F I N D
Y O U R
STRENGTH EDUCATING the NEXT GENERATION of PROBLEM-SOLVING LAWYERS & LEADERS
MAKERS
of
HISTORY
CHANGE 139 years ago
Since
1883
Willamette became the frst law school established in the Pacifc Northwest and never looked back.
BUILD FUTURE YOU WANT to LEAD the
We are producing the next generation of problem solvers, community leaders, legal dealmakers, and changemakers in the most innovative region of the country. As one of the nation’s top law schools, we give you a solid foundation upon which to build a career full of meaning and purpose. Our student-centric approach will help focus and give you the confdence to reach farther than you ever imagined. Our robust experiential learning opportunities provide real-world experience with on-the-job training, particularly in our curricular strengths—Business Law, International Law, Public Service, Advocacy, and Health Law.
Willamette Law has one of the highest bar passage and job placement rates among west coast law schools.
98
%
FIRST TIME Bar Passage Rate (2020) (82% 201, 77 % 2018)
INTRODUCTION
The WILLAMETTE EDGE
SIGNATURE
STRENGTHS Willamette University College of Law develops the next generation of problem-solving lawyers and leaders dedicated to serving their communities and the legal profession.
FIND YOUR FUTURE
INTERNATIONAL LAW Our graduates will make critical decisions that transcend the boundaries of a national legal system. Building on our deep and historic strengths in teaching and scholarship of international law, we instill in our students the confdence needed to help clients fnd clarity amid global complexity. Our focus areas include Comparative Law, Foreign Relations
BUSINESS LAW We are committed to providing students with the legal, ethical and practical skills
Law, Immigration & Refugee Law, International Business Transactions, International Criminal Law, Private International Law, and Public International Law.
necessary to mature into problem-solving lawyers able to advise and represent businesses and organizations in an increasingly complex environment. Students have opportunities to learn from and work alongside national leaders in the felds of Business Transactions, Estate Planning & Elder Law, Intellectual Property, Labor & Employment Law, and Real Estate Transactions.
ADVOCACY With numerous leading jurists on the faculty, Willamette’s trial advocacy program is known for producing confdent, courtroom-ready graduates with the ability to face litigation challenges — wherever they may arise in their careers — when the stakes are highest. Our focus areas include Family Law, Mediation & Arbitration, Personal, Injury, and Trial & Litigation.
PUBLIC SERVICE We train servant-leaders in a state capital packed with legislators and judges, ofering
HEALTH LAW
hundreds of externships. Our alumni have risen to serve as distinguished jurists in roles such as
Capitalizing on our proximity to Salem Health
state bar leaders, judges, state supreme court
and Oregon Health and Science University, and
justices, US Attorneys, governors, and members
with our undergraduate focus in public health,
of Congress. Our focus areas include Civil Rights,
we are developing healthcare industry leaders
Criminal Defense & Prosecution, Criminal
with the expertise necessary to deliver legal
Justice & Sentencing, Election Law, Environment
certainty in the complex and rapidly changing
Law & Justice, Government Service & Regulation,
feld of health law. Our focus areas include
and State & Federal Constitutional Law.
Disability Law and Public Health Law.
OUR
STUDENTS INSPIRE EACH OTHER
2021 by the NUMBERS:
130 26
21
40
ENTERING
STATES
MAJORS
Class size
AVERAGE Age of Students
Represented
Represented
CLASS PROFILE
CLASS PROFILE for 2021 We select the best and the brightest from around the world, giving us the most diverse student body in the state that represents a range of languages, cultures, interests, hometowns and expertise. Whether fresh from their undergraduate or degree students are smart, talented, and excited to be part of the close community that defnes the College of Law.
STUDENT body breakdown
55 44 27 1 Female
%
%
Male
Students of color
MEDIAN LSAT
3.32 MEDIAN GPA
or pursuing a second career, Willamette Law
%
154
%
Non-Binary
PROXIMITY
58 MILES to the
Oregon Coast
CENTER GOVERNMENT, LAW, & BEAUTY of
At the
Learn the law by participating in its creation. Our location across the street from the Oregon State Capitol, Supreme Court, Court of Appeals, District Court, many law frms and multiple state agencies provides our students with a logistical advantage that is unmatched anywhere in the region. Nestled in the heart of Oregon’s Willamette Valley, the city of Salem is just a short drive away from Portland, the Cascade Mountains, and the Oregon Coast. So whether you’re interested in history, winemaking, biking, hiking, food festivals, snowboarding, or kayaking, adventure is right outside your door.
72
MILES to Mount Jeferson
SALEM, OREGON GILROY NAPOLI SHORT Law Ofces SHERMAN SHERMAN JOHNNIE & HOYT Law Ofces
HELTZEL WILLIAMS Law Ofces
2. WILLAMETTE UNIVERSITY COLLEGE OF LAW
SAALFELD GRIGGS PC Law Ofces
PARKS BAUER SIME WINKLER & FERNETY Law Ofces
4. MARION COUNTY DISTRICT COURT
3. OREGON SUPREME COURT, 1. OREGON STATE CAPITOL
OREGON COURT OF APPEALS, DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE & OREGON TAX COURT
& DEEPLY COMMITTED to your SUCCESS BRILLIANT, WARM, WITTY
THE FACULTY
LEARN from THE BEST Our faculty includes nationally recognized scholars, seasoned practitioners, and former and current judiciary members who serve as teachers and mentors. Their deep dedication to our students distinguishes Willamette Law professors from others. Our thought-leading scholars advance and promote our shared responsibility to make a diference in society, placing justice, fairness, and equality at the heart of everything we do.
9:1 STUDENT / FACULTY Ratio
CAREER PATH
NAVIGATE your PATH Map out your career with individualized help from our career advisors. They will work with you to identify where you want to go and what experiences you need to get there. Whether meeting with our advisors, gaining experience through our Externship Program, or participating in our Attorney-Mentor Program, students, alumni, and employers fnd the tools for success in Willamette Law’s Ofce of Career Planning & Development. The infuence of our alumni is immediately apparent in this process. They hold leadership positions in law frms,
Our graduates are highly sought after by employers ‘for their talent and hands-on training experience.’
the judiciary, private government industry, in-house legal departments, academia, and public interest organizations and work closely with our Career Planning and Development Ofce to help new graduates launch their careers.
THREE YEAR Employment Summary
82
%
LONG TERM
Bar passage required and JD advantage
85
%
LONG TERM
All job types
89
%
EMPLOYMENT
Including non-legal jobs, short-term & part-time positions
GAIN ACCESS TO A
BROAD RANGE of OPPORTUNITIES
A VERY
SPECIAL BOND 6,000 16 27 PEOPLE ACROSS THE GLOBE
STATE SUPREME
GOVERNORS, SENATORS
in our Alumni Network
Court Justices
and Representatives
OUR ALUMNI
MUCH MORE than a NETWORK The Willamette Law community fosters a special bond among our students, and includes thousands of loyal, connected and truly involved alumni. Our alumni are authors of their own success stories and include state and federal judges, governors, and heads of Fortune 500 companies. Ours is a law school with an analytical mind and a social conscience, and we want students who understand the important role and responsibility of lawyers in society. As students, faculty, staf, and alumni, we are bound together by our motto, “Not unto ourselves alone are we born,” refecting our deep-seated, life-long commitment to giving back.
ALUMNI
CHANGEMAKERS
,
JAY INSLEE Washington Governor JD 76
,
LISA MURKOWSKI Alaska Senator JD 85
GET INVOLVED
6 CERTIFICATE PROGRAMS Gain unique and comprehensive training in one of six specialty areas ofered through our Certifcate Programs: Law & Business, Dispute Resolution, Law & Government, Sustainability Law, International & Comparative Law, and Health Law.
EXPERIENTIAL LEARNING Participate in hands-on legal work under the supervision of Willamette faculty through our Clinical Law Program, comprising four clinics in business law, trusts and estates, and community and environmental justice. Other real-life experience can be gained through business lawyering simulations, practice for trials and arbitration, participating in competitions, and part-time externships.
JURIS DOCTOR (JD) The Juris Doctor is
EXTERNSHIPS
a three-year professional degree required
Students earn academic credit while working under the
for taking the bar exam and practicing law
supervision of a practicing attorney. Willamette students have
in the United States. We ofer the program
enjoyed externships with local, national, and international
on both a part-time and full-time basis
hosts in a variety of legal settings that ft their career interests.
JD/MBA JOINT DEGREE: Graduates receive both a JD from the College of Law and an MBA from Willamette’s Atkinson Graduate School of Management.
BA/JD Allows students to complete a
LIMITLESS STUDY ABROAD OPPORTUNITIES Willamette Law’s study abroad opportunities help students to develop the cross-cultural understanding they will need to navigate the globalization of business, society, and the legal profession. Law students have a choice of programs in a range of countries. In most cases, programs that have been reviewed and approved by the ABA are eligible for credit toward your
bachelor’s degree and law degree in six
Willamette Law degree. A list of these summer study abroad
years rather than the usual seven.
programs can be found on the ABA for Students website, abaforlawstudents.com
MASTER OF LAW (LLM) For those who have completed their JD, Willamette ofers a one-year Master of Laws (LLM) degree in Transnational Law.
MORE THAN 20 STUDENT ORGANIZATIONS Share interests with classmates through one of our many law student organizations. Student groups host networking events, social gatherings, community service opportunities, and study
MASTER OF LEGAL STUDIES (MLS)
sessions, among many other activities
Willamette’s Master of Legal Studies
LAW JOURNALS
(MLS) Program is a one-year master’s
• Willamette Law Review
program designed for professionals whose
• Willamette Journal of
job involves working within a legal or
International Law &
regulatory framework.
Dispute Resolution
• Willamette Journal of Social Justice & Equity • Willamette Law Online
PREPARE to PRACTICE
VISIT US
C ONSIDER YOURSELF
Warmly INVITED Tour our campus, talk to faculty and students, explore our academic environment and get to know our community.
VISIT US:
APPLY:
Schedule a visit to Willamette Law and experience it for yourself. Meet
Willamette Law’s application deadline is August 1, but we suggest you apply
with an admissions representative, and tour the school with a current student. We can also arrange for you to meet with a professor.
early in the admissions cycle (September - April).
OFFICE: 245 Winter St SE, Salem, OR 97301 EMAIL: law-admissions@willamette.edu CALL: 503-370-6282
TO APPLY PLEASE VISIT: lsac.org
CONNECT: VISIT: willamette.edu/law
There is no application fee. Apply with an LSAT or GRE score.
