|
University of Arkansas School of Law
Robert A. Leflar Law Center Fayetteville,
AR 72701
Phone: 479.575.3102; Fax: 479.575.3937
E-mail: ualawad@uark.edu; Website:
http://law.uark.edu
Applicants (Freshman Class; 2005 - 2006)
|
Applied: |
1,449 |
|
Accepted: |
354 |
|
Enrolled: |
143 |
|
Average Age: |
25 |
Student Body (2005 - 2006)
|
Median LSAT: |
155 |
|
Median GPA: |
3.41 |
|
Women: |
44% |
|
Minority: |
23% |
Tuition (In State)
Tuition (Out of State)
| Students
receiving financial aid: |
74% |
Placement
| Placed
within 9 months: |
95% |
| Average
starting salary: |
$18,000 - $82,000 |
Areas of placement
|
Academic: |
2% |
|
Business: |
20% |
|
Government: |
14% |
|
Judicial Clerks: |
9% |
| Law
Firm (2 - 10 attorneys): |
31% |
| Law
Firm (11 - 25 attorneys): |
9% |
| Law
Firm (26 - 50 attorneys): |
3% |
| Law
Firm (51 - 100 attorneys): |
3% |
| Law
Firm (100+ attorneys): |
4% |
|
Public Interest: |
2% |
| Solo
Practice: |
3% |
Library Resources
|
Number of Volumes: |
299,494 |
|
Number of Titles: |
187,946 |
|
Number of Subscriptions: |
3,574 |
Introduction
The University
of Arkansas School of Law is located on the
main university campus at Fayetteville, a
city of 58,000 in northwest Arkansas. The
School of Law was established in 1924 and
has continuously sought to provide high
quality legal education in a university
community. In 1926, the School of Law was
approved by the ABA, and, in 1927, the
school became a member of the AALS.
Enrollment/Student Body
Although
approximately 75–80 percent of the students
are Arkansas residents, others are from
every part of the United States. Since the
school has no undergraduate course
prerequisites, the academic backgrounds and
nonacademic experiences of students are
varied.
Library and Physical Facilities
The law library
has over 299,000 volumes and volume
equivalents. Students are trained in the
techniques of computer-assisted legal
research as well as in the traditional
research methods. The law library is a
federal and state depository for government
documents.
Curriculum
The primary
function of the University of Arkansas
School of Law is to prepare lawyers who will
render the highest quality of professional
service to their clients, who are interested
in and capable of furthering legal process
and reform, and who are prepared to fill the
vital role of the lawyer as a community
leader. The school offers a full-time,
three-year program leading to the JD degree.
The degree is conferred upon satisfactory
completion of 90 semester hours, including
42 hours of required courses. The first-year
curriculum is required. A broad selection of
elective second- and third-year courses is
available. Students who have completed the
first year of law school may earn up to 12
semester hours of credit in summer school,
and graduation can be accelerated one
semester by summer coursework.
The School of
Law offers a joint JD/MBA program with the
College of Business Administration. If a
student is accepted into both programs, a
maximum of six hours of approved upper-level
elective law courses may be used on
duplicative credit toward the MBA degree,
and a maximum of six hours of approved
graduate courses in business administration
may be used as duplicative credit toward the
JD degree.
The Department
of Political Science, the graduate school,
and the School of Law cooperate in offering
a dual-degree program that allows a student
to pursue the MPA and the JD degrees
concurrently. Students must be admitted to
the MPA program, the School of Law, and the
dual-degree program.
The School of
Law and the Department of Political Science
provide a dual JD/MA in International Law
and Politics. This program’s students must
be admitted both to the School of Law and
the Graduate School, Department of Political
Science. The Graduate Program in Agriculture
Law provides opportunities for advanced
study, creative research, and specialized
professional training in this rapidly
developing area of law. The program is
designed to prepare a small number of
carefully selected attorneys as specialists
in the legal problems of agriculture
production, distribution, and marketing.
Applicants for
admission as candidates for the Master of
Laws (LLM) in Agricultural Law must have
earned a JD or LLB degree from a fully
accredited law school in the United States.
Graduates from a law school in another
country may be admitted upon the approval of
the Agricultural Law Programs Committee.
Admission
First-year
students are admitted in the fall and only
for full-time study. Prior to enrolling in
the School of Law, applicants must have
completed all requirements for an
undergraduate degree from an accredited
four-year college. Admission is based on the
applicant’s LSAT score and undergraduate
GPA. In a small percentage of cases,
additional criteria such as vocational or
professional experience, graduate work,
ethnicity, and progressive improvement in
college work are considered by a faculty
admission committee. Preference is given to
Arkansas residents; for the current status
of this preference, contact the school. A
nonrefundable tuition deposit is required of
all admitted candidates.
The law
school’s application deadline is April 1 of
the year in which admission is sought.
Applicants must take the LSAT no later than
February. Applications completed after April
1 will be considered only on a
space-available basis.
Housing
Housing for
single students is available in campus
dormitories; apartments are also available
for married students. Applicants should
write to the Housing Office, University of
Arkansas, Fayetteville, AR 72701. A variety
of private off-campus housing is available
in Fayetteville and surrounding communities,
within easy commuting distance of the law
school.
Student Activities
The
Arkansas Law Review is a legal
periodical published quarterly by the
students of the School of Law in cooperation
with the Arkansas Bar Association.
Candidates for the Law Review are
selected on the basis of scholarship and
writing ability. The Journal of Food Law
and Policy is a legal periodical
published twice a year by students of the
School of Law. Candidates for the journal
are selected from the second- and third-year
law classes by the editorial board on the
basis of scholarship and writing ability.
Students in
their second and third years are encouraged
to compete in an intramural moot court
competition, and Arkansas students
participate in national moot court
competitions. The University of Arkansas
School of Law also participates in the ABA
Law Student Division Client Counseling
Competition. The law school operates a legal
aid clinic providing counseling and
representation for university students and
indigent persons seeking legal assistance.
An Arkansas Supreme Court Rule permits
senior law students, upon certification and
under supervision, to appear in court on a
no-fee basis.
The Student Bar
Association sponsors a variety of academic
and social activities. All students are also
eligible for membership in the Law Student
Division of the Arkansas Bar Association.
Three of the largest national legal
fraternities, Delta Theta Phi, Phi Alpha
Delta, and Phi Delta Phi, maintain active
chapters at the school. The Women’s Law
Student Association was organized to provide
an opportunity for women to discuss and work
with common professional interests and
problems. Members of the Arkansas Chapter of
Black Law Students Association work as a
collective body to inform black students of
the availability and advantages of a legal
education, to promote the academic success
of black law students at Arkansas, and to
increase the awareness and commitment of the
legal profession to the black community.
Expenses and Financial Aid
Students are
expected to make sufficient financial
arrangements for the first year of study
without the necessity of seeking employment.
All law students are required to be
full-time students. All financial aid in the
form of Perkins Loans
(formerly NDSL),
higher education loans, and work-study
grants is processed by the University of
Arkansas Office of Student Financial Aid,
University of Arkansas, Fayetteville, AR
72701. Merit scholarships are awarded to
some entering students. Applications for a
limited number of other scholarships are
distributed following fall registration in
August.
Career Planning and Placement
The law school
maintains an Office of Career Planning and
Placement with a full-time, highly qualified
director and staff to assist and advise
students and graduates. Services offered by
the office include on-campus interviews for
permanent and summer employment; individual
career counseling sessions; workshops and
handbooks regarding résumé preparation,
interviewing skills and techniques, and job
searches; panels of lawyers who present
programs on a variety of topics; a job
bulletin; and a comprehensive placement
library. The office also maintains
employment and bar passage statistics. |
