Wednesday, March 15, 2023
Preview Of The 2024 U.S. News Law School Rankings: First-Time Bar Passage
Update:
- Preview Of The 2024 U.S. News Law School Rankings: Ultimate Bar Passage
- U.S. News Delays Release Of Law School Rankings By One Week Due To 'Unprecedented Number Of Inquiries From Schools.' Is Bar Data To Blame?
- U.S. News Releases Preview Of 2024 Law School Rankings: Top 14 And New Methodology
- The Law Schools Most Impacted By The Methodology Changes In The Projected 2024 U.S. News Rankings
- Projected 2024 U.S. News Rankings For All 191 Law Schools
- Summary Of Changes To The Forthcoming U.S. News Law School Rankings
- Preview Of The 2024 U.S. News Law School Rankings: Admissions
- Preview Of The 2024 U.S. News Law School Rankings: Employment
The current 2023 methodology for the 2020 calendar year is:
Bar passage rate (0.03, previously 0.0225): U.S. News revamped its treatment of bar passage rates to incorporate all graduates who took the bar for the first time. Computations were further modified to de-emphasize the impact of geography on law schools' relative performance.
Specifically, the bar passage rate indicator scored schools on their 2020 first-time test takers' weighted bar passage rates among all jurisdictions (states), then added or subtracted the percentage point difference between those rates and the weighted state average among ABA accredited schools' first-time test takers in the corresponding jurisdictions in 2020. This meant schools that performed best on this ranking factor graduated students whose bar passage rates were both higher than most schools overall, and higher compared with what was typical among graduates who took the bar in corresponding jurisdictions.
For example, if a law school graduated 100 students who first took the bar exam — and 88 took the Florida exam, 10 the Georgia exam and two the South Carolina exam — the school's weighted average rate would use pass rate results that were weighted 88% Florida, 10% Georgia and 2% South Carolina. This computation would then be compared with an index of these jurisdictions' average pass rates — also weighted 88-10-2. (For privacy, school profiles on usnews.com only display bar passage data for jurisdictions with at least 10 test-takers.) Both weighted averages included any graduates who passed the bar with diploma privilege. Diploma privilege is a method for J.D. graduates to be admitted to a state bar and allowed to practice law in that state without taking that state's actual bar examination. Diploma privilege is generally based on attending and graduating from a law school in that state with the diploma privilege.
In previous editions, U.S. News divided each school's first-time bar passage rate in its single jurisdiction with the most test-takers by the average for that lone jurisdiction. This approach effectively excluded many law schools' graduates who took the bar. Dividing by the state average also meant the location of a law school impacted its quotient as much as its graduates' bar passage rate itself. The new arithmetic accounts for average passage rates across all applicable jurisdictions as proxy for each exam's difficulty and reflects that passing the bar is a critical outcome measure in itself.
Below are two first time bar passage rankings. The first is a ranking by the school pass rate for the 2021 calendar year plus the total difference between the school pass rate and the average state pass rate as reported by the ABA. The second uses Z-scores to better approximate the U.S. News methodology.
|
School |
School Pass Rate | Average State Pass Rate | Total Difference | School Pass Rate Plus Total Difference | Pass Rate Including Diploma Privilege | |
| 1 | UC-San Francisco* | 81.72% | 77.05% | 81.72% | 163.44% | 81.72% |
| 2 | Missouri-Kansas City* | 74.78% | 81.76% | 74.78% | 149.56% | 74.78% |
| 3 | Montana | 100.00% | 79.94% | 20.06% | 120.06% | 80.60% |
| 4 | Harvard | 99.44% | 82.04% | 17.40% | 116.84% | 99.44% |
| 5 | Chicago | 97.75% | 79.05% | 18.70% | 116.45% | 90.99% |
| 6 | Yale | 98.14% | 80.69% | 17.45% | 115.59% | 98.14% |
| 7 | Michigan | 97.18% | 79.79% | 17.39% | 114.57% | 97.18% |
| 8 | Stanford | 97.08% | 79.73% | 17.35% | 114.43% | 97.66% |
| 9 | Duke | 97.21% | 80.67% | 16.54% | 113.75% | 97.21% |
| 10 | NYU | 98.70% | 84.24% | 14.46% | 113.16% | 98.70% |
| 11 | Kansas | 95.92% | 78.83% | 17.09% | 113.01% | 95.92% |
| 12 | USC | 95.00% | 77.59% | 17.41% | 112.41% | 95.80% |
| 13 | Vanderbilt | 95.15% | 78.02% | 17.13% | 112.28% | 95.15% |
| 14 | Minnesota | 95.67% | 79.40% | 16.27% | 111.94% | 95.67% |
| 15 | UC-Berkeley | 94.95% | 78.14% | 16.81% | 111.76% | 95.25% |
| 16 | Penn | 96.46% | 81.50% | 14.96% | 111.42% | 96.46% |
| 17 | Texas | 94.61% | 77.95% | 16.66% | 111.27% | 83.88% |
| 18 | Northwestern | 95.05% | 79.00% | 16.05% | 111.10% | 95.05% |
| 19 | BYU | 96.15% | 82.50% | 13.65% | 109.80% | 96.15% |
| 20 | Virginia | 94.82% | 79.90% | 14.92% | 109.74% | 94.82% |
| 21 | Georgia | 93.75% | 77.79% | 15.96% | 109.71% | 93.75% |
| 22 | UCLA | 93.84% | 78.01% | 15.83% | 109.67% | 93.84% |
| 23 | William & Mary | 93.82% | 78.66% | 15.16% | 108.98% | 93.82% |
| 24 | Columbia | 96.52% | 84.22% | 12.30% | 108.82% | 96.52% |
| 25 | Texas A&M | 92.98% | 77.57% | 15.41% | 108.39% | 92.98% |
| 26 | Ohio State | 93.71% | 79.18% | 14.53% | 108.24% | 93.71% |
| 27 | Boston College | 94.06% | 80.65% | 13.41% | 107.47% | 94.06% |
| 28 | Seton Hall | 89.60% | 71.89% | 17.71% | 107.31% | 89.60% |
| 29 | Wake Forest* | 94.27% | 78.63% | 12.64% | 106.91% | 94.27% |
| 30 | Boston Univ. | 93.53% | 80.29% | 13.24% | 106.77% | 93.53% |
| 31 | George Washington | 93.46% | 80.50% | 12.96% | 106.42% | 93.46% |
| 32 | Georgetown | 93.23% | 80.62% | 12.61% | 105.84% | 93.23% |
| 33 | Notre Dame | 91.67% | 77.82% | 13.85% | 105.52% | 91.67% |
| 34 | Oklahoma | 91.72% | 78.13% | 13.59% | 105.31% | 91.72% |
| 35 | Belmont | 88.54% | 71.87% | 16.67% | 105.21% | 88.54% |
| 36 | Tennessee | 88.50% | 72.57% | 15.93% | 104.43% | 88.50% |
| 37 | Emory | 91.79% | 79.37% | 12.42% | 104.21% | 92.16% |
| 38 | Washington Univ. | 91.63% | 79.26% | 12.37% | 104.00% | 91.63% |
| 39 | Florida Int'l | 86.72% | 69.91% | 16.81% | 103.53% | 86.71% |
| 40 | George Mason | 90.62% | 78.54% | 12.08% | 102.70% | 90.63% |
| 41 | Wisconsin | 90.00% | 77.46% | 12.54% | 102.54% | 99.61% |
| 42 | Univ. of Washington | 92.21% | 82.05% | 10.16% | 102.37% | 90.97% |
| 43 | Fordham | 93.74% | 85.33% | 8.41% | 102.15% | 93.73% |
| 44 | Penn State-Univ. Park | 89.74% | 77.68% | 12.06% | 101.80% | 89.74% |
| 45 | Villanova | 88.24% | 74.74% | 13.50% | 101.74% | 88.24% |
| 46 | Indiana (Maurer) | 89.61% | 77.73% | 11.88% | 101.49% | 89.61% |
| 47 | Cornell | 92.23% | 83.03% | 9.20% | 101.43% | 92.23% |
| 48 | Texas Tech | 88.96% | 77.39% | 11.57% | 100.53% | 88.97% |
| 49 | Liberty | 88.33% | 76.60% | 11.73% | 100.06% | 93.81% |
| 50 | UC-Irvine | 88.72% | 77.39% | 11.33% | 100.05% | 88.73% |
|
School |
School Pass Rate | Average State Pass Rate | Total Difference | School Pass Rate Plus Total Difference | Pass Rate Including Diploma Privilege | |
| 51 | Duquesne | 87.50% | 75.18% | 12.32% | 99.82% | 83.55% |
| 52 | Alabama | 89.29% | 78.79% | 10.50% | 99.79% | 89.29% |
| 53 | Loyola-L.A. | 87.94% | 77.00% | 10.94% | 98.88% | 87.93% |
| 54 | St. John's | 92.18% | 85.58% | 6.60% | 98.78% | 92.17% |
| 55 | North Carolina | 89.25% | 79.81% | 9.44% | 98.69% | 89.25% |
| 56 | Utah | 92.94% | 87.62% | 5.32% | 98.26% | 92.94% |
| 57 | Arizona State | 87.33% | 77.49% | 9.84% | 97.17% | 87.32% |
| 58 | Pepperdine | 86.87% | 76.89% | 9.98% | 96.85% | 86.86% |
| 59 | SMU | 86.96% | 77.61% | 9.35% | 96.31% | 86.96% |
| 60 | Baylor | 86.93% | 77.55% | 9.38% | 96.31% | 86.93% |
| 61 | Oregon | 88.19% | 80.39% | 7.80% | 95.99% | 88.19% |
| 62 | Houston* | 85.78% | 77.57% | 10.01% | 95.79% | 86.26% |
| 63 | New Hampshire | 84.52% | 73.78% | 10.74% | 95.26% | 84.52% |
| 64 | Washington & Lee | 86.72% | 78.29% | 8.43% | 95.15% | 86.72% |
| 65 | Northeastern | 87.30% | 79.53% | 7.77% | 95.07% | 88.36% |
| 66 | Wayne State | 83.47% | 72.35% | 11.12% | 94.59% | 83.47% |
| 67 | Florida | 82.66% | 71.20% | 11.46% | 94.12% | 82.66% |
| 68 | Miami | 81.76% | 70.07% | 11.69% | 93.45% | 81.75% |
| 69 | Colorado | 84.48% | 75.92% | 8.56% | 93.04% | 84.48% |
| 70 | Iowa | 84.09% | 75.48% | 8.61% | 92.70% | 84.09% |
| 71 | Cincinnati | 85.59% | 78.88% | 6.71% | 92.30% | 82.61% |
| 72 | South Carolina* | 82.00% | 74.90% | 10.10% | 92.10% | 81.50% |
| 73 | Illinois | 84.43% | 77.49% | 6.94% | 91.37% | 84.43% |
| 74 | Richmond | 84.80% | 78.32% | 6.48% | 91.28% | 84.80% |
| 75 | Cleveland State | 84.61% | 79.34% | 5.27% | 89.88% | 69.84% |
| 76 | Maryland | 82.67% | 75.54% | 7.13% | 89.80% | 82.67% |
| 77 | St. Louis | 85.37% | 81.07% | 4.30% | 89.67% | 85.37% |
| 78 | Louisiana State | 82.21% | 74.82% | 7.39% | 89.60% | 82.21% |
| 79 | Georgia State | 83.90% | 78.24% | 5.66% | 89.56% | 83.91% |
| 80 | Temple | 81.58% | 74.83% | 6.75% | 88.33% | 81.58% |
| 81 | Louisville | 82.18% | 76.98% | 5.20% | 87.38% | 82.18% |
| 82 | Penn State-Dickinson | 81.16% | 75.34% | 5.82% | 86.98% | 81.16% |
| 83 | Kentucky | 81.89% | 76.80% | 5.09% | 86.98% | 72.44% |
| 84 | San Diego | 81.78% | 76.97% | 4.81% | 86.59% | 82.22% |
| 85 | Loyola-Chicago | 81.73% | 76.92% | 4.81% | 86.54% | 81.16% |
| 86 | Nebraska | 79.65% | 73.67% | 5.98% | 85.63% | 79.65% |
| 87 | Arkansas-Fayetteville | 81.11% | 76.61% | 4.50% | 85.61% | 68.22% |
| 88 | Loyola-New Orleans | 80.12% | 75.06% | 5.06% | 85.18% | 80.12% |
| 89 | Drake | 79.41% | 74.29% | 5.12% | 84.53% | 79.41% |
| 90 | Campbell | 82.25% | 80.05% | 2.20% | 84.45% | 82.25% |
| 91 | Missouri-Columbia* | 82.95% | 81.59% | 1.45% | 84.40% | 84.09% |
| 92 | New Mexico | 80.55% | 76.80% | 3.75% | 84.30% | 80.56% |
| 93 | Albany | 84.71% | 85.60% | -0.89% | 83.82% | 84.71% |
| 94 | Syracuse | 83.13% | 82.66% | 0.47% | 83.60% | 82.50% |
| 95 | Gonzaga | 82.02% | 80.69% | 1.33% | 83.35% | 82.01% |
| 96 | Denver | 79.48% | 76.01% | 3.47% | 82.95% | 79.49% |
| 97 | UC-Davis | 79.79% | 77.13% | 2.66% | 82.45% | 79.80% |
| 98 | Drexel* | 78.31% | 74.22% | 4.08% | 82.39% | 78.31% |
| 99 | Stetson | 76.19% | 70.26% | 5.93% | 82.12% | 76.19% |
| 100 | Memphis | 76.58% | 71.56% | 5.02% | 81.60% | 85.39% |
| 101 | American | 79.86% | 78.56% | 1.30% | 81.16% | 79.86% |
| 102 | St. Thomas (MN) | 80.14% | 79.32% | 0.82% | 80.96% | 80.14% |
| 103 | University of Arizona | 79.13% | 77.37% | 1.76% | 80.89% | 79.13% |
| 104 | Tulane | 78.85% | 77.14% | 1.71% | 80.56% | 78.37% |
| 105 | Lewis & Clark | 80.50% | 80.70% | -0.20% | 80.30% | 80.50% |
| 106 | Connecticut | 77.60% | 75.09% | 2.51% | 80.11% | 77.60% |
| 107 | Chapman | 78.32% | 76.97% | 1.35% | 79.67% | 78.32% |
| 108 | Indiana (McKinney) | 77.68% | 75.93% | 1.75% | 79.43% | 77.23% |
| 109 | Case Western | 78.91% | 78.61% | 0.30% | 79.21% | 78.91% |
| 110 | UNLV | 73.86% | 68.53% | 5.33% | 79.19% | 74.34% |
| 111 | Pittsburgh | 77.23% | 75.47% | 1.76% | 78.99% | 77.24% |
| 112 | Mercer | 78.26% | 78.11% | 0.15% | 78.41% | 78.26% |
| 113 | Cardozo | 81.15% | 84.47% | -3.32% | 77.83% | 81.15% |
| 114 | Florida State | 74.16% | 70.50% | 3.66% | 77.82% | 74.16% |
| 115 | Elon | 78.15% | 79.05% | -0.90% | 77.25% | 78.15% |
| 116 | Toledo* | 77.47% | 77.78% | -0.29% | 77.18% | 77.46% |
| 117 | Capital | 77.59% | 79.05% | -1.46% | 76.13% | 77.59% |
| 118 | Northern Kentucky | 76.92% | 78.12% | -1.20% | 75.72% | 76.92% |
| 119 | Regent | 76.81% | 78.18% | -1.37% | 75.44% | 76.81% |
| 120 | Southwestern | 76.11% | 76.99% | -0.88% | 75.23% | 76.11% |
| 121 | Suffolk | 77.14% | 79.90% | -2.76% | 74.38% | 77.14% |
| 122 | New England | 76.55% | 79.11% | -2.56% | 73.99% | 76.55% |
| 123 | South Dakota | 72.58% | 71.80% | 0.78% | 73.36% | 72.58% |
| 124 | Brooklyn | 79.01% | 85.47% | -6.46% | 72.55% | 79.01% |
| 125 | Arkansas-Little Rock | 74.05% | 75.85% | -1.80% | 72.25% | 74.05% |
| 126 | Chicago-Kent | 74.65% | 77.07% | -2.42% | 72.23% | 75.12% |
| 127 | Michigan State | 73.02% | 74.12% | -1.10% | 71.92% | 73.02% |
| 128 | Seattle | 75.82% | 82.24% | -6.42% | 69.40% | 76.37% |
| 129 | Hawaii | 72.07% | 74.86% | -2.79% | 69.28% | 72.07% |
| 130 | Tulsa | 73.63% | 78.47% | -4.84% | 68.79% | 73.63% |
| 131 | Maine | 67.47% | 66.40% | 1.07% | 68.54% | 67.47% |
| 132 | Catholic | 73.69% | 78.85% | -5.16% | 68.53% | 73.68% |
| 133 | Pacific | 72.29% | 76.55% | -4.26% | 68.03% | 64.29% |
| 134 | Detroit Mercy | 70.64% | 73.38% | -2.74% | 67.90% | 71.56% |
| 135 | Quinnipiac | 70.70% | 74.87% | -4.17% | 66.53% | 70.71% |
| 136 | Wyoming | 70.84% | 75.47% | -4.63% | 66.21% | 70.83% |
| 137 | South Texas | 71.38% | 77.46% | -6.08% | 65.30% | 71.63% |
| 138 | St. Mary's | 71.17% | 77.52% | -6.35% | 64.82% | 71.16% |
| 139 | Faulkner | 72.00% | 79.21% | -7.21% | 64.79% | 72.00% |
| 140 | Washburn | 71.72% | 78.76% | -7.04% | 64.68% | 71.72% |
| 141 | Mississippi | 69.80% | 75.22% | -5.42% | 64.38% | 69.80% |
| 142 | Mississippi College | 69.57% | 74.79% | -5.22% | 64.35% | 70.65% |
| 143 | New York Law School* | 74.33% | 84.56% | -10.17% | 64.16% | 74.33% |
| 144 | Samford | 71.43% | 78.95% | -7.52% | 63.91% | 71.43% |
| 145 | West Virginia | 64.15% | 64.44% | -0.29% | 63.86% | 64.15% |
| 146 | North Dakota | 69.23% | 74.62% | -5.39% | 63.84% | 69.23% |
| 147 | Ohio Northern | 70.73% | 78.01% | -7.28% | 63.45% | 70.73% |
| 148 | Dayton | 70.49% | 77.82% | -7.33% | 63.16% | 70.49% |
| 149 | Pace | 73.43% | 84.01% | -10.58% | 62.85% | 73.43% |
| 150 | CUNY | 73.44% | 84.96% | -11.52% | 61.92% | 73.44% |
| 151 | Baltimore | 68.14% | 74.82% | -6.68% | 61.46% | 68.14% |
| 152 | Oklahoma City | 69.69% | 78.40% | -8.71% | 60.98% | 69.70% |
| 153 | Idaho | 66.92% | 73.34% | -6.42% | 60.50% | 66.92% |
| 154 | SUNY-Buffalo | 73.13% | 86.11% | -12.98% | 60.15% | 73.13% |
| 155 | Rutgers | 65.62% | 71.16% | -5.54% | 60.08% | 66.67% |
| 156 | DePaul | 68.15% | 76.87% | -8.72% | 59.43% | 68.16% |
| 157 | North Texas* | 68.27% | 77.45% | -9.13% | 59.14% | 68.27% |
| 158 | Santa Clara | 67.43% | 77.10% | -9.67% | 57.76% | 55.92% |
| 159 | Akron | 68.11% | 79.22% | -11.11% | 57.00% | 68.12% |
| 160 | Creighton | 65.34% | 74.11% | -8.77% | 56.57% | 65.35% |
| 161 | Willamette | 68.48% | 80.43% | -11.95% | 56.53% | 68.48% |
| 162 | Hofstra | 70.51% | 84.83% | -14.32% | 56.19% | 70.51% |
| 163 | North Carolina Central | 67.71% | 79.61% | -11.90% | 55.81% | 67.71% |
| 164 | Puerto Rico | 44.74% | 34.11% | 10.63% | 55.37% | 44.74% |
| 165 | John Marshall (GA) | 66.67% | 78.16% | -11.49% | 55.18% | 63.77% |
| 166 | San Francisco | 65.83% | 76.98% | -11.15% | 54.68% | 65.83% |
| 167 | Ave Maria | 62.96% | 71.31% | -8.35% | 54.61% | 62.96% |
| 168 | Barry | 62.36% | 70.62% | -8.26% | 54.10% | 62.36% |
| 169 | Nova | 62.16% | 70.43% | -8.27% | 53.89% | 62.16% |
| 170 | Illinois-Chicago | 64.39% | 76.98% | -12.59% | 51.80% | 64.39% |
| 171 | Cal-Western | 64.17% | 76.89% | -12.72% | 51.45% | 64.17% |
| 172 | Southern | 62.81% | 74.68% | -11.87% | 50.94% | 62.81% |
| 173 | Northern Illinois | 63.07% | 76.39% | -13.32% | 49.75% | 63.08% |
| 174 | Massachusetts | 64.00% | 79.29% | -15.29% | 48.71% | 64.00% |
| 175 | Vermont | 59.03% | 71.93% | -12.90% | 46.13% | 59.03% |
| 176 | Howard | 62.96% | 80.66% | -17.70% | 45.26% | 62.96% |
| 177 | Roger Williams | 60.98% | 77.85% | -16.87% | 44.11% | 60.98% |
| 178 | Charleston | 59.42% | 75.19% | -15.77% | 43.65% | 59.42% |
| 179 | Mitchell | Hamline | 59.55% | 78.18% | -18.63% | 40.92% | 59.55% |
| 180 | Florida A&M | 56.25% | 71.92% | -15.67% | 40.58% | 56.94% |
| 181 | Southern Illinois | 59.42% | 78.66% | -19.24% | 40.18% | 59.42% |
| 182 | Touro | 62.90% | 85.67% | -22.77% | 40.13% | 62.90% |
| 183 | Widener (DE) | 54.95% | 72.77% | -17.82% | 37.13% | 54.95% |
| 184 | Widener (PA) | 56.18% | 75.82% | -19.64% | 36.54% | 56.18% |
| 185 | Inter-American (PR) | 33.68% | 33.70% | -0.02% | 33.66% | 33.68% |
| 186 | Western New England | 55.07% | 77.84% | -22.77% | 32.30% | 55.07% |
| 187 | Western State | 54.54% | 76.99% | -22.45% | 32.09% | 54.55% |
| 188 | St. Thomas (FL) | 50.00% | 70.42% | -20.42% | 29.58% | 50.00% |
| 189 | Texas Southern | 53.45% | 77.47% | -24.02% | 29.43% | 53.45% |
| 190 | Lincoln Memorial | 50.67% | 72.03% | -21.36% | 29.31% | 50.67% |
| 191 | Pontifical Catholic (PR) | 29.52% | 33.70% | -4.18% | 25.34% | 29.52% |
| 192 | Marquette | 50.00% | 77.18% | -27.18% | 22.82% | 99.46% |
| 193 | Western Michigan | 37.91% | 73.05% | -35.14% | 2.77% | 37.91% |
| 194 | Appalachian | 33.96% | 73.89% | -39.93% | -5.97% | 33.96% |
| 195 | Golden Gate | 35.07% | 76.97% | -41.90% | -6.83% | 35.06% |
| 196 | District of Columbia* | 32.50% | 78.68% | -46.17% | -13.67% | 32.50% |
Z-score ranking:
|
School |
School Pass Rate Plus Total Difference | Z-Score | Z-Score Rank |
| UC-San Francisco* | 163.44% | 3.12 | 1 |
| Missouri-Kansas City* | 149.56% | 2.60 | 2 |
| Montana | 120.06% | 1.51 | 3 |
| Harvard | 116.84% | 1.39 | 4 |
| Chicago | 116.45% | 1.37 | 5 |
| Yale | 115.59% | 1.34 | 6 |
| Michigan | 114.57% | 1.30 | 7 |
| Stanford | 114.43% | 1.30 | 8 |
| Duke | 113.75% | 1.27 | 9 |
| NYU | 113.16% | 1.25 | 10 |
| Kansas | 113.01% | 1.24 | 11 |
| USC | 112.41% | 1.22 | 12 |
| Vanderbilt | 112.28% | 1.22 | 13 |
| Minnesota | 111.94% | 1.21 | 14 |
| UC-Berkeley | 111.76% | 1.20 | 15 |
| Penn | 111.42% | 1.19 | 16 |
| Texas | 111.27% | 1.18 | 17 |
| Northwestern | 111.10% | 1.17 | 18 |
| BYU | 109.80% | 1.13 | 19 |
| Virginia | 109.74% | 1.12 | 20 |
| Georgia | 109.71% | 1.12 | 21 |
| UCLA | 109.67% | 1.12 | 22 |
| William & Mary | 108.98% | 1.10 | 23 |
| Columbia | 108.82% | 1.09 | 24 |
| Texas A&M | 108.39% | 1.07 | 25 |
| Ohio State | 108.24% | 1.07 | 26 |
| Boston College | 107.47% | 1.04 | 27 |
| Seton Hall | 107.31% | 1.03 | 28 |
| Wake Forest* | 106.91% | 1.02 | 29 |
| Boston Univ. | 106.77% | 1.01 | 30 |
| George Washington | 106.42% | 1.00 | 31 |
| Georgetown | 105.84% | 0.98 | 32 |
| Notre Dame | 105.52% | 0.97 | 33 |
| Oklahoma | 105.31% | 0.96 | 34 |
| Belmont | 105.21% | 0.96 | 35 |
| Tennessee | 104.43% | 0.93 | 36 |
| Emory | 104.21% | 0.92 | 37 |
| Washington Univ. | 104.00% | 0.91 | 38 |
| Florida Int'l | 103.53% | 0.89 | 39 |
| George Mason | 102.70% | 0.86 | 40 |
| Wisconsin | 102.54% | 0.86 | 41 |
| Univ. of Washington | 102.37% | 0.85 | 42 |
| Fordham | 102.15% | 0.84 | 43 |
| Penn State-Univ. Park | 101.80% | 0.83 | 44 |
| Villanova | 101.74% | 0.83 | 45 |
| Indiana (Maurer) | 101.49% | 0.82 | 46 |
| Cornell | 101.43% | 0.82 | 47 |
| Texas Tech | 100.53% | 0.78 | 48 |
| Liberty | 100.06% | 0.76 | 49 |
| UC-Irvine | 100.05% | 0.76 | 50 |
| Duquesne | 99.82% | 0.76 | 51 |
| Alabama | 99.79% | 0.75 | 52 |
| Loyola-L.A. | 98.88% | 0.72 | 53 |
| St. John's | 98.78% | 0.72 | 54 |
| North Carolina | 98.69% | 0.71 | 55 |
| Utah | 98.26% | 0.70 | 56 |
| Arizona State | 97.17% | 0.66 | 57 |
| Pepperdine | 96.85% | 0.65 | 58 |
| SMU | 96.31% | 0.63 | 59 |
| Baylor | 96.31% | 0.63 | 60 |
| Oregon | 95.99% | 0.61 | 61 |
| Houston* | 95.79% | 0.61 | 62 |
| New Hampshire | 95.26% | 0.59 | 63 |
| Washington & Lee | 95.15% | 0.58 | 64 |
| Northeastern | 95.07% | 0.58 | 65 |
| Wayne State | 94.59% | 0.56 | 66 |
| Florida | 94.12% | 0.54 | 67 |
| Miami | 93.45% | 0.52 | 68 |
| Colorado | 93.04% | 0.50 | 69 |
| Iowa | 92.70% | 0.49 | 70 |
| Cincinnati | 92.30% | 0.48 | 71 |
| South Carolina* | 92.10% | 0.47 | 72 |
| Illinois | 91.37% | 0.44 | 73 |
| Richmond | 91.28% | 0.44 | 74 |
| Cleveland State | 89.88% | 0.39 | 75 |
| Maryland | 89.80% | 0.38 | 76 |
| St. Louis | 89.67% | 0.38 | 77 |
| Louisiana State | 89.60% | 0.38 | 78 |
| Georgia State | 89.56% | 0.37 | 79 |
| Temple | 88.33% | 0.33 | 80 |
| Louisville | 87.38% | 0.29 | 81 |
| Penn State-Dickinson | 86.98% | 0.28 | 82 |
| Kentucky | 86.98% | 0.28 | 83 |
| San Diego | 86.59% | 0.26 | 84 |
| Loyola-Chicago | 86.54% | 0.26 | 85 |
| Nebraska | 85.63% | 0.23 | 86 |
| Arkansas-Fayetteville | 85.61% | 0.23 | 87 |
| Loyola-New Orleans | 85.18% | 0.21 | 88 |
| Drake | 84.53% | 0.19 | 89 |
| Campbell | 84.45% | 0.18 | 90 |
| Missouri-Columbia* | 84.40% | 0.18 | 91 |
| New Mexico | 84.30% | 0.18 | 92 |
| Albany | 83.82% | 0.16 | 93 |
| Syracuse | 83.60% | 0.15 | 94 |
| Gonzaga | 83.35% | 0.14 | 95 |
| Denver | 82.95% | 0.13 | 96 |
| UC-Davis | 82.45% | 0.11 | 97 |
| Drexel* | 82.39% | 0.11 | 98 |
| Stetson | 82.12% | 0.10 | 99 |
| Memphis | 81.60% | 0.08 | 100 |
| American | 81.16% | 0.06 | 101 |
| St. Thomas (MN) | 80.96% | 0.06 | 102 |
| University of Arizona | 80.89% | 0.05 | 103 |
| Tulane | 80.56% | 0.04 | 104 |
| Lewis & Clark | 80.30% | 0.03 | 105 |
| Connecticut | 80.11% | 0.02 | 106 |
| Chapman | 79.67% | 0.01 | 107 |
| Indiana (McKinney) | 79.43% | 0.00 | 108 |
| Case Western | 79.21% | -0.01 | 109 |
| UNLV | 79.19% | -0.01 | 110 |
| Pittsburgh | 78.99% | -0.02 | 111 |
| Mercer | 78.41% | -0.04 | 112 |
| Cardozo | 77.83% | -0.06 | 113 |
| Florida State | 77.82% | -0.06 | 114 |
| Elon | 77.25% | -0.08 | 115 |
| Toledo* | 77.18% | -0.08 | 116 |
| Capital | 76.13% | -0.12 | 117 |
| Northern Kentucky | 75.72% | -0.14 | 118 |
| Regent | 75.44% | -0.15 | 119 |
| Southwestern | 75.23% | -0.16 | 120 |
| Suffolk | 74.38% | -0.19 | 121 |
| New England | 73.99% | -0.20 | 122 |
| South Dakota | 73.36% | -0.23 | 123 |
| Brooklyn | 72.55% | -0.26 | 124 |
| Arkansas-Little Rock | 72.25% | -0.27 | 125 |
| Chicago-Kent | 72.23% | -0.27 | 126 |
| Michigan State | 71.92% | -0.28 | 127 |
| Seattle | 69.40% | -0.37 | 128 |
| Hawaii | 69.28% | -0.38 | 129 |
| Tulsa | 68.79% | -0.40 | 130 |
| Maine | 68.54% | -0.41 | 131 |
| Catholic | 68.53% | -0.41 | 132 |
| Pacific | 68.03% | -0.42 | 133 |
| Detroit Mercy | 67.90% | -0.43 | 134 |
| Quinnipiac | 66.53% | -0.48 | 135 |
| Wyoming | 66.21% | -0.49 | 136 |
| South Texas | 65.30% | -0.53 | 137 |
| St. Mary's | 64.82% | -0.54 | 138 |
| Faulkner | 64.79% | -0.54 | 139 |
| Washburn | 64.68% | -0.55 | 140 |
| Mississippi | 64.38% | -0.56 | 141 |
| Mississippi College | 64.35% | -0.56 | 142 |
| New York Law School* | 64.16% | -0.57 | 143 |
| Samford | 63.91% | -0.58 | 144 |
| West Virginia | 63.86% | -0.58 | 145 |
| North Dakota | 63.84% | -0.58 | 146 |
| Ohio Northern | 63.45% | -0.59 | 147 |
| Dayton | 63.16% | -0.61 | 148 |
| Pace | 62.85% | -0.62 | 149 |
| CUNY | 61.92% | -0.65 | 150 |
| Baltimore | 61.46% | -0.67 | 151 |
| Oklahoma City | 60.98% | -0.69 | 152 |
| Idaho | 60.50% | -0.70 | 153 |
| SUNY-Buffalo | 60.15% | -0.72 | 154 |
| Rutgers | 60.08% | -0.72 | 155 |
| DePaul | 59.43% | -0.74 | 156 |
| North Texas* | 59.14% | -0.75 | 157 |
| Santa Clara | 57.76% | -0.81 | 158 |
| Akron | 57.00% | -0.83 | 159 |
| Creighton | 56.57% | -0.85 | 160 |
| Willamette | 56.53% | -0.85 | 161 |
| Hofstra | 56.19% | -0.86 | 162 |
| North Carolina Central | 55.81% | -0.88 | 163 |
| Puerto Rico | 55.37% | -0.89 | 164 |
| John Marshall (GA) | 55.18% | -0.90 | 165 |
| San Francisco | 54.68% | -0.92 | 166 |
| Ave Maria | 54.61% | -0.92 | 167 |
| Barry | 54.10% | -0.94 | 168 |
| Nova | 53.89% | -0.95 | 169 |
| Illinois-Chicago | 51.80% | -1.03 | 170 |
| Cal-Western | 51.45% | -1.04 | 171 |
| Southern | 50.94% | -1.06 | 172 |
| Northern Illinois | 49.75% | -1.10 | 173 |
| Massachusetts | 48.71% | -1.14 | 174 |
| Vermont | 46.13% | -1.24 | 175 |
| Howard | 45.26% | -1.27 | 176 |
| Roger Williams | 44.11% | -1.31 | 177 |
| Charleston | 43.65% | -1.33 | 178 |
| Mitchell | Hamline | 40.92% | -1.43 | 179 |
| Florida A&M | 40.58% | -1.44 | 180 |
| Southern Illinois | 40.18% | -1.46 | 181 |
| Touro | 40.13% | -1.46 | 182 |
| Widener (DE) | 37.13% | -1.57 | 183 |
| Widener (PA) | 36.54% | -1.59 | 184 |
| Inter-American (PR) | 33.66% | -1.70 | 185 |
| Western New England | 32.30% | -1.75 | 186 |
| Western State | 32.09% | -1.76 | 187 |
| St. Thomas (FL) | 29.58% | -1.85 | 188 |
| Texas Southern | 29.43% | -1.86 | 189 |
| Lincoln Memorial | 29.31% | -1.86 | 190 |
| Pontifical Catholic (PR) | 25.34% | -2.01 | 191 |
| Marquette | 22.82% | -2.10 | 192 |
| Western Michigan | 2.77% | -2.85 | 193 |
| Appalachian | -5.97% | -3.17 | 194 |
| Golden Gate | -6.83% | -3.20 | 195 |
| District of Columbia* | -13.67% | -3.46 | 196 |
For the Z-scores used to calculate this ranking, see here.
An asterisk (*) indicates apparent miscalculations or discrepancies/inconsistencies in the school's data in the spreadsheet. The ABA states at the top of the spreadsheet:
First Time Bar Passage Calendar Year 2021 (Any corrections in the data after April 23, 2021 can be found at http://www.abarequireddisclosures.org/BarPassageOutcomes.aspx).
Updates:
- Senior Associate Dean Caruso sent me the corrected data for Hofstra: its pass rate was 72.76% (not the erroneous 70.51% on the ABA spreadsheet), average state pass rate was 84.96% (not the erroneous 84.83% on the ABA spreadsheet), and difference was -12.20% (not the erroneous -14.32% on the ABA spreadsheet).
- Provost & Academic Dean Morris Ratner sent me the corrected data for UC-San Francisco: "The asterisk is defined as indicating "apparent miscalculations or discrepancies / inconsistencies in the school's data in the spreadsheet." I'm just writing to point out that this statement does not make it clear that the discrepancy is in the ABA’s data/spreadsheet (referring to school data) and not to the data the school submitted. There's no reporting error in the data insofar as our pass rate was in fact correctly reported as 81.72%, 77.05% state, and 4.67% difference, as can be seen in our Bar Passage Report. The error was in the ABA calculation of the total difference in their excel sheet, which is not calculated at the school level (as you can see, we provided the correct number, but it was not put in the excel sheet). After seeing your blog post, we notified the ABA of the calculation error made when our school-level data was compiled by the ABA."
https://taxprof.typepad.com/taxprof_blog/2023/03/preview-of-the-2024-us-news-law-school-rankings-first-time-bar-passage.html
