New study shows students consider high costs and work-life balance of law school

The Association of American Law Schools published a Sept. 20 study with Gallup that concluded undergraduates considering law school are often discouraged by high tuition costs and work-life balance.

The study surveyed 22,000 undergraduates and 2,700 first-year law students. Both the undergraduate and law student cited high costs and large workloads as the greatest deterrents for attending law school. The total Penn Law School estimated costs — including books, room and board, and other additional expenses — is $95,400 for the 2018-2019 academic year.

Graduate student leaders at Penn have expressed concerns over declining mental health among Law students. In December 2017, Penn Law Council of Student Representatives President and Penn Law student Chris O’Brien joined graduate student leaders from 13 elite law schools in signing a pledge to improve mental health on their campuses. The pledge aimed to decrease stigmas surrounding mental health and encourage law students to reach out for help if needed.

Although application numbers trend negative nationwide, Penn Law admission statistics report a 21 percent increase in applications from 2013 to 2018. Meanwhile, law school application numbers nationwide dropped 38 percent between 2011 and 2016, before plateauing and increasing by 8 percent in 2018, according to Inside Higher Ed.

Penn has placed in the top 240 national feeder schools for law school between 2009 to 2017, according to data from LSAT administration group the Law School Admissions Council. Between 2015 and 2017, 647 Penn students applied to ABA-accredited law schools.