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ABA 509 Profile · Private · Charleston, SC

Charleston School of Law: admission requirements and 509 data

A median LSAT of 154 and a median undergraduate GPA of 3.51 describe the class that entered in 2025. 2,215 people applied, 1,112 were admitted and 239 enrolled. Every figure below is taken from this school's ABA Standard 509 Information Report, the disclosure the ABA requires each approved law school to publish for applicants.

Median LSAT

154

p25 152 to p75 157

Median UGPA

3.51

p25 3.26 to p75 3.75

Acceptance Rate

50.2%

1,112 offers of 2,215 applications

First-Year Class

241

all full time

Full-Time Tuition

$48,600

plus $1,084 fees

Living Estimate

$27,752

school's own figure, single student off campus

Median Grant

$20,000

95% of students hold one

First-Time Bar Pass

74.1%

jurisdiction average 76.8%

How the acceptance rate is worked out

1,112 offers of admission ÷ 2,215 completed applications = 50.2%

We divide offers by completed applications rather than reprinting a rate. The 509 report states 50.20%, which agrees with the division above. The rate counts every completed application, including applicants who never became competitive, so it is a measure of volume as much as of standards.

What the 2025 numbers say about Charleston School of Law

Charleston School of Law received 2,215 completed applications for the 2025 entering class and made 1,112 offers of admission, an acceptance rate of 50.2%. 239 of those admitted enrolled, a yield of 21.5%. The full first-year class came to 241 students, all full time. Total JD enrollment across all years is 707.

Enrolled students posted a median LSAT of 154, with a 25th percentile of 152 and a 75th of 157. That is 5 points below the 159 median across the 196 ABA-approved schools in this data. It ranks 148 of 196 on LSAT median. Undergraduate GPA ran 3.26 at the 25th percentile, 3.51 at the median and 3.75 at the 75th. 1 of the entering class were admitted on a GRE score rather than an LSAT score.

Full-time tuition is $48,600 a year at a single rate for residents and non-residents. Mandatory fees add $1,084. The school's own living-expense estimate for a single student off campus is $27,752. Tuition, fees and that living estimate add up to $77,436 for one year, or $232,308 across three, before any grant. 661 JD students hold a grant or scholarship, 95% of the student body, and the median full-time award is $20,000. 20 awards cover full tuition or more.

Of the graduating class that sat a bar exam for the first time, 160 of 216 passed, a rate of 74.07%. The weighted average across the jurisdictions where those graduates sat was 76.83%, so the school ran 2.76 points behind the jurisdictions it feeds. Ten months after graduation, 163 of 210 graduates (77.6%) held a job requiring bar admission. 5 joined law firms of 251 lawyers or more (2.4% of the class), of whom 3 went to firms of 501 or more. 1 took federal clerkships. The largest single destination was South Carolina with 102 graduates, followed by Georgia with 10.

Charleston School of Law has been approved by the Council of the ABA Section of Legal Education since 2006. It is a private school based in Charleston, SC. 11 first-year students left for academic reasons, 4.0% of the class. 9 students transferred in from other law schools.

The full 509 record

Admitted class profile, 2025 entering class

Completed applications2,215
Offers of admission1,112
Matriculants from the applicant pool239
Yield (matriculants per offer)21.5%
LSAT 75th percentile157
LSAT 50th percentile154
LSAT 25th percentile152
UGPA 75th percentile3.75
UGPA 50th percentile3.51
UGPA 25th percentile3.26
Students admitted on an LSAT score235
Students admitted on a GRE score1

Program, faculty and calendar

Total JD enrollment707
JD degrees awarded210
Credit hours required for the JD90
Academic termSemesters
Full-time faculty29
Faculty other than full time46
Course titles beyond the first year106
Law clinic seats filled53 available53
Field placements filled103
Application deadlineMarch 1
Application feeNo fee

Tuition, fees and living costs, 2025 to 2026

Full-time tuition, resident$48,600
Full-time annual fees, resident$1,084
Full-time tuition, non-resident$48,600
Full-time annual fees, non-resident$1,084
Part-time tuition, resident$39,000
First-year tuition plus fees, resident$49,684
First-year tuition plus fees, non-resident$49,684
Living expenses, off campus$27,752
Living expenses, at home$27,752
Tuition, fees and living, one yearthe three published figures added together$77,436
The same three figures over three yearsbefore any grant or scholarship$232,308
Tuition guarantee programNo

Grants and scholarships

JD students receiving a grantof 697 students661
Share receiving a grant95%
Awards below half tuition405
Awards from half to full tuition236
Awards at full tuition19
Awards above full tuition1
Full-time grant, 75th percentile$28,500
Full-time grant, 50th percentile$20,000
Full-time grant, 25th percentile$13,000
Conditional scholarships offeredNo

Attrition, transfers and outcomes

First-year academic attrition4.0% of the first-year class11
First-year other attrition10
Students transferring in9
First-year students transferring out5
First-time bar takers216
First-time bar passers160
Gap to the jurisdiction average-2.76 points
Graduates in a job requiring bar admission77.6% of 210 graduates163
Graduates at firms of 251 or more lawyers2.4% of graduates5
Graduates at firms of 501 or more lawyers3
Graduates in federal clerkships1
Graduates seeking work at the reporting date20

As listed on the 509 report

385 Meeting Street

Charleston, SC 29403

(843) 329-1000

www.charlestonlaw.edu

Council approved since 2006

South Carolina has 2 ABA-approved law schools. The South Carolina guide compares them on LSAT median, cost and bar passage, and covers the state's admission rules.

Charleston School of Law 509 report: common questions

Where can I find Charleston School of Law's ABA 509 report?

›

Every ABA-approved law school files a Standard 509 Information Report each year, and the ABA publishes them at https://www.abarequireddisclosures.org/. This page restates Charleston School of Law's 2025 report, covering the class that entered in 2025: LSAT and GPA percentiles, applications and offers, first-year class size, tuition, grants, bar passage and employment. The figures come from the school's own filing, not from a ranking or a survey.

What LSAT score do you need for Charleston School of Law?

›

Charleston School of Law reported a median LSAT of 154 for the class that entered in 2025. The middle 50 percent ran from 152 at the 25th percentile to 157 at the 75th. A score at or above 154 puts you at or above the median half of the class; below 152 you are in the quarter of admitted students who needed something else in the file to carry the application. Law schools do not publish a minimum LSAT, and these percentiles describe enrolled students rather than a cutoff.

What GPA do you need for Charleston School of Law?

›

Charleston School of Law reported a median undergraduate GPA of 3.51 for the 2025 entering class, with a 25th percentile of 3.26 and a 75th of 3.75. These are LSAC Credential Assembly Service GPAs, which are recalculated from every undergraduate transcript and can differ from the GPA on your degree certificate.

What is Charleston School of Law's acceptance rate?

›

1,112 of 2,215 applicants were offered admission for the 2025 entering class, an acceptance rate of 50.2%. That figure is offers divided by completed applications, both as filed in the 509 report. Of those admitted, 239 enrolled.

How much does Charleston School of Law cost?

›

Charleston School of Law filed full-time tuition of $48,600 for the year in its 2025 509 report. The median grant among students receiving one was $20,000, so the published price is not what most students pay. Living costs are reported separately and are not included in these figures.

What is Charleston School of Law's bar passage rate?

›

74.1% of Charleston School of Law graduates passed the bar on their first attempt, as reported in the ABA's first-time bar passage outcomes for 2024 graduates. Bar passage is reported a year behind the admissions figures on this page because it tracks a graduating class rather than an entering one.

Data: ABA Standard 509 Information Report (2025), published for consumer disclosure, retrieved from the ABA Required Disclosures portal on 2026-09-01. Bar passage and employment figures come from the same portal's Bar Passage Outcomes and Employment Summary reports for the class of 2024. Figures describe the 2025 to 2026 reporting cycle for Charleston School of Law and are restated in our own structure; no ABA document or file is reproduced here. Verify anything decision-critical with the school.

Related reading: LSAT score guide, GPA benchmarks, law school cost and ROI, application timeline, all 196 ABA-approved schools, and the Yale profile for the top of the range.

Reader questions

A requirement the 509 data does not settle?

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This is a reference site. It is not admissions consulting and it is not legal advice. Figures here come from ABA Standard 509 disclosures, and each school's own published requirements are the authority on what it will accept from you.

Updated 7 June 2026