Thomas Jefferson School Of Law

I am not sure how I feel about institutions that accroach the name of a famous leader in order to add validity.  But, there is no denying that Thomas Jefferson School of Law has otherwise come a long way.

TJSL never really scores well in law school rankings, but then we do not much like the law school rankings as they are fabricated and tend to focus on objectives that are not, in the end, useful to graduating students.  Applicants probably pay too much attention to manipulated data that make up the rankings to the detriment of what is otherwise a good and useful law school education.  I think that is true for Thomas Jefferson School of Law.

When you look past the rankings, you discover very quickly that TJSL is an up and coming law school in many ways that provides a needed education to many who want to obtain law degrees and practice law.

TJSL began operations in 1969 as the San Diego campus of the Western State University College of Law.  In 1983 it moved and expanded its campus to the Old Town neighborhood of San Diego.  During this time of operation TJSL operated as a non-ABA approved law school.  But, the law school became independent in 1995 when it separated from Western State and then gained accreditation from the American Bar Association and it is now a member of the Association of American Law Schools.

There are a couple of things that really recommend TJSL.

First, in regard the one criteria that really should matter with law schools, TJSL continues to increase the bar passage rate of its graduates.  As a result, unfortunately, its acceptance rate is decreasing.  For example, for the July 2008 administration of the California Bar Exam, TJSL first-time takers achieved a bar passage rate greater than 75%.  And, this is in California, which has an exceedingly difficult bar exam and traditionally low bar passage rates.

Second, in October 2008, TJSL broke ground on its new campus, which will be located in the vibrant East Village district of downtown San Diego. (See the new law school as designed above).  The new campus, an eight-story 177,000 square foot building designed to comply with rigorous Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design ("LEED") Green Building requirements, will house classrooms, a two-story law library, a cafe, bookstore, and legal clinic.  TJSL will occupy the new facilities beginning at the start of
the 2010-2011 academic year.

Third, the law school is located in beautiful San Diego, California.

There are a couple less desirable things about the school, but I think overall the law school overcomes these.

One, San Diego, although beautiful, is undoubtedly an expensive place to live.

Two, tuition is currently running about $31,620 a year for full time students and $19,860.00 for part time students.  The part time program offers those that need it some good degree of flexibility to finish law school.  The truth of the matter is that tuition for law schools is just getting expensive.  But, when gaging whether to pay it, look at what matters most to you.  That might be location.  The availability of a part time program.  For me it is (1) the bar passage rate, and (2) whether the law school gives more than lip service to producing practice ready lawyers.  It think TJLS does.

If you are thinking about law schools, check this one out.

Comments

[Patrick H. Stiehm]

"The truth of the matter is that tuition for law schools is just getting expensive." Oh so true. In fact the expense is just not justified. I am happy that I went to law school. But I would not in fact make the same choice today. Expense, lack of empolyment opportunity for many students finishing up, as well as a number of other factors, make it an unattractive option these days.

[glotrob]

Hi Chuck, I found your this blog article through Google.

I've just been accepted at three law schools so far: Florida Coastal, Whittier, and Thomas Jefferson School of Law. Which would you recommend? I'm leaning towards Whittier at the moment (mostly because I'm more familiar with the location and it seems to have better standing than TJSL). But TJSL, with it's new building and strong letters boasting of a very high bar passage rate and commitment to students, seems a viable alternative as well. I'm interested in patent/intellectual property law. Any advice?

[Dwl8rc]

glotrob: I have recently been admitted to TJSL. I went to SD to tour the law school and absolutely loved it. The teachers/Dean/Faculty were extremely helpful and considerate when discussing the possibilities that I have. I am coming in from Missouri so am not familiar with the area, but loved Old Town and the new location in Down Town SD. Also, from what I gathered about their IP program, it seems amazing. They have around 15 courses focusing on IP alone. That is more than the other schools I have looked at. Also, the faculty they have recently recruited is very well thought of from what I have read.

[TJSL Student]

I'm currently a 2nd year law student at TJSL

And in my OPINION...

The Good: The quality of the education is on point. If you're interested in passing the CA Bar Exam this is a great school to attend. Most classes are taught based on what you will need to know for the bar exam. They usually don't waste your time with stuff that you won't need to know for the bar exam.

The Bad: Although with the rumor that we are going to jump up 2 tiers with the opening of the new campus; The odds of getting into a big national firm right after graduation are about 0 to none (on a good day)

The Ugly: We have one of the hardest grade curves in the country. On average our GPA is -.7 lower than your average law school. A 2.5 at our school would be a 3.2 at most schools. They do this to keep students from transferring out. There will be a class action over this one day I'm sure.

[Mo]

Seriously, notwithstanding its US News ranking, the school has a first rate nationally recognized faculty from top ranked law schools (just see their website), with faculty cited by the Supreme Court and most cited by lawyers nationally, aggressive career placement assistance including strategic placement with a broad base of school alumni to get their students jobs (see their placement rate and alumni strategy) and their grade curve has since been revised (see revised academic policy under their Academics webpage). Yes, they are becoming increasingly more competitive in admissions and many of its matriculated 1L students are consequently becoming dramatically more attractive to Berkeley, Hastings, Georgetown, GW, and USD law schools based upon recent transfer data of accepted TJSl students in the last year alone. Odd that the better it gets, the more attractive other long established schools find its students. It has an unparalleled IP program, national IP faculty and assisted IP placements and mentorship in California and most schools. The school's increasing bar rate will likely see additional increases as its more competitive admissions and retention/dismissal policies have time to take effect. The new school building is just one of the ways that the school is investing back into its students so you can at least see your tuition dollars going to hard work. There is a new and major economic and legal paradigm shift going on now in the marketplace. Under this shift, it should be noted that the business models of big law firms are fading away that in an economy where even ivy league law students are having a difficult time to get jobs and t find work at big firms. Those who are practice ready from schools like TJSL that put more focus on its students and are less weighed down by debt (given TJSL's scholarship awards) will be best positioned to deal with these emerging new economic realities of law practice. Just some food for thought.

[Richard S. Van Dyke, Esq.]

I graduated from the first TJSOL class (1996). The school has suited me very well. Although not employed by a large firm, I have everything I need to go "toe to toe" with any big firm lawyer. Furthermore, based upon my limited observations, I am earning more than my counterparts at 15 years in. No complaints.