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Reviewed by:
Former Head of Pre-Law Office, Northeastern University, & Admissions Officer, Brown University
Reviewed: 10/24/23
If you’re interested in joining one of the premier law schools in the United States, read on to learn more about the UC Berkeley Law School acceptance rate and how to get into Berkeley Law!
Robotic legs, atomic bombs, and wetsuits. While these elements sound like a terrible sci-fi movie, they’re actually all inventions and contributions made by faculty at UC Berkeley! Aside from producing valuable inventions, UC Berkeley is also well known for producing excellent lawyers!
UC Berkeley’s law school is one of the top-ranking schools in the country and offers a diverse, constantly evolving curriculum to help students become world-class attorneys.
If you’d like to join UC Berkeley’s successful alumni, read on to find out more about getting into Berkeley Law.
The acceptance rate of UC Berkeley Law School is competitive, sitting at 17.3%. The selective J.D. program only accepts about one out of every ten applicants. This is consistent with the admissions data of other high-ranking law schools, such as Harvard and Yale.
For more information, take a look at this table with UC Berkeley’s acceptance rates from the past few years:
Source: UC Berkeley Law Class Profile, 2022 Information Report, 2021 Information Report, 2020 Information Report, 2019 Information Report
As a top-ranking law school, the UC Berkeley Law School LSAT score is very high on average. The median LSAT score for recent matriculants is 170, with the lower 25th percentile at 167 and the upper 75th percentile at 172. This means you’ll need an LSAT score of at least 170 to be competitive.
Unsurprisingly, Berkeley Law boasts high GPA numbers as well. The median GPA of recent UC Berkeley Law School matriculants was 3.87. The lower 25th percentile was 3.80 and the upper 75th percentile was 3.95.
To compete with these scores, you’ll need to study hard and achieve a high GPA. We recommended aiming for a minimum GPA score of 3.87, but the higher, the better!
However, Berkeley Law has no minimum GPA requirement, meaning that you may still stand a chance at admission if you have a lower GPA. You’ll just need to work hard on the rest of your application!
Take our interactive quiz below to find out how likely you are to get into Berkeley Law School.
Depending on where you are in your law school journey, there are various law programs UC Berkeley offers prospective students:
This is a traditional three-year program. UC Berkeley prioritizes and values the diversity found in its J.D. program and emphasizes a real-world focus, allowing students to gain hands-on legal experience.
UC Berkeley offers several LL.M. (Master of Laws) programs for students to choose from. With diverse courses, students are able to customize their degrees to match their interests and obtain various certificates of specialization in their preferred area of law.
This graduate program is best suited for students interested in policy research and analysis. It has a strong focus on scholarly study of the law and prepares students for teaching law.
The Doctor of Juridical Science (J.S.D.) program is Berkeley’s most advanced law degree. It emphasizes independent research and legal scholarship.
Much like other law schools, UC Berkeley requires the standard materials from interested applicants:
While this application checklist seems extensive, it is essential you put equal effort into each component to maximize your chances of gaining admission to UC Berkeley. When you get support from law school admissions consulting, you put your best foot forward.
Applying to law school can be a hectic and time-consuming process. To ensure you apply on time, you should keep the following deadlines in mind:
Source: UC Berkeley Law School
As you can see, the application process is lengthy! Ensure you begin preparing to apply well before applications become available in September.
Law school is expensive, and Berkeley Law is no exception. UC Berkeley Law School tuition and fees come to $63,196 each year for California residents and $75,624 for non-residents.
However, if you’re living away from home, you’ll have other personal and living expenses to consider. With these additional costs, UC Berkeley estimates that residents can expect to pay $100,224 each year. Non-residents will likely pay closer to $112,652 yearly.
Luckily, there are many opportunities for scholarships and financial aid so that students can afford to attend the UC Berkeley Law School cost. This includes student gift aid, continuing student scholarships, UC-specific scholarships, and external scholarships.
Berkeley Law also offers several programs that grant successful students a full-ride scholarship for the duration of their law degree. This includes the Public Interest Scholars Program, which covers tuition and fees for J.D. students demonstrating commitment to public interest work.
You can also apply for the Berkeley Law Opportunity Scholarship, which offers full tuition coverage for first-generation college graduates.
UC Berkeley’s Law School has garnered an impressive reputation for itself. It ranks as the twelfth Best Law School in the nation, #1 in Intellectual Property Law, #2 in Environmental Law, and #7 in Business/Corporate Law!
Some UC Berkeley School of Law notable alumni include:
Considering these high rankings, UC Berkeley is one of the best law schools aspiring lawyers can attend!
Considering its prestige, UC Berkeley is difficult to get into! Since the admissions committee only wants the best and brightest students to join their programs, it is highly selective.
However, there are tips you can implement in your application to increase your chances of standing out:
As your GPA is a major deciding factor in the application process, you’ll want to ensure you complete a degree in which you know you can do well. Luckily, UC Berkeley has absolutely no preference on which major you choose! Choose a degree that interests you so you’re more likely to put in enough effort to maintain a high GPA.
Another important part of your application is your resume. Your resume should prove you are the type of person who always makes good use of your free time. You don’t want to have any lengthy gaps in your resume, as the admissions committee will question this.
Try to get involved in your community, at your school, and even in the legal field if you can. You want to show you are a capable, intelligent, and adaptive individual who can not only juggle various tasks at once but also excel at them.
This tip is probably a no-brainer, but you should study hard and create the perfect study schedule in order to get a high LSAT score. This will make you a more competitive applicant and add prestige to your application.
As another part of the application process is submitting several letters of recommendation, you need to make good connections with all of your mentors. These mentors must be able to paint you as a one-of-a-kind person in order for these letters to have positive bearings on your admission chances.
You want to be perceived as extraordinary by the admission committee. These letters give the committee direct insight into how others see you, which can influence the way they see you as well. Ensure you impress your mentors and form strong connections to secure outstanding letters of recommendation.
If you’re worried you won’t be able to implement all of these tips, or you just don’t know where to start with your application, Juris can be your guide! Our experts are dedicated to helping you realize your dreams and will help craft the perfect application for you.
If you have more questions about getting into UC Berkeley’s law school, here are the answers to the most frequently asked questions about Berkeley Law.
Yes. Like any other high-ranking law school, UC Berkeley Law is difficult to get into! With a low acceptance rate and high score requirements, UC Berkeley is competitive. But, with a stellar application and steadfast dedication, gaining admission to this prestigious school is definitely possible!
Yes. Aside from consistently ranking as the best law school in the nation, UC Berkeley offers comprehensive, hands-on curriculums that prepare students for prosperous law careers.
Yes. UC Berkeley ranks #12 in the Best Law Schools in the United States.
While UC Berkeley Law School is known for all of its legal programs, it is especially known for its intellectual property law program.
No, UC Berkeley does not interview any students. Instead, personal statements are used to introduce the students to the committee.
UC Berkeley’s tuition reflects its reputation. Residents can expect to pay around $63,196 each year in tuition and fees, and non-residents can expect to pay around $75,624 yearly.
Whether you’re interested in attending UC Berkeley Law School to say you go to the school that helped invent atomic bombs, or you simply want to receive the best possible education to become a successful attorney, it’s crucial you submit an incredible application.
Luckily, you don’t have to bear the burden of this pressure alone! Juris’ team of law school admissions advisors can give you complete end-to-end application support to maximize your chances of acceptance and minimize your stress!
Reviewed by:
Former Head of Northeastern University's Pre-Law Office, Northeastern University
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