Admissions Process

Brooklyn Law School does not offer an LSAT/GPA admission profile, for numbers alone cannot provide a comprehensive assessment of a candidate’s potential for law school success. While matrices may be helpful to some, too often they needlessly discourage others - those with profiles slightly below our published numerical benchmarks who may still be competitive for admission here. Moreover, such profiles tend to reduce the selection process to a two-dimensional matrix, one which fails to portray accurately our admission practices.

Admission to Brooklyn Law School is based on a meticulous appraisal of each applicant’s character, academic achievements, aptitude for the study of law, life experience, and other pertinent indications of professional promise.

Some of the applicants who clearly rank highest are admitted immediately. After initial review, other competitive files are sent to the Admissions Committee for additional individual evaluation. The Committee is composed of faculty and the Dean of Admissions.

To be sure, candidates with high test scores and commensurate grades are more likely to gain admission than those with lower grades and scores. Nevertheless, no combination of grades and scores guarantees admission. We go to great lengths to ensure that all applicants are accorded consideration of all of their credentials, and every application is evaluated by several Admissions readers to ensure a range of perspectives.

Non-quantifiable factors also significantly influence our decisions. A partial list includes: the quality of schools attended; the strength of the program of study; grade trends; the content of faculty letters of evaluation; the cogency of the candidate’s writing; campus leadership; significant service to the community; the nature and quality of any work experience or foreign study/travel; awards and honors; and military service. We have a century-long tradition of offering opportunity to members of under-represented groups.

In sum, all relevant factors presented in the application are evaluated carefully and, before reaching a decision, we do our best to form an assessment of the applicant as a person.

Due to the large volume of applications received each year, the Law School normally does not grant personal interviews as part of the admissions process. Only in very unusual situations will the Office of Admissions grant a formal interview at the request of the candidate. In such cases, applicants should direct their written requests for an interview to the Dean of Admissions and should relate why they feel their circumstances could best be explained in person. Applicants shall be notified as to whether their request has been granted or denied.

We will, however, be happy to answer your questions if you visit us. Group information sessions and tours offered during the academic year are an effective way to learn about our school and you are encouraged to attend them. While admission counselors are happy to meet with prospective students, these sessions are solely for your information and have no bearing on the admission decision. To learn more about our programs for prospective applicants, please go to Visit Us. Additionally, our Admissions Office is staffed to answer your questions from 9:00 a.m to 5:00 p.m, Monday through Friday. You may contact us to ask questions.

The Committee assesses whether such courses were required or optional, how many were taken, and in which subjects. You should ensure that any narratives or course evaluations, if available, are included with your LSDAS report. Where the entire record is pass-fail, a careful review of the faculty narratives provided by your college is an integral part of our assessment of your qualifications for admission.

Holding a graduate degree does not necessarily give you an advantage over someone who does not hold one. However, the conferment of a graduate degree is generally viewed positively by the Admissions Committee, even though the grades earned in graduate school will not be utilized by LSDAS in computing your GPA. Moreover, the successful completion of a graduate degree with high grades, suggesting that you have a strong potential for successful law school study, can sometimes overcome a weaker undergraduate record.

Not necessarily. The median age of our entering students this year was 23; the class ranges in age from 21 to 50.

Yes. Presently we offer a number of joint degree programs, allowing students to earn their Juris Doctor and another graduate professional degree in less time than if the degrees were pursued independently. Find out more information on our Joint Degree Programs.

It is always best to answer questions concerning your disciplinary or criminal record fully and openly, and to provide an explanation and court documents, where relevant. Such records are reviewed on a case-by-case basis, and are not necessarily viewed as a negative factor. However, admitted applicants who have been convicted of felonies are advised to contact the Secretary of the Committee on Character and Fitness in the Judicial Department in the jurisdiction in which the candidate expects to practice for a preliminary opinion about their chances of being admitted to the bar after graduation.

An applicant who has attended another law school and who has been required to withdraw for academic reasons or under less-than-honorable circumstances will normally not be admitted to Brooklyn Law School. However, a previously disqualified candidate may apply here if two years have elapsed since the date of that disqualification and the candidate can demonstrate a stronger potential for successful law study by the nature of interim work, activity, or studies.

While it is best to apply in the year you intend to enroll, we recognize that life circumstances and unique opportunities may require delaying your entry to Brooklyn Law.

Deferment requests are, therefore, considered on an individual basis. With sufficient reason, deferments may be granted to a small number of admitted applicants, subject to the timely payment of a tuition deposit.

Note, however, that deferments are granted only for a seat in the class; merit scholarships may not be similarly deferred. Candidates awarded merit scholarships who subsequently defer their enrollment will be reconsidered for such awards on the basis of award requirements in effect for the new year of entry.

Wait-listed students who were subsequently offered admission are not permitted to defer their enrollment; they must accept or decline any offer of admission. A candidate who chooses not to enroll may re-apply, without prejudice, in a future application year.

If deferral is approved, you may still attend this fall if there remains room in the class when you notify us of your changed circumstances.

An applicant for transfer admission must have attended a law school that is approved by the American Bar Association and is a member of the Association of American Law Schools.

Brooklyn Law School will consider transfer applications from candidates at other law schools as soon as their fall grades are released. This means that for transfer applicants who apply by January for August entry, we may be in a position to offer acceptance as early as February, instead of waiting until mid-summer for that decision. Of course, enrollment in fall will remain subject to proof of commensurate academic performance during the spring term and continued good standing at the prior law school.

We will continue to review transfer applications and make admission offers throughout the spring and summer until all the spaces in the entering law classes are filled.

Typically, the most consideration is given to transfer applicants who offer numeric and other credentials that would have been competitive for admission to the class they seek to join and who currently maintain a cumulative weighted grade point average of approximately 3.00 (B) or better at the other law school. There is no minimum number of credits required prior to transfer. The award of transfer credit is determined subsequent to an offer of admission. Depending upon the credits and scope of courses taken compared with Brooklyn Law School's required first-year program of study, students may transfer up to 35 credits earned at another law school.

Yes, if the student is enrolled in good standing at another ABA-approved law school that is a member of the Association of American Law Schools and has permission from the Dean’s Office of that school to visit here. See Visiting and International Students.

If you have already earned a law degree from an ABA-approved law school and the Brooklyn Law School Registrar has determined that there is room in the particular class in which you are interested, you may request permission from the Registrar's Office to audit a course without receiving credit. You do not file a formal application with our Office of Admissions.

Yes, please refer to our LL.M. Program for Foreign-Trained Lawyers.

Brooklyn Law School's LL.M. program offers foreign-trained lawyers the opportunity to study United States law and to learn how U.S. lawyers approach specific types of legal issues. Please read more about the program here.

We try to make decisions as rapidly as possible, but if you are wait-listed you should keep in mind that some candidates do not receive a final decision until late in the summer. Please refer to Review Process in our Admissions section.

You should read carefully the "Special Information and Recommendations for Wait-listed Candidates" attached to your decision e-mail. You should consider the value of updating your file with later LSAT scores and grades or writing one of our optional essays, if appropriate. An additional letter of evaluation could also be beneficial. Of course, if you decide to enroll elsewhere, be sure to let us know (an e-mail will suffice) so that we can remove you from our Waiting List.

Our modified rolling admission process favors early applicants. Applications completed by February 1 are given first priority. Nevertheless, some candidates who apply after February 1 are offered admission later in the application year. The Admissions Committee begins making decisions in mid-December and continues to do so on a weekly basis through the summer, until all final decisions have been rendered.

All applicants are sent an e-mail with a decision.  Admitted students also receive a formal letter of admission sent by postal mail. We do not announce decisions over the phone.

If you applied online through LSAC's Web site, you will be sent log-in information via e-mail after we receive your application. You may then check the status of your application through LSAC's Online Status Check.

When your file is complete it will be sent to our readers and then to the Admissions Committee for a decision. Usually, it takes 8-10 weeks from the time your application is completed for the Committee to release a decision. However, depending on when you applied and when your file becomes complete, you may receive a decision sooner or it may take longer, in light of our intensive review process.