University of Denver Sturm College of Law

Listed under 'First-Year JD Application Requirements' as a component of the completed online application, labeled 'Personal Statement' with the prompt following an en dash; the prompt is quoted from that bullet, beginning at its first word. The 500-word cap is unusually short. The page publishes no formatting requirements (font, spacing, margins) and says nothing about generative AI. Advanced standing applicants (holders of a foreign law degree) are given the identical statement wording and 500-word cap; transfer and visiting applicants instead submit a double-spaced typed statement that 'generally, should not exceed two pages' on named topics — those are separate applicant tracks and are not recorded in this file, which covers first-year JD admission.

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Denver publishes a single open-ended invitation, labeled 'Optional Materials,' rather than a set of named supplemental essays. The prompt above is its opening sentence; the bullet then offers two examples (recorded separately in this file as perspective_statement and addendum) and closes with the cap that applies to all of them: 'Please limit any optional statement that you elect to submit to 250 words.' Note that the invitation is explicitly plural — 'one or more additional statements' — so the three optional entries in this file are facets of one invitation, not three separate required-format essays. Denver names no why-Denver essay, no video statement, and no prompt beyond this bullet.

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Denver does not use the term 'perspective statement' or 'diversity statement' and does not treat this as a distinct application component — it is the first of two examples given inside the single 'Optional Materials' bullet (see the optional_essay entry for the full invitation). Typed here as perspective_statement because the invited content matches the taxonomy. Subject to the same 250-word cap: 'Please limit any optional statement that you elect to submit to 250 words.'

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The second example inside the single 'Optional Materials' bullet (see the optional_essay entry), and the only addendum invitation Denver publishes — it covers GPA and LSAT context and 'other aspects of your application materials,' subject to the same 250-word cap. The admissions pages never mention a character-and-fitness addendum, a gap-in-employment explanation, or a prior-law-school-attendance statement for first-year applicants; the JD Application Information page's 'Bar Admission Information' section only advises applicants to check character, fitness, and other qualifications with the jurisdiction where they intend to seek admission, through the National Conference of Bar Examiners. Recorded as silence, not as an absence of such requirements.

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Listed as one of the items the Completed Credential Assembly Service Report from LSAC must contain, so letters go to LSAC/CAS rather than to the law school: 'Rather than submitting your application materials directly to Denver Law, you will submit your transcripts and letters of recommendation directly to the CAS.' The page does not say how many letters are accepted beyond the two required, does not rank academic against professional recommenders, and does not discuss waiver of the right to inspect letters — recorded as silence. No count_accepted is recorded for that reason.

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Listed as one of the items the Completed Credential Assembly Service Report from LSAC must contain, so letters go to LSAC/CAS rather than to the law school: 'Rather than submitting your application materials directly to Denver Law, you will submit your transcripts and letters of recommendation directly to the CAS.' The page does not say how many letters are accepted beyond the two required, does not rank academic against professional recommenders, and does not discuss waiver of the right to inspect letters — recorded as silence. No count_accepted is recorded for that reason.

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Required, submitted within the online application (labeled 'Resume' with the guidance following an en dash; quoted from that bullet's first word). No page limit is published — none is recorded here rather than assuming one. The same resume wording is repeated verbatim in the transfer, advanced standing, and visiting applicant requirement lists.

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'In order to submit your JD application for admission to Denver Law, you will need to create an account with LSAC and register with the Credential Assembly Service (CAS).' The CAS report must contain 'All transcripts from any post-secondary schooling completed.' Eligibility: 'To be admitted to the University of Denver Sturm College of Law, you must hold a bachelor's degree from a regionally accredited college or university. No undergraduate field of study is favored, based on evidence that a strong student in any major can develop the skills of writing, analysis, and persuasion necessary for success in law school.' No minimum GPA is published. English proficiency, required of all applicants regardless of citizenship whose native language is not English or who were educated in countries where English is not the native language: TOEFL, IELTS, or Cambridge English (C1 Advanced), with scores valid two years from the test date, sent from the testing organization to LSAC or to the Office of Admissions, and waived for applicants who completed a post-secondary degree at an institution whose language of instruction and tests is English ('The whole program of study must have been completed in English'). Published minimums, quoted as they appear: TOEFL 'For exams taken before January 21, 2026: Minimum total score: 95' and 'For exams taken on or after January 21, 2026: Minimum total score: 5' (the LSAC TOEFL code is 0058, the University of Denver Institution Code 4842); IELTS 7.0; C1 Advanced 185. Foreign credential evaluation is described only in the advanced standing track, where it 'will be completed by the American Association of Collegiate Registrars and Admissions Officers and included with your CAS Report.' Denver's primary contact is email: notices are sent when the application is received, when it is incomplete, when it is complete and ready for review, and for the decision; status can be checked through LSAC.

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A test is required, and Denver accepts three: 'As prescribed by the Council of the Section of Legal Education and Admissions to the Bar of the American Bar Association ("Council"), the Sturm College of Law requires every applicant for admission as a first-year JD student to take a valid and reliable admission test. As part of its holistic admissions process, and in the interest of recruiting an outstanding student body with a range of skills, experiences, and perspectives, the Sturm College of Law permits applicants to take any of the following three admission tests: (1) the Law School Admission Test (LSAT); (2) the Graduate Record Examination (GRE); or (3) the JD-Next exam.' There is no minimum score on any of the three — the page says so separately for the LSAT, the GRE, and JD-Next. Volume expectations, in the school's words: 'The overwhelming majority of students admitted to the Sturm College of Law in recent years have elected to submit an LSAT score'; 'In recent years, the Sturm College of Law has accepted a small number of applicants per year who have submitted a GRE score in lieu of an LSAT score'; and Denver 'anticipates accepting a limited number of applicants who have submitted JD-Next scores in lieu of LSAT or GRE scores.' JD-Next is taken after an eight-week online course administered by Aspen Publishing; Denver received Council approval to use it in August 2024. The first-year requirements list is narrower than the three-test policy above it — it names only 'Valid Law School Admissions Test (LSAT) score and LSAT Writing' among the CAS report contents, and LSAT Writing is required of LSAT takers. The page carries stale text in the JD-Next paragraph, which describes 'the current 2024-25 application cycle' and says the exam will be accepted 'for the first time during the 2024-25 admissions cycle.' Not published anywhere on the admissions pages, and recorded as silence: score validity windows for the LSAT or GRE, whether multiple scores are averaged or the highest is used, the GRE and JD-Next reporting codes, and the last test administration accepted in a cycle.

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'$65 non-refundable application fee.' The same $65 appears in the school's 2025 ABA Standard 509 report. Fee waivers: the admissions pages are silent — no waiver policy, LSAC fee-waiver reciprocity, or request procedure appears on the JD Application Information page, the JD Admissions page, or the Apply Now page. Recorded as silence, not as an absence of waivers.

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Recorded as a silence, not as a policy. Neither the JD Admissions landing page, the JD Application Information page, the Prospective Student Information page, nor the Visit Us page mentions an interview in any form — invited, evaluative, required, or recorded video — and none of them says Denver does not interview. The Visit Us page offers only recruiting contact: applicants may 'Book an appointment' with the admissions office and, Monday through Friday, 'meet with an admission counselor, tour the law school and sit in on a class.' The application requirement list is limited to the online application, fee, and CAS report, and the school describes its process as file review by the Faculty Admissions Committee.

Verified 2026-08-18 · source page