American University (Washington College of Law)

4300 Nebraska Ave. NW
Washington, DC 20016
(202) 274-4101

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National Comparison: Overview of Facts

#16 in Presence of Minority Faculty

AUWCL ranks #16 in terms of the highest percentage of faculty who are racial or ethnic minority (24.9%).

#30 in Highest Tuition

AUWCL ranks #30 in terms of highest tuition among full-time law students ($56,724). We rank from a total of 283 tuition rates from 194 law schools, ranking twice those law schools that have different in-state and out-of-state tuition rates.

#37 in Private Sector Salary

AUWCL is tied for #37 in terms of the median starting salary among graduates working in private practice as law firm associates ($100,000).

#50 in Presence of Minority Students

AUWCL ranks #50 in terms of the highest percentage of students who are racial or ethnic minority (41.8%).

#55 in Library Size

AUWCL ranks #55 in terms of library size with 558,968 volumes or equivalents.

#64 in Median LSAT

AUWCL is tied for #64 in terms of the median LSAT score (158) among those applicants granted admission who enrolled as full-time students. The LSAT measures reading comprehension, analytical reasoning, and logical reasoning.

#67 in Student to Faculty Ratio

AUWCL is tied for #67 in terms of lowest student to faculty ratio (6.4:1).

#70 in Public Sector Salary

AUWCL is tied for #70 in terms of median starting salary among graduates working in government jobs or judicial clerkships at the federal or state level ($56,000).

#96 in Presence of Female Faculty

AUWCL is tied for #96 in terms of the highest percentage of faculty who are female (40.1%).

#99 in Median Undergraduate GPA

AUWCL ranks #99 in terms of highest median undergraduate GPA (3.43) among those applicants granted admission who enrolled as full-time students.

#103 in Acceptance Rate

AUWCL ranks #103 in terms of student selectivity with an acceptance rate of 48.6% among those who applied for admission.

#108 in Employment Rate at Graduation

#148 in Employment Rate at 10 Months
AUWCL ranks #108 in terms of graduates employed at the time of graduation (42.2%) and #148 in terms of graduates employed ten months after graduation (68.0%).

#160 in Bar Passage Rate

AUWCL ranks #160 in terms of bar passage rate among first-time test takers (66.0%), and it underperforms by -4.1% the District of Columbia’s overall bar passage rate of 70.1%. (A national comparison on this metric should be taken in a qualified sense and with caution, because every state has a different bar passage rate.)

Fall 2020 Application Information

Application Deadline: None
Application Fee: $70

Admissions Statistics

2020 2017
Acceptance Rate 48.6% 59.2%
LSAT Score (Median) 158 155
LSAT Score (25th-75th percentile) 155-160 152-158
GPA (Median) 3.43 3.22
GPA Range (25th-75th percentile) 3.08-3.58 2.96-3.48

Bar Exam Statistics

2020 2017
State in which most graduates took bar exam: DC NY
School's bar passage rate: 66.0% 73.7%
State overall bar passage rate: 70.1% 72.7%
School bar pass rate vs. state bar pass rate: -4.1% +1.0%

Employment Statistics

2020 2017
Graduates employed at graduation: 42.2% 57.8%
Graduates employed 10 months after graduation: 68.0% 70.2%

Tuition and Expenses

2020 2017
Tuition: $56,724 $51,002
Room and Board: $18,360 $15,686
Proportion of full-time students receiving grants: 66.0% 51.4%
Median grant amount among full-time students: $25,000 $13,000
Average indebtedness of those who incurred debt: $167,039 $160,274
Proportion of graduates who incurred debt: 82.4% 80.2%
View National Comparison

Students & Faculty

2020 2017
Total Students: 1315 N/A
Men: 36.6% 38.4%
Women: 63.4% 61.6%
Student Racial Demographics:

White: 58.2% N/A
Black: 7.7% N/A
Hispanic: 15.1% N/A
Asian: 6.2% N/A
Student-to-Faculty Ratio: 6.4 : 1 N/A
Total Faculty: 377 N/A
Male: 59.9% N/A
Female: 40.1% N/A
Minority: 24.9% N/A

Full-Time Starting Salaries

2020 2017
Private Sector (Median): $100,000 $100,000
Public Sector (Median): $56,000 $55,057
View National Comparison

Library Resources

2020 2017
Volumes and equivalents: 558,968 559,764