preLaw - Back to School 2007 - (Page 25)
preLaw’s best value schools ★ To find out how we compiled preLaw’s best value law schools, go to www.NationalJurist.com. Also hear what students have to say about their law schools’ student life and opportunities waiting for you. mon mission: help students get through their three years without massive debt at the end. For example, BYU’s Clark Law School provides subsidies to every student, making its already affordable tuition even more attractive. Top-notch law schools are following this trend, said Rob Franek, publisher of Princeton Review Books. They set realistic tuition rates. They give students access to professors and resources as well as a range of courses. They also emphasize diversity and tolerance in their classrooms. “[They] are listening to their students,” Franek said. “They are focusing on what students want in a law school and delivering.” Experts agree that prospective students should look closely at law school costs and make wise decisions. Ruth Lammert-Reeves, a former dean for financial aid at Georgetown Law Center for 28 years, advises students to research potential schools and choose based on expenses and salary potential. “You want to look at what the tuition is, what the placement rate is, what the bar passage rate is, what kinds of jobs people are getting when they graduate, and in what areas,” she said. “Is it government, are they sole practitioners, are they big firms? Try to imagine where you think you might end up and see what the average starting salary for that type of position is.” Lammert-Reeves says students should visit www.findaid.org, where they can get a rough guide as to what salary they will need based on law school expenses. Jeffrey Hanson, director of borrower education for the Access Group, a nonprofit organization specializing in graduate and professional student loans, says law school can be a great education, as long as students are smart about their finances. “To get the most out of your law school investment, you should borrow ★ ★ ★ ★ No. School State in-state tuition state bar avg. school bar rate % employed 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 North Carolina Central University School of Law The University of Alabama School of Law Georgia State University College of Law The Florida State University College of Law The University of Memphis — Cecil C. Humphreys School of Law University of Georgia School of Law Brigham Young University — J. Reuben Clark Law School The University of Mississippi School of Law Texas Tech University School of Law West Virginia University College of Law The University of New Mexico School of Law University of Nebraska College of Law The University of Kansas School of Law University of Florida, Fredric G. Levin College of Law Louis D. Brandeis School of Law at the University of Louisville University of Tennessee College of Law University of Kentucky College of Law University of Montana School of Law University of North Dakota School of Law University of Colorado School of Law Faulkner University, Thomas Goode Jones School of Law Louisiana State University, Paul M. Hebert Law Center The University of Arizona James E. Rogers College of Law University of Oklahoma College of Law University of Hawai‘i at Manoa — William S. Richardson School of Law Northern Kentucky University — Salmon P. Chase College of Law George Mason University School of Law Temple University — James E. Beasley School of Law NC AL GA FL TN GA UT MS TX WV NM NE KS FL KY TN KY MT ND CO AL LA AZ OK HI KY VA PA $4,625 $9,736 $7,366 $9,837 $10,596 $10,614 $8,200 $8,300 $12,615 $9,342 $9,566 $9,213 $10,399 $9,861 $11,510 $9,934 $12,842 $9,978 $8,386 $16,738 $15,000 $12,124 $16,201 $13,564 $13,032 $11,112 $15,274 $14,902 71% 79% 84% 71% 80% 84% 90% 87% 80% 68% 90% 86% 82% 71% 77% 80% 77% 91% 90% 76% 79% 70% 71% 90% 79% 77% 74% 78% 81% 97% 92% 79% 91% 91% 93% 92% 89% 72% 96% 89% 83% 83% 86% 89% 88% 92% 94% 89% 87% 84% 82% 97% 87% 78% 77% 85% 89.80% 93.60% 92% 95.60% 95.10% 95.80% 92.90% 91.60% 97.80% 92.60% 91.90% 92.50% 94.40% 87.30% 92% 88.70% 93.40% 92.10% 87.10% 97% 95.90% 86.70% 95.40% 91.90% 88.50% 87.70% 94.90% 91.80% 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 ★ Continued on page 26 Back to School 2007 25
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