Top Schools of Law in Pennsylvania

By | January 6, 2023

We have created a 2019 ranking of the best colleges in Pennsylvania that offer Law degrees to help you find a school that fits your needs. Each school’s ranking is based on the compilation of our data from reliable government sources, student surveys, college graduate interviews, and editorial review. In addition, you can view our entire list of all law schools located within Pennsylvania. We also provide reviews, facts, and questions and answers for schools on our site and offer you access to get valuable information from colleges and universities today.

Drexel University Earle Mack School of Law Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Score N/A
Peer assessment score (5.0 highest) N/A
Assessment score by lawyers/judges (5.0 highest) N/A
25th-75th percentile GPA scores for all students 3.09-3.7
25th-75th percentile LSAT scores for all students 156-163
Overall acceptance rate 32.7%
Student/faculty ratio 16.4
Graduates employed at graduation N/A
Graduates known to be employed nine months after graduation N/A
School’s bar passage rate for first-time test takers N/A
State where the greatest number of first-time test takers took the bar N/A
Statewide bar passage rate for first-time test takers N/A

Drexel University Earle Mack School of Law

Duquesne University School of Law Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Score N/A
Peer assessment score (5.0 highest) 1.8
Assessment score by lawyers/judges (5.0 highest) 2.5
25th-75th percentile GPA scores for all students 3.19-3.63
25th-75th percentile LSAT scores for all students 150-154
Overall acceptance rate 45.5%
Student/faculty ratio 19.4
Graduates employed at graduation N/A
Graduates known to be employed nine months after graduation 85.2%
School’s bar passage rate for first-time test takers 95.7%
State where the greatest number of first-time test takers took the bar PA
Statewide bar passage rate for first-time test takers 86.7%

Duquesne University School of Law

Pennsylvania State University Dickinson School of Law Carlisle, Pennsylvania
Score 47
Peer assessment score (5.0 highest) 2.5
Assessment score by lawyers/judges (5.0 highest) 3.0
25th-75th percentile GPA scores for all students 3.28-3.68
25th-75th percentile LSAT scores for all students 157-160
Overall acceptance rate 28.6%
Student/faculty ratio 9.4
Graduates employed at graduation N/A
Graduates known to be employed nine months after graduation 90.8%
School’s bar passage rate for first-time test takers 85.0%
State where the greatest number of first-time test takers took the bar PA
Statewide bar passage rate for first-time test takers 86.7%

Pennsylvania State University Dickinson School of Law

Temple University James E. Beasley School of Law Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Score 47
Peer assessment score (5.0 highest) 2.7
Assessment score by lawyers/judges (5.0 highest) 3.0
25th-75th percentile GPA scores for all students 3.11-3.61
25th-75th percentile LSAT scores for all students 159-163
Overall acceptance rate 40.2%
Student/faculty ratio 13.0
Graduates employed at graduation 66.2%
Graduates known to be employed nine months after graduation 91.4%
School’s bar passage rate for first-time test takers 89.1%
State where the greatest number of first-time test takers took the bar PA
Statewide bar passage rate for first-time test takers 86.7%

Temple University James E. Beasley School of Law

University of Pennsylvania Law School Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Score 85
Peer assessment score (5.0 highest) 4.4
Assessment score by lawyers/judges (5.0 highest) 4.5
25th-75th percentile GPA scores for all students 3.57-3.9
25th-75th percentile LSAT scores for all students 166-171
Overall acceptance rate 14.4%
Student/faculty ratio 10.7
Graduates employed at graduation 97.6%
Graduates known to be employed nine months after graduation 99.6%
School’s bar passage rate for first-time test takers 98.4%
State where the greatest number of first-time test takers took the bar NY
Statewide bar passage rate for first-time test takers 80.7%

University of Pennsylvania Law School

University of Pittsburgh School of Law Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Score 48
Peer assessment score (5.0 highest) 2.8
Assessment score by lawyers/judges (5.0 highest) 3.1
25th-75th percentile GPA scores for all students 3.18-3.63
25th-75th percentile LSAT scores for all students 157-161
Overall acceptance rate 37.3%
Student/faculty ratio 12.9
Graduates employed at graduation 71.8%
Graduates known to be employed nine months after graduation 94.2%
School’s bar passage rate for first-time test takers 90.6%
State where the greatest number of first-time test takers took the bar PA
Statewide bar passage rate for first-time test takers 86.7%

University of Pittsburgh School of Law

Villanova University School of Law Villanova, Pennsylvania
Score 48
Peer assessment score (5.0 highest) 2.6
Assessment score by lawyers/judges (5.0 highest) 3.3
25th-75th percentile GPA scores for all students 3.17-3.63
25th-75th percentile LSAT scores for all students 160-163
Overall acceptance rate 43.1%
Student/faculty ratio 17.0
Graduates employed at graduation 64.5%
Graduates known to be employed nine months after graduation 94.2%
School’s bar passage rate for first-time test takers 91.9%
State where the greatest number of first-time test takers took the bar PA
Statewide bar passage rate for first-time test takers 86.7%

Villanova University School of Law

About Pennsylvania

Pennsylvania is also known as the cradle of the nation. This may be because both the Declaration of Independence (1776) and the United States Constitution (1787) were drafted and adopted here. Philadelphia is the largest city in Keystone State and was the capital of the United States until 1800.

The English term Keystone can be translated with keystone. This somewhat strange name goes back to the geographic location of Pennsylvania in the northeastern United States. The individual states on the map are shown in the form of small stones. On this map, Pennsylvania forms the central “stone” in the middle of the wedge-shaped arch that stretches up to the Canadian border.

A somewhat simpler explanation of this naming can be traced back to one of the forefathers and founders of Pennsylvania: William Penn. This keystone state is one of the 13 founding states of the United States.

Pennsylvania: facts

  • Area: 119,283 sq km
  • Population: 12,784,227
  • Abbreviation: PA
  • Capital: Harrisburg
  • Local time: UTC -5
  • Nickname: The Keystone State

Virtue, freedom and independence

Together, these three words form the state motto of Pennsylvania. In 1681, William Penn founded this state on the east coast of the then 13 existing American colonies, which signed the American constitution as the second state 100 years later. Pittsburgh and Philadelphia are the largest and most important cities, while the capital Harrisburg is less known.

Together with New Jersey and New York, Pennsylvania is one of the Central Atlantic states. At the time of the founding father William Penn, this area was populated by Iroquois and European colonists. The first Swedish immigrants arrived in 1643 at the still unknown location.

William Penn was a staunch Quaker and traveled Europe in 1671 to promote the Quaker colonies in the New World in the Old World. The English King Charles II. showed himself generous and left the English Quakers a large area in the new country unknown here.

At the same time, he appointed William Penn governor. One can say that the mission in Europe, which was certainly not easy given the lack of mobility at the time, was worthwhile for William Penn.

Pennsylvania Historical Development

One hundred years later, in 1776, the Continental Congress signed the Declaration of Independence in Independance Hall, which at that time was still known as the State House. Eleven years later, the still valid constitution of the then young United States of America was signed in the same place.

Pennsylvania is one of the 13 founding states and was the second state after Delaware to sign this historic document. During the American War of Independence from 1861 to 1865, Pennsylvania sided with the Union states led by U.S. President Abraham Lincoln and spoke out against the maintenance of slavery by the southern states.

In this state one of the best known and most loss-making battles took place in Gettysburg. Lincoln made one of his most famous speeches, the Gettysburg Address, in the middle of the battlefield. The Lincoln Memorial in Washington DC commemorates this speech today

Versatile landscapes and historical sites

Pennsylvania is a diverse state with varied landscapes, large metropolises, beach regions as well as a diverse art and culture program as well as numerous sights that should be on every vacation program. The physical well-being is also taken care of. Pennsylvania is a wine-growing region and knows how to spoil its residents and visitors with a wide range of restaurants.

A vast natural landscape alternates with historically significant sites. Hikes and other popular activities such as water sports, cycling in endless nature reserves and forest areas not only ensure a change from the sightseeing program, but also health.

Pennsylvania does not have any spectacular mountain landscapes, because the highest point is 979 meters high. Nevertheless, the mountain landscapes crossed by rivers and lakes are certainly not uninteresting, because wildlife viewing in the numerous nature and wildlife reserves offer an extraordinary experience for the whole family.

Pennsylvania is characterized by deciduous forests and hilly landscapes. The neighboring countries are New York, New Jersey, Delaware, West Virginia and Ohio. In the northwest there is the natural boundary of Lake Erie. The Pittsburgh metropolitan area is characterized by mining and the steel industry.

Around the mountain range of the Appalachian Mountains there are numerous small, agricultural towns. Citizens belong to the Amish, Quaker and Presbyterian faiths. This area is also known as the Bible Belt. The largest city of Philadelphia and the surrounding area are characterized by the automotive, shipyard and steel industries. Other major industrial cities are Pittsburgh, Erie, Allentown and Reading.