The low cost and generous scholarships at BYU law will help you to feel like you can work in any industry.

The opportunities for placements in big law or prestigious government positions are limited.

Consider your long term goals before committing to BYU law.

Yes

Engaging professors with platinum resumes; supportive, well-connected alumni network; tlite education for a fraction of the price of comparable schools.

Limited alumni connections outside NYC, DC, LA, and the mountain states; facilities need an update.

BYU offers great value and solid job and clerkship prospects for people who do well. Experience may vary for those in the lower echelons of the class or those who seek employment outside Utah or the major legal hubs on the coasts.

Yes

Low tuition

Great for students with kids

Classmates are great

Great alumni base

Mormon perfectionist culture

Lots of students focused on young families with little time for socializing

Know the culture you're getting into and be okay with that. Even though a lot of your classmates will be married, it seems the single students get to know each other even better and build strong, professional relationships. Building relationships with classmates is the most important thing in law school. There is a good alumni base that will look at for you, Mormon or not.

Yes

The students get along very well, there are a lot of hard working people and that is helpful and motivating. I never had a problem with competitiveness being that several friends would share notes and outlines and we all worked with each other; of course always trying to do the best. The Law and Religion Center is unique to BYU and is very neat. Many foreign leaders come to BYU to see how to deal with religious freedom issues in their own countries. There are several former supreme court clerks at the school. The writing program is very straining and really helped me grow as a writer, the school is very strong is so many areas.

The atmosphere is beautiful, close to shopping, hiking, water parks, and much more. The school has a great atmosphere in supporting athletics, arts, comedy, and it is always fun to just go over to campus and find something good to see.

There is a separate Dean's certification from undergrad that no other school required, and a religious endorsement. The LSAT range is high and so is the GPA range.

2L

Few professors employ the "true" Socratic method, but in most classes, especially 1L classes, students will be called on to give the facts/rules of a case. The Socratic dialogue is far less intimidating than I expected (particularly after watching movies like "The Paper Chase." There's a good mix of theoretical and practical classes. Class sizes for 1Ls are between 50 and 100 students. For 2L and 3Ls, it all depends on the class. For example, I was in Wills and Estates with 112 other students, and in Water Law with only 16. Grading is based on a forced 3.3 median. BYU doesn't give out letter grades, but rather, grade point numbers ranging from 2.7 (the lowest passing grade) to 4.0. BYU's network (the school is affiliated with the LDS Church) provides students with an incredible array of international and domestic externships.

Some of the classrooms are a bit older, but the moot courtroom is very nice, and the law school is being remodeled this summer to add another smaller moot court room specifically designed to support mock trials.

Applicants are required to write the standard personal statement essay - BYU doesn't ask any other unique application questions. Applications are processed through LSAC/LSDAS. The LSAT is required. Full or half tuition scholarships are given to the most competitive students. Tuition is some of the lowest in the nation - under $10K per year. Students who don't receive a scholarship prior to admission can earn a $1,000 per semester scholarship if they're in the top 10%, but this isn't guaranteed. The financial aid office is great - the law school has its own financial aid adviser and he is incredibly accessible and responsive.

Classes are excellent quality. Faculty is very distinguished and accomplished but also very approachable. There are ample opportunities for working with faculty as research and teaching assistance. Classes are relatively small. There are many unique international work opportunities because of the school's network.

Great quality of life. Very low cost of living.

The median LSAT and GPA is always high for admitted students (comparable to schools ranked in the top 15-25 range, depending on the year).

3L

Classes are generally theory heavy and the socratic method is used in nearly every class. You're grilled in class on knowing the readings inside and out, then tested on how well you know the principles that you could've picked up more easily in a commercial outline. Academic advising is minimal and there is very little direction given for organizing your schedule, although they are very courteous. Classes are generally 25 - 75 students. It is extremely competitive. Many students choose to come here who could have gone to higher ranked law schools due to the Mormon connection. Also, most of the students are Mormon and Mormon's tend to have rather disciplined study habits and don't spend a lot of time "partying." All of this adds to the competitiveness. There are a lot of unique religious academic programs (Mormon history type classes and religious freedom, etc.). Grading is all curved. Nearly every class has the format of heavy reading throughout the semester, no assignments or quizzes, then your entire grade is based on a single final exam. Some teachers do essay exams, some do multiple choice, most do a combination of the two. BYU Law School has very bright faculty, again perhaps because of the Mormon connections. One of the best things about BYU Law School is its great networking and connections throughout the country and world. The matched externship program is very good.

If you're LDS, you can't beat BYU's tuition of $10,000/year. If you're not LDS, it's still not bad at about $20,000. Cost of living is quite low relative to larger cities. Pretty low violence/crime area. Every room in the law school has wireless internet. There is a large moot court room and a smaller trial room. The library staff is very helpful. There are plenty of study rooms.

Like most application processes.

2L

very competitive, but every one is willing to help each other

BYU Law offers many practical classes that help develop real world skills that you will actually use. There are still many research opportunities, however, and the smaller school means smaller class sizes for most the classes. Many students do work abroad externships.

On-campus accommodations are right across the street from the law school. Due to Provo's makeup, there is plenty of "off-campus" housing still within a 15 minute walk of the law school.