How to Get Into Cornell Law School: LSAT, GPA & Admissions (2026)

The honest answer to how to get into Cornell Law School starts with two numbers. According to Cornell Law School's 2025 ABA Standard 509 disclosure, the fall 2025 entering class posted an LSAT median of 173 (168 to 175) and a GPA median of 3.92 (3.75 to 3.97). Hit both and you are competitive, not admitted.

By Ali Unar, Georgetown Law, Founder of Lovare Institut. Ali Unar is a Georgetown Law student and the founder of Lovare Institut, an admissions and LSAT-prep practice built on primary-source law school data. Verified August 2026. Every figure on this page comes from Cornell Law School's 2025 ABA Standard 509 Information Report (fall 2025 entering class), the ABA Employment Summary for the Class of 2024, and Cornell Law School's own admissions pages.

Cornell Law School is the most accessible admit in the T14 and its most reliable large-firm feeder, and two numbers make the case. In Cornell Law School's 2025 ABA Standard 509 disclosure, the acceptance rate is 18.19%, the highest among the T14 schools clustered near its 173 LSAT median. In the ABA Employment Summary for the Class of 2024, 156 of 196 graduates, 79.6%, entered firms of 101-plus lawyers, the highest large-firm share in this set. The thesis of this page is that Cornell Law School delivers T14 outcomes through a T14 admissions gate that is, by acceptance rate, the friendliest of the group.

Cornell Law School at a glance: LSAT, GPA, acceptance rate and cost

Here is the Cornell University law snapshot. According to Cornell Law School's 2025 ABA Standard 509 disclosure, the fall 2025 class posted an LSAT of 168, 173, and 175 at the 25th, 50th, and 75th percentiles, a GPA of 3.75, 3.92, and 3.97, and an 18.19% acceptance rate. Cost, grants, bar passage, and jobs sit below.

MetricCornell Law School (fall 2025 entering class)LSAT (25th / 50th / 75th)168 / 173 / 175GPA (25th / 50th / 75th)3.75 / 3.92 / 3.97Acceptance rate18.19%Applications4,608Offers of admission838Matriculants from the pool217First-year class217Full-time tuition and fees$84,722Living expenses$32,952Share receiving grants91% (544 students)Median grant$30,000Conditional scholarshipsNoFirst-time bar passage96.41% (exam year 2024)Employed at ten months99.0% (194 of 196)

Source: Cornell Law School's 2025 ABA Standard 509 Information Report (fall 2025 entering class) for admissions, cost, and grants; the ABA Employment Summary for the Class of 2024 for jobs; and Cornell Law School's ABA bar-passage report for the bar. Tuition and living expenses are printed separately in the 509, which does not publish a single combined cost-of-attendance total. Verified August 2026.

What LSAT and GPA do you really need to get into Cornell Law School?

You really need a 173 LSAT and a 3.92 GPA to sit at the center of Cornell Law School's class. Cornell Law School's 2025 ABA 509 disclosure puts the LSAT middle at 168 to 175 and the GPA middle at 3.75 to 3.97. Below either 25th percentile, the other number must clearly compensate.

Cornell Law School's 2025 ABA Standard 509 disclosure sets the realistic Cornell University law LSAT median at 173 and the Cornell University law GPA median at 3.92 for the fall 2025 entering class. The median is the line where half the enrolled students scored higher and half lower, so a 173 LSAT and a 3.92 GPA make an applicant typical at Cornell, which is the target. The 75th percentiles, a 175 LSAT and a 3.97 GPA, mark where a file becomes strong, and the 25th percentiles, a 168 LSAT and a 3.75 GPA, mark the soft floor.

What separates Cornell Law School from a balanced school is how wide its bands run. Cornell Law School is reverse-splitter friendly: the GPA spread from the 3.75 twenty-fifth percentile to the 3.92 median is 0.17, and the LSAT spread from 168 to 173 is a full five points, per Cornell Law School's 2025 ABA 509 disclosure. Splitter friendly means a school forgives a lower GPA for a high LSAT; reverse-splitter friendly means it forgives a lower LSAT for a high GPA. Cornell leans the second way, so an applicant with a 3.95 GPA and a 169 LSAT is in better shape at Cornell than one with a 3.70 GPA and a 174 LSAT.

That has practical consequences for Cornell University law requirements. An applicant below the 168 LSAT can still be competitive with a GPA at or above the 3.92 median, because the wide LSAT band shows Cornell Law School regularly enrolls students well under its median test score when the transcript is strong. An applicant below the 3.75 GPA has a harder road and needs a 175-plus LSAT plus a clear explanation, since the GPA floor is where Cornell Law School is comparatively less flexible. The safe reading is to push the GPA as high as possible and treat a 173 LSAT as the number that confirms the file rather than the number that has to carry it alone.

Is Cornell Law School harder to get into than its reputation?

No, and that gap is Cornell Law School's edge. Among the 17 leading schools with a median LSAT within two points of Cornell's 173, Cornell Law School's 18.19% acceptance rate ranks 15th most selective, near the bottom of the band. Cornell is the most accessible admit in the T14 by acceptance rate, elite LSAT median aside.

Cornell Law School sits squarely in the T14, the informal tier of the fourteen most prestigious American law schools, and applicants often assume T14 means uniformly brutal admissions. For Cornell, that assumption is wrong in a useful way. Among the 17 leading national law schools whose median LSAT falls within two points of Cornell Law School's 173, from 171 to 175, ranked by the Cornell University law acceptance rate against its peers, Cornell Law School's 18.19% rate is the 15th most selective. That is near the bottom of the band, which is exactly the point.

Look at the company. Ranked from most to least selective by acceptance rate, the band runs Yale University at 4.1%, Stanford University at 6.1%, the University of Pennsylvania (Carey) at 8.1%, the University of Michigan at 8.6%, Harvard University at 9.2%, the University of Chicago at 9.7%, the University of Virginia at 10.2%, Columbia University at 11.8%, UCLA at 12.1%, Northwestern University (Pritzker) at 12.3%, Duke University at 12.9%, New York University at 13.4%, the University of Texas at Austin at 14.0%, Georgetown University at 15.8%, Cornell University at its exact 18.19%, Washington University in St. Louis at 19.0%, and the University of Minnesota at 26.7%. Only Washington University and Minnesota admit a larger share than Cornell Law School does, and both sit below the T14 line in most reputational rankings.

So the honest answer to whether Cornell Law School is harder than its reputation is no: it is easier to secure an offer from Cornell than from any other T14 school in its LSAT band, measured by acceptance rate. That is not a knock on Cornell Law School; it is the school's structural advantage for applicants. A candidate with T14-caliber numbers who wants the strongest possible odds of a T14 admit should treat Cornell Law School as the most reachable target in the tier. The 173 median keeps the academic bar high, but the 18.19% rate means Cornell Law School converts qualified applicants into admits at a friendlier rate than its peers do.

Does Cornell Law School have Early Decision, and is it binding?

Yes. Cornell Law School offers a binding Early Decision with a January 1 deadline, per Cornell Law School's admissions FAQ. If admitted, you owe a nonrefundable $1,000 deposit within five business days. Unusually, Cornell Law School still considers ED admits for merit and need aid on regular-applicant standards if the aid application is filed before March 15.

Cornell Law School's admissions FAQ states that Cornell offers a binding Early Decision plan with a January 1 deadline. Binding means that if Cornell Law School admits an applicant through Early Decision, that applicant commits to enroll and to withdraw applications elsewhere. Cornell Law School attaches a concrete, modest cost to that commitment: a nonrefundable $1,000 deposit due within five business days of acceptance, per the same FAQ. That deposit is small enough that it is not the real consideration; the enrollment commitment is.

What makes Cornell Law School's binding program unusually applicant-friendly is its treatment of money. At many schools, choosing binding Early Decision means forfeiting the leverage that produces scholarship offers, and at least one school in this comparison strips merit eligibility from ED admits entirely. Cornell Law School does the opposite: Cornell University law admissions considers Early Decision admits for both merit and need aid on the same standards as regular applicants, provided the financial aid application is filed before March 15, according to Cornell Law School's admissions FAQ. That policy removes the single biggest reason applicants hesitate to commit early.

The tradeoff that remains is the one binding Early Decision always carries. An applicant who commits to Cornell Law School through Early Decision gives up the ability to compare admitted-student offers across schools and to walk away if a stronger overall package appears elsewhere. Because Cornell Law School still lets ED admits compete for aid, the financial downside is smaller here than at a school that ties Early Decision to a loss of merit money, but the enrollment commitment is real and enforceable. Early Decision makes the most sense for an applicant who has decided Cornell Law School is the clear first choice and whose January file is already as strong as it will get.

How much does Cornell Law School cost, and how much scholarship money will you get?

Cornell Law School's 2025 ABA 509 disclosure lists full-time tuition and fees of $84,722 and living expenses of $32,952, with no single cost-of-attendance total printed. 91% of students receive grants, the median grant is $30,000, and a typical recipient nets about $54,722 in tuition before living costs.

Cornell Law School's 2025 ABA Standard 509 disclosure lists full-time tuition and fees at $84,722 and living expenses separately at $32,952. That 509 does not print a single combined cost-of-attendance total, so any all-in Cornell University law figure quoted elsewhere is someone's arithmetic, not a number Cornell Law School reports, and this page will not invent one. As a private university, Cornell charges one tuition rate regardless of residency, so there is no in-state discount to chase; the $84,722 sticker is the highest of the schools in this comparison.

Grants then move the real price for most students. Cornell Law School reports that 91% of students receive grants, the highest grant participation in this set, with award quartiles of $28,000 at the 25th percentile, $30,000 at the median, and $45,000 at the 75th, per its 2025 ABA 509 disclosure. Those grants blend merit and need aid, so strong numbers can earn money at Cornell Law School, unlike at the need-only schools such as Yale, Harvard, and Stanford, which award no merit aid and instead meet demonstrated need. Cornell Law School made 9 full-tuition awards and, importantly, zero above-full-tuition awards. That last figure is the honest limit on Cornell's generosity: the very largest grants at Cornell Law School stop at full tuition, whereas some peers hand out awards that exceed it and help cover living costs.

The net math is sobering but clear. A median grant recipient at Cornell Law School nets about $54,722 in tuition and fees after the $30,000 median grant, before living costs, using figures from Cornell Law School's 2025 ABA 509 disclosure. That is the highest net tuition among the schools compared here, a direct consequence of the highest sticker paired with a middle-of-the-road median grant. On the positive side, none of Cornell Law School's scholarships are conditional on class rank or GPA, so an award quoted to an admitted student is an award that student keeps through all three years, with no cutoff to fall below.

What are your real chances off the Cornell Law School waitlist?

Better than at a high-yield school. No ABA disclosure publishes waitlist admits, so the honest proxy is implied yield: matriculants divided by offers. For Cornell Law School's fall 2025 class, 217 enrolled from 838 offers, a 25.9% yield. That is relatively low, meaning Cornell Law School extends many offers and is more likely to use its waitlist.

No ABA disclosure, Cornell Law School's included, publishes how many applicants a school admits off its waitlist, so precise waitlist odds are unavailable anywhere. The honest proxy is implied yield: the share of admitted students who enroll, computed as matriculants divided by offers. For the fall 2025 class, Cornell Law School enrolled 217 students from 838 offers, an implied yield of 25.9%, per Cornell Law School's 2025 ABA 509 disclosure.

That 25.9% is comparatively low, and it is the mirror image of Cornell Law School's high acceptance rate. To fill a class of 217, Cornell Law School extends 838 offers, expecting most admitted students to enroll elsewhere. A low yield means a school leans harder on its waitlist in a typical cycle, because a larger share of first-round admits decline. So of the schools in this comparison, Cornell Law School is the one whose waitlist is most likely to move, at least relative to a high-yield school that fills its class on the first round of offers.

The practical takeaway for a waitlisted applicant is cautiously encouraging. A spot on Cornell Law School's waitlist is a more meaningful signal than the same spot at a school yielding in the high thirties, because Cornell's 25.9% yield shows it routinely reaches beyond its first-round admits to finish the class. The right move is still to place a deposit elsewhere as insurance and to send Cornell Law School a short, specific letter of continued interest, but the underlying odds of movement are structurally better here than at the higher-yield schools in this set.

Where do Cornell Law School graduates actually work?

Cornell Law School is a New York-anchored school and the strongest large-firm feeder in this set. In the ABA Employment Summary for the Class of 2024, 131 of 196 graduates, 66.8%, took New York jobs, and the top three markets held 78.6%. Fully 156 graduates, 79.6%, entered firms of 101-plus lawyers.

Cornell Law School's employment outcomes are the most large-firm-heavy in this comparison, and that concentration is what should drive the fit decision. In the ABA Employment Summary for the Class of 2024, Cornell Law School reported 196 graduates with 194 employed at ten months, a 99.0% employment rate. As with every school at this level, the near-total placement rate says little on its own; what matters is where Cornell Law School graduates go and into what kind of work.

New York dominates to an unusual degree. Of 196 graduates, 131, or 66.8%, took jobs in New York, with California a distant second at 15 and the District of Columbia third at 8, per the same ABA Employment Summary. The top three markets held 78.6% of the class. Cornell Law School is, in practice, a New York school located in upstate New York: its pipeline points hard at Manhattan, and its alumni density and recruiting are concentrated there. For an applicant who wants New York large-firm practice, that is the ideal profile; for one set on the West Coast or the South, the concentration is a real consideration to weigh before enrolling.

The employer mix is where Cornell Law School separates from the field. Cornell Law School sent 156 graduates, 79.6%, to firms of 101-plus lawyers, and 141, or 71.9%, to firms of 501-plus lawyers, per the ABA Employment Summary for the Class of 2024. Both shares are the highest among the schools compared here, which is why Cornell Law School is frequently described as the T14's most dependable large-firm feeder. Federal clerkships took a smaller 13 graduates, 6.6%, so Cornell Law School is more a large-firm school than a clerkship school. The read is clean: if the goal is a big firm in New York, few schools convert as reliably as Cornell Law School.

When are Cornell Law School's application deadlines?

As of August 2026, the application deadline in this Cornell Law School profile is the binding Early Decision date of January 1, from Cornell Law School's admissions FAQ. This profile does not carry a separate regular decision deadline. Law school cycle dates shift every year, so confirm the current regular deadline directly on Cornell Law School's site.

Timing at Cornell Law School comes down to one published date and one honest gap. Cornell Law School's admissions FAQ gives a binding Early Decision deadline of January 1, and as of August 2026 that is the date this profile can state with confidence. Early Decision is the earliest committed lane, and given Cornell Law School's favorable ED aid policy, it carries less financial downside here than at schools that strip merit money from early admits.

For regular applicants, honesty beats a confident-sounding date. This profile does not carry a separate regular decision deadline for Cornell University law, and law school cycle dates move from year to year, so quoting a specific regular deadline here would risk sending a stale number. The correct step is to confirm the current regular deadline directly on Cornell Law School's admissions site before planning a submission.

Two general points still apply. First, law admissions generally rewards a complete file submitted earlier in the cycle, when it competes against fewer filed applications, so finishing the LSAT and assembling the application sooner is rarely a mistake at Cornell Law School or anywhere else. Second, anyone weighing the binding option should treat the January 1 Early Decision deadline as the fixed calendar anchor at Cornell Law School and back-plan the test date, recommendation letters, and the pre-March-15 aid application from there.

Frequently asked questions about getting into Cornell Law School

Is a 173 LSAT good enough for Cornell Law School?

A 173 is exactly Cornell Law School's median LSAT in Cornell Law School's 2025 ABA Standard 509 disclosure, so it is competitive, not a lock. Half the fall 2025 class scored at or above 173, up to the 175 seventy-fifth percentile. Pair a 173 with a GPA near the 3.92 median and it is a strong file; because Cornell Law School is reverse-splitter friendly, a high GPA helps most of all.

What GPA do you need to get into Cornell Law School?

Cornell Law School's 2025 ABA Standard 509 disclosure reports a GPA median of 3.92, with a 3.75 twenty-fifth percentile and a 3.97 seventy-fifth percentile. Aim for 3.92 or higher to sit at or above the median. Because Cornell Law School is reverse-splitter friendly, a strong GPA carries real weight, and a 3.75 can still work when the LSAT is at or above the 173 median.

What is Cornell Law School's acceptance rate?

Cornell Law School's acceptance rate is 18.19% for the fall 2025 cycle, computed from 838 offers against 4,608 applications in Cornell Law School's 2025 ABA Standard 509 disclosure. That is the highest acceptance rate among the T14 schools in its LSAT band, which makes Cornell Law School the most accessible T14 admit by this measure, even as its 173 median stays elite.

How many people apply to Cornell Law School each year?

Cornell Law School's 2025 ABA Standard 509 disclosure reports 4,608 applications for the fall 2025 entering class, from which Cornell Law School made 838 offers and enrolled 217 students. That is a first-year class of 217, the smallest among the schools compared here. The large offer count against a small class is why Cornell Law School's implied yield runs low, at 25.9%.

Does Cornell Law School have binding Early Decision?

Yes. Cornell Law School offers a binding Early Decision with a January 1 deadline, per Cornell Law School's admissions FAQ. If admitted, you owe a nonrefundable $1,000 deposit within five business days. Unlike some binding programs, Cornell Law School still considers ED admits for merit and need aid on the same standards as regular applicants, provided the aid application is filed before March 15.

How much does Cornell Law School cost per year?

Cornell Law School's 2025 ABA Standard 509 disclosure lists full-time tuition and fees of $84,722 and living expenses of $32,952. The 509 does not print a single cost-of-attendance total, so Cornell Law School does not publish one figure. As a private school, Cornell charges one tuition rate regardless of residency. Grants cut the sticker for most students: 91% receive aid, with a median grant of $30,000.

Does Cornell Law School give merit scholarships?

Yes. Cornell Law School grants include both merit and need aid, per Cornell Law School's 2025 ABA Standard 509 disclosure. 91% of students receive grants, with quartiles of $28,000, $30,000, and $45,000, and Cornell Law School made 9 full-tuition awards. It reports zero above-full-tuition awards, so the very largest grants stop at full tuition. None of Cornell Law School's scholarships are conditional on grades.

What is Cornell Law School's bar passage rate?

Cornell Law School's ABA bar-passage report shows a first-time passage rate of 96.41% for exam year 2024, with 95.92% in New York, its largest jurisdiction. The ultimate passage rate, measured two years out for the 2022 cohort, is 95.31%. First-year academic attrition at Cornell Law School is 0.0%, so essentially everyone who starts the program finishes it.

Do Cornell Law School graduates get large-firm (BigLaw) jobs?

Yes, more reliably than at any peer in this set. In the ABA Employment Summary for the Class of 2024, 156 of 196 Cornell Law School graduates, 79.6%, took jobs at firms of 101-plus lawyers, and 141, or 71.9%, went to firms of 501-plus lawyers. That 79.6% large-firm share is the highest here, which is why Cornell Law School is often called the T14's most dependable large-firm feeder.

Where do most Cornell Law School graduates work?

New York, decisively. The ABA Employment Summary for the Class of 2024 shows 131 of 196 Cornell Law School graduates, 66.8%, working in New York, with California next at 15 and the District of Columbia at 8. The top three markets held 78.6% of the class. Cornell Law School is a New York-anchored school whose pipeline points hard at Manhattan large firms.

Can a splitter get into Cornell Law School?

Cornell Law School is reverse-splitter friendly, so a high-GPA, lower-LSAT applicant has the better odds. Cornell Law School's 2025 ABA Standard 509 disclosure shows a wide 0.17 GPA spread from 3.75 to 3.92 and a five-point LSAT spread from 168 to 173. That means Cornell Law School forgives a lower LSAT when the GPA is high more readily than it forgives a low GPA when the LSAT is high.

How selective is Cornell Law School compared with schools at the same LSAT?

Among the 17 leading schools whose median LSAT is within two points of Cornell Law School's 173, Cornell Law School's 18.19% acceptance rate ranks 15th most selective, near the bottom of the band. Only Washington University in St. Louis at 19.0% and the University of Minnesota at 26.7% admit a larger share. That makes Cornell Law School the most accessible T14 by acceptance rate.

Is Cornell Law School worth the cost?

For students targeting New York large-firm practice, yes. Cornell Law School sends 79.6% of graduates to firms of 101-plus lawyers, per the Class of 2024 ABA Employment Summary, the single highest large-firm share in this set. Against an $84,722 sticker, a $30,000 median grant nets about $54,722 in tuition, so Cornell Law School is expensive but its large-firm placement services the debt directly.

What LSAT and GPA give the best shot at a Cornell Law School scholarship?

Because Cornell Law School reports zero above-full-tuition awards and only 9 full-tuition awards, its biggest money is capped at tuition and scarce. Clear the 175 LSAT and 3.97 GPA seventy-fifth percentiles in Cornell Law School's 2025 ABA Standard 509 disclosure to compete for the top of the $28,000 to $45,000 range. File the aid application before March 15, since Cornell Law School considers ED admits for aid too.

Sources

Every figure on this page is drawn from primary disclosures, listed here so readers can verify each one directly.

Cornell Law School 2025 ABA Standard 509 Information Report (fall 2025 entering class): https://backend.abarequireddisclosures.org/api/AnnualQuestionnaire/GenerateIndividualDisclosure509Report?schoolId=99&year=2025

ABA Employment Summary, Class of 2024: https://www.lawschool.cornell.edu/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/Cornell-Law-School-Class-of-2024-ABA-Data-Summary.pdf

Cornell Law School ABA bar-passage report: https://backend.abarequireddisclosures.org/api/BarPassageOutcomes/GenerateIndividualBarPassageReport?schoolId=99&year=2025

Cornell Law School J.D. admissions FAQ (Early Decision): https://www.lawschool.cornell.edu/admissions/jd-admissions/jd-faq/

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