Degree Programs • J.D. (Doctor of Jurisprudence) • LL.M. (Master of Laws)—A oneyear program for foreign-trained lawyers • Ph.D. Law & Economics • J.D./MBA • J.D./Master’s in Finance
HIGH-PERFORMING STUDENTS CLASS OF 2025 5,817
VANDERBILT LAW SCHOOL FAST FACTS
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ND
VLS ranked 2nd for Quality of Life in Princeton Review for 2022, 2021, 2020, 2019 and 2018.
Located on the Vanderbilt University campus, Vanderbilt Law School has been educating lawyers since 1884. VLS typically enrolls 150 to 160 J.D. students and 65 LL.M. students each year. VLS students publish five scholarly law journals—an all-topic law review, topical journals focusing on international law, entertainment and technology law and social justice, and an annual compendium condensing the prior year’s top scholarship in environmental law. VLS has ranked among the top 20 U.S. law schools (between 15th and 18th) since U.S. News & World Report began publishing its annual rankings of law schools, and its productive faculty are highly ranked based on citations and scholarly impact.
155 54 GPA: LSAT: 98 8
Applicants to J.D. Class Entering Fall 2022 First-Year Students, 2022–23 (35%) Minority Students 3.66 (25%), 3.90 (median), 3.98 (75%) 163 (25%), 170 (median), 170 (75%) Undergraduate Schools Represented (5%) Hold Advanced Degrees
90
%
of 2021 grads employed in fulltime, long-term lawyer positions
J.D. Employment Destinations— Classes of 2017–21
5
COUNTRIES STATES & D.C. AND
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Academic Programs • Law & Business (certificate program) • Criminal Justice • Energy, Environment & Land Use • Intellectual Property • International Legal Studies • Law & Government • Law & Innovation • Litigation & Dispute Resolution • Social Justice Clinics & Skills • Community Enterprise Clinic • Criminal Practice Clinic • First Amendment Clinic • Housing Law Clinic • Immigration Practice Clinic • Intellectual Property & Arts Clinic • International Law Practice Lab • Youth Opportunity Clinic • Workers Advocacy Practicum Five Student-Edited Journals In the Washington & Lee rankings of student-edited law journals published by U.S. law schools released in July 2022: • Vanderbilt Law Review ranked 18th among 394 general-topic law journals. • Vanderbilt Journal of Transnational Law ranked 4th among 163 international law journals. • Vanderbilt Journal of Entertainment & Technology Annual Law ranked 1st of 21 Arts, Entertainment and Sports Law journals and 7th of 32 Science, Technology and Computer Law journals. • Environmental Law & Policy Annual Review—Compendium • Social Justice Reporter—Launching in 2022–23
Productive, Engaged Faculty • Faculty ranked 5th in scholarly impact in “Inclusive Citation Rankings of U.S. Law Schools,” Matthew Sag, 2021, based on Hein citations. • Faculty ranked 5th among U.S. law schools in a 2019 study by Heald and Sichelman based on how often their research was downloaded and cited • Faculty ranked 9th in a 2021 study, “Scholarly Impact of Law Faculties: Updating the Leiter Scores,” published by a team led by Gregory Sisk • 15 faculty are elected members of the American Law Institute • Princeton Review student surveys: Best Classroom Experience: 5th (2022, 2021) • Princeton Review student surveys: Best Professors: 6th (2021) Strong Employment Prospects • 5th, 2022 Above the Law ranking of Top 50 Law Schools based on employment outcomes, cost and student debt • 11th, Percentage of 2021 graduates taking full-time lawyer positions (90.1%, based on ABA data) • 7th, Percentage of 2021 graduates employed by firms with more than 100 lawyers (64.1%, based on ABA data) • 13th, Percentage of 2021 graduates employed in federal clerkships (8.3%, based on ABA data) • 13th, Law schools that sent the highest percentage of 2021 graduates to the nation’s 100 largest law firms, National Law Journal / Law.com • 11th, Federal Judicial Clerkship Report of Recent Law School Graduates, 2020 Edition (based on ABA data), Derek T. Muller, excessofdemocracy.com • 7th, Lawyers of Color ranking of Top 65 Law Schools for Black Students