tennessee is located in Knoxville, Tennessee, while Wake Forest University is in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. 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: Wake Forest University places 26.6% of graduates into large law firm positions, compared to 9.7% for the other school. This 17 percentage point gap is significant for applicants targeting BigLaw careers.
On cost, University of Tennessee has lower tuition at $16,696 per year compared to $57,920. Combined with employment rates of 92.7% (UTKnoxville) and 98.7% (WFU), prospective students should weigh the cost-to-outcome ratio carefully.
Among cross-admitted applicants, Wake Forest University offered a median scholarship of $120,000 compared to $50,000, a difference of $70,000 that may factor into enrollment decisions.
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