Southern Illinois University, School of Law Admission
Southern Illinois University, School of Law Undergraduate Program
Southern Illinois University, School of Law Application

The Facts

Southern Illinois University is a rather large, public institution located in the town of West Chautauqua, Illinois, and has a combined graduate and undergraduate population of over 10,000 students. The university's School of Law, however, is significantly smaller, and is home to about 390 graduate law students. The average age of enrollment is around 25, and it is fairly rare for any of the students to enter the school directly from their undergraduate education. The school is perhaps best known for its wonderful and experience faculty, its great research resources, as well as for its helpful library and research staff. The school offers degrees in the 3 year JD, the 2 year MLS, the 2 year LLM, as well as combined degrees in the 6 year JD/MD, the 4 year JD/MBA, the 4 year JD/MPA, the 4 year JD/MAcc, as well as the JD/MSW, the JD/MSEd, and the JD/PhD in a variety of subjects. Some of the most popular programs of study include courses in the areas of civil procedure, human rights law, as well as taxation.

Admission to the Southern Illinois University's School of Law is fairly competitive among the relatively few students who apply; last year, over 754 students applied for admission to the school, and approximately 290 of those students were accepted. Eventually however, only about 130 of the admitted students actually enrolled for the coming semester. The admitted students had an average LSAT score ranging from 151 to 156, as well as an average undergraduate GPA of about a 3.4. Students are notified of their admissions status on a rolling basis, and there is currently no early application program in place.

The School of Law has 47 faculty members, all of whom come from very diverse legal and professional backgrounds. Students rave about their accessibility and availability, saying they admire the experience they've had and the wise advice they have to give. The school has a very manageable student to faculty ratio of about 14:1, and the small classes allow for plenty of discussion and interaction between students and their professors.

Employment Facts

Students at the School of Law do seem a bit concerned when it comes to finding jobs after graduating; they say the career services office needs to do a better job of attracting recruiting firms to the university. However, over 83% of the most recently graduating students were able to find jobs within a few months of receiving their degrees, and had an average starting salary of about $42,387. Students are most frequently hired by employers such as the Illinois State Attorney's office, various large and many small law firms throughout the state and country, as well as various public interest organizations.

What's Good

"The professors here really believe in helping students out on a one to one basis."

"There are many state and federal judges to look to us to recruit clerks, which is a definite advantage."

"There is a wonderful Alternative Dispute Resolution clinic here where you can get valuable practical experience."

What's Bad

"There isn't really a whole lot of on campus graduate housing, so you are all on your own most of the time."

"The law school building is kind of bulging at the seams. It needs an expansion."

"The career services office could do a better job of reaching out to students."

Get assistance with your Law School essay or application.

• View our services
• Send a request now
• Read articles about applying to college