PreLaw Magazine gives Elon University’s downtown Greensboro law school an A+ for its experiential curriculum in a 2023 ranking that celebrates the way legal programs help students “learn by doing.”
A national publication that covers legal education and offers aspiring attorneys information and resources for career success has named Elon University School of Law among the best American law schools for practical training.
Elon Law ranked #5 in PreLaw Magazine’s 2023 “Best Schools for Practical Training” feature – the downtown Greensboro law school’s highest ranking ever – with a grade of A+. Elon Law is the only North Carolina law school to make the Top 20 in this year’s rankings.
Elon Law offers students a broad array of opportunities to hone practical training skills throughout their 2.5 years of study. Those include:
- Full-time residencies-in-practice
- Lab courses
- Five clinics (immigration, small business and entrepreneurship, wills drafting, guardian ad litem appellate advocacy, and constitutional law appellate advocacy)
- Moot court and mock trial teams
- Internships, externships, and judicial clerkships
- Bridge-to-practice courses
- Involvement with the Pro Bono Board
Elon Law adopted its 2.5-year, seven-trimester curriculum in 2014, making it the only American law school to intentionally design a program where all students graduate in December and can sit for the February bar exam months ahead of peers from other institutions.
All students must complete a course-connected residency-in-practice during the winter or spring trimester of their second year. Residents work full-time for 10 weeks with a practicing attorney or judge to cultivate skills, values, and judgment to help them excel as attorneys and deepen their understanding of various practice areas.
And by completing their legal studies nearly six months faster than traditional programs, Elon Law graduates have lowered their average student debt at graduation by nearly a third.
Elon Law, which experienced record enrollment in 2022-2023, also has received praise in recent years from judicial and legal leaders who have complimented faculty and administrators on the preparation that graduates bring with them to their first legal roles as attorneys or clerks.
At the same time, the law school has further advanced its commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion. More than a quarter of all graduates self-identify as students of color and the law school has made strategic investments in curricular and programmatic support for first-generation college students and students from historically underrepresented groups.
“We pride ourselves on the holistic approach we take to our admissions process, which includes interviews with our strongest applicants, many of whom cite their desire to ‘learn by doing’ in law school,” said Elon Law Interim Dean Alan Woodlief. “The opportunities to gain real-world experience by working with faculty who recognize the importance of experiential learning places Elon Law graduates at an advantage when they earn their degrees and begin their legal careers ready for the rigors of the profession from their first day representing clients.”
For more information on Elon Law and the application process, visit the law school’s admissions page. Elon Law continues to actively admit the Elon Law Class of 2025, which is scheduled to enroll in August 2023.