The University of Wisconsin Law School is best known for its "law in action" approach to legal education, a system that emphasizes the history and social implications of regulations, as well as how they operate outside the classroom. The school claims that this is a socially aware approach to law, but students tell Vault that the integration of the concept varies widely from professor to professor. The emphasis on the practical application of law, as you might expect, results in well-respected clinical programs. In 2008, National Jurist magazine ranked Wisconsin Law second in clinical training nationally.

Incoming JD students are split into small sections for two of their first-year core required courses. Upper-level students can earn certification in five departments within the law school or three interdisciplinary concentrations, including Russian area studies, international law and business, or environmental law. There are also concurrent degree programs in many of the other graduate schools available, or students can create their own dual curriculum.

Wisconsin Law benefits from the state's diploma privilege system, through which law students can automatically pass the bar exam if they fulfill certain academic requirements. Chicago, Minneapolis and Milwaukee are big markets for Wisconsin Law grads. However, students have difficulty getting jobs in Madison, due to the relatively small number of legal positions available in the city. Madison has a reputation as a vibrant, student-oriented town, and law students have easy access to campus social activities with undergraduates and other graduate students.