The University of Missouri School of Law has a long and illustrious history. Founded in 1872, it is the oldest law school west of the Mississippi River. The University of Missouri School of Law was founded by the Missouri General Assembly to provide legal education to the state’s citizens. The first classes were held in a downtown Columbia building owned by Judge Jesse W. Regan, with three professors and five students enrolled. Over the years, the school has grown significantly, both in size and reputation. In 1891, it became affiliated with the University of Missouri System as its only professional school.
Since then, the University of Missouri School of Law has continued to evolve as one of America’s leading law schools. It offers a comprehensive curriculum that includes courses on public law, private law, criminal law, international law and legal research and writing. The school also houses several research centers including the Center for Legal Studies in Business and Technology, as well as centers devoted to civil rights litigation and criminal justice reform. In addition to offering degree programs at both undergraduate and graduate levels, it also hosts numerous conferences throughout the year on topics such as intellectual property rights and employment law. Furthermore, its faculty are some of the most renowned scholars in their respective fields – many have served as judges or members of government bodies such as Congress or Supreme Court justices.
University of Missouri School of Law is located in the state of Missouri. As one of the leading law programs, University of Missouri School of Law has a high average LSAT score of 156-161 when recruiting new students. As a return, the median starting salary for law graduates reaches $60,000 per year. See the following table for detailed admissions information and career profiles of University of Missouri School of Law.
Admissions: University of Missouri
The University of Missouri School of Law is one of the most competitive law schools in the nation. The admissions statistics for the 2019-2020 school year show that out of nearly 2,800 applicants, only 568 were accepted. This acceptance rate is approximately 20%, indicating that admission to the University of Missouri School of Law is highly selective. The median LSAT score for accepted applicants was 159 and the median GPA was 3.48. Additionally, over half of all accepted students had a GPA above 3.6 and an LSAT score above 160, demonstrating that those with higher academic credentials tend to have a much better chance of being admitted to this prestigious school.
Fall 2019 Admissions and Enrollment Statistics
Total number of full- and part-time applicants
914
Total number of full- and part-time acceptances
400
Overall acceptance rate
43.8%
Total number of full- and part-time first-year students enrolled
147
Number of full-time program applicants
914
Number of full-time program acceptances
400
Full-time acceptance rate
43.8%
Number of first-year full-time students enrolled
147
Number of part-time program applicants
N/A
Number of part-time program acceptances
N/A
Part-time acceptance rate
N/A
Number of first-year part-time students enrolled
N/A
Fall 2019 GPA and LSAT Scores
25th-75th percentile GPA scores for all students
3.24-3.7
25th-75th percentile LSAT scores for all students
156-161
25th-75th percentile undergraduate GPA for full-time students
3.24-3.7
25th-75th percentile LSAT scores for full-time students
156-161
25th-75th percentile undergraduate GPA for part-time students
N/A
25th-75th percentile LSAT scores for part-time students
N/A
Careers: University of Missouri
Bar Statistics (Winter and Summer 2018 administrations)
State where the greatest number of first-time test takers took the bar
MO
School’s bar passage rate for first-time test takers
91.9%
Statewide bar passage rate for first-time test takers
91.3%
Class of 2018 Graduates
Total graduates
149
Graduates employed at graduation
50.7%
Graduates known to be employed nine months after graduation
89.6%
Starting Salaries of 2018 Graduates Employed Full-time
25th percentile private sector starting salary
$52,500
Median private sector starting salary
$60,000
75th percentile private sector starting salary
$92,000
Percent in the private sector who reported salary information
42%
Median public service starting salary
$44,000
Areas of Legal Practice (Class of 2018)
Percent employed in academia
1.6%
Percent employed in business and industry
11.3%
Percent employed in government
13.8%
Percent employed in all judicial clerkships
13.0%
Percent employed in law firms
53.7%
Percent employed in public interest
5.0%
Percent employed in an unknown field
1.6%
Percent employed in a judicial clerkship by an Article III federal judge
1.3%
2018 Graduates Employment Location
Graduates employed in-state
80%
Graduates employed in foreign countries
1%
Number of states where graduates are employed
13
New England (CT, ME, MA, NH, RI, VT)
0.8%
Middle Atlantic (NY, NJ, PA)
3.3%
East North Central (IL, IN, MI, OH, WI)
4.9%
West North Central (IA, KS, MN, MO, NE, ND, SD)
82.9%
South Atlantic (DE, DC, FL, GA, MD, NC, SC, VA, WV)
0.8%
East South Central (AL, KY, MS, TN)
0.0%
West South Central (AR, LA, OK, TX)
2.4%
Pacific (AK, CA, HI, OR, WA)
3.3%
Mountain (AZ, CO, ID, MT, NV, NM, UT, WY)
0.8%
Employment location unknown
0.0%
Career Services
(Data appear as originally submitted by this school)
Career services operations
Through individual coaching and extensive programming, the Professional Development Office teaches law students how to use interpersonal and lawyering skills to define and obtain career goals. The office has an ongoing legal employer outreach in-state and nationally.
Job Type
Bar admission required or anticipated (e.g., attorney and corporate counsel positions, law clerks, judicial clerks)
88.0%
J.D. preferred, law degree enhances position (e.g., corporate contracts administrator, alternative dispute resolution specialist, government regulatory analyst, FBI special agent)
3.0%
Professional/other (jobs that require professional skills or training but for which a J.D. is neither preferred nor particularly applicable; e.g., accountant, teacher, business manager, nurse)
6.0%
Nonprofessional/other (job that does not require any professional skills or training or is taken on a temporary basis and not viewed as part of a career path)
