Whether you want to practice business law, health law, environmental law, or criminal law, the first step in your legal journey is to try to get into the best law school. If baseball, blue crabs, or American history appeal to you, then choosing Maryland for law school might be in the cards! With 31 miles of coastline between the Atlantic Ocean and Chesapeake Bay, bustling cities like Baltimore and Annapolis, and a growing arts scene, Maryland is home to two top-ranked law schools. Learn what your LSAT score and average GPA needs to look like to consider Maryland as your future law school destination.

1. 1. University of Maryland Francis King Carey School of Law
2. 2. University of Baltimore School of Law

There are two high-ranking law schools in Maryland. Both come with a highly rated law program. There are also exciting student organizations, clinical opportunities, and legal journals you could get involved in. Keep reading to see if either of these law schools is right for you. 

1.  University of Maryland Francis King Carey School of Law 

U.S. News Top Law School Ranking: #47

Tuition: $35,566 (in-state); $51,575 (out-of-state)

Average GPA: 3.7

Average LSAT Score: 161

Acceptance Rate: 32.8%

Bar Passage Rate: 86.7%

The Law School at University of Maryland Francis King Carey School of Law (Carey) offers a variety of specialized programs, including the nationally sixth-ranked program in law and health care (L&HCP). Additionally, the Law School’s clinical education ranks #8 across all US law schools. Furthermore, the school partners with the prestigious Johns Hopkins University on a variety of joint-degree programs, including Business, Bioethics, and Public Health. The school offers a robust part-time program, through which working professionals can complete their JD in four years. If an interdisciplinary JD experience piques your interest, you might find a place at the University of Maryland (Carey)! 

Some of the school’s well-regarded clinics and experiential offerings include Access to Justice, Small Business and Community Equity Development, and Immigration Clinics. Furthermore, students can gain hands-on experience through Trial and Moot Court and Externship placements by which students find employment of interests and partner with faculty advisors to assist. The school also offers specific opportunities, like the Asper Fellowship, through which students work alongside state and federal judges as early as following their 1L year.

There are five legal journals at this campus including the Maryland Law Review, the Journal of Business & Technology Law, the Journal of Health Care Law & Policy, the Maryland Journal of International Law, and the University of Maryland Law Journal of Race, Religion, Gender and Class. Additionally, there are more than 40 student organizations to check out, including the Maryland Environmental Law Society and the Maryland Public Interest Law Project, Inc. 

The application deadline is April 1 and the fee to submit is $75. Full-time tuition is more affordable for in-state students ($35,566, as compared to $51,575 for out-of-state students) compared with other top-rated or even lower-rated law schools. Roughly half of students come from out-of-state. 

2.  University of Baltimore School of Law

U.S. News Top Law School Ranking: #122

Tuition: $33,592 (in-state); $49,004 (out-of-state)

Average GPA: 3.34

Average LSAT Score: 154

Acceptance Rate: 54.2%

Bar Passage Rate: 73.5%

The University of Baltimore School of Law was founded in 1925 and is one of the four colleges comprising the University of Baltimore. The school heavily emphasizes diversity, rigorous legal writing training, and clinical experiences. It is home to one of the first Veterans Advocacy clinics in the region. Furthermore, the school offers part-time and full-time JD options, LLM degree options in tax and US law, and a certificate in professionalism through the Legal Professional Development Institute.

The application deadline is August 1, giving you ample time to prepare your application, and the fee to submit is $60. Tuition is roughly comparable to the University of Maryland (Carey) School of Law , which ranks higher and comes in at the latter end of the Top 50. 

How Do I Get Accepted to a Maryland Law School?

Whichever school you want to apply to, there are plenty of things to do to prepare for law school before becoming a law student. Whether you’re applying to the best law school in Maryland or another part of the country, the process is the same.

The first step in the law school admissions timeline is to take the LSAT. Although there are no required LSAT score ranges for law school, both of these Maryland law schools have median LSAT scores that give you a pretty good indication of how you compare to their previous incoming class. But what is a good LSAT score? Remember, law schools want to attract the best, so make sure you give yourself the ultimate chance by getting a high LSAT score.

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