The Dedman School of Law at Southern Methodist University
EDU
March 2, 2019
Law School Admissions
Application
| Director of admissions |
Jill Nikirk |
| Application deadline |
February 15 |
| Full-time program application fee |
$75 |
| Part-time program application fee |
$75 |
| Besides the fall semester, can enter in |
N/A |
Admissions & Enrollment (Overall)
| Acceptance rate |
24.4% – Low |
| Median undergraduate GPA for all program entrants |
3.67 |
| Median LSAT score for all program entrants |
163 |
Admissions & Enrollment (Full-time)
| Acceptance rate |
21.6% |
| LSAT scores (25th-75th percentile) |
158-166 |
| Undergraduate GPA (25th-75th percentile) |
3.34-3.84 |
| Median undergraduate GPA for full-time program entrants |
3.72 |
| Median LSAT score for full-time program entrants |
165 |
Admissions & Enrollment (Part-time)
| Acceptance rate |
17.3% |
| LSAT scores (25th-75th percentile) |
152-162 |
| Undergraduate GPA (25th-75th percentile) |
3.16-3.74 |
| Median undergraduate GPA for part-time program entrants |
3.57 |
| Median LSAT score for part-time program entrants |
160 |
Law School Academics
Academic Program Details
| Academic calendar |
Semester |
| Joint degrees offered |
|
|
| Special programs offered to J.D. students (as provided by the school) |
| Criminal, Consumer Law, Civil, Child Advocacy, Taxpayers Clinics. Criminal Clinic is joint with the Dallas County DA to provide legal service to indigent individuals. Students choose faculty-approved externship in state and federal courts; local, state, and federal agencies; and various legal departments. There is a 7-week summer session and the Summer Program in Oxford. |
| 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 |
120 |
| Seminars |
23 |
| Positions available in seminars |
445 |
| Positions available in simulation courses |
894 |
| Positions available in faculty-supervised clinical courses |
141 |
| Student activities (as provided by the school) |
| Law Review; Journal of Air Law and Commerce; The International Lawyer (published by the ABA Section of International Law); Law and Business Review of the Americas; and SMU Science and Technology Law Review (published by the State Bar of Texas). Students may participate in the SBA, approximately 20 student organizations, and a wide variety of regional and national skills competition. |
Curricular Offerings (Full-time)
| Typical first-year full-time section size taught by full-time faculty (excludes small sections) |
90 |
| Is there typically a full-time “small section” of the first-year class taught by full-time faculty (excluding Legal Writing)? |
No |
| Typical size of first-year “small section” |
N/A |
| Positions filled in full-time program seminars |
240 |
| Positions filled in full-time program simulation courses |
508 |
| Positions filled in faculty-supervised full-time program clinical courses |
91 |
| Full-time students involved in field placements |
42 |
| Full-time students involved in law journals |
191 |
| Full-time students involved in advanced moot court or trial competitions |
51 |
| Full-time students enrolled in independent study |
41 |
Curricular Offerings (Part-time)
| Typical first-year part-time section size taught by full-time faculty (excludes small sections) |
75 |
| Is there typically a part-time “small section” of the first-year class taught by full-time faculty (excluding Legal Writing)? |
No |
| Positions filled in part-time program seminars |
103 |
| Positions filled in part-time program simulation courses |
108 |
| Positions filled in faculty-supervised part-time program clinical courses |
45 |
| Part-time students involved in field placements |
33 |
| Part-time students involved in law journals |
61 |
| Part-time students involved in advanced moot court or trial competitions |
7 |
| Part-time students enrolled in independent study |
12 |
Faculty Profile (Fall 2011)
| Student-faculty ratio |
16.5:1 – High |
| Full- and part-time faculty |
76 |
| Full-time minority faculty |
18.2% |
| Part-time minority faculty |
3.7% |
| Total faculty |
99 |
| Total faculty (men) |
74.7% |
| Total faculty (women) |
25.3% |
| Total faculty (minorities) |
10.1% |
Class Size
Law School Ranking
|
|
|
(2) Ranking by Specialties
#41 in Law Firms Rank Schools
#19 in Part-time Law
|
Law Ranking Scores
| Score |
55 |
| Peer assessment score (out of 5) |
2.6 |
| Assessment score by lawyers/judges (out of 5) |
3.5 |
| GPA (25th-75th percentile) |
3.31-3.81 |
| Median undergraduate GPA for all program entrants |
3.67 |
| LSAT scores (25th-75th percentile) |
157-165 |
| Median LSAT score for all program entrants |
163 |
| Acceptance rate |
24.4% – Low |
| Student-faculty ratio |
16.5:1 – High |
| Graduates known to be employed at graduation |
59.8% – Medium |
| Graduates known to be employed nine months after graduation |
86.9% – Medium |
| Bar passage rate (first-time test takers) |
82.7% – Medium |
| State where the greatest number of first-time test takers took the bar |
TX |
| Statewide bar passage rate (first-time test takers) |
82.5% |
Law School Student Body
Student Body (Overall)
Student Body (Full-time)
| Enrollment (full-time) |
540 |
Student Body (Part-time)
| Enrollment (part-time) |
326 |
Attrition Rates for Full- and Part-time Students (2010-2011)
| First-year students discontinuing law school |
N/A |
| Second-year students discontinuing law school |
0.7% |
| Third-year students discontinuing law school |
0.4% |
| Fourth-year students discontinuing law school |
1.2% |
| Male students discontinuing law school |
0.8% |
| Female students discontinuing law school |
N/A |
Law School Cost
Financial Aid Contact Information
| Financial aid director |
Marc Peterson |
| Financial aid phone |
(214) 768-4119 |
| Financial aid application deadline |
April 1 |
Expenses
| Tuition and fees |
Full-time: $42,057 per year
Part-time: $31,543 per year |
| Room and board |
$15,500 |
| Books |
$2,000 |
| Miscellaneous expenses |
$2,738 |
| Is the tuition the same for first-, second-, and third-year students? |
Yes |
| Does the university offer housing restricted to law students? |
No |
| Does the university offer graduate student housing for which law students are eligible? |
Yes |
| 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 |
37.8% |
| Students receiving grants of one-half tuition or more but less than full |
33.9% |
| Students receiving grants of full tuition |
1.7% |
| Students receiving grants of more than full tuition |
3.5% |
| Median grant amount |
$20,200 |
| Grant range (25th–75th percentile) |
$10,600–$25,300 |
| Full-time students receiving grants |
76.9% |
Grants (Part-time students)
| Students receiving grants of less than one-half tuition |
49.1% |
| Students receiving grants of one-half tuition or more but less than full |
2.8% |
| Students receiving grants of full tuition |
0.0% |
| Students receiving grants of more than full tuition |
0.0% |
| Median grant amount |
$7,000 |
| Grant range (25th–75th percentile) |
$5,000–$10,000 |
| Part-time students receiving grants |
51.8% |
Indebtedness
| Average indebtedness of 2011 graduates who incurred law school debt |
$99,084 |
| Proportion who borrowed |
74.3% |
| Does the school offer a loan repayment assistance program for 2011 J.D. graduates? |
No |
Law School Library
Library Information Resources
| Print titles (excluding nonbook titles) |
132,191 |
| Microform titles |
100,466 |
| Electronic titles |
501,280 |
| Other non-book titles |
712 |
| Total titles |
734,649 |
| Volumes (excluding microforms) |
505,304 |
| Volume equivalent microforms |
142,092 |
| Total volumes and volume equivalents |
647,396 |
| Number of volumes in the collection that are stored off site and are systematically retrievable |
0 |
| 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 |
104 |
| Number of hours per week professional staff are on duty on a regular schedule |
65 |
| Number of hours per week only full-time support staff are on duty on a regular schedule |
36 |
| Number of hours per week only students or other part-time staff are on duty on a regular schedule |
7 |
| Number of hours of reference service provided per week on a regular schedule |
65 |
| 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 |
50 |
| Number of hours per week only full-time support staff are on duty on an abbreviated schedule |
37 |
| Number of hours per week only students or other part-time staff are on duty on an abbreviated schedule |
0 |
| Number of hours of reference service provided per week on an abbreviated schedule |
45 |
| Number of weeks per year library operates on expanded schedule |
5 |
Information Technology
| Department(s) responsible for the law school information technology operations |
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) |
0 |
| Number of open, wired network connections available to students in classrooms |
0 |
| Number of open, wired network connections available to students in computer labs |
0 |
| Number of open, wired network connections available to students elsewhere in the law school |
0 |
| 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 |
100,000 |
| Total seats available for library users |
787 |
| Details about the library and other facilities (as provided by the school) |
The second largest law collection in Texas. Library has 219,391 titles and 600,000 volumes with international, comparative law, and selective foreign law collection. Specialized collections include significant rare books collection with an emphasis on early American imprints, English treatises and case reports, and Continental case reports, statutes, and treatises. |
Law School Careers
Bar Statistics (Winter and Summer 2010 administrations)
| State where the greatest number of first-time test takers took the bar |
TX |
| Bar passage rate (first-time test takers) |
82.7% – Medium |
| Statewide bar passage rate (first-time test takers) |
82.5% |
Class of 2010 Graduates
| Total graduates |
259 |
| Graduates known to be employed at graduation |
59.8% |
| Graduates known to be employed nine months after graduation |
86.9% |
Class of 2010 Graduates-Class Breakdown at Graduation
| Graduates whose employment status is unknown |
15.8% |
| Graduates whose employment status is known |
84.2% |
| Graduates known to be employed at graduation |
59.8% |
| Graduates known to be enrolled in a full-time degree program |
2.7% |
| Graduates known to be unemployed and seeking work |
20.8% |
| Graduates known to be unemployed and not seeking work |
0.8% |
Class of 2010 Graduates-Class Breakdown at Nine Months
| Graduates whose employment status is unknown |
N/A |
| Graduates whose employment status is known |
100.0% |
| Graduates known to be employed nine months after graduation |
86.9% |
| Graduates known to be enrolled in a full-time degree program |
2.7% |
| Graduates known to be unemployed and seeking work |
4.2% |
| Graduates known to be unemployed and not seeking work |
6.2% |
Starting Salaries of Graduates Employed Full-time (Class of 2010)
| 25th percentile private sector starting salary |
$60,000 |
| Median private sector starting salary |
$85,000 |
| 75th percentile private sector starting salary |
$150,000 |
| Percent in the private sector who reported salary information |
86% |
| Median public service starting salary |
$55,000 |
Areas of Legal Practice (Class of 2010)
| Percent employed in academia |
1.3% |
| Percent employed in business and industry |
20.4% |
| Percent employed in government |
6.2% |
| Percent employed in all judicial clerkships |
4.4% |
| Percent employed in law firms |
N/A |
| Percent employed in public interest |
2.7% |
| Percent employed in an unknown field |
N/A |
Employment Location (Class of 2010)
| Graduates employed in-state |
90% |
| Graduates employed out-of-state |
10.0% |
| Graduates employed in foreign countries |
N/A |
| Number of states where graduates are employed |
14 |
| New England (CT, ME, MA, NH, RI, VT) |
N/A |
| Middle Atlantic (NY, NJ, PA) |
0.9% |
| East North Central (IL, IN, MI, OH, WI) |
0.9% |
| West North Central (IA, KS, MN, MO, NE, ND, SD) |
0.9% |
| South Atlantic (DE, DC, FL, GA, MD, NC, SC, VA, WV) |
1.8% |
| East South Central (AL, KY, MS, TN) |
0.4% |
| West South Central (AR, LA, OK, TX) |
92.4% |
| Pacific (AK, CA, HI, OR, WA) |
2.2% |
| Mountain (AZ, CO, ID, MT, NV, NM, UT, WY) |
0.5% |
| Employment location unknown |
N/A |
Career Services
(Data appear as originally submitted by this school)
| Career services operations |
Career counseling and access to alumni for J.D; tax, general and international LL.M students’ fall recruiting program with on-campus interviews and a resume collection component for employers who cannot visit the campus. Employers include large, Texas firms for summer clerkships, courts seeking second and third year students and smaller firms and government agencies. |
Job Type
| Bar admission required/anticipated (e.g., attorney and corporate counsel positions, law clerks, judicial clerks) |
75.0% |
| Bar admission required/anticipated – percent employed in full-time positions |
97.9% |
| J.D. preferred, law degree enhances position (e.g., corporate contracts administrator, alternative dispute resolution specialist, government regulatory analyst, FBI special agent) |
4.0% |
| J.D. preferred – percent employed in full-time positions |
100.0% |
| 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) |
7.0% |
| Professional other – percent employed in full-time positions |
100.0% |
| 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) |
8.0% |
| Non-professional other – percent employed in full-time positions |
50.0% |
