How to Get Into University of Wisconsin Law School: LSAT, GPA & Admissions (2026)

How to get into University of Wisconsin Law School starts with two numbers. Wisconsin Law's 2025 ABA 509 disclosure reports an LSAT median of 167, with a wide middle 50% of 161 to 169, and a GPA median of 3.81, spanning 3.61 to 3.93. A 167 and a 3.81 sit at both medians, and the unusually wide LSAT band rewards a strong transcript.

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 admissions figure on this page comes from Wisconsin Law's 2025 ABA Standard 509 Information Report for the fall 2025 entering class, every employment figure from the ABA Employment Summary for the Class of 2024, and the rest from the University of Wisconsin Law School's own pages.

Wisconsin Law's most distinctive trait is that it is reverse-splitter friendly, which means a strong GPA can offset a lower LSAT, at a school whose in-state demand is the loyalist in this series. According to Wisconsin Law's 2025 ABA 509 disclosure, the LSAT band runs six full points from the 25th percentile to the median, so a high-GPA applicant with an LSAT in the low 160s stays in contention. That same disclosure shows an implied yield of 46.4%, the highest here, meaning nearly half of admitted students enroll, and it reports that 94% of students receive a grant. The thesis of this page is that Wisconsin Law rewards the high-GPA applicant, funds almost its entire class, and enjoys unusually loyal demand that shapes both its low acceptance rate and a waitlist that moves less than at offer-heavy peers.

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

Wisconsin Law is the most selective school in this series and one of the most generous with aid. According to Wisconsin Law's 2025 ABA 509 disclosure, the fall 2025 class posted a 167 LSAT median, a 3.81 GPA median, and a 19.12% acceptance rate. Full-time tuition and fees are $36,526 for residents and $53,640 for nonresidents, and 94% of students receive a grant.

MetricWisconsin Law (fall 2025 entering class)LSAT (25th / 50th / 75th)161 / 167 / 169GPA (25th / 50th / 75th)3.61 / 3.81 / 3.93Acceptance rate19.12%Applications2,479Offers of admission474Matriculants from the pool220First-year class224Full-time tuition and feesResident $36,526 / nonresident $53,640Living expenses$25,056Share receiving grants94%Median grant$35,000Conditional scholarshipsNoFirst-time bar passageNot reported in the data used for this pageEmployed at ten months97.7% (257 of 263)

Source: Wisconsin Law's 2025 ABA Standard 509 Information Report for the fall 2025 entering class, Wisconsin Law's ABA bar-passage report, and the ABA Employment Summary for the Class of 2024. Tuition and living expenses are printed as separate lines in the 509, which does not publish a single combined cost-of-attendance total, and the tuition line is split into a resident and a nonresident figure. The first-time bar passage percentage was not captured in the data used for this page, so this profile does not state one.

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

You realistically need a 167 LSAT and a 3.81 GPA to sit at the center of Wisconsin Law's class. Wisconsin Law's 2025 ABA 509 disclosure puts the LSAT middle at 161 to 169 and the GPA middle at 3.61 to 3.93. Both are the medians, but the wide LSAT band means a strong GPA can carry an applicant with a lower score.

Wisconsin Law reports an LSAT 25th, 50th, and 75th percentile of 161, 167, and 169, and a GPA spread of 3.61, 3.81, and 3.93, in its 2025 ABA Standard 509 disclosure. The University of Wisconsin law LSAT median of 167 and the University of Wisconsin law GPA median of 3.81 anchor a strong class, but the LSAT band is the wide part of the story. It runs eight points from the 25th to the 75th percentile, and six of those points sit below the median, so a 161 reaches the bottom quarter of the class rather than falling out of range.

That width shapes University of Wisconsin law requirements in a specific direction. A 167 LSAT and a 3.81 GPA place an applicant exactly at both medians, per Wisconsin Law's 2025 ABA 509 disclosure, which is the center of the class at a 19.12% acceptance rate. Below the 161 LSAT or the 3.61 GPA, an applicant needs a clear compensating strength on the other number. A 160 LSAT applicant realistically wants a GPA at or near the 3.93 upper quartile, while a 3.5 GPA applicant leans on an LSAT closer to the 169 top quartile to stay comfortably in range at Wisconsin Law.

On the splitter question, Wisconsin Law is reverse-splitter friendly. The GPA spread from the 25th percentile to the median is 0.2 and the LSAT spread is six points, per Wisconsin Law's 2025 ABA 509 disclosure, so the school tolerates a lower LSAT when the GPA is high. A splitter-friendly school forgives a low GPA paired with a strong test score; a reverse-splitter-friendly school forgives a low LSAT paired with a strong GPA. Wisconsin Law leans firmly toward the second pattern, so an applicant carrying a 3.9 GPA with an LSAT in the low 160s has a genuinely realistic path. University of Wisconsin law admissions is one of the friendlier landing spots for the high-GPA applicant whose test score lags.

Is Wisconsin Law harder to get into than its reputation?

Wisconsin Law is genuinely selective, and its low acceptance rate is partly a yield story. Wisconsin Law's 2025 ABA 509 disclosure reports a 19.12% acceptance rate, the lowest in this series, which ranks it 12th most selective of the 26 schools clustered around its 167 LSAT median. Its strong in-state demand lets it admit sparingly.

To size up Wisconsin Law's selectivity fairly, compare it only against schools with a similar academic profile. Among the 26 ABA law schools whose median LSAT falls within two points of Wisconsin Law's 167, that is a median of 165 to 169, ranked by acceptance rate, Wisconsin Law is the 12th most selective, per Lovare's analysis of the 2025 ABA 509 disclosures. That places Wisconsin Law just above the midpoint of a strong cluster, so its selectivity roughly matches its standing as a respected flagship.

Here is the honest read on the University of Wisconsin law acceptance rate. The 19.12% figure looks tougher than the enrolled 167 median alone would predict, and the reason is structural. Wisconsin Law converts a high share of its admits into enrollments, so it does not need to flood the pool with offers: its 2025 ABA 509 disclosure shows just 474 offers against a first-year class of 224, only about two offers for every seat, far fewer than the three or more that offer-heavy peers extend. Because Wisconsin Law makes so few offers relative to its class, the acceptance rate lands low even though the reverse-splitter bands leave real room for a strong-GPA applicant. So Wisconsin Law is about as selective as its reputation, with a headline admit rate pushed down by loyal demand rather than by an extreme academic bar.

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

Wisconsin Law's 2025 ABA 509 disclosure lists full-time tuition and fees at $36,526 for residents and $53,640 for nonresidents, with living expenses of $25,056 and no combined cost-of-attendance total printed. Wisconsin Law awards grants to 94% of students, the widest reach in this series, and its scholarships are not conditional, so an award cannot be cut for a low first-year grade curve.

Start with the sticker, which comes in two versions at a public school. Wisconsin Law's 2025 ABA Standard 509 disclosure lists full-time tuition and fees at $36,526 for Wisconsin residents and $53,640 for nonresidents, and separately lists living expenses of $25,056. That 509 does not print a single combined cost-of-attendance total, so this page will not manufacture one, and it reports the resident and nonresident tuition lines exactly as the school files them.

Now the aid, where Wisconsin Law stands out for both reach and top-end depth. According to its 2025 ABA 509 disclosure, 94% of students receive a grant, the widest reach among the schools profiled in this series, with quartiles of $15,000, $35,000, and $52,332. The shape of the deepest awards is unusual: the same disclosure reports just 3 full-tuition awards but 125 awards above full tuition, so a large group of students receive grants that exceed the tuition line entirely. A 75th-percentile award of $52,332 sits close to the full nonresident tuition figure, which means the top quarter of grant recipients at Wisconsin Law see nearly all of nonresident tuition covered.

The net math depends on residency. For a nonresident, the packet arithmetic works from the $53,640 sticker: a nonresident receiving Wisconsin Law's median grant of $35,000 nets about $18,640 in tuition and fees before living costs, using figures from Wisconsin Law's 2025 ABA 509 disclosure. For a resident, the same $35,000 median grant nearly covers the $36,526 resident tuition line, leaving only a small balance before living costs. Almost no one at Wisconsin Law pays the full sticker.

Two facts protect the applicant. Wisconsin Law reports that its scholarships are not conditional, per the same disclosure, so an award cannot be reduced or revoked if a student lands in the bottom of the class curve, and the award quoted at admission is the award kept for all three years. Because Wisconsin Law awards merit-influenced aid and holds an unusually deep pool of above-full-tuition grants, stronger numbers, especially a strong GPA, improve both the odds of admission and the size of the award.

What are your real chances off the Wisconsin Law waitlist?

More limited than at most schools in this series, and the reason is yield. Wisconsin Law's 2025 ABA 509 disclosure records 474 offers and 220 matriculants from the pool, an implied yield of 46.4%, the highest here. No ABA disclosure publishes waitlist admits, so that high yield is the honest proxy: Wisconsin Law fills much of its class from first-round offers.

Here is the reasoning in full. Wisconsin Law's 2025 ABA Standard 509 disclosure reports 474 offers of admission and 220 matriculants drawn from that applicant pool, which works out to an implied yield of 46.4%. No ABA disclosure, Wisconsin Law's included, publishes how many applicants are admitted off the waitlist or how many accept, so implied yield is the honest stand-in for waitlist movement. When a school converts nearly half of its offers into enrollments, it needs fewer backfill admits and can hit its class target largely from the initial round.

That high yield is the sober news for a waitlisted applicant. Because Wisconsin Law keeps 46.4% of its admits, more than any other school profiled in this series, it depends less on its waitlist to fill the class than a low-yield peer does. An applicant held on the Wisconsin Law waitlist can still send a concise letter of continued interest and should stay in the pool, but it is honest to temper expectations: the waitlist here moves less than at schools that convert only a quarter or a third of their offers. Naming that plainly is more useful than false encouragement.

One honest note on the class figures. Wisconsin Law's 2025 ABA 509 disclosure lists 220 matriculants from the applicant pool but a first-year class of 224. The small gap reflects students who arrive through paths other than this single cycle's pool, such as admits who deferred from a prior year. The 46.4% implied yield is computed from the 220 pool matriculants against the 474 offers, which is the correct comparison for reasoning about this cycle's waitlist odds at Wisconsin Law.

Where do Wisconsin Law graduates actually work?

In Wisconsin first, with a strong pull toward Chicago and Washington. In the ABA Employment Summary for the Class of 2024, Wisconsin took 56.3% of Wisconsin Law graduates and the top three markets 73.8%. Firms of 101 or more lawyers hired 21.3%, and federal clerkships took 3.0%, so the school feeds its home state while sending a real share to neighboring and national markets.

The most useful fact about Wisconsin Law's employment outcomes is that they center on Wisconsin but reach into Chicago and the capital. In the ABA Employment Summary for the Class of 2024, Wisconsin Law placed 148 graduates in Wisconsin, 32 in Illinois, and 14 in the District of Columbia, its three largest markets. Wisconsin alone absorbed 56.3% of the class, and the top three markets together took 73.8%, so a majority stay in state while a meaningful group heads to the Chicago market next door and to Washington. Wisconsin Law is a state flagship with a genuine regional and national tail.

By employer type, Wisconsin Law leans less toward large firms than several peers. The ABA Employment Summary for the Class of 2024 shows 21.3% of Wisconsin Law graduates taking jobs at firms of 101 or more lawyers, the lowest large-firm share among the schools profiled in this series. That reflects a class that distributes across government, public interest, midsize firms, and business, rather than funneling into large firms. An applicant whose goal is large-firm practice should weigh that share honestly, while an applicant drawn to public-sector or midsize-firm work will find Wisconsin Law well aligned.

Clerkships are a smaller part of the picture. In the ABA Employment Summary for the Class of 2024, 3.0% of Wisconsin Law graduates went into federal clerkships, so the program places a modest slice of its class on the federal bench while sending most graduates into practice.

Overall placement is strong. The ABA Employment Summary for the Class of 2024 shows 257 of 263 Wisconsin Law graduates employed at the ten-month mark, a 97.7% employment rate, and Wisconsin Law's 2025 ABA 509 disclosure reports first-year academic attrition of 0.0%, meaning no member of the entering class washed out academically in the first year. An applicant who wants to practice in Wisconsin or the surrounding region, values near-universal aid, and is comfortable with a lower large-firm share is buying exactly what Wisconsin Law reliably delivers.

When are Wisconsin Law's application deadlines?

Wisconsin Law runs a rolling admissions cycle, and its specific Early Decision terms are not confirmed here for the current cycle. Because application timelines and any binding Early Decision mechanics shift from year to year, confirm the current deadlines and Early Decision rules directly on the University of Wisconsin Law School's admissions site before you rely on them.

This page dates what it states. As verified in August 2026, the deadline and Early Decision specifics for Wisconsin Law were not among the figures pulled from primary disclosures for this profile, so this page does not print a fixed application date or claim a particular Early Decision structure. That is a deliberate choice consistent with the rest of the page: where a term was not verified from a primary source, it is left out rather than guessed.

What an applicant can act on now is the strategy that Wisconsin Law's data implies. Because Wisconsin Law rewards a strong GPA and funds almost its entire class, and because its high 46.4% yield means seats fill early, applying earlier in a rolling cycle is especially valuable here. For the exact opening date, the regular deadline, and whether Wisconsin Law offers a binding Early Decision option in the current cycle, check the school's own admissions pages, which are the authoritative source for dates this profile intentionally does not invent.

Frequently asked questions about getting into Wisconsin Law

Is a 167 LSAT good enough for Wisconsin Law?

A 167 is exactly Wisconsin Law's LSAT median in its 2025 ABA Standard 509 disclosure, so it places an applicant at the center of the class. Half of the fall 2025 class scored 167 or higher, inside a wide 161 to 169 middle range. At a 19.12% acceptance rate, a 167 applicant to Wisconsin Law with a solid GPA is well positioned, though the strong yield keeps the school competitive.

What GPA do you need for Wisconsin Law?

Wisconsin Law's 2025 ABA Standard 509 disclosure reports a GPA median of 3.81, a 25th percentile of 3.61, and a 75th percentile of 3.93. The middle half of Wisconsin Law's class sits in that 3.61 to 3.93 band. Because Wisconsin Law is reverse-splitter friendly, a strong GPA near or above 3.93 can offset an LSAT in the low 160s and keep an applicant genuinely competitive.

What is Wisconsin Law's acceptance rate?

Wisconsin Law's acceptance rate is 19.12%, computed as 474 offers against 2,479 applications in its 2025 ABA Standard 509 disclosure. That is the lowest rate in this series and ranks Wisconsin Law 12th most selective of the 26 schools within two LSAT points of its 167 median. The low rate is driven partly by a high yield that lets Wisconsin Law make relatively few offers.

How many people apply to Wisconsin Law?

Wisconsin Law received 2,479 applications for its fall 2025 entering class, according to its 2025 ABA Standard 509 disclosure. From that pool, Wisconsin Law extended 474 offers and enrolled 220 matriculants, building a first-year class of 224. The relatively small number of offers for a class this size reflects the 46.4% yield and produces the low 19.12% acceptance rate at Wisconsin Law.

How much does Wisconsin Law cost?

Wisconsin Law's 2025 ABA Standard 509 disclosure lists full-time tuition and fees at $36,526 for residents and $53,640 for nonresidents, plus living expenses of $25,056. Wisconsin Law does not publish a single combined cost-of-attendance total, so this page will not quote one. A nonresident receiving Wisconsin Law's median grant of $35,000 nets about $18,640 in tuition and fees before living costs.

Does Wisconsin Law give scholarships?

Yes, to almost everyone. Wisconsin Law awards grants to 94% of students, the widest reach in this series, per its 2025 ABA Standard 509 disclosure, with quartiles of $15,000, $35,000, and $52,332, plus 3 full-tuition and 125 above-full-tuition awards. The scholarships are not conditional at Wisconsin Law, so an award cannot be cut for grades, and a strong GPA improves both admission and grant size.

What is Wisconsin Law's bar passage rate?

Wisconsin Law's first-time bar passage percentage was not captured in the data used for this page, so this profile does not state one, and readers can check the ABA bar-passage report linked in the Sources section. The ultimate pass rate that was reported, measured two years out for the 2022 cohort, is 99.55%, so nearly every Wisconsin Law graduate in that cohort was admitted to the bar.

Where do Wisconsin Law graduates work?

Most Wisconsin Law graduates work in Wisconsin. The ABA Employment Summary for the Class of 2024 shows Wisconsin taking 148 graduates (56.3%), Illinois 32, and the District of Columbia 14, so the top three markets account for 73.8% of the class. Wisconsin Law is a state flagship with a strong Chicago pipeline next door and a real presence in Washington.

Can a splitter get into Wisconsin Law?

A reverse splitter can, comfortably. Wisconsin Law's 2025 ABA Standard 509 disclosure shows a GPA 25th-to-median spread of 0.2 and an LSAT spread of six points, which makes it reverse-splitter friendly. An applicant with a high GPA and a lower LSAT has a realistic path at Wisconsin Law, since a strong transcript can offset a sub-median test score in this class.

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

Wisconsin Law is the 12th most selective of 26 schools in its LSAT band, just above the midpoint. Among ABA law schools with a median LSAT within two points of Wisconsin Law's 167, ranked by acceptance rate, its 19.12% is the lowest in this five-school series, per Lovare's analysis of the 2025 ABA 509 disclosures. Much of that selectivity reflects Wisconsin Law's high yield rather than an extreme academic bar.

Is Wisconsin Law worth it?

For an applicant aiming at Wisconsin or Chicago, often yes. Against a resident tuition and fees sticker of $36,526 in Wisconsin Law's 2025 ABA 509 disclosure, 94% of students receive a grant, and the ABA Employment Summary for the Class of 2024 shows 97.7% of Wisconsin Law graduates employed at ten months. Near-universal aid and strong in-state placement make the cost defensible.

Does Wisconsin Law have high first-year attrition?

No. Wisconsin Law's 2025 ABA Standard 509 disclosure reports first-year academic attrition of 0.0%, meaning no member of the fall entering class was dismissed for academic reasons in the first year. Combined with a 97.7% employment rate in the ABA Employment Summary for the Class of 2024, that pattern suggests students who enroll at Wisconsin Law reliably progress toward the degree.

Do Wisconsin Law graduates work in Chicago?

A meaningful group does. In the ABA Employment Summary for the Class of 2024, Illinois was Wisconsin Law's second-largest market with 32 graduates, behind Wisconsin's 148 and ahead of the District of Columbia's 14. Because the Chicago market sits just across the state line, Wisconsin Law offers a realistic path into northern Illinois practice for graduates who want it, alongside its dominant in-state base.

Does Wisconsin Law offer Early Decision?

Wisconsin Law's specific Early Decision terms are not confirmed here for the current cycle, so this profile does not state whether Wisconsin Law runs a binding Early Decision round or when it closes. As verified in August 2026, applicants should confirm Early Decision availability and all application deadlines directly on the University of Wisconsin Law School's own admissions site, which is the authoritative source for current dates.

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

Strong numbers, with a strong GPA carrying extra weight. Because Wisconsin Law awards merit-influenced aid and is reverse-splitter friendly, a GPA above 3.81 and an LSAT above 167, per its 2025 ABA Standard 509 disclosure, improve both admission and grant size. With 125 above-full-tuition awards reported, a high-numbers applicant at Wisconsin Law has a real shot at a grant that exceeds tuition rather than a token discount.

Sources

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

Wisconsin Law 2025 ABA Standard 509 Information Report (fall 2025 entering class): https://backend.abarequireddisclosures.org/api/AnnualQuestionnaire/GenerateIndividualDisclosure509Report?schoolId=162&year=2025

Wisconsin Law ABA bar-passage report: https://backend.abarequireddisclosures.org/api/BarPassageOutcomes/GenerateIndividualBarPassageReport?schoolId=162&year=2025

ABA Employment Summary, Class of 2024: https://backend.abarequireddisclosures.org/api/EmploymentOutcomes/GenerateIndividualEQSummaryReport?schoolId=162&year=2024

Get your free Wisconsin Law admissions profile evaluation