As the new academic year begins, law schools across the nation are back into full swing. However, this isn’t quite the case at Wilmington University School of Law, one of the newly established law schools. It commenced its academic journey with just 20 inaugural students, considerably less than the 65 students initially planned for.
Reuters reported that Dean Phillip Closius isn’t particularly concerned about the small pioneering class size. His explanation hints at an understandable underestimation relating to the challenges of attracting a substantial student body for a new and thus far unaccredited school. According to him, they simply couldn’t reach enough people to generate the projected enrolment numbers.
Despite the lower-than-anticipated class size, Closius isn’t viewing this as a red flag for the school’s future. He admitted that recruiting students for a new school, not yet accredited by the American Bar Association (ABA), has posed challenges, given that Most states require students to graduate from an ABA-accredited institution to be eligible for the bar exam.
The school received 103 applications this year, approximately half of what they needed to meet their desired student intake.
The school’s significantly lower tuition fee of $24,000 could become a draw for larger cohorts once the institution secures ABA accreditation. Wilmington Law will be up for provisional accreditation by 2025.
However, Dean Closius sees an advantage in the smaller class size. The inaugural 20 students will experience a more personalized, one-to-one interaction, enhancing their academic journey.
A heartfelt best of luck to everyone at Wilmington Law in their academic pursuits from their peers in the legal corporate world.
For more details, visit the article on the Above The Law website.