DePaul University College of Law

Introduction

DePaul University College of Law is centered in the heart of downtown Chicago, providing its students with a rich and dynamic urban setting. DePaul University is the nation's largest Catholic University and the ninth largest private university, as well as Illinois' largest private university. The College of Law is fully accredited by the ABA, is a member of AALS and Order of the Coif, and offers full-time, part-time, and summer programs. Its location—centered within the city's business and legal communities—provides students with extensive contact with Chicago's legal community, and students gain access to a national law alumni network of more than 14,000 strong. The law school is within walking distance of the state and federal courts, a variety of government offices, and numerous corporations and law firms. DePaul law graduates reside in all 50 states and in more than 20 countries, and among them are three former mayors of Chicago, more than 350 state and federal judges, and numerous CEOs, CFOs, executives, and partners at corporations and law firms worldwide.

Students

DePaul University was founded in 1898 by the Vincentian Fathers as a school for children of immigrants. Its students represent a rich diversity in age, ethnicity, education, and career experiences. This broad diversity of backgrounds and knowledge provides a connectedness within the institution, creating a genuine sense of community among the students, faculty, and staff. The average age of the entering class is 24 and is comprised of 50 percent women and 24 percent minorities. Forty-five percent of the full-time class is from out of state.

Faculty

DePaul faculty members are recognized scholars who represent a variety of professional backgrounds and specialties. Consistent with the university's Vincentian mission of service to the community, they work tirelessly in service to the legal profession and to the community and have achieved national recognition in teaching, research, scholarly activities, and professional service. They are extremely accessible, approachable, and deeply committed to the success of their students.

Library, Publications, Research Centers, and Institutes

The College of Law's three-story law library offers extensive resources for study and research. Its staff includes 7 professional librarians and 12 full-time support staff, and it is open year-round.

DePaul offers writing, publishing, and editing opportunities through seven student-edited law journals and a traditional law review that explore issues in nearly every area and specialization of the law, including business and commercial law; art, technology, and intellectual property law; health care law; social justice; sports law; women, gender, and the law; and rule of law.

The College of Law also maintains 15 research centers and institutes dedicated to teaching, research, advocacy, student placement, and public education and engagement across a wide range of disciplines:

• Health Law Institute
• International Aviation Law Institute
• International Human Rights Law Institute
• International Weapons Control Center
• Asian Legal Studies Institute
• Schiller DuCanto and Fleck Family Law Center
• Center for Intellectual Property Law and Information Technology
• Center for Justice in Capital Cases
• Center for Animal Law
• Center for Public Interest Law
• Center for Dispute Resolution
• Center for Advocacy and Dispute Resolution
• Center for Art, Museum, and Cultural Heritage Law
• Center for Jewish Law and Judaic Studies
• Center for Church-State Studies

Special Programs

Academic Support Program: DePaul considers the success of every student paramount to its success as a law school. For more than a decade, the law school's Academic Support Program has helped first-year students develop the critical thinking and analytical skills that law school demands.

Bar Passage Program: Through a series of workshops, DePaul's Bar Passage Program ensures that graduating students are aware of the rigors of this all-encompassing exam and learn how to prepare for it academically, financially, and emotionally.

Clinical Programs: Since 1977, students have gained valuable hands-on experience through the college's now 10 clinical concentrations: Advanced Immigrant Detainee, Asylum/Immigration, Civil Rights Law, Criminal Appeals, Death Penalty, Family Law, Misdemeanor, Poverty Law, Special Education Advocacy, Technology/Intellectual Property, and starting spring 2012, a new concentration in Housing Law.

Field Placement Program: With more than 3,500 placements in the past 36 years, DePaul's Field Placement Program provides academic credit through supervised fieldwork with federal and state judges, various municipal agencies, and a number of nonprofit and for-profit organizations.

Certificate Programs: DePaul recognizes the growing integration of legal issues in nearly every professional field and offers 11 comprehensive certificate programs to help students develop specific professional and legal expertise in Business Law, Child and Family Law, Criminal Law, Health Law, International and Comparative Law, Public Interest Law, Taxation, and four in Intellectual Property Law (General, Arts and Museum, Information Technology, and Patents).

Study Abroad: DePaul offers unique immersion experiences that focus on international legal issues ranging from financial transactions to employment law to human rights, while providing students with an opportunity to learn about the history and culture of another country:

• Beijing, China: International Transactions in the Asia-Pacific Region
• Buenos Aires, Argentina: Legal Dimensions of Doing Business in Latin America
• Chiapas, Mexico: Human Rights Practicum
• Heredia, Costa Rica: Human Rights Law in the Americas
• Madrid, Spain: European Business and Commercial Law and Human Rights Law
• Prague, Czech Republic, and Vienna, Austria: Global Employment Law and Business Organizations
• Sorrento, Italy: Comparative Constitutional Law, International Law, and International Dispute Resolution

Joint-Degree and Master of Laws (LLM) Programs: DePaul offers four joint-degree and four master of laws (LLM) programs:

• JD/MBA with DePaul's nationally recognized Kellstadt Graduate School of Business
• JD/MS in Public Service Management promotes effective management of government and nonprofit organizations
• JD/MA in International Studies offers concentrations in International Political Economy and Global Culture and complements DePaul's strong international law offerings
• JD/MS in Computer Science explores the intersections of law, computer science, telecommunications, and information systems
• DePaul's master of laws (LLM) programs include Health Law, Intellectual Property Law, International Law, and Taxation
• Specialized First-Year Legal Writing Sections: Applicants may apply for a seat in one of three specialized sections of Legal Analysis, Research, and Communication, which focus on child and family law, intellectual property law, or public interest law.

Housing

Located in Chicago's Loop just two blocks south of the law school, University Center is a recently developed residence hall offering furnished apartments and suites. Amenities include a rooftop garden, multimedia rooms, a fitness center, food court, laundry facilities, shops on the lower level, 24-hour security, and keycard access to the building and elevators.

Admission

DePaul adheres to a policy of nondiscrimination and encourages applications from traditionally underrepresented groups. Admission decisions are based on a variety of factors, and each file is reviewed thoroughly. Undergraduate GPA and LSAT scores are significant admission criteria. For the 2011–2012 academic year, 4,228 candidates applied for admission to the full-time program, and 589 applied to the part-time program. Admitted students are automatically considered for available merit-based scholarships.

Career Services

DePaul's Law Career Services Office is dedicated to the needs of law students and offers valuable assets such as one-on-one career counseling, job fairs, résumé and cover letter reviews, and exhaustive online job postings for students and alumni.

Applicant Profile

DePaul University College of Law

This grid includes only applicants who earned 120–180 LSAT scores under standard administrations.

	GPA
LSAT Score	3.75+ Apps	3.75+ Adm	3.50– 3.74 Apps	3.50– 3.74 Adm	3.25– 3.49 Apps	3.25– 3.49 Adm	3.00– 3.24 Apps	3.00– 3.24 Adm	2.75– 2.99 Apps	2.75– 2.99 Adm	2.50– 2.74 Apps	2.50– 2.74 Adm	2.25– 2.49 Apps	2.25– 2.49 Adm	2.00– 2.24 Apps	2.00– 2.24 Adm	Below 2.00 Apps	Below 2.00 Adm	No GPA Apps	No GPA Adm	Total Apps	Total Adm
LSAT score 175–180	0	0	2	1	1	1	1	1	0	0	2	1	0	0	1	0	0	0	0	0	7	4
LSAT score 170–174	5	5	10	9	13	11	9	9	8	8	4	3	4	3	1	1	0	0	0	0	54	49
LSAT score 165–169	48	46	62	62	63	60	33	32	29	27	12	10	10	9	0	0	1	0	1	1	259	247
LSAT score 160–164	148	146	194	192	209	203	143	136	82	79	48	44	27	23	11	8	0	0	10	8	872	839
LSAT score 155–159	167	143	300	242	326	114	273	54	139	22	68	4	34	0	16	1	2	0	17	5	1342	585
LSAT score 150–154	104	52	208	94	290	54	256	18	145	3	82	0	37	0	8	0	0	0	22	3	1152	224
LSAT score 145–149	44	13	101	16	149	7	144	2	87	4	74	0	30	0	15	0	4	0	14	1	662	43
LSAT score 120–144	14	0	27	0	59	0	92	1	80	0	67	0	46	0	24	0	7	0	24	0	440	1
Total	530	405	904	616	1110	450	951	253	570	143	357	62	188	35	76	10	14	0	88	18	4788	1992

Apps = Number of Applicants
Adm = Number Admitted
Reflects 99% of the total applicant pool; highest LSAT data reported.