Top Law Schools

Columbia Law School will accept applications for those applying for admission to the Class of 2017 starting September 1, 2013.

• Application Form
• Personal Statement/Essay
• Two Letters of Recommendation
• Résumé (required)
• Dean’s Letter, if applicable
• Application fee ($85)

The Early Decision Plan is designed for prospective law students who have thoughtfully considered what would represent, for them, the most effective legal education; have investigated carefully a range of law schools; and have concluded that Columbia is clearly their first choice.

For early decision candidates, the application process is simplified and expedited considerably; it is less expensive in terms of time, effort, and money. Early decision candidates must complete their applications by November 15 and are generally notified of the Admissions Committee’s decision in December. This early notification assures applicants of having successfully completed the law school application process, allowing them to resume professional, family, and educational responsibilities without any uncertainty. These benefits, however, are accompanied by the cost of self-restricting law school choice. Candidates applying on an Early Decision basis commit themselves to matriculate at Columbia if admitted.

Successful early decision candidates may not initiate any new law school applications, must decline any acceptances they may have received prior to admission to Columbia and the Early Decision Plan, and must immediately withdraw other applications once notified of their Columbia acceptance in December. Failure to honor these commitments will result in Columbia revoking its offer of admission.

Some early decision applicants not offered admission will be reviewed again in April as part of the regular applicant pool; others will be informed that their application for admission has been denied and will not be evaluated again that year.

Tuition for 2013-2014 is $55,916. There are additional mandatory fees for health services, student activities, and University facilities, which will be $1,922 for 2012-2013. Insurance for hospital care and standard medical coverage is also required ($2,291), unless students can show proof of comparable coverage.
The total budget for the nine-month academic year, including tuition, fees, room, board, books, and personal expenses is $82,795 for a single student. Expenses are adjusted annually.

banjo wrote:2012-13 applicant here. A lot of you are going to freak out about hearing back. Just to allay your fears, I applied a little after midnight on the day applications opened and didn't hear a peep (no waitlist, no hold) until April 1, when I was accepted. So relax!

MoMettaMonk wrote:Checking in, retaking the October LSAT. 82,000 for the first year... here's hoping for lots and lots of scholarship money.

jbagelboy wrote:

MoMettaMonk wrote:Checking in, retaking the October LSAT. 82,000 for the first year... here's hoping for lots and lots of scholarship money.

Hey good luck!

CLS '16 here (same as banjo). Re: financial aid, columbja $ comes in two forms:

1) the named fellowships given in your acceptance letter, which are half (butler) and full (hamilton) tuition scholarships -- historically these are exclusively to poach HYS kids, i.e. for 175+/3.75+. About 20 hamiltons are offered each year. Theres nothing in-between half and full.

2) everyone else applies separately w/ fafsa/needaccess and received finaid grants in April. These range from $30K up to $85K, but Ive only seen a handful that high. If you are at CLS medians, expect $30-50K total over three years -- not actually a huge dent in tuition, but they spread it out to a large number of people in the class so most admitted students can expect $10K/year off that $80K CoA, but not much more (as you can see on lawschoolnumbers).

Lastly, Columbia claims (and to some extent, actually does) to incorporate need-based in a similar fashion to HYS. The grants in 2) are a combination of need and merit, whereas 1) is strictly numbers. If you are from an extremely low income family, your aid may be higher than your numbers would dictate.

Its also worth noting that Columbia CoA projection is higher than necessary. After receiving my housing/rent/utilities and budgeting ALL my living expenses, mine comes to ~$76K total (rather than $82K, and you can make it lower -- I have higher than average expenditures) before deducting grants. Hope this helps and best of luck!

SteelPenguin wrote:Checking in and visiting Thursday! Anyone else doing the thing on Thursday?

moonman157 wrote:c/o 2016 here, just wanted to wish everyone the best of luck!