The Council of the ABA Section of Legal Education and Admissions to the Bar has granted provisional accreditation to the University of North Texas at Dallas College of Law. As I wrote last fall, this innovative law school well deserved a chance to try its wings.
Here are some distinctive features of the school:
- 51.4% of its students are minority students. National Jurist recently named the school the third most diverse law school in America.
- The student body is notable for its diversity in age and prior work experience, in addition to race and gender.
- Tuition for 2016-17 was $15,768 for full-time residents and $11,653 for part-time residents.
- During 2016-17, more than half (51.8%) of students received scholarships, with a median grant of $1,250 (for both full-time and part-time students).
- Entering scholarships depend upon academic record, socioeconomic background, first-generation status, and community service. There are no conditional scholarships.
- The school requires completion of courses in accounting and finance for lawyers; interviewing and counseling; negotiation and conflict resolution; effective oral communication; and the business of law.
- The school also requires students to complete two fully experiential courses (drawn from clinics, externships, or practicums)
- Many upper-level courses incorporate writing, research, and/or skills segments. Students must complete multiple segments in each of these three categories (in addition to required writing, research, and skills courses)
- Students must demonstrate proficiency in several practice-related technologies.
The first group of 74 graduates will receive their degrees this month–and those degrees are now from an ABA-accredited law school. Godspeed UNT-Dallas and grads!