Enrollment: 1982
Average LSAT: ###,###,##0
Pass Rate for First Time Bar Exam: 95%
Average Undergrad GPA: 0.00
Regular Application Deadline: 03/15
School Type: Public
Student Faculty Ratio: 16:1

Part Time Program: 26%
Evening Program: Yes

Average Starting Salary: $79,003.00

Out-of-State Tuition: $29,016.00
In-State Tuition: $9,360.00
Financial Aid Deadline: 04/01
Average Loan Received: $19,951.00

Most Chosen By Older Students

Student Says - Academics
The College of Law at Georgia State University receives solid reviews from students who appreciate the "quality, affordable legal education" they're receiving in the state's capital. Indeed, praise of the school's bargain tuition is sung from the rooftops; one practical 3L says, "It made no sense to go to a law school with a $35,000 a year tuition." Georgia State students get a "great caliber" of teachers, many of whom "have recently come from practicing or are still practicing, and thus are able to give...great insight into what it's 'really like' out there in the legal profession." This practical experience is a perfect complement to the grounded atmosphere of GSU, where students are more trained to become attorneys than to theorize about the law.
Multiple kudos go out to Georgia State's part-time program, which "allows not only for nontraditional students to obtain a law degree while potentially working full-time and/or caring for a family, but makes these night classes available for anyone who wishes to take them, allowing full- and part-time students to mingle." The school's significant nontraditional student body appreciates this flexibility, as many of them come from the working world and would not be able to attend law school otherwise. There are a few gripes from day students that the scheduling of professors and classes can seem "heavily weighted towards evening classes." Others with more adaptable schedules believe it "gives us the opportunity to learn from adjuncts who practice during the day and teach at night." "The faculty is nothing less than outstanding," proclaims one student. Although the Urban Life Building in which the College of Law is located "is sometimes more 'urban' than 'life'" with some "security/theft issues," the school's "surprisingly pleasant" downtown Atlanta location provides a plentiful and "amazingly diverse selection of externship opportunities." Though "Everyone agrees that we need a new building" (there are plans for it down the road) and many speak of the depressing aspects of having almost all of their 1L classes in the same two auditoriums, the "high level of technology" in the current classrooms help diminish some of the building's downsides. One major point of contention amongst GSUers is that the College of Law "has no set curve for non-required classes, meaning the curve in one corporations class could be a 90 while another corporations class could be an 81. This necessitates either willful indifference or the careful selection of classes so as to manipulate your GPA-a difficult choice even for the most ideal among us." This also puts GSU students "at a significant disadvantage in the competition for employment," and it doesn't help that the "Career Services Office is considerably below par." Luckily, "the Federal Reserve, the Eleventh Circuit, the State Capitol, and most large law firms in the South" are all located very close to GSU (some within walking distance).

Students Say - Campus Life
The "mature, unpretentious, hardworking, and real-world savvy" students at the College of Law often bring "more than a couple years of impressive life experience with them into the classroom," making class discussions "interesting and relevant." "We have students who used to be doctors, researchers, police officers, engineers, business owners, stay-at-home moms (and dads), teachers, etc.," explains one 3L. "There do not seem to be too many people who came to school because they had nothing else to do." Even though there is a large part-time student population and diverse ages represented on campus, students still claim to "spend a considerable amount of social time together." In fact, students agree that a sense of camaraderie pervades the campus. As one states, "I have never...felt the razor's edge of cutthroat competitiveness."
Concerning hometown Atlanta, a graduating student suggests that incoming first-years "get used to the idea of a homeless person snoozing in the library cubicle next to you! What can I say-it's not Emory. But you're not paying the Emory price tag either, so something has to give." The fact that "most people commute" and the impression that the law building "seems a little shunted off to a random corner" does "deter the school from ever really attaining a campus-like feel." Fortunately there is a way to combat any unwelcome feelings of isolation: "Joining student activities are a great way to meet people at GSU."

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