Yale Law School
regular Feb 15, 2027
0 of 8 required items complete· next deadline in 121 days
Your numbers against the class of 2025
This is a comparison against published numbers, not a prediction. Admissions committees weigh essays, letters, and experience that no percentile captures.
5,562 applications, 226 offers, 204 enrolled · Verified 2026-08-13 · view source
What it costs, how graduates fare
- Tuition2025-26
$76,636 full-time · plus $2,325 annual fees
Living expenses $28,202 on campus
Tuition and the fees the school certifies alongside it — not a full cost of attendance.
Verified 2026-08-27 · ABA Standard 509 report
- Bar passageclass of 2025
98.5%first-time+13.1
85.4% is the average for all ABA-accredited schools’ graduates in the same jurisdictions this school’s graduates sat in · 203 of 206 first-time takers passed
100.0% of the class of 2023 were admitted within two years of graduating
A pass rate on its own says as much about which states a school feeds as about the school, so the ABA’s own like-for-like average is shown with it.
Verified 2026-08-27 · ABA bar passage report
- Employmentclass of 2025
184 of 211 (87.2%) in full-time, long-term jobs requiring bar admission
Ten months after graduation · 12 more in JD-advantage jobs · 1 still seeking · 18 of the bar-admission jobs are funded by the school
The ABA collects employment status and job type only. It collects no salary, so no salary figure comes from this filing.
Verified 2026-08-27 · ABA employment summary
- First-year attrition2024-25
0.0% of the first-year class · 0 students
No law school publishes a graduation rate, so this is not one. It is the students who left in their first year, academic and other, as filed. Transfers out are reported separately and are not counted here.
Verified 2026-08-27 · ABA Standard 509 report
- EarningsCollege Scorecard
Not a starting salary.
$139,244 median one year after finishing · $188,189 after four
$105,518 is the national median at four years for the same credential
A College Scorecard median for 2017-18 and 2018-19 completers who received federal aid, measured a fixed number of years after they finished — not what this year’s graduates are being paid, and not a figure the school or the ABA publishes. The ABA collects no salary data at all.
Verified 2026-08-27 · College Scorecard
Essays
- Personal statementRequired · 2 pgstart by Jan 25, 2027
Explore your reasons for attending law school and any specific legal interests you have, as well as the personal, professional, and/or academic qualities you would bring to the Law School community and the legal profession.
Notes & source
Approximately two double-spaced pages, professional 12-point font, with name, LSAC number, and 'Personal Statement' in the header. Should focus on relevant experiences, not on Yale-specific reasons.
Verified 2026-08-12 · source page
- Optional essayRequired · 250 wschool-specificstart by Feb 8, 2027
In no more than 250 words, write about an idea or issue from your academic, extracurricular, or professional work that is of particular interest to you. It does not have to be law-related; this is an opportunity to show how you would engage intellectually in the Law School community.
Notes & source
Yale's 250-word essay ('250-Word Essays' on the site) — required, despite the optional_essay type label. Double-spaced, 12-point font, with name, LSAC number, and '250-Word Essay' in the header.
Verified 2026-08-12 · source page
- Optional essayOptional · 1 pgschool-specificstart by Feb 8, 2027
Submit an essay responding to one of four questions, each tied to a Law School value: a community that has been meaningful to you; an important accomplishment showing leadership, innovation, or driving change; a significant challenge or setback and what you learned; or a time you changed your mind after disagreement or new information.
Notes & source
Prompts summarized. Truly optional but encouraged; answer only one of the four questions. Approximately one page double-spaced, 12-point font, with name, LSAC number, and 'Optional Essay [number]' in the header.
Verified 2026-08-12 · source page
- AddendumOptionalstart by Feb 12, 2027
Notes & source
Optional; it is not necessary to include any addenda and many applicants do not. Examples include explanations related to transcripts or test scores, such as a history of under-performance on standardized tests.
Verified 2026-08-12 · source page
Letters & documents
- Letter of recommendation (1 of 2)Requiredstart by Jan 18, 2027
Notes & source
Yale prefers letters from at least two professors with whom the applicant has studied; letters from employers, deans, coaches, chaplains, or colleagues are acceptable but not preferred as replacements for faculty letters. Submit via the LSAC Letter of Recommendation Service. Review begins as soon as two letters are received.
Verified 2026-08-12 · source page
- Letter of recommendation (2 of 2)Requiredstart by Jan 18, 2027
Notes & source
Yale prefers letters from at least two professors with whom the applicant has studied; letters from employers, deans, coaches, chaplains, or colleagues are acceptable but not preferred as replacements for faculty letters. Submit via the LSAC Letter of Recommendation Service. Review begins as soon as two letters are received.
Verified 2026-08-12 · source page
- RésuméRequired · 2 pgstart by Feb 8, 2027
Notes & source
Generally 1-2 pages. Separate structured college activities (max 1-2 pages) and post-college activities (max 1 page) sections are also part of the application; some duplication with the resume is expected.
Verified 2026-08-12 · source page
- Transcripts via LSAC CASRequiredstart by Jan 25, 2027
Notes & source
Subscribe to LSAC's Credential Assembly Service (CAS) and submit transcripts to LSAC from each college or university attended, including study abroad, graduate, and professional study. Allow at least six weeks for LSAC processing. Pandemic-era pass/fail grades will not be viewed negatively.
Verified 2026-08-12 · source page
- LSAT or GRERequiredstart by Dec 17, 2026
Notes & source
LSAT or GRE General Test accepted with no preference; submit scores from one test type only. LSAT: taken July 2021 through January 2027; LSAT Writing/Argumentative Writing sample required (complete by January 25, 2027). GRE: taken by February 1, 2027, with scores received by the February 15, 2027 deadline; must send all GRE scores from the past five years (school code 4542); do not send GRE scores before submitting an application. No GPA or test score cutoffs.
Verified 2026-08-12 · source page
- Dean's certificationOptionalstart by Feb 1, 2027
Notes & source
Not required with the application. If an offer of admission is accepted, a dean's certification form is required from each college/university degree program; all offers are contingent on satisfactory completion of this requirement.
Verified 2026-08-12 · source page
Administrative
- Application feeRequiredat submission
Notes & source
$85, non-refundable. Automatically waived for LSAC fee waiver recipients; need-based waivers available via Yale's online form (no parental information requested) and are generously granted, with no bearing on admissions decisions.
Verified 2026-08-12 · source page
- InterviewOptionalat submission
Notes & source
By invitation only — applicants cannot request one. Site wording: Yale 'will select some applicants to interview as part of the evaluation process and an interview is necessary for admission'; selected applicants are contacted by the Admissions Office.
Verified 2026-08-12 · source page
Every item above was verified against law.yale.edu on 2026-08-12. Expand any item for its own source. Always confirm against the school before you submit — and if we have something wrong, report an error.