Law school ranked tenth in best value

By: Nicolas Saravia / Staff Writer

A study based on bar passage rate, average debt after graduation and employment rates nine months after graduation has led The National Jurist to name the University’s College of Law as the tenth best value Law school in the nation.

The National Jurist ranking, featured in the October 2010 issue and in PreLaw Magazine’s fall edition classifies the University’s College of Law as second in the state, after Florida State University.

The College of Law has been previously recognized in other studies, such as the Leiter Ranking and the national Sisk Report, which placed FIU as third in Florida for Faculty Scholarly Impact in the nation.

“These rankings reflect FIU College of Law’s excellence in education and scholarship,” said Dean Alex Acosta on the College of Law’s website. “As we approach the tenth anniversary of our founding, we are proud of that our faculty has so quickly joined those of the University of Florida and FSU as one of the three most impactful law faculties in the state of Florida.”

The National Jurist assigned each of the 60 selected institutions a letter grade to represent their value level, with FIU obtaining an A. The list is lead by Georgia State University, followed by Brigham Young University and the University of Louisville.

The schools selected were to have a bar pass rate higher than the state average.The 2009 FIU rate for first-time takers was 81 percent.Another factor taken into account for the list was the average debt of law graduates, in which FIU was close to the ranking’s limit of $100,000.

The National Jurist obtained the average debt information from the U.S. News & World Report.To be included in the selection, the employment rate nine months after graduation had to be of at least 85 percent of the class. FIU’s statistics for the Class of 2009 reached 91 percent.

In-state tuition was also an important factor for the University’s high rank, which in 2009 was at $14,203.20 annually for the day division and $9,942.24 for night students.

“Money was a major reason for me to come to attend a state school in Florida,” said Law school student Derrick Feinman. The University’s College of Law has attracted many students because of the comparatively low cost of tuition, as well as improvements in the curriculum.

“The tuition, professors and location were all factors of why I chose to go to FIU for law school,” said Gretel Salazar, law student. The study by The National Jurist also found that most of the students that go to law school find jobs in the same area.

Thus, they recommend future lawyers consider whether the school they attend is in an area where they would want to spend at least a few years.

“I take pride in the fact that I can go to a great law school, take advantage of all that FIU has to offer in terms of quality professors and curriculum and do so at a relatively good price,” said Feinman.