Paul L. Caron
Dean





Monday, January 23, 2023

Will The U.S. News Law School Rankings Arms Race Resume In Three Years?

ABA Journal, US News Extends Rankings Survey Deadline; Which Law Schools Will File?:

US News (2023)U.S. News posted a letter Jan. 2 explaining that schools not submitting surveys would still be included in the rankings. Those metrics will focus on public data from the ABA Section of Legal Education and Admissions to the Bar, which is responsible for law school accreditation. Schools that submit surveys will have more detailed profiles, the letter said.

Last week, the publication informed deans about further modifications, including eliminating employment rates, average debt at graduation and spending on instruction from rankings criteria, according to a Jan. 13 letter shared on TaxProf Blog. ...

People may care less about the rankings this year because of the methodological changes, says Mike Spivey, a law school admissions consultant.

“But I’d bet that three years from now, we’re right back to the rankings arms race. As much as people want to say the rankings are horrible and flawed, academics and prospective students are very much interested in what their schools ranked,” he adds.

According to Spivey, small fluctuations in a school’s rank are meaningless, but potential students often take them seriously. He wishes law school rankings were released in the summer, after incoming students make law school decisions, rather than the spring.

U.S. News coverage:

Boycott

U.S. News Response to Boycott

https://taxprof.typepad.com/taxprof_blog/2023/01/will-the-us-news-law-school-rankings-arms-race-resume-in-three-years.html

Law School Rankings, Legal Ed News, Legal Ed Rankings, Legal Education | Permalink