Robert Morse (Director of Data Research, U.S. News & World Report), Avoid Overemphasizing Law School Rankings:

The U.S. News Best Law Schools rankings spotlight the country’s academically excellent law school programs in many areas. However, they should be used by prospective students as just one tool in the process for picking the best school for them. Many other factors that cannot be measured need to go into such an important decision, including the overall cost, location, course offerings, school culture, job prospects, advising or mentoring opportunities, and campus life.

If prospective students or their advisers are using the U.S. News law school rankings as the only basis to choose one law school over another, that would be the absolutely incorrect usage of the rankings. As prospective law school students research and weigh different schools’ intangible attributes, U.S. News‘s rankings can help them compare each school’s academic excellence. However, rankings should only supplement—and not replace—careful thought and emphasis on all the factors that really matter. The rankings can inform a person’s thinking, but they shouldn’t be used as the easy answer. We urge everyone to use them wisely.

• ABA Journal, US News Warns Wannabe Law Students About ‘Absolutely Incorrect’ Use of Rankings
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