### SUMMARY

 A degree in Legal Studies is a valuable choice and frequently a mandatory first step for undergraduates aspiring to begin a career as a lawyer, a real estate attorney, or an intellectual property lawyer. In fact, legal studies is an uncommon major ranking as the 126th most popular major. In the last year, there were 2,481 legal studies diplomas received. In-state tuition for legal studies at private schools is, on average, 3.2 times more expensive than their public rivals.

 With just 102 universities offering legal studies you may have a smaller selection of institutions which will have a degree program for you. If you are hoping to immerse yourself with other legal studies undergrads, consider schools in New York which have more undergrads admitted to legal studies than any other state. More generally, the best region to study legal studies is in the Mid East region with [University of Maryland Global Campus](/colleges/university-of-maryland-global-campus), [CUNY John Jay College of Criminal Justice](/colleges/cuny-john-jay-college-of-criminal-justice), and [St John's University-New York](/colleges/st-john-s-university-new-york) best representing the region. Interestingly, our selection for the best conference to study legal studies is the Pacific-12 Conference with [Arizona State University-Tempe](/colleges/arizona-state-university-tempe), [University of California-Berkeley](/colleges/university-of-california-berkeley), and [University of Washington-Seattle Campus](/colleges/university-of-washington-seattle-campus) representing the conference. From our list of the [best colleges](/rankings/best-colleges), our choice for the best school for legal studies is [Northwestern University](/colleges/northwestern-university).

 The objectively best school might not actually be the 'best' school for every student. There can be lots more angels to think about when selecting college. Things such as campus amenities, transportation services, and food would refashion your decision of where to go to school. Here at authority.org, we have weighed the pros and cons for you. If, as an example, you are intrigued by which legal studies university boasts the best campus, the winner is [University of Massachusetts-Amherst](/colleges/university-of-massachusetts-amherst). If you are very interested in which college is home to the top campus, we have an entire page [dedicated to that](/rankings/best-college-campuses). We have carefully pored through government databases, student reviews, professor reviews, and more in order to compare each major in an unbiased and informative way. Here you can explore our well researched list for the colleges with the [best student life](/rankings/best-student-life)&nbspand from that list, our choice for the college with the best student life for legal studies is [University of Wisconsin-Madison](/colleges/university-of-wisconsin-madison). Curious why? Continue reading to discover more about our top recommendations. Many of our picks might surprise you.

 If expense is a major factor in your decision on where to go to university, you might consider avoiding [Northwestern University](/colleges/northwestern-university). [Northwestern University](/colleges/northwestern-university)&nbspappears to be the most expensive university for legal studies, at least for out of state students. We have a page for the [most expensive](/rankings/most-expensive-colleges)&nbspcolleges that could put the cost of [Northwestern University](/colleges/northwestern-university)&nbspinto perspective. Additionally, you may care to know that legal studies is the 178th most expensive major in the US, with an average bill of $31,700. To zoom out a little, the most costly state for legal studies nationally is Colorado demonstrated by a cost of $51,336 at the main school in the state University of Denver. To zoom out even further, the most expensive region of the U.S. for legal studies is unfortunately unavailable due to missing data.

 Our cheapest region for legal studies is the Southwest region which is represented by [University of Central Oklahoma](/colleges/university-of-central-oklahoma) with a cost of $17,573, [The University of Texas at San Antonio](/colleges/the-university-of-texas-at-san-antonio) with a cost of $17,511, and [National Paralegal College](/colleges/national-paralegal-college) with a cost of $7,800. More optimistically, the most affordable college for legal studies is [CUNY John Jay College of Criminal Justice](/colleges/cuny-john-jay-college-of-criminal-justice). Our full list of the most affordable schools can be found [here](/rankings/most-affordable-colleges).

 In-state students can anticipate paying about $11,000 for a degree in legal studies. That cost balloons dramatically to an average of $24,700 for an out-of-state public-school undergraduate. As such, you might be interested in our choice for the university constituting the best value for legal studies: [Northwestern University](/colleges/northwestern-university). Here you will see our comprehensive list about the schools we see as being the [best value](/rankings/best-value-colleges)&nbspoverall. Do know, this idea is predicated on being an out-of-state student. A discussion of value changes when in-state tuition costs are considered, but we do not know where you live (and are not trying to collect that kind of data).

 Earnings for legal studies majors can differ, but within two years completing the major graduates will regularly make around $47,000. There is much variation in earnings potential; top earners can enjoy pay up to $91,900. Even straight out of university, the minimum earning opportunities within the legal studies field make $24,100, which could be worse. The highest earning grads from legal studies have come from [Northwestern University](/colleges/northwestern-university)&nbspand if you are looking for universities with all of the [highest earning graduates](/rankings/highest-earning-graduates), we have that too.

 The prevailing diversity of legal studies stands quite high, coming within the 87th percentile of all majors. The university with the highest composite diversity for legal studies is [University of Miami](/colleges/university-of-miami)&nbspand here you can find our comprehensive list of the universities with the [most diversity](/rankings/most-diverse-colleges). The overall financial diversity of Legal Studies only ranks in the 67th percentile of all majors. Racial diversity is actually above financial diversity, in the 87th percentile. White undergraduates make up the largest proportion at 49% of students majoring in legal studies. Additionally, 65% of scholars seeking a legal studies major are women.

 The median score for legal studies professors is 4 stars, a rating that is actually the median for every major; this is a fine. If you are looking for the most popular legal studies instructor nationally, take a look at Robert Potter from [University of Central Florida](/colleges/university-of-central-florida). This might come as a surprise, but the top rated professors of legal studies according to students are at [Pace University](/colleges/pace-university). If we including data other than simply rankings it becomes clear that the college possessing the overall best instructors for legal studies is [Northwestern University](/colleges/northwestern-university). One can find more detail on our ever evolving ranking methodology of the [best overall professors here](/rankings/best-professors), as well as some of the finest examples of instructors nationwide.

 Finally, the hardest school to get into for legal studies is [Northwestern University](/colleges/northwestern-university). While we are unsure why you would be interested, we have a comprehensive list for the [hardest colleges to get into](/rankings/hardest-colleges-to-get-into). That being said, we do hope you understand that approaching college with a perspective mainly derived from superlatives could cause problems. We hope you read our other pages on different universities and read some of our insightful background articles on important things to think about as your university search develops.



 ### POPULARITY

 Legal studies is the 126th most popular degree in America, with 2,481 students receiving their bachelors degree last year. It just beat out #127 [Sales and Merchandising](/rankings/best-colleges-for-sales-and-merchandising), and narrowly lost to #125 [Fashion Merchandising](/rankings/best-colleges-for-fashion-merchandising).

 The degree is offered at a total of 102 colleges across the nation, and is the 163rd most widely offered degree. It is only offered at 10% of the Top 100 [Best Colleges](/rankings/best-colleges) in America.

 It is also worth noting that a tad over 3 out of every 7 colleges offering legal studies are public making it a pretty accessible field.

 The mid east produces the most legal studies graduates, largely led by [University of Maryland Global Campus](/colleges/university-of-maryland-global-campus), while it’s the Pacific-12 Conference that leads conference totals. As far as states, New York ranks highest, with particular help from [CUNY John Jay College of Criminal Justice](/colleges/cuny-john-jay-college-of-criminal-justice) and [St John's University-New York](/colleges/st-john-s-university-new-york).

 All that being said, no individual school produces more legal studies graduates than [Cuesta College](/colleges/cuesta-college), which graduated 246 students last year alone. Although size is critical, another important factor to consider is the program’s density (the percent of all students that study legal studies). More students studied legal studies as a percentage of total students at [National Paralegal College](/colleges/national-paralegal-college) than any other college.



 ### COST

 Legal studies is the 178th most expensive degree in the US, with a median cost of $31,700 among the top 50 programs (just ahead of #179, [Foreign Language Teacher Education](rankings/best-colleges-for-foreign-language-teacher-education), with a median cost of $31,655).

 The Rocky Mountains have the most expensive schools with excellent legal studies programs predominantly led by [University of Denver](/colleges/university-of-denver) with an annual cost of $51,336. Colorado is the most expensive state for legal studies also led by [University of Denver](/colleges/university-of-denver).

 Public schools with solid programs generally charge 68.26% less than private schools for in-state students. When looking at out-of-state tuition however, the median top 50 Public school charges 28.89% less than your average private school. So make sure to take a look at public shools in your state ASAP.

 The most costly option in the top 25 is [Northwestern University](/colleges/northwestern-university), which is the 29th most expensive college in the United States. The most affordable option in the top 100 is [American Public University System](/colleges/american-public-university-system). It costs just $6,804 per year, and it's ranked 36th for its legal studies program. If you’re looking for a higher ranked, but still affordable school, [CUNY John Jay College of Criminal Justice](/colleges/cuny-john-jay-college-of-criminal-justice)  could be a good fit for you, ranked #5 with an in-state cost of just $6,930. Another more affordable option would be #2, [University of Central Florida](/colleges/university-of-central-florida) in Orange County, FL with a cost of $4,478 for in-state students and $19,810 for out-of-state students.



### SALARY

 College is a serious investment for most undergraduates. It's important to be confident you get a high return on that investment. With that in mind, we hope the following earnings and job placement facts help you in deciding your major at college.

 The average Legal Studies major brings in a first year income of $36,872 a year (close to national median 54th percentile). Later on in their careers, they commonly bring in somewhere between $24,067 and $91,871, but average around $47,014. For context, that is 22% higher than the nation's average.

 The most common job placement for a Legal Studies graduate is Service Representative, which generally make approximately $22,000; next are Analyst and Account Executive, which usually earn around $54,000 and $36,000 respectively.

 The Southeast has the most well paid Legal Studies graduates. PA has the best paid Legal Studies graduates of any state. Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference has the best paid Legal Studies graduates of any conference..



### PROFESSORS

 Fast Facts for Legal Studies: Median Professor Rating: 4 / 5, which is below average.

 Professors frequently have a pivotal impact your college experience, no matter what you major in. An awesome teacher may help a student find their passion and set a student up for future success. Conversely, a poor professor can turn you off of a subject or even worse... fail you!

 Professors of Legal Studies have a median student rating of 4 out of 5, which puts them in the top 57th percentile in America grounded in overall professor effectivness. Suprisingly, this major is exactly the median for professor rating, which, in our opinion, is remarkably average! Professors of Legal Studies barely out-ranked those from ["Art Teacher Education"](/rankings/best-colleges-for-art-teacher-education), whereas ["Hospitality Management"](/rankings/best-colleges-for-hospitality-management)&nbspprofessors ranked one slot above Legal Studies.

 Now for some statistics about Legal Studies professors. Colleges located in small citys tend to have the best Legal Studies professors. The Wolverine-Hoosier Athletic Conference has the highest rated Legal Studies professors. The Plains region has the highest rated Legal Studies professors. Private institutions tend to have higher rated Legal Studies professors than public colleges. Finally, Michigan has the highest rated Legal Studies professors in the United States.

 Robert Potter, professor at [University of Central Florida](/colleges/university-of-central-florida)&nbspin Orlando, FL is the most popular Legal Studies professor in America. Glen Vogel, professor at [Hofstra University](/colleges/hofstra-university)&nbspin Hempstead, NY is the highest rated Legal Studies professor in America, with a rating of 5 / 5.

 Find out which schools have the [Best Professors](/rankings/best-professors)!



### STUDENTS

 College is a particularly productive investment in one's life; it's an opportunity for individual growth and maturation. Undergrads begin to discover what they are capable of and build many of the requisite skills to be a halcyon member of society. But learning also happens outside a classroom - the interactions which one has with her peers, the nugget of wisdom received from an old instructor, the exposure to a different view. As such, attending a diverse college vastly improves what you gain from your time in college.

 Legal Studies is a more popular major for students of color than white students. 49% of the US' Legal Studies majors are white students, followed by latino students (22%), black students (14%), and students of other races\*\*(9%). The most ethnically diverse college\* in the top 100 is [University of California-Berkeley](/colleges/university-of-california-berkeley)&nbspin Berkeley, CA.

 Furthermore, Legal Studies significatly skews female, with 65% of students majoring in Legal Studies identifying as women. [Bethany Lutheran College](/colleges/bethany-lutheran-college) in Mankato, MN has the most gender balanced student body in the top 100.

  Another significant type of diversity is economic diversity. Legal Studies is more economically diverse than 67% of majors. 29% of its majors come from households taking in less than $30,000 a year, 16% are from lower middle>income homes, and 25% grew up in households with $110,000 plus annual incomes. [Oakland University](/colleges/oakland-university) is the most fiscally diverse institution in the top 100.

 Considering each type of diversity, overall CA is the most diverse state for Legal Studies. The Far West is the most diverse region, and the Big East Conference is the most diverse conference.

   \* diversity calculations and comparisons are based on [Simpson's Diversity Index](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diversity_index)   
  \*\* other races is used to refer to non asian, black, latino, or white

  #### Diversity Statistics

  ##### Racial Diversity

 * Asian: 5%
* Black: 14%
* Latino: 22%
* White: 49%
* Other: 9%
  ##### Gender Diversity

 * Male: 35%
* Female: 65%
  ##### Socioeconomic Diversity (By Household Income)

 * Under 30k: 29%
* 30k - 48k: 16%
* 48k - 75k: 16%
* 75k - 110k: 15%
* Over 110k: 25%
  ##### Geographic Diversity

 * In State: 70%
* Out of State: 26%
* International: 5%


2023 Legal Studies Salary

There are about 238,669 students enrolled in Legal Studies in the USA.

SALARY