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Success in law school is 10% intelligence and 90% persistence.
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Columbia Law School
New York City, New York
Rank #10 (USNWR 2024)
173
LSAT
3.90
GPA
11.8%
Admit Rate
25th, 50th, 75th lines show admitted class %iles
JD Admissions & Requirements
Data from 2024 admissions cycle
173
LSAT
3.90
GPA
11.8%
Admit Rate
Columbia Law School is a prestigious JD program located in New York City, New York. In the competitive 2024 law school rankings, Columbia Law School was ranked 10 by US News & World Report, making it a top-tier law school for admissions-focused applicants. For the 2024 admissions cycle, Columbia Law School has an entering 1L class size of approximately 394 with an acceptance rate of 11.8%, positioning it among the most selective law schools for JD applicants.
Also known as
COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY
CLS CU
Law School Applications
7671
JD application volume in 2024 cycle
JD Acceptance Rate
11.8%
JD Program Size
394
JD Tuition Cost
$163k
The law is reason, free from passion.
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Wisdom from Columbia Law School Admits
4.02 / 173 • Columbia University • 5 months ago
Wrote why Xs/supplements for all schools except for HLS and Chicago; wrote a 4-page PS for...
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3.95 / 176 • University of Virginia • 5 months ago
-wrote a Why UVA, I do think that definitely contributed to my fast response from them
Read more
3.86 / 177 • Columbia University • 5 months ago
If you want to go to a T14, apply broadly and apply early. Consider getting some work...
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3.95 / 170 • University of Pennsylvania • 5 months ago
Supplementary Statements - Stanford: Optional Essay, Optional Short Essays (2) Yale: Optional...
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3.9 / 175 • University of Pennsylvania • 5 months ago
making my profile public to help anyone who has the same stats at me! i stopped recording...
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4.15 / 180 • Stanford University • 5 months ago
Make sure you have specific* *- and meaningful reasons for wanting to go to law school and that...
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Columbia Law School Law School Admissions Data & Statistics
2024-2025 Cycle Overview
2613 applicants
Accepted
66
/
276
Waitlisted
602
Rejected
782
-
Withdrawn
414
-
Admissions Graphs
Drag the handle in the bottom right of the chart to resize
25th, 50th, 75th lines show admitted class %iles
25th, 50th, 75th lines show admitted class %iles
Filters
LSAT Score: Law School Admission Test score (120-180 scale)
GPA: Undergraduate Grade Point Average (0.0-4.3+ scale)
Drag the handle in the bottom right of the chart to resize
This chart shows when decisions were made throughout the application cycle. Use the filters above to refine the data.
How to Use These Graphs
Graph Navigation:
- Zoom: Click and drag to zoom into a specific area
- Reset zoom: Double-click anywhere on the graph
- View details: Hover over any point to see detailed information
- Visit profile: Click on any point to open that user's profile page
- Toggle series: Click on any legend item to show/hide that category (accepted, waitlisted, rejected, unknown)
Advanced Features:
- Colorblind mode: Toggle on in the controls above for an alternative color palette
- Export/Print: Click the menu in the top-right corner of any graph to download or print
- Cycle selection: Use the dropdown in the controls above to view data from different application cycles
- Demographic filters: Filter by International, URM, Military, or Early Decision status to compare specific groups
- Custom axes: On the LSAT vs. GPA graph, select different metrics to compare (dates, scholarships, etc.)
- Compare your stats: Your own stats will appear as a blue diamond when viewing these graphs
Selectivity & Competitiveness Trends
How to interpret this chart:
- LSAT (blue): Shows the 25th/50th/75th percentiles as a shaded band with median line. Hover to see exact values in format: 165/170/175
- GPA (green): Shows the 25th/50th/75th percentiles as a shaded band with median line. Hover to see exact values in format: 3.45/3.65/3.85
- Acceptance Rate (orange): Percentage of applicants who received offers (lower = more selective)
- Applications (purple dashed): Total number of applications received each year
Rising LSAT/GPA medians, narrowing bands, or falling acceptance rates indicate increasing competitiveness. Click legend items to show/hide metrics.
For law school applicants interested in the 2024 admissions cycle at Columbia Law School, 7671 candidates submitted JD applications and 901 received acceptance letters. The law school application process here is highly competitive for prospective students with an acceptance rate of 11.8%.
The JD program at Columbia Law School enrolls a first-year class of 394 law students each year, with an admissions yield rate of 39.96%. This means that of the 901 applicants who received law school acceptance letters, 360 chose to enroll. Understanding these law school admission statistics can help prospective JD applicants evaluate their chances and plan their application strategy.
For a competitive law school application to Columbia Law School, students should aim to meet or exceed the median statistics shown below. Meeting these GPA and LSAT targets significantly improves your chances of admission.
JD Admission Requirements & Application Statistics
| Admissions Metrics (ABA 509) | |
|---|---|
| Metric | Value |
| Applications |
7671
|
| Admission Offers | 901 |
| Class Size |
394
|
| Acceptance Rate |
11.8%
|
| Yield Rate |
39.96%
|
| Average Statistics by Decision (LSD) | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Metric | Rejected | All | Accepted |
| LSAT | 168.1 | 170.3 | 173.24 |
| GPA | 3.66 | 3.79 | 3.92 |
| Softs | T3.2 | T3.2 | T3.14 |
| Avg Scholarship | - | - | $116,576 |
* Softs are self-reported ratings (T1-T4) representing non-numeric application factors
| LSAT & GPA Statistics (ABA 509) | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| 25th | 50th | 75th | |
|
LSAT
|
170 | 173 | 175 |
|
GPA
|
3.81 | 3.90 | 3.96 |
| LSD User Stats | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Metric | 25th | 50th | 75th |
| LSAT | 167.0 (-3.0) | 171.0 (-2.0) | 174.0 (-1.0) |
| GPA | 3.7 (-0.11) | 3.87 (-0.03) | 3.97 (+0.01) |
* Based on 2613 self-reported applications
* Green/Red values show difference from ABA 509 data
* Green/Red values show difference from ABA 509 data
| Application Process Statistics | |
|---|---|
| Avg Days: Sent to Decision | 100 days |
| Avg Days: UR to Decision | 82 days |
| Interview Invite Rate | 5.2% |
| Interview → Acceptance Rate | 50.4% |
The above statistics show that Columbia Law School typically admits students with LSAT scores ranging from 170 (25th percentile) to 175 (75th percentile), with a median of 173.
For GPA, admitted students typically have undergraduate GPAs ranging from 3.81 to 3.96, with a median of 3.90.
With an acceptance rate of 11.8%, Columbia Law School is considered a highly competitive law school in terms of admissions.
What these numbers mean
- Percentiles: The 25th/50th/75th percentiles show the distribution of scores among admitted students.
- Applications: Total number of people who applied to this law school.
- Acceptance Rate: Percentage of applicants who received offers (lower = more selective).
- Yield Rate: Percentage of admitted students who enrolled (higher = more desirable).
Application Status Data
Columbia Law School Application Status Data
Application statuses submitted by LSData users
Showing 2613 apps
Columbia Law School Law School Employment Outcomes
Overview
JD Employment Rate
95.6%
First-Time Bar Pass
95.47%
Median Starting Salary
-
Private Sector
Employment Quality
JD Required
94.3%
BigLaw Placement
65.4%
Federal Clerkships
5.5%
School-Funded Positions
1.9%
Employment Quality Distribution
Law Firm Employment by Size
Employment Quality Matrix
| Employment Type | Full-Time Long-Term |
Full-Time Short-Term |
Part-Time Long-Term |
Part-Time Short-Term |
Total | % of Grads |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bar Required ★ | 493 | 1 | — | — | 494 | 94.5% |
| JD Advantage | 6 | 0 | — | — | 6 | 1.1% |
| Professional | — | — | — | — | 5 | 1.0% |
| Other | — | — | — | — | 0 | 0.0% |
| School-Funded | 7 | 3 | — | — | 10 | 1.9% |
| Total Employed | 506 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 515 | 98.5% |
School-Funded: May inflate stats
Generally, if you attend law school, you want to secure a bar-required position. However, at prestigious institutions, students may target specific JD advantage positions such as private equity or elite consulting roles.
Employment by Sector
Distribution
Sector Details
| Employment Sector | % of Graduates | National Percentile |
|---|---|---|
| Law Firms | 75.3% |
|
| Judicial Clerkships | 6.5% |
|
| Government | 5.0% |
|
| Public Interest | 10.5% |
|
| Business | 1.0% |
|
| Academia | 0.2% |
|
Judicial Clerkships
Clerkships by Type
| Clerkship Type | Graduates | % of Class | National Rank |
|---|---|---|---|
| Federal | 29 | 5.5% |
|
| State/Local | 4 | 0.8% | — |
| International | 1 | 0.2% | — |
Federal clerkships are highly prestigious positions that significantly enhance career prospects in litigation and academia.
Bar Examination Performance
First-Time Pass Rate
95.47%
Takers:
419
Passed:
400
vs State Avg
+13.8%
Ultimate Pass Rate
96.67%
Takers:
450
Passed:
435
Within 2 years
Jurisdiction Weighted
81.63%
State average for jurisdictions where graduates took the bar
Understanding bar passage metrics
• First-time: Immediate readiness indicator
• Ultimate: Long-term success within 2 years
• vs State: Performance relative to state average
Bar Passage Rates Comparison
Salary Outcomes
Private Sector
No data available
Public Sector
No data available
Career Outcomes Summary
Law school tuition at Columbia Law School is $163k annually (calculated from semester costs). Prospective law students should budget approximately $60k for the total annual cost of attending (including tuition, fees, books, and living expenses).
For JD graduates from Columbia Law School, the first-time bar exam pass rate is 95.47%. Within two years, 96.67% of graduates ultimately pass the bar exam. The school's first-time pass rate is +13.8% compared to the weighted state average. These bar passage metrics are important indicators of how well the law school prepares its students for this crucial professional licensing examination.
