Head-to-head · 30 cross-admits
When applicants got into both, 67% chose W&M. Side-by-side on admissions, costs, and outcomes — sourced from 30 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 W&L
Median scholarship (chose W&L)
Median scholarship (chose W&M)
View all-time (106 cross-admits)
Trend · W&L's share
Lowest cycle
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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 W&L vs W&M
Across 30 applicants admitted to both schools and self-reporting on LSD, 33% enrolled at Washington and Lee University and 67% at William & Mary Law School. The split has shifted -3 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 Washington and Lee University and William & Mary Law School across admissions data, cost of attendance, and employment outcomes — plus cross-admit decision data from 30 applicants admitted to both.
Based on 30 applicants admitted to both schools, 67% chose to attend William & Mary Law School. 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: #34 and #34, separated by just 0 positions, making cross-admit data especially useful for deciding between them.
Both schools are located in Virginia — Washington and Lee University in Lexington and William & Mary Law School in Williamsburg — meaning graduates often compete in the same regional legal market.
Employment outcomes differ substantially: Washington and Lee University places 31.8% of graduates into large law firm positions, compared to 19.1% for the other school. This 13 percentage point gap is significant for applicants targeting BigLaw careers.
On cost, William & Mary Law School has lower tuition at $38,734 per year compared to $57,450. Combined with employment rates of 92.7% (W&L) and 95.0% (W&M), prospective students should weigh the cost-to-outcome ratio carefully.
Among cross-admitted applicants, Washington and Lee University offered a median scholarship of $127,500 compared to $91,137, a difference of $36,363 that may factor into enrollment decisions.
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