The National Jurist Magazine ranked the UNM School of Law sixth best in the nation for best value, based primarily on value of education.
Other factors included the amount of debt students take on post-graduation, cost of living and graduate employment rate.
UNM has made the top 20 on the list eight times since 2007, improving their ranking from 11th over that span in the process.
"This uptick in the UNM Law School’s ranking…is due primarily to tuition remaining the same while the average amount of student debt decreased,” said Tamara Williams, communications and marketing manager at the school. “During the past year, the employment rate for UNM Law graduates also increased, and the percentage of students who passed the Bar exam continues to exceed 80 percent, a pass rate that surpasses other law schools.”
The ranking is based on what the magazine calls the Best Value Methodology. The formula consists of the percentage of students that pass the bar exam (25 percent of the formula) which at UNM School of Law is 88.2 percent; employment rate (35 percent); tuition (25 percent) – which at the UNM School of Law is $16,251 – cost of living (10 percent); and average amount of debt after graduation (15 percent), which is $71,029 for UNM grads.
“Our graduates have remarkable employment outcomes -- 96 percent of them are employed within 10 months of graduation.” says UNM School of Law Dean Sergio Pareja. “The vast majority of our graduates are able to practice law in the state that we all call home.”
The UNM School of Law has a student to teacher ratio of 9:1. Williams said this ratio is one reason why the school made it onto the Best Value Law School ranking.
"We offer a bar preparation class and we meet individually with students to create a personalized curricular plan to ensure that students are balancing the demands of being practice ready and appropriately prepared for the bar exam,” Williams said.
UNM also benefits from having the only law school in the state. Connections are made throughout the state because many law firms have graduates from UNM School of Law, giving current students many sources for jobs and internships, said Williams.
“We are thrilled that the UNM School of Law continues to be a top choice for best value law schools,” School of Law Dean Alfred Mathewson said. “This year's 6th place ranking is our best yet and we are proud that our students graduate with real, meaningful experience that places them among the best prepared law graduates anywhere in the nation.”
Denicia Aragon is a freelance reporter for the Daily Lobo. She can be reached at news@dailylobo.com or on Twitter @DailyLobo.
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