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JD-Next is accepted by a growing group of ABA-approved law schools that use its course-and-assessment score to admit or evaluate applicants. As of the current cycle, 67 ABA-accredited law schools (up from 46 in 2023) take it. Below are the participating schools, how each uses the score, and what else they require.
By Ali Unar, JD candidate at Georgetown Law and founder of Lovare Institut. Last updated August 2026. Figures on this page were verified in August 2026 or point readers to the current source.
The schools that accept JD-Next are ABA-approved law programs that have been cleared to use the JD-Next score in admissions, either as a full alternative to the LSAT or as one factor among several. The group spans national and regional schools and grows as more programs opt in. No single number stays fixed for long, so the current roster is the one on the JD-Next site. 67 ABA-accredited law schools (up from 46 in 2023).
Participating schools do not treat JD-Next identically. The table shows, for each school, whether the score can carry an admission on its own and what minimum performance the school looks for.
The current ranking is best read directly from the source. See the U.S. News Best Law Schools list for the up-to-date order, and each school's ABA Standard 509 report for its median LSAT, GPA, and acceptance rate.
At some participating schools, a JD-Next score alone can support admission, giving a true no-LSAT route. At others, JD-Next supplements an application that still expects an LSAT or GRE score. The distinction matters, because only the first group lets you skip standardized testing entirely. Confirm each school's stance before you assume JD-Next removes the test requirement. 67 ABA-accredited law schools (up from 46 in 2023).
Target JD-Next schools if you learn well through structured coursework, want an admissions credential that also builds first-semester skills, and have enough participating schools on your list to make the course worthwhile. If your list leans toward schools that only accept the LSAT or GRE, prioritize whichever test the most of your targets require. 67 ABA-accredited law schools (up from 46 in 2023).
Many ABA-approved law schools accept the GRE, a larger group than the schools currently accepting JD-Next, though the two lists overlap. If flexibility matters, check both the ETS GRE roster and the JD-Next school list, since a school may take one, the other, or both. about 128 U.S. law schools, including every T14 school.
Yes. At participating schools that admit on JD-Next alone, you can enroll without an LSAT score, and the GRE opens many additional schools. The key is confirming that a school treats JD-Next as a full alternative rather than a supplement to a required test. 67 ABA-accredited law schools (up from 46 in 2023).
Difficulty depends on your strengths, and JD-Next adds a third format that is neither. Where the GRE tests math and vocabulary and the LSAT tests logic and reading, JD-Next grades a course plus an assessment. Applicants who prefer sustained study over one exam sometimes favor the JD-Next route. 67 ABA-accredited law schools (up from 46 in 2023).
Verified August 2026.
August 21, 2026
August 21, 2026