Rankings season is here, with numerous publications unveiling their top picks ahead of the 2025 U.S. News & World Report Law School Rankings release.
Law.com has been a key player for over ten years, spotlighting the best law schools for aspiring Biglaw professionals. These institutions, dubbed “go-to law schools” by Law.com, are now ranked based on the percentage of 2023 graduates securing associate roles at the top 100 law firms by attorney headcount.
But before diving into the go-to law schools list, let’s discuss the entry-level job landscape in the legal field. Although the ABA has yet to disclose the data for the class of 2023, indications suggest their job market performance may mirror the historic success of the class of 2022.
Now, let’s take a look at the Top 10 Go-To Law Schools:
- Northwestern: 65.23%
- Columbia: 64.30%
- UVA: 64.08%
- Penn: 62.90%
- Cornell: 62.07%
- Duke: 55.88%
- Chicago: 54.46%
- Vanderbilt: 53.97%
- USC: 53.01%
- Georgetown: 50.80%
For the complete list of the Top 50 Go-To Law Schools, click here.
Columbia’s longstanding reign has been disrupted by Northwestern, marking a shift in the rankings. While Columbia slipped to second place, UVA surged to third (from 11th in 2022), and Cornell descended to fifth. Further down the list, notable changes occurred, partly due to Harvard, Stanford, Yale, and Michigan Law School opting out of the rankings. It seems fitting that these top-tier schools, having withdrawn from the U.S. News rankings, have now distanced themselves from all rankings.
Beyond the rankings, this year’s tuition data stands out. The correlation between law school expenses and employment rates varies significantly. Why invest around \(54,000 in a school with less than 40% Biglaw placement when you could save roughly \)18,000 by choosing a school with similar Biglaw placement rates?
Regardless, this list serves as a valuable tool for current and prospective law students to assess their career prospects. Approach these rankings thoughtfully — dismissing them could be at your own risk.
[
] is a senior editor at Above the Law, where she has been a part of the team since 2011. Feel free to reach out to her with any tips, questions, comments, or critiques. You can follow her on Twitter and LinkedIn.