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New York University School of Law
With its established academic excellence and solid job placement in New York City and beyond, the New York University School of Law has secured for itself a comfortable place among the nation's very best law schools. It is known for its dedication to the public sector, emphasis on diversity, prime location in New York City, and extremely high cost of attendance.
As of the class of 2012, Law School Transparency's employment score for NYU was 91.1%. This indicates the number of graduates who, nine months after graduation, secured long-term, full-time jobs requiring bar passage. The total debt-financed cost of attendance is $280,065.
Contents
Admissions & tuition
NYU's applicants face an ultra-selective admissions process. Over 6,000 applicants have been vying for 450 seats in an entering class, which in 2012 had a median GPA of 3.69 and a median LSAT score of 171. Aside from an applicant's GPA and LSAT score, demonstrated dedication to public service and ethnic diversity are thought to be especially valued by the school. Applicants who apply to NYU with multiple LSAT scores are judged based on the average of those scores. Also, because of NYU's Feb. 1 application deadline, scores from the previous year's December administration of the LSAT will be the last set considered by the school.
For particularly enthusiastic applicants, NYU offers a binding Early Decision option. Students who complete their applications at the school by Nov. 15 are guaranteed a response by the end of December. Early Decision applicants must take the LSAT no later than October.
Waitlist relegation at NYU is not a fatal blow to an applicant's chances, as the school accepts a significant number of waitlisted applicants each year. Therefore, a continuous show of interest in the school is crucial to those who find themselves on the waitlist. Even rejected students are left some hope of admission, as the school has shown a willingness to accept as transfer students applicants who had originally been rejected.
Like most other law schools, NYU's yearly tuition is over $50,000. The school gives applicants the opportunity to apply for several prestigious scholarships. In most cases, applicants are required to submit additional essays related to their bid for these scholarships. For other scholarships, students are automatically considered as long as they complete financial aid applications. According to the ABA, the median grant was only $20,000 in 2013.
Academics & curriculum
While NYU's academics are strong in all areas of the law, its tax law, clinical training and international law programs are known to be among the very best in the nation. Also noteworthy are the school's environmental law, intellectual property law, and trial advocacy programs. All NYU students must fulfill a required curriculum in their first year and part of their second year, and are allowed to choose from one of the most diverse selections of elective courses in the nation to complete the rest of their coursework. First-year students can expect large section sizes, usually consisting of more than 100 students. Nearly half of the upper-level classes, however, have fewer than 25 students, and the school has a impressive 9-to-1 student-to-faculty ratio.
NYU recently revamped its third-year curriculum to make it easier for students to study abroad, a move mocked by Above the Law: "[W]henever you are gouging students for an additional year of education that nobody needs, you might as well make some other university actually deal with them for the year."
Quality of life
As one of the tenants of Lower Manhattan's Greenwich Village, NYU is surrounded by an endless array of bars, clubs, and restaurants to match all tastes. In addition, the school gives its diverse student body ample opportunity to familiarize itself by hosting weekly social events.
In contrast to most other elite schools, NYU gives its students the choice of living among their classmates by guaranteeing all law students housing at the D'Agostino and Mercer residences. The close proximity of these dorms to other buildings of the law school effectively shields students from many of the transportation nightmares of New York City.
NYU has a very high cost of living-more than $25,000, according to the ABA.
Employment prospects & bar passage
Graduates of NYU School of Law enjoy solid job placement in New York City and throughout the East Coast. 61% of the class of 2012 ended up in New York, with about 11% headed to California and 8% to Washington, D.C.
For the class of 2012, Law School Transparency calculated NYU's employment score at 91.1%, which is the number of graduates employed nine months after graduation in long-term, full-time jobs requiring bar passage. About 60% of the class landed jobs at large firms (more than 100 attorneys). About 22% pursued public interest or government work. A further 6% or so landed prestigious federal judicial clerkships. In 2013, NYU Law ranked fourth on the National Law Journal's list of feeders into the nation's 250 largest law firms, with about 53% of graduates landing jobs at these firms.
For the class of 2011, 83% of graduates reported a salary. For graduates employed in the private sector, the 25th, 50th, and 75th percentile salaries were $160,000, the usual market salary for first-year associates at large firms in major markets. For the public sector, the median was $53,000.
In 2012, nearly 96% of NYU grads passed the New York bar exam on their first attempt, compared to an 85% success rate for all first-time takers in the state.
Contact information
New York University School of Law
40 Washington Square South
New York, NY 10012
Office of Admissions
139 MacDougal Street, Suite C-20
New York, NY 10012
(212) 998-6060
law.moreinfo@nyu.edu
Quick reference
New York University School of Law, Manhattan, New York. Retrieved August 30, 2014
Rank #6 - New York University School of Law (The 2018 BCG Attorney Search Guide To America's Top 50 Law Schools)
2013 Above the Law ranking: 10
2014 U.S. News ranking: 6
LSAT scores at 25th, 50th, and 75th percentiles: 169 - 171 -173
GPA at 25th, 50th, and 75th percentiles: 3.54 - 3.69 - 3.84
Application deadline: Nov. 15 (ED), Feb. 1 (RD)
Application fee: $75
Law School Transparency employment score, class of 2012: 91.1%
LST total debt-financed cost of attendance: $280,065
Forum: NYU rising 2Ls taking questions
News: Above the Law
