ABA 509 Profile · Public · Honolulu, HI
William S. Richardson School of Law: admission requirements and 509 data
A median LSAT of 158 and a median undergraduate GPA of 3.62 describe the class that entered in 2025. 1,654 people applied, 434 were admitted and 138 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
158
p25 155 to p75 162
Median UGPA
3.62
p25 3.40 to p75 3.80
Acceptance Rate
26.2%
434 offers of 1,654 applications
First-Year Class
140
87 full time, 53 part time
Full-Time Tuition
$46,728
residents pay $23,304
Living Estimate
$27,322
school's own figure, single student off campus
Median Grant
$7,000
69% of students hold one
First-Time Bar Pass
76.9%
jurisdiction average 74.9%
How the acceptance rate is worked out
434 offers of admission ÷ 1,654 completed applications = 26.2%
We divide offers by completed applications rather than reprinting a rate. The 509 report states 26.24%, 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 William S. Richardson
William S. Richardson received 1,654 completed applications for the 2025 entering class and made 434 offers of admission, an acceptance rate of 26.2%. 138 of those admitted enrolled, a yield of 31.8%. Counting deferred admits and part-time entrants, the first-year class came to 140 students: 87 full time and 53 part time. Total JD enrollment across all years is 375.
Enrolled students posted a median LSAT of 158, with a 25th percentile of 155 and a 75th of 162. That is 1 points below the 159 median across the 196 ABA-approved schools in this data. It ranks 100 of 196 on LSAT median. Undergraduate GPA ran 3.40 at the 25th percentile, 3.62 at the median and 3.80 at the 75th. 15 of the entering class were admitted on a GRE score rather than an LSAT score.
Full-time tuition is $23,304 for residents and $46,728 for non-residents, a gap of $23,424 a year. Mandatory fees add $772. The school's own living-expense estimate for a single student off campus is $27,322. Tuition, fees and that living estimate add up to $74,822 for one year, or $224,466 across three, before any grant. 211 JD students hold a grant or scholarship, 69% of the student body, and the median full-time award is $7,000. 3 awards cover full tuition or more.
Of the graduating class that sat a bar exam for the first time, 70 of 91 passed, a rate of 76.92%. The weighted average across the jurisdictions where those graduates sat was 74.94%, so the school ran 1.98 points ahead of the jurisdictions it feeds. Ten months after graduation, 75 of 98 graduates (76.5%) held a job requiring bar admission. 3 took federal clerkships. The largest single destination was Hawaii with 82 graduates, followed by Colorado with 2.
William S. Richardson has been approved by the Council of the ABA Section of Legal Education since 1974. It is a public school based in Honolulu, HI. No first-year students left for academic reasons in the reporting year. 2 students transferred in from other law schools.
The full 509 record
Admitted class profile, 2025 entering class
| Completed applications | 1,654 |
|---|---|
| Offers of admission | 434 |
| Matriculants from the applicant pool | 138 |
| Yield (matriculants per offer) | 31.8% |
| LSAT 75th percentile | 162 |
| LSAT 50th percentile | 158 |
| LSAT 25th percentile | 155 |
| UGPA 75th percentile | 3.80 |
| UGPA 50th percentile | 3.62 |
| UGPA 25th percentile | 3.40 |
| Students admitted on an LSAT score | 125 |
| Students admitted on a GRE score | 15 |
Program, faculty and calendar
| Total JD enrollment | 375 |
|---|---|
| JD degrees awarded | 98 |
| Credit hours required for the JD | 89 |
| Academic term | Semesters |
| Full-time faculty | 44 |
| Faculty other than full time | 65 |
| Course titles beyond the first year | 111 |
| Law clinic seats filled190 available | 185 |
| Field placements filled | 88 |
| Application deadline | Priority Date: January 28; Final Deadline: May 1 |
| Application fee | $75 |
Tuition, fees and living costs, 2025 to 2026
| Full-time tuition, resident | $23,304 |
|---|---|
| Full-time annual fees, resident | $772 |
| Full-time tuition, non-resident | $46,728 |
| Full-time annual fees, non-resident | $772 |
| Full-time tuition per credit, resident | $971 |
| Full-time tuition per credit, non-resident | $1,974 |
| Part-time tuition, resident | $17,478 |
| First-year tuition plus fees, resident | $24,076 |
| First-year tuition plus fees, non-resident | $47,500 |
| Living expenses, on campus | $21,026 |
| Living expenses, off campus | $27,322 |
| Living expenses, at home | $17,676 |
| Tuition, fees and living, one yearthe three published figures added together | $74,822 |
| The same three figures over three yearsbefore any grant or scholarship | $224,466 |
| Tuition guarantee program | No |
Grants and scholarships
| JD students receiving a grantof 306 students | 211 |
|---|---|
| Share receiving a grant | 69% |
| Awards below half tuition | 166 |
| Awards from half to full tuition | 42 |
| Awards at full tuition | 0 |
| Awards above full tuition | 3 |
| Full-time grant, 75th percentile | $13,000 |
| Full-time grant, 50th percentile | $7,000 |
| Full-time grant, 25th percentile | $6,000 |
| Conditional scholarships offered | No |
Attrition, transfers and outcomes
| First-year academic attrition0.0% of the first-year class | 0 |
|---|---|
| First-year other attrition | 3 |
| Students transferring in | 2 |
| First-year students transferring out | 2 |
| First-time bar takers | 91 |
| First-time bar passers | 70 |
| Gap to the jurisdiction average | +1.98 points |
| Graduates in a job requiring bar admission76.5% of 98 graduates | 75 |
| Graduates at firms of 251 or more lawyers0.0% of graduates | 0 |
| Graduates at firms of 501 or more lawyers | 0 |
| Graduates in federal clerkships | 3 |
| Graduates seeking work at the reporting date | 5 |
As listed on the 509 report
2515 Dole Street
Honolulu, HI 96822-2350
(808) 956-7966
Council approved since 1974
Closest on the numbers
Schools with the nearest LSAT median to William S. Richardson
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 William S. Richardson 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.