ABA 509 Profile · Private · Los Angeles, CA
Southwestern Law School: admission requirements and 509 data
A median LSAT of 157 and a median undergraduate GPA of 3.51 describe the class that entered in 2025. 3,584 people applied, 1,307 were admitted and 458 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
157
p25 154 to p75 160
Median UGPA
3.51
p25 3.23 to p75 3.72
Acceptance Rate
36.5%
1,307 offers of 3,584 applications
First-Year Class
459
383 full time, 76 part time
Full-Time Tuition
$63,160
Living Estimate
$38,033
school's own figure, single student off campus
Median Grant
$29,166
72% of students hold one
First-Time Bar Pass
64.9%
jurisdiction average 77.8%
How the acceptance rate is worked out
1,307 offers of admission ÷ 3,584 completed applications = 36.5%
We divide offers by completed applications rather than reprinting a rate. The 509 report states 36.47%, 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 Southwestern Law School
Southwestern Law School received 3,584 completed applications for the 2025 entering class and made 1,307 offers of admission, an acceptance rate of 36.5%. 458 of those admitted enrolled, a yield of 35.0%. Counting deferred admits and part-time entrants, the first-year class came to 459 students: 383 full time and 76 part time. Total JD enrollment across all years is 1,108.
Enrolled students posted a median LSAT of 157, with a 25th percentile of 154 and a 75th of 160. That is 2 points below the 159 median across the 196 ABA-approved schools in this data. It ranks 109 of 196 on LSAT median. Undergraduate GPA ran 3.23 at the 25th percentile, 3.51 at the median and 3.72 at the 75th.
Full-time tuition is $63,160 a year at a single rate for residents and non-residents. The school's own living-expense estimate for a single student off campus is $38,033. Tuition, fees and that living estimate add up to $101,193 for one year, or $303,579 across three, before any grant. 722 JD students hold a grant or scholarship, 72% of the student body, and the median full-time award is $29,166. 29 awards cover full tuition or more. The school reports conditional scholarships: 295 entering students held one and 142 had it reduced or eliminated.
Of the graduating class that sat a bar exam for the first time, 187 of 288 passed, a rate of 64.93%. The weighted average across the jurisdictions where those graduates sat was 77.76%, so the school ran 12.83 points behind the jurisdictions it feeds. Ten months after graduation, 233 of 290 graduates (80.3%) held a job requiring bar admission. 16 joined law firms of 251 lawyers or more (5.5% of the class), of whom 12 went to firms of 501 or more. 1 took federal clerkships. The largest single destination was California with 243 graduates, followed by Pennsylvania with 3.
Southwestern Law School has been approved by the Council of the ABA Section of Legal Education since 1970. It is a private school based in Los Angeles, CA. 51 first-year students left for academic reasons, 12.0% of the class.
The full 509 record
Admitted class profile, 2025 entering class
| Completed applications | 3,584 |
|---|---|
| Offers of admission | 1,307 |
| Matriculants from the applicant pool | 458 |
| Yield (matriculants per offer) | 35.0% |
| LSAT 75th percentile | 160 |
| LSAT 50th percentile | 157 |
| LSAT 25th percentile | 154 |
| UGPA 75th percentile | 3.72 |
| UGPA 50th percentile | 3.51 |
| UGPA 25th percentile | 3.23 |
| Students admitted on an LSAT score | 459 |
| Students admitted on a GRE score | 0 |
Program, faculty and calendar
| Total JD enrollment | 1,108 |
|---|---|
| JD degrees awarded | 290 |
| Credit hours required for the JD | 87 |
| Academic term | Semesters |
| Full-time faculty | 70 |
| Faculty other than full time | 115 |
| Course titles beyond the first year | 139 |
| Law clinic seats filled166 available | 143 |
| Field placements filled | 441 |
| Application deadline | April 1 |
| Application fee | $60 |
Tuition, fees and living costs, 2025 to 2026
| Full-time tuition, resident | $63,160 |
|---|---|
| Full-time annual fees, resident | $0 |
| Full-time tuition, non-resident | $63,160 |
| Full-time annual fees, non-resident | $0 |
| Part-time tuition, resident | $42,124 |
| First-year tuition plus fees, resident | $63,160 |
| First-year tuition plus fees, non-resident | $63,160 |
| Living expenses, on campus | $36,413 |
| Living expenses, off campus | $38,033 |
| Living expenses, at home | $25,073 |
| Tuition, fees and living, one yearthe three published figures added together | $101,193 |
| The same three figures over three yearsbefore any grant or scholarship | $303,579 |
| Tuition guarantee program | No |
Grants and scholarships
| JD students receiving a grantof 1,006 students | 722 |
|---|---|
| Share receiving a grant | 72% |
| Awards below half tuition | 373 |
| Awards from half to full tuition | 320 |
| Awards at full tuition | 12 |
| Awards above full tuition | 17 |
| Full-time grant, 75th percentile | $42,372 |
| Full-time grant, 50th percentile | $29,166 |
| Full-time grant, 25th percentile | $12,500 |
| Conditional scholarships offered | Yes |
Attrition, transfers and outcomes
| First-year academic attrition12.0% of the first-year class | 51 |
|---|---|
| First-year other attrition | 4 |
| Students transferring in | 0 |
| First-year students transferring out | 9 |
| First-time bar takers | 288 |
| First-time bar passers | 187 |
| Gap to the jurisdiction average | -12.83 points |
| Graduates in a job requiring bar admission80.3% of 290 graduates | 233 |
| Graduates at firms of 251 or more lawyers5.5% of graduates | 16 |
| Graduates at firms of 501 or more lawyers | 12 |
| Graduates in federal clerkships | 1 |
| Graduates seeking work at the reporting date | 22 |
As listed on the 509 report
3050 Wilshire Blvd., Los Angeles, CA 90010
Los Angeles, CA 90010
(213) 738-6700
Council approved since 1970
California has 17 ABA-approved law schools. The California guide compares them on LSAT median, cost and bar passage, and covers the state's admission rules.
Southwestern Law School 509 report: common questions
Where can I find Southwestern Law School'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 Southwestern Law School'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 Southwestern Law School?
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Southwestern Law School reported a median LSAT of 157 for the class that entered in 2025. The middle 50 percent ran from 154 at the 25th percentile to 160 at the 75th. A score at or above 157 puts you at or above the median half of the class; below 154 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 Southwestern Law School?
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Southwestern Law School reported a median undergraduate GPA of 3.51 for the 2025 entering class, with a 25th percentile of 3.23 and a 75th of 3.72. 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 Southwestern Law School's acceptance rate?
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1,307 of 3,584 applicants were offered admission for the 2025 entering class, an acceptance rate of 36.5%. That figure is offers divided by completed applications, both as filed in the 509 report. Of those admitted, 458 enrolled.
How much does Southwestern Law School cost?
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Southwestern Law School filed full-time tuition of $63,160 for the year in its 2025 509 report. The median grant among students receiving one was $29,166, so the published price is not what most students pay. Living costs are reported separately and are not included in these figures.
What is Southwestern Law School's bar passage rate?
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64.9% of Southwestern Law School 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.
Closest on the numbers
Schools with the nearest LSAT median to Southwestern Law School
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 Southwestern Law School 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.