Choosing the Right Law School: Balancing Vision, Value and Fit

Every future attorney begins with a dream—but choosing the right law school to launch that dream can feel overwhelming. With hundreds of options and conflicting advice, how do you make the right choice for you?

The answer lies in aligning your decision with your career aspirations, practical needs and personal values. Here’s how to identify what matters most when selecting a law school that will help you realize your full potential.

1. Culture and Community: Where Will You Thrive?

Law school is challenging—the environment and people around you matter tremendously. The culture of a law school can significantly impact your learning experience, well-being and ultimate success.

“The most important thing in choosing the right law school is picking a place that feels like a good fit,” says Kendra Fershée, JD, professor at Creighton Law. “How do I feel when I’m in this space? How do people interact with each other? What’s the vibe? When our students come here, they often come away with a really positive feeling. And I think that’s just a testament to the people in the building.”

Visit if possible. Sit in on classes. Meet with current students and faculty. Observe how they interact—is the environment collaborative or competitive?

“I think we’ve got an extremely personal dynamic here, both from the faculty and staff, that everyone is student-centric,” says Troy Johnson, JD, MLS, director of the Law Library and assistant professor. “The students are also just very cohesive. There is a continuity in that students are very family-oriented. They get along.”

Third-year student Julyssa Rocha agrees: “Pay attention to how the students interact with each other, how everyone interacts with each other. For some people, the competitive atmosphere works for them. That’s what drives them. But for me, I didn’t want to be in constant competition. I wanted to look at my classmates and be proud that they have succeeded and for them to be proud that I’ve succeeded as well.”

2. Career Goals: Where Do You Want to Practice?

When evaluating law schools, consider your long-term professional aspirations. Are you aiming for corporate law, public service or private practice? While your plans may evolve throughout your education, having a general direction helps narrow your options. Look at schools with strengths in your desired field, strong employment outcomes and alums in roles you admire.

Geography matters significantly in your decision. Isabella Washka, a third-year student, explains: “I think something that I looked at first was the city where the law school was located and the opportunities to be a young professional there as well as the legal community within the field. I was used to a bigger city, but I wanted somewhere smaller where I could really have an identity and not get lost so easily. I felt like Omaha was almost that perfect balance of having a fun downtown area with lots of things to do, but also the legal community here was very tight-knit where you can network and grow professional relationships.”

3. Academic and Experiential Learning: How Will You Develop Skills?

Law schools provide fundamentals across the board, but their teaching approaches and experiential opportunities differ dramatically.

Many schools emphasize legal writing—a critical skill for any attorney. “We do three semesters of legal writing,” notes Craig Dallon, JD, professor. “We have a legal writing center designed to help students with their writing. It’s kind of a one-on-one tutoring with writing that students have available to them.”

When considering law schools, examine their clinical offerings. “Our clinics are just really paying attention to what service could be provided and then providing it,” says Fershée. “The reason why we do the work that we do in the clinics is that those communities we can help are people that are in a tough spot in their lives. And a student can give them assistance that impacts how someone’s day-to-day life goes.”

Clinical experiences, where students work with real clients on actual cases, provide invaluable practical training. “The clinic has been one of the best experiences of my law school career,” says Washka. “Having that autonomy to learn how to lead a case while having great supervisors is really impactful.”

Beyond clinics, look for specialized programs that provide unique opportunities. “One of the specialized programs I think is fantastic is Creighton’s Government Organization and Leadership (GOAL) program. (For more than a decade, third-year law students at Creighton have had a chance to spend a semester in the nation’s capital.) It is essentially boots on the ground in DC,” notes Paul McGreal, JD, LLM, professor. “If you want to work in a particular area, you’ve got to be on the ground.”

4. Financial Considerations: What’s Sustainable?

Financial factors weigh heavily in law school decisions, and for good reason. Law school represents a significant investment, and your post-graduation debt can impact career choices for years to come.
Look beyond the sticker price. Compare scholarship offers, tuition costs and living expenses—research loan repayment programs and how graduates manage their debt.

“The scholarships play a big role because, you know, we’ve got people of different means,” explains Johnson. “For some students, that financial difference is not nearly as significant, but there are ones where it is.”

“Be conscious of debt because that’s a big deal,” advises McGreal. “You might have an aspirational school you get into expecting full price. Then, you get into another school that is not as high on your list but gives a relatively supportive scholarship. That will make a difference in terms of your opportunities afterward.”

5. Responsiveness and Support: Who Will Help You Succeed?

A law school’s responsiveness to prospective students often reflects how they’ll treat you as an enrolled student. Pay attention to how quickly and thoroughly they answer your questions during the application process.

“How responsive is the school?” Dallon asks. “If they’re applying to the school and sending inquiries, they have questions. Does the institution get to you right away? And do they actually answer your questions? Because that’s sort of a barometer of what the experience is going to be like.”

Consider whether faculty are accessible and administration responsive. “Is this a place I want to be? Are these people who are going to be attentive to my concerns and needs?” McGreal suggests asking yourself. “With a bigger university, sometimes you get lost in the red tape and the bureaucratic process.”

Washka shares her experience: “I liked how Creighton put so much emphasis on the community within the law school. You get a mentor who’s a student and also a faculty mentor. So you’re connected to the law school, as connected as you want to be, which I really appreciated.”

Rocha recalls a conversation with a professor who said, ‘You’re going to get a law education anywhere. You will become a lawyer and get your JD, and it’s applicable anywhere. What matters is that you find a school that will support you as an individual, but also that you can afford. Set yourself up for success that way.”

Take the time to ask good questions. Reflect on your goals. Trust your instincts. Remember—you’re not just choosing a law school. You’re choosing the next step in becoming the kind of lawyer and leader you were meant to be.