Message from Admissions

Thank you for visiting the Admissions Office Web page and for considering the University of Michigan Law School in your search for a law school. We have included a wealth of practical information to assist you in navigating the admissions process, and we hope you'll find what you need. We've also tried to include as much information as possible to help you see what the Law School community is like.

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That latter task, however, is not an easy one--there's a lot to tell. When we talk to our current students about why they made the decision to come here, they point to a variety of factors. They mention, of course, that Michigan is consistently ranked among the best law schools in the nation, and enjoys a prestigious international reputation as well. But many schools enjoy very fine reputations. What makes Michigan different?

• Our superlative faculty consisting of more than 70 full-time faculty members, as well as distinguished visiting scholars and practitioners, maintains a long tradition of eminence in a wide variety of legal fields--constitutional, criminal, international, business and corporate, intellectual property, and more. Their strengths extend beyond the law, with an unrivalled number having chairs in other departments and expertise in a wide range of other fields--history, English literature, political science, women's studies, psychology, and the life sciences, to name a few. Be assured that for all their impressive scholarship, our faculty puts teaching and students first. I drank a lot of coffee, and the occasional beer, with my professors when I was a student here, and things have not changed since then.
• We offer more than a dozen dual degree programs, and make it easy for students to take up to 12 credits of coursework at the other very strong departments this University boasts. Our interdisciplinary approach makes the study of law at Michigan exciting and vibrant in a way that professional school studies often are not.
• Our graduates go everywhere, both as a matter of geography and of substance. More than 80% of our graduates leave Michigan for New York, Chicago, Washington, D.C., California, Boston, and elsewhere. Bottom-line, Michigan Law grads are found in significant numbers in every major market in the country, and increasingly, students are pursuing international opportunities for both summer and post-graduate positions. While the majority of our graduates choose to work in private firms immediately following law school--a goal made easier by more than 700 employers who come to the Law School to interview every year, and by our policy of not allowing employers to pre-screen students--the Office of Career Services and the Office of Public Service offer significant resources and support, including individualized counseling to the approximately 20% of students who pursue judicial clerkships, as well as those who choose to work for the government, for nonprofit organizations, or in the business world and other nontraditional venues. Michigan Law is a great place to come if you've got a lot of different ideas about where you want to go.
• The City of Ann Arbor is a vibrant and engaging community of about 115,000, and is a particularly wonderful place to be a student. It combines a variety of cultural offerings--more music, dance, film, theatre, and fine arts than you can possibly take advantage of as a law student -- with standard student fare like coffee shops and bookstores, not to mention restaurants offering a whole host of ethnic cuisines. The Law School is located in the heart of the campus, which in turn is in the heart of the city, so everything is readily accessible. The close relationship between the City and the University means that Ann Arbor is intellectually lively and engaged. The University also attracts scholars and students from around the world, and as a result, Ann Arbor has a multicultural and cosmopolitan feel that's unexpected in a city its size. Come visit and you will see why Ann Arbor is so often found on "best places to live" lists.
• Our student body is, of course, extremely talented--both academically impressive and extracurricularly interesting--but more than that, it is made up of extremely congenial and decent people. At Michigan, if you miss a day of class (not that you would!), not only will people willingly share their notes, but they'll notice your absence and offer. And because the size of an entering class is about 350, your cohort is small enough that you get to know people well, but it's large enough to boast a wide variety of people--you'll definitely find people to bond with. And the friends you make here will last forever; I graduated about ten years ago, and I know my e-mail address list is replete with law school pals. That's a comforting thing when you're a practicing attorney, considering a job change, perhaps, or hoping for client referrals. Indeed, you can count on help from other alumni even when they're utter strangers to you; the loyalty of Michigan alumni (of which the Law School alone has 19,650 worldwide) is legendary.

These are just a handful of thoughts that jump into my mind when people ask me, "Why Michigan?" But the most compelling reasons will no doubt be personal to you. So if you're considering Michigan, come visit--meet this faculty, these students, this administration, this City that I'm extolling. You may or may not be surprised by what you find, but chances are high that you'll be impressed.

Sarah C. Zearfoss
Assistant Dean and Director of Admissions