Whether a law school is a public or private institution is one factor in deciding where to attend law school.
You should consider many factors when selecting a law school. A report commissioned by the American Association of Law Schools to address validity of the annual law school ranking by U.S. News and World Report raises concerns about the ranking methodology, specifically questionable data accuracy and crucial aspects of law school quality left unevaluated. Nevertheless, the ranking remains a popular tool used by potential law school students and employers. All law schools in the ranking, no matter their rank, are accredited by the American Bar Association.
Private Law Schools in the Top 100
The top 100 law schools are ranked from higher to lower scores, though the scores are not divulged. Of the top 100 law schools in the 2010 U.S. News and World Report ranking, 52 are private institutions: American University, Baylor, Boston College, Boston University, Brigham Young, Brooklyn Law School, Case Western Reserve, Catholic University of America, University of Chicago, Columbia, Cornell, University of Denver, DePaul, Duke, Emory, Fordham, Georgetown, George Washington, Harvard, Hofstra, Chicago-Kent, Lewis and Clark, Loyola-Chicago, Loyola-Los Angeles, McGeorge, University of Miami, New York University, Northeastern, Northwestern, Notre Dame, University of Pennsylvania, Pepperdine, University of Richmond, St. John's, University of San Diego, University of San Francisco, Santa Clara, University of Seattle, Seton Hall, Southern Methodist, Stanford, University of Syracuse, Tulane, Vanderbilt, Villanova, Wake Forest, Washington and Lee, University of Washington-Seattle, William Mitchell, Yale and Yeshiva.
Third-Tier Private Law Schools
The ranking lists third-tier law schools in alphabetical order, rather than in order of scores. Of the 42 third-tier law schools, 23 are private institutions: Albany, Creighton, Drake, Franklin Pierce, Gonzaga, Howard, Loyola-New Orleans, Marquette, Mercer, Michigan State, New York Law School, Ohio Northern, Pace, Quinnipiac, Saint Louis, University of St. Thomas-Minnesota, Samford, Southwestern, Stetson, Suffolk, Tulsa, Vermont Law School and Willamette.
Fourth-Tier Private Law Schools
The ranking also lists fourth-tier law schools in alphabetical order. Thirty three Of the 44 fourth-tier law schools, 33 are private institutions: Appalachian, Atlanta's John Marshall Law School, Ave Maria School of Law, Barry University, California Western, Campbell, Capital, University of Dayton, Detroit Mercy, Duquesne, Faulkner, Florida Coastal, Golden Gate, Hamline, John Marshal-Chicago, Mississippi College, New England School of Law, Nova Southeastern, Oklahoma City, Roger Williams, Regent, Roger Williams, St. Mary's, South Texas, St. Thomas University-Florida, Texas Wesleyan, Thomas Jefferson, Thomas M. Cooley, Touro, Valparaiso, Western New England, Western State, Whittier and Widener.
Tags: Private Schools, private institutions, alphabetical order, American Association, fourth-tier schools, News World, News World Report