Truman Wesley Collins Legal Center, 245 Winter Street SE
Salem, OR 97301
Phone: 503.370.6282; Fax: 503.370.6087
E-mail: law-admission@willamette.edu; Website: www.willamette.edu/wucl
A law school faculty serves as both the brain and heart of the institution. Willamette's diverse law faculty includes some of the most respected legal minds in the country, including former federal judicial clerks, officers of the American Society of Comparative Law, First Amendment specialists, and Fulbright scholars, as well as two former justices of the Oregon Supreme Court and the current chief justice.
These scholars and master teachers are nationally recognized for their research, publications, and contributions to the law, particularly in the areas of constitutional law, commercial and business law, international and comparative law, environmental law, and dispute resolution. Yet it is their authentic, deep dedication—both as educators and as mentors—that distinguishes them from others.
Established in 1883, Willamette University College of Law offers a learning environment that is distinctive among law schools. Located across the street from the state capitol complex and the Oregon Supreme Court, the college is situated in the epicenter of state law, government, and business.
The College of Law emphasizes small enrollment, excellence in teaching, and a high level of faculty-student interaction. We also boast a student-to-faculty ratio of 15:1. Our select enrollment of fewer than 430 students creates an intellectual intimacy unmatched by most law schools in the United States. As a community, we are committed to the advancement of knowledge through research and scholarship, to diversity, and to public service. Willamette law students should expect to be challenged, to defend their opinions, to think and rethink their ideas, and to leave with a heightened respect for themselves and confidence in what they can achieve.
Willamette offers a traditional three-year, full-time Doctor of Jurisprudence program (JD), as well as a part-time day program. Both programs require the completion of 90 credit hours for graduation.
The College of Law also offers a four-year, joint-degree program that leads to the JD and MBA for Business, Government, and Not-for-Profit Management. Managed in concert with Willamette's Atkinson Graduate School of Management, the joint-degree program saves students one additional year of study. Students must apply separately for admission to each degree program and may begin the program either in the College of Law or in the Atkinson School. Students may apply prior to matriculating to Willamette or while in their first year of either the JD or MBA program.
Willamette's nationally recognized certificate programs further solidify the strong educational foundation provided at the College of Law. These specialized programs prepare students for exceptional legal careers and further distinguish them from other law school graduates. The five certificate programs are International and Comparative Law, Business Law, Law and Government, Dispute Resolution, and Sustainability Law.
Willamette's College of Law also offers the LLM in Transnational Law and Dispute Resolution*, both advanced degrees available to those who have completed the JD at an ABA-accredited American law school or its equivalent from a foreign law school.
*Subject to formal acquiescence by the ABA.
The College of Law is housed in the award-winning Truman Wesley Collins Legal Center on the beautifully landscaped 80-acre campus of the university. The school offers all the cutting-edge amenities a student would expect from a top law school. Bright, modern classrooms provide comfortable, professional environments for learning and include a state-of-the-art wireless network.
The J.W. Long Law Library anchors the north end of the Collins Legal Center. Its many databases and more than 300,000 print volumes and microform volume equivalents include state and federal primary law sources, as well as the leading treatises, periodicals, and other secondary sources. Through a library consortium, an online shared catalog gives Willamette students access to a remarkably vast array of resources. The library, a selective federal government depository, houses special collections in public international law, tax law, and labor law. Both the Collins Legal Center and the law library are accessible to law students 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.
Willamette's College of Law students have the opportunity to deepen their international experience by participating in study-abroad programs in Germany, Ecuador, and China. The summer China program acquaints students with Chinese law and Pacific Rim legal issues. It is based in Shanghai at the East China University of Political Science and Law. The Ecuador program provides students with an intensive semester immersion in the fundamentals of a civil law system and Latin American legal institutions. Students take courses at the Pontifical Catholic University of Ecuador in Quito. Proficiency in Spanish is required. The semester-long Germany program is held at the Bucerius Law School in Hamburg, the first private institution for legal study in Germany.
The Clinical Law Program at Willamette University provides students with hands-on, professional experience in the actual practice of law. The Clinical Law Program comprises six advanced legal education courses, including specialized clinics in business law, trusts and estates, sustainability law, child and family advocacy, law and government, and international human rights. Clients are primarily nonprofit corporations and people of modest economic means.
The nationally recognized Center for Dispute Resolution produces research on conflict theory and problem solving. The center teaches the theory and practice of negotiation, mediation, arbitration, and other methods of resolving disputes. It also administers the Certificate Program in Dispute Resolution.
The Willamette Center for Law and Government provides an impartial forum for the study, discussion, and improvement of government and public policy. It also administers the Certificate Program in Law and Government.
The Oregon Law Commission, which is housed at Willamette's College of Law, was established by legislative statute to provide academic and practical support for ongoing law revision, reform, and improvement. The commission is led by a member of the College of Law faculty.
The Externship Program immerses students in the fast-paced work of the practicing lawyer. Students participate in legal work in many different contexts, under the constraints of a real-life practice in the wider legal community. The program provides an experiential learning environment that helps students develop their skills and values as novice lawyers.
Applicants are urged to apply in the fall prior to the year they intend to enter the law school. Willamette enrolls a diverse first-year law class with a wide range of goals, experiences, and cultural, ethnic, and social backgrounds, and that show evidence of previous academic success. Applications are reviewed closely, and in their entirety, to ensure an informed and fair decision. Although March 1 is the priority deadline for applications, students begin receiving admission decisions from Willamette in January.
The fiscal stability of Willamette University enables the College of Law to offer a strong program of financial aid to its students. Generous merit-based scholarships reward applicants whose accomplishments suggest continuing success in law school. Scholarships are renewable with a 2.90 cumulative-law GPA. Every student is automatically considered for a scholarship when the application for admission is initially reviewed. All applicants to the College of Law should also complete and submit the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) prior to March 1. Federal and private loan monies also may be available.
The Career and Professional Development Center (CPDC) provides comprehensive programs and individual coaching to assist law students and alumni in achieving their career goals. The CPDC oversees several professional development programs for students, including externships, pro bono honors, and attorney-student mentor match, as well as the traditional on-campus interviewing and job-search skills workshops.
Willamette University is situated in the heart of Salem, Oregon's capital. Salem is home to a large, active legal community that readily employs and actively mentors Willamette law students. With 150,000 residents, Salem is neither a small college town nor a big city. This historic riverfront city offers all the amenities of a larger city, but has successfully maintained its hometown charm. A welcoming and affordable city, Salem boasts a vibrant downtown area, beautiful city parks, an innovative children's museum, a popular community theater, great pubs and cafés, fine dining, numerous coffeehouses and microbreweries, and a wide range of small boutiques and department stores.
Salem is surrounded by award-winning vineyards and orchards that support countless wine and food festivals. The city is only a short drive from numerous beautiful state parks that provide wilderness hiking, fishing, camping, and winter sports. The desert is a little farther east, and Oregon's spectacular coast is an hour's drive to the west. Metropolitan Portland is just 45 minutes to the north, offering easy access to national sporting events and premier music and art venues.
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 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| LSAT score 170–174 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 5 |
| LSAT score 165–169 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 6 | 6 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 25 | 23 |
| LSAT score 160–164 | 15 | 14 | 40 | 40 | 24 | 22 | 22 | 19 | 14 | 11 | 6 | 4 | 5 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 131 | 115 |
| LSAT score 155–159 | 28 | 26 | 65 | 58 | 75 | 70 | 58 | 47 | 39 | 29 | 19 | 12 | 10 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 3 | 302 | 254 |
| LSAT score 150–154 | 18 | 9 | 58 | 26 | 79 | 36 | 78 | 37 | 47 | 17 | 35 | 7 | 12 | 3 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 1 | 335 | 138 |
| LSAT score 145–149 | 3 | 0 | 38 | 0 | 46 | 0 | 34 | 0 | 33 | 0 | 14 | 1 | 7 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 177 | 1 |
| LSAT score 140–144 | 4 | 0 | 8 | 0 | 10 | 0 | 18 | 0 | 11 | 0 | 10 | 0 | 9 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 73 | 0 |
| LSAT score 135–139 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 23 | 0 |
| LSAT score 130–134 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 16 | 0 |
| LSAT score 125–129 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 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 | 73 | 53 | 218 | 130 | 245 | 134 | 222 | 108 | 157 | 61 | 94 | 27 | 48 | 10 | 18 | 6 | 2 | 1 | 14 | 7 | 1091 | 537 |
Apps = Number of Applicants
Adm = Number Admitted
Reflects 100% of the total applicant pool; highest LSAT data reported.