Admissions Office, 1505 W. Cumberland Avenue, Suite 161
Knoxville, TN 37996-1810
Phone: 865.974.4131; Fax: 865.974.1572
E-mail: lawadmit@utk.edu; Website: www.law.utk.edu
For more than a century, the University of Tennessee College of Law has offered a strong combination of practical and theoretical legal training. Established in 1890, the College of Law is a charter member of the AALS and is ABA approved.
The College of Law enrolls a small, selective, and diverse class each August. The 2011 entering class was composed of 160 students, of which 42 percent were women, 58 percent were men, and 29 percent were students of color. Entering students were graduates of 75 colleges and universities across the nation and around the world, and were residents of 16 states. Although many members of each entering class are pursuing a law degree directly from undergraduate school, a number of law students have advanced degrees and have had careers in fields as diverse as engineering, teaching, medicine, journalism, and business. In the 2011–2012 academic year, the student population of the College of Law is 486, of which 25 percent are students of color.
The quality of our faculty is evidenced by their legal training at some of the finest law schools in the United States, the significance of their scholarly writings, their activity in professional associations, and their involvement with public service. Current students at UT tell potential candidates for admission that they find the faculty to be excellent teachers—accessible and caring.
The law center at the University of Tennessee—a melding of the old with the new—is an exceptional setting for education in the twenty-first century. The 110,000-square-foot facility was completed in 1997 and is located on Cumberland Avenue, just across from the University Center, in the heart of the campus. The law center includes the Joel A. Katz Law Library, dedicated to a distinguished corporate and entertainment lawyer and alumnus.
The College of Law is located on the main campus of the University of Tennessee. Knoxville is the largest city in eastern Tennessee and the third largest in the state. More than 28,000 students attend UTK. Knoxville has the natural advantage of being located in the foothills of the Great Smoky Mountains, making hiking, biking, golf, and fishing popular and accessible activities. Knoxville is close to major legal markets in the Southeast, including Atlanta, Nashville, Birmingham, and Charlotte.
First-year students begin law school with a week-long introductory period in which a series of minicourses introduce students to the study of law. Second- and third-year students may choose from over 90 elective courses. Two dual-degree programs are offered—the JD/MBA and the JD/MPA (Master of Public Administration).
The College of Law offers two optional concentrations for students. The James L. Clayton Center for Entrepreneurial Law offers integrated upper-division courses that expose students to facets of law that affect business deals and provide hands-on experience in negotiating and documenting transactions with insight into the needs and concerns of the business community. A Business Clinic is offered for students seeking practical experience working with business clients.
The Center for Advocacy and Dispute Resolution allows interested students to focus their second- and third-year experience toward a career in advocacy (commonly known as litigation or trial practice) with an expanded emphasis on alternative forms of dispute resolution. UT was recognized by the American College of Trial Lawyers for the 1996 Emil Gumpert Award for Excellence in Teaching Trial Advocacy.
The Charles H. Miller Legal Clinic is the site for UT's clinical programs. Established in 1947, this is one of the oldest continually operating clinical programs in the United States and is nationally recognized for excellence in teaching. UT also offers a Mediation Clinic, in which students work in teams to mediate real civil and misdemeanor cases in the lower courts. Other clinical programs currently focus on business, domestic violence, and environmental issues.
UT offers three Externships—judicial, prosecutorial, and public defender. The Prosecutorial Externship program enables students to prosecute real cases on behalf of the state under the supervision of experienced district attorneys in Knox County.
Students can choose from a variety of student programs, activities, publications, and organizations. A complete listing is available on our website.
Participation in UT's Moot Court program enables students to compete in intracollege and national competitions. A UT team placed second in the 2011 National Moot Court Competition and reached the "Sweet Sixteen" in 2012. In 2010, Tennessee fielded the national championship team in the Giles Sutherland Rich Memorial intellectual property moot court competition and placed first in the Region VII National Moot Court Competition. UT won three Jerome Prince Evidence Moot Court national championships and was the first team in the history of that competition to win back-to-back titles in 2000 and 2001.
The Tennessee Law Review offers participants an excellent opportunity to conduct legal research and produce writings of a scholarly and practical nature. Transactions provides an opportunity for students to write about topical issues and legal developments of interest to the business bar. Students participating in the Tennessee Journal of Law and Policy analyze the latest developments in law and public decision making. The Student Bar Association and various other student organizations offer numerous programs, services, and special events. The national honor society, Order of the Coif, and two leading professional fraternities, Phi Delta Phi and Phi Alpha Delta, have local chapters here.
UT Pro Bono is a student-directed, community service organization. Working with local attorneys and legal aid organizations, UT Pro Bono serves as a resource by providing law students for research, educational, and investigatory assistance. UT's Mentoring Program matches students with alumni who share common practice goals for structured experiences.
The College of Law strives to craft a class of diverse individuals, whose life experiences will enrich the law school community. Admission to the College of Law is competitive. The Admissions Committee places substantial emphasis on traditional indicators of performance—UGPA and LSAT score. The committee also considers factors such as improvement in undergraduate grades and graduate school performance, strength of undergraduate institution and major course of study, extracurricular activities, community service, and employment and professional experience. Also considered are circumstances that may have affected an applicant's grades or LSAT score; economic, social, or cultural background; and success in overcoming social or economic disadvantage. Applicants are required to submit two letters of recommendation and write a personal statement and an essay.
The College of Law recognizes its obligation to ensure legal education to qualified applicants who are members of historically underrepresented groups in the legal profession and encourages applications from such students.
Successful completion of the CLEO Summer Institute may also be considered by the Admissions Committee.
The College of Law offers a number of scholarships for entering students. Scholarships may be based on academic credentials (LSAT score and UGPA), records of leadership and community service, or other factors as established by the scholarship donor. Candidates for admission should complete the FAFSA as soon as possible after the first of the year to be considered for scholarships in which financial need is a factor. Candidates for admission will automatically be considered for all scholarships for which they are eligible. Please check our website for more information and application guidelines. Campus apartment housing is open to law students. Knoxville also offers ample private apartment housing at a reasonable cost within walking distance or a short drive from the law school.
Recruiting and hiring practices in the legal job market suggest that making career decisions should be an ongoing, developmental process that begins in the first year of law school and continues through and after graduation. UT students acquire the skills and knowledge necessary to research, select, and seek the right career path for them and gain necessary information about the professional areas in which a law degree can be used.
The staff of the Bettye B. Lewis Career Center offers a comprehensive menu of services for employers who seek to recruit Tennessee students through formal and informal recruitment methods, off-campus job fairs, and recruiting consortia. First-year students are introduced to career development and job-search strategies through individual counseling and small group resource training sessions called the IL Career Integration Program. Students are coached in the development of individual job-search strategy plans throughout their law school careers.
These efforts have contributed to a consistently high employment rate for UT graduates that is well above the national average. Most graduates choose to stay in the southeastern United States, but graduates accept positions across the country. For detailed information about recent employment outcomes for Tennessee Law graduates, please see the College of Law website at www.law.utk.edu or contact the Career Center at lawcareer@utk.edu.
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 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 3 |
| LSAT score 170–174 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 9 | 8 |
| LSAT score 165–169 | 17 | 17 | 26 | 26 | 12 | 10 | 7 | 6 | 9 | 8 | 5 | 5 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 80 | 74 |
| LSAT score 160–164 | 61 | 60 | 68 | 60 | 72 | 53 | 35 | 22 | 17 | 11 | 9 | 3 | 5 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 2 | 272 | 212 |
| LSAT score 155–159 | 78 | 41 | 112 | 25 | 87 | 14 | 68 | 10 | 28 | 1 | 7 | 1 | 7 | 0 | 4 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 6 | 1 | 399 | 94 |
| LSAT score 150–154 | 37 | 7 | 61 | 5 | 52 | 7 | 38 | 7 | 29 | 1 | 12 | 0 | 11 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 246 | 28 |
| LSAT score 145–149 | 16 | 4 | 29 | 7 | 23 | 3 | 38 | 2 | 19 | 2 | 13 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 147 | 19 |
| LSAT score 140–144 | 3 | 1 | 11 | 2 | 11 | 0 | 15 | 0 | 9 | 0 | 10 | 0 | 9 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 74 | 3 |
| LSAT score 135–139 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 6 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 31 | 1 |
| LSAT score 130–134 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 9 | 0 |
| LSAT score 125–129 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 0 |
| LSAT score 120–124 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Total | 216 | 134 | 312 | 127 | 264 | 88 | 208 | 50 | 121 | 25 | 62 | 10 | 42 | 3 | 16 | 1 | 7 | 0 | 26 | 4 | 1274 | 442 |
Apps = Number of Applicants
Adm = Number Admitted
Reflects 99% of the total applicant pool; highest LSAT data reported.