To gain admission to the Santa Clara University School of Law’s Juris Doctor program, an applicant must exhibit a demonstrated capacity to successfully complete the School of Law’s program of legal education and thereafter pass a state bar examination. In evaluating applications, the School of Law assesses each applicant’s attributes and qualifications holistically, without any single criterion being determinative. Admissions decisions therefore depend upon consideration of a variety of factors. These factors include the applicant’s performance on ABA-approved admission tests; undergraduate academic record and course of study; academic performance in graduate or professional programs; demonstrated writing ability; extracurricular and volunteer activities; work experience; obstacles overcome; and potential contribution to the diversity of the student body. In addition, the School of Law considers evidence of an applicant’s character and moral fitness in an attempt to assess the applicant’s suitability to practice law and qualification for admission to a state bar.
To be considered for admission as a first-year student, applicants must (i) register with the Law School Admission Council’s (LSAC) Credential Assembly Service (CAS), and (ii) take the Law School Admission Test (LSAT) or other ABA-approved admission test. (These steps are preferred but not required for applicants seeking admission as transfer students.) All applicants must demonstrate that they have earned (or will earn prior to matriculation) a bachelor’s degree that has been awarded by an institution that is accredited by an accrediting agency recognized by the United States Department of Education.
Applicants who have graduated from an institution outside the United States may apply if the quality of the program of education of their degree-granting institution is equivalent to that of institutions accredited by an accrediting agency recognized by the United States Department of Education.
Foreign applicants who have earned a bachelor’s degree or its equivalent and are proficient in English are eligible to apply. Applicants who have completed all of their undergraduate work at institutions outside of the United States, its territories, or Canada must have those institutions send their transcripts directly to LSAC.