New Law School Rankings

Professor Brian Leiter of the University of Texas School of Law has just released his annual law school rankings. He uses slightly different criteria than U.S. News and World Reports. Namely, he looks at only three facts: LSAT score, GPA, and class size. For that reason, I think his methodology is better, since he bases his rankings only on tangible data (rather than more subjective, less empirical qualities, like "assessment score by lawyers/judges," which is part of U.S. News and World Reports):

Here is the Top 10 List:

Rank	School	75th Percentile LSAT	75th Percentile GPA	Class Size
1	Harvard University	175	3.94	550
2	Yale University	175	3.96	200
3	Columbia University	173	3.83	400
4	New York University	172	3.85	400
5	Stanford University	172	3.94	150
6	University of Virginia	171	3.82	350
7	University of Pennsylvania	171	3.81	250
8	University of Chicago	171	3.78	200
9	Georgetown University	170	3.80	450
10	Northwestern University	170	3.78	200

Update: Jeff in the Comments section raises a good question about Professor Leiter's methodology: "Do the Leiter rankings value large class size over small class size? I've always thought of small class size as a strength. Harvard and Yale have the same LSAT, Yale has a higher GPA, and Yale has smaller class size. Why is it #2?"

I had a similar reaction to Jeff when I read the rankings. But Professor Leiter responds with a very good explanation:

Class size (rounded to the nearest 50) served as a tie breaker: the larger school with the same LSAT credentials was ranked higher.

For Harvard to boast a 75th percentile LSAT of 175, just like Yale, requires Harvard to recruit nearly three times as many students as Yale with those credentials. That speaks both to Harvard’s attractiveness, and to the existence at Harvard of an enormous pool of highly credentialed students, a fact, needless to say, that prospective employers register.

I hadn't thought of class size that way, but it makes a lot of sense. If Harvard Law School and Yale Law School students are essentially of "equal quality" (which Leiter's numbers suggest), then Harvard Law School appears "stronger" by featuring a class 3 times larger than that of Yale Law School. Moreover, there are a lot more Harvard Law grads than Yale Law grads, and if the two groups are indeed equal, then a Harvard Law degree would seem to have greater professional value just by virtue of enjoying more alumns in "prestigious" positions, as well as enhanced fundraising opportunities.

At least that is how I read it. Of course, Carl also makes a great point in the Comments section: where one attends law school is merely a proxy for a lot of things; it is no by means definitive about anything--which is sort of like using age as a proxy for when one should be able to enter a pro sports league: sometimes proxies aren't always true.

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