The University of Tennessee College of Law ranks 29th among public institutions, according to rankings released today by U.S. News and World Report.
Overall, the College of Law rose four points to 56th among law schools throughout the country. The Legal Clinic, which is the oldest continuously operating clinic of its kind in the country, is ranked 20th overall and 10th among public institutions.
College of Law Interim Dean Doug Blaze said he is pleased to see the school’s accomplishments recognized in this way.
“Our rise in the U.S. News rankings is a tribute to the extraordinary lengths our faculty and staff undertake each day,” Blaze said. “Rankings absolutely do not define the work we do, but seeing our gains in admissions and bar passage affirms us in our efforts to deliver an affordable and excellent education to our students.”
This overall ranking, the highest the College of Law has received in the past five years, is most affected by admission acceptance rates, graduate employment and bar passage.
Eighty-six percent of 2020 graduates were employed 10 months after graduation in long-term, full-time jobs where a J.D. degree was an advantage or bar passage was required. Graduates of the same class passed the bar at a rate of 90%, the highest in eight years.
The College of Law also ranked sixth among law schools in Fall 2021 for providing a best value legal education, this according to PreLaw magazine, a publication of The National Jurist.
The U.S. News’ Best Law Schools rankings evaluate institutions on their successful placement of graduates, their faculty resources, the academic achievements of entering students, and opinions by professors, lawyers and judges on overall program quality.
The rankings measure 192 law schools that are fully accredited by the American Bar Association. Changes for the 2023 edition include a more comprehensive assessment of bar passage rates of first-time test takers. Another was pairing down the library resources metrics to a single factor pertaining to student support by professional librarians.