Interest in Law Study Dips as Economy Restarts

Applications to U.S. law schools fell by 11.5 percent this year with 66,876 applicants for fall 2011, the lowest number of applicants in ten years. The decline, reported by the Law School Admission Council, is widely attributed to the tentative economic recovery, as more college students seek jobs right after graduation instead of riding out the recession by pursuing another degree.

"There was a spike [in applications] last year, when the economy was really bad," reports Edward G. Tom, dean of admissions at UC Berkeley School of Law. "So this year's figure is sort of a return to normal." The school received roughly 1,000 fewer applications for fall than it did in 2010.

At UCLA School of Law, "Our applications declined to just over 7,300 from an unusually high figure last year," reports Robert Schwartz, dean of admissions and financial aid. But this year's figure is "still above normal compared with the preceding five years," he says.

Applications for fall also fell by nearly 600 at the University of Southern California's Gould School of Law. "I think many [prospective law students] didn't apply and have opted instead to get some work experience and save some money," explains Chloe T. Reid, dean of admissions at Gould.

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