The Northwestern School of Law at Lewis & Clark College

Law School Admissions

Application

Director of admissions Shannon Davis, Assistant Dean
Application deadline March 1
Full-time program application fee $50
Part-time program application fee $50
Besides the fall semester, can enter in N/A

The Northwestern School of Law at Lewis & Clark College

Admissions & Enrollment (Overall)

Acceptance rate 39.3% – Medium
Median undergraduate GPA for all program entrants 3.49
Median LSAT score for all program entrants 161

Admissions & Enrollment (Full-time)

Acceptance rate 38.9%
LSAT scores (25th-75th percentile) 158-164
Undergraduate GPA (25th-75th percentile) 3.25-3.7
Median undergraduate GPA for full-time program entrants 3.51
Median LSAT score for full-time program entrants 162

Admissions & Enrollment (Part-time)

Acceptance rate 45.3%
LSAT scores (25th-75th percentile) 153-161
Undergraduate GPA (25th-75th percentile) 3.12-3.66
Median undergraduate GPA for part-time program entrants 3.35
Median LSAT score for part-time program entrants 157

Law School Academics

Academic Program Details

Academic calendar Semester
Joint degrees offered
JD/LL.M. in Environmental Law
Special programs offered to J.D. students (as provided by the school)
Six clinics. Certificates in environ., animal law, crim., intellectual prop., business, tax, pub. interest, & global law. Six clinics. Externships around the world. Summer courses in environ., Indian law, and core courses. Summer abroad partners = UMKC China prog., U of San Diego. Law Centers = Envir., inter. env, crime victims, animal law, global, intellectual property, business
Programs/courses offered in
appellate advocacy intellectual property law
clinical training international law
dispute resolution tax law
environmental law trial advocacy
health care law

Curricular Offerings (Overall)

Classroom course titles, beyond the first-year curriculum, offered last year 145
Seminars 28
Positions available in seminars 515
Positions available in simulation courses 722
Positions available in faculty-supervised clinical courses 201
Student activities (as provided by the school)
Law reviews: Lewis & Clark (general), Environmental Law, Animal Law. Mt Cts: appell. adv, client counsel, mock trial, negotiation. Environmental, animal law, federal Indian law, immigration law, global law. Over 20 student orgs, including Student Bar Assoc., Pub. Int. Law Project, minority law students, business, intell. prop., crim. law, env. law, women’s law caucus, Federalist Society, et al.

Curricular Offerings (Full-time)

Typical first-year full-time section size taught by full-time faculty (excludes small sections) 82
Is there typically a full-time “small section” of the first-year class taught by full-time faculty (excluding Legal Writing)? Yes
Typical size of first-year “small section” 44
Positions filled in full-time program seminars 241
Positions filled in full-time program simulation courses 372
Positions filled in faculty-supervised full-time program clinical courses 120
Full-time students involved in field placements 102
Full-time students involved in law journals 108
Full-time students involved in advanced moot court or trial competitions 98
Full-time students enrolled in independent study 59

Curricular Offerings (Part-time)

Typical first-year part-time section size taught by full-time faculty (excludes small sections) 62
Is there typically a part-time “small section” of the first-year class taught by full-time faculty (excluding Legal Writing)? Yes
Positions filled in part-time program seminars 123
Positions filled in part-time program simulation courses 169
Positions filled in faculty-supervised part-time program clinical courses 57
Part-time students involved in field placements 18
Part-time students involved in law journals 32
Part-time students involved in advanced moot court or trial competitions 36
Part-time students enrolled in independent study 58

Faculty Profile (Fall 2011)

Student-faculty ratio 10.0:1 – Low
Full- and part-time faculty 95
Full-time minority faculty 13.5%
Part-time minority faculty 4.7%
Total faculty 110
Total faculty (men) 56.4%
Total faculty (women) 43.6%
Total faculty (minorities) 10.0%

Class Size

Law School Ranking

#58 Best Law Schools

(4) Ranking by Specialties

#2 in Environmental Law
#81 in Law Firms Rank Schools
#17 in Legal Writing
#23 in Part-time Law

Law Ranking Scores

Score 52
Peer assessment score (out of 5) 2.5
Assessment score by lawyers/judges (out of 5) 3.2
GPA (25th-75th percentile) 3.2-3.68
Median undergraduate GPA for all program entrants 3.49
LSAT scores (25th-75th percentile) 157-163
Median LSAT score for all program entrants 161
Acceptance rate 39.3% – Medium
Student-faculty ratio 10.0:1 – Low
Graduates known to be employed at graduation 47.5% – Medium
Graduates known to be employed nine months after graduation 89.4% – Medium
Bar passage rate (first-time test takers) 79.1% – Medium
State where the greatest number of first-time test takers took the bar OR
Statewide bar passage rate (first-time test takers) 75.0%

Law School Student Body

Student Body (Overall)

Total Enrolled 738

Student Body (Full-time)

Enrollment (full-time) 493

Student Body (Part-time)

Enrollment (part-time) 245

Attrition Rates for Full- and Part-time Students (2010-2011)

First-year students discontinuing law school 6.9%
Second-year students discontinuing law school 2.2%
Third-year students discontinuing law school N/A
Fourth-year students discontinuing law school N/A
Male students discontinuing law school 3.8%
Female students discontinuing law school 2.2%

Law School Cost

Financial Aid Contact Information

Financial aid director Anastacia Dillon
Financial aid phone (503) 768-7090
Financial aid application deadline March 1

Expenses

Tuition and fees
Full-time: $36,362 per year
Part-time: $27,270 per year
Room and board $12,600
Books $1,600
Miscellaneous expenses $7,200
Is the tuition the same for first-, second-, and third-year students? Yes
Does the university offer housing restricted to law students? Yes
Does the university offer graduate student housing for which law students are eligible? No
Does the university offer a public-interest scholarship program to current J.D. students? No

Grants (Full-time students)

Students receiving grants of less than one-half tuition 40.0%
Students receiving grants of one-half tuition or more but less than full 13.0%
Students receiving grants of full tuition 0.6%
Students receiving grants of more than full tuition 0.2%
Median grant amount $12,500
Grant range (25th–75th percentile) $9,875–$18,000
Full-time students receiving grants 53.8%

Grants (Part-time students)

Students receiving grants of less than one-half tuition 13.9%
Students receiving grants of one-half tuition or more but less than full 5.3%
Students receiving grants of full tuition 0.0%
Students receiving grants of more than full tuition 0.0%
Median grant amount $10,000
Grant range (25th–75th percentile) $7,500–$14,500
Part-time students receiving grants 19.2%

Indebtedness

Average indebtedness of 2011 graduates who incurred law school debt $112,004
Proportion who borrowed 86.7%
Does the school offer a loan repayment assistance program for 2011 J.D. graduates? Yes

Law School Library

Library Information Resources

Print titles (excluding nonbook titles) 60,548
Microform titles 44,099
Electronic titles 259,870
Other non-book titles 644
Total titles 365,161
Volumes (excluding microforms) 225,132
Volume equivalent microforms 315,661
Total volumes and volume equivalents 540,793
Number of volumes in the collection that are stored off site and are systematically retrievable 28,103
Library’s online catalog or website includes links to electronic titles or databases made available by another campus library or consortia Yes

Library Schedule of Operation

Number of hours per week library is open on a regular schedule 113
Number of hours per week professional staff are on duty on a regular schedule 59
Number of hours per week only full-time support staff are on duty on a regular schedule 13
Number of hours per week only students or other part-time staff are on duty on a regular schedule 41
Number of hours of reference service provided per week on a regular schedule 50
Number of weeks per year library operates on an abbreviated schedule 18
Number of hours per week library is open on an abbreviated schedule 82
Number of hours per week professional staff are on duty are on an abbreviated schedule 52
Number of hours per week only full-time support staff are on duty on an abbreviated schedule 5
Number of hours per week only students or other part-time staff are on duty on an abbreviated schedule 25
Number of hours of reference service provided per week on an abbreviated schedule 40
Number of weeks per year library operates on expanded schedule 6

Information Technology

Department(s) responsible for the law school information technology operations law school information technology department, law school library, university information technology department
Approximate number of full-time-equivalent information technology staff (excluding hourly students and other temporary staff) 5
Number of open, wired network connections available to students in the law library (excluding computer labs) 269
Number of open, wired network connections available to students in classrooms 252
Number of open, wired network connections available to students in computer labs 20
Number of open, wired network connections available to students elsewhere in the law school 367
Does the law school have a wireless network? Yes
Wireless network is available in the law library, in classrooms, in computer labs, in administrative/faculty offices and work areas, elsewhere in the law school
Does the school require entering students to own a computer? No

Physical Library Facilities

Net square feet of space assigned for library purposes 45,139
Total seats available for library users 385
Details about the library and other facilities (as provided by the school) Largest law library in the state and second largest in the Pacific Northwest. Comprehensive holdings. Only law school library in the country designated as a Patent and trademark Depository Library. Extraordinarily beautiful study space with wireless and wired internet connections. Law school borders 600+ acre wilderness park yet is 10 minutes from downtown Portland, Oregon

Law School Careers

Bar Statistics (Winter and Summer 2010 administrations)

State where the greatest number of first-time test takers took the bar OR
Bar passage rate (first-time test takers) 79.1% – Medium
Statewide bar passage rate (first-time test takers) 75.0%

Class of 2010 Graduates

Total graduates 198
Graduates known to be employed at graduation 47.5%
Graduates known to be employed nine months after graduation 89.4%

Class of 2010 Graduates-Class Breakdown at Graduation

Graduates whose employment status is unknown 51.0%
Graduates whose employment status is known 49.0%
Graduates known to be employed at graduation 47.5%
Graduates known to be enrolled in a full-time degree program 1.5%
Graduates known to be unemployed and seeking work N/A
Graduates known to be unemployed and not seeking work N/A

Class of 2010 Graduates-Class Breakdown at Nine Months

Graduates whose employment status is unknown 4.0%
Graduates whose employment status is known 96.0%
Graduates known to be employed nine months after graduation 89.4%
Graduates known to be enrolled in a full-time degree program 1.5%
Graduates known to be unemployed and seeking work 2.5%
Graduates known to be unemployed and not seeking work 2.5%

Starting Salaries of Graduates Employed Full-time (Class of 2010)

25th percentile private sector starting salary $50,000
Median private sector starting salary $64,000
75th percentile private sector starting salary $90,000
Percent in the private sector who reported salary information 54%
Median public service starting salary $50,000

Areas of Legal Practice (Class of 2010)

Percent employed in academia 9.4%
Percent employed in business and industry 15.8%
Percent employed in government 14.6%
Percent employed in all judicial clerkships 13.5%
Percent employed in law firms 40.4%
Percent employed in public interest 6.4%
Percent employed in an unknown field 0.0%

Employment Location (Class of 2010)

Graduates employed in-state 69%
Graduates employed out-of-state 31.0%
Graduates employed in foreign countries 0%
Number of states where graduates are employed 20
New England (CT, ME, MA, NH, RI, VT) 0.6%
Middle Atlantic (NY, NJ, PA) 0.0%
East North Central (IL, IN, MI, OH, WI) 2.3%
West North Central (IA, KS, MN, MO, NE, ND, SD) 1.2%
South Atlantic (DE, DC, FL, GA, MD, NC, SC, VA, WV) 4.1%
East South Central (AL, KY, MS, TN) 1.7%
West South Central (AR, LA, OK, TX) 0.0%
Pacific (AK, CA, HI, OR, WA) 85.4%
Mountain (AZ, CO, ID, MT, NV, NM, UT, WY) 4.7%
Employment location unknown 0.0%

Career Services

(Data appear as originally submitted by this school)

Career services operations Mentors available for every student; mock interviews; on-campus interviews; one-on-one counseling; panels on practice areas and on how to succeed in clerkships, panels occur on average once a week during each semester. Free long distance telephone for career search; career services library; extensive job posting service for student and graduate positions, cover letter and resume review.

Job Type

Bar admission required/anticipated (e.g., attorney and corporate counsel positions, law clerks, judicial clerks) 74.3%
Bar admission required/anticipated – percent employed in full-time positions 89.0%
J.D. preferred, law degree enhances position (e.g., corporate contracts administrator, alternative dispute resolution specialist, government regulatory analyst, FBI special agent) 17.5%
J.D. preferred – percent employed in full-time positions 46.7%
Professional other (jobs that require professional skills or training but for which a J.D. is neither preferred nor particularly applicable; e.g., accountant, teacher, business manager, nurse) 2.9%
Professional other – percent employed in full-time positions 60.0%
Non-professional other (job that does not require any professional skills or training or is taken on a temporary basis and not viewed as part of a career path) 5.3%
Non-professional other – percent employed in full-time positions 77.8%