Duke University School of Law was founded in 1868 in Durham, North Carolina. This private school offers a three-year JD program with an acceptance rate of 14.45%. Students admitted to the program have a median LSAT score of 170 (ranging from 167 to 172), and a median GPA of 3.82. Students are 23.4 years old, on average.

For the class entering the program in fall of 2021 there were 7,255 applications, 1,048 students were accepted, and 282 students enrolled in the program. The student population is 55% women and 37% minorities.

Interviews are not a part of the application process but are required for scholarship consideration. Tuition at Duke is $82,950 and scholarship awards are three years in length, ensuring they will cover students throughout their time in the program. Scholarships are awarded based on merit and financial need. The GI Bill is also accepted at the school but there is no Yellow Ribbon Program at Duke.

The program offers nine concentrations including Constitutional Law and Civil rights, Criminal Law and Policy, Health Law and Policy, Legal Theory and Critical Legal Studies, and more. Additionally, students may pursue a dual degree to earn a MD, MBA, LLM, or other degree synchronously.

The Duke Law curriculum specifically emphasizes fields which are expected to be in growing demand for lawyers. These are international and comparative law, business and finance law, constitutional and public law, telecommunications, health, intellectual property, and other fields related to science and technology.

The school has a 5.5 to 1 student/faculty ratio. First year students have at least one course with just 30 students. Very rarely does any first-year course exceed 90 enrollees.

99.6% of students are employed within ten months of graduation from Duke. Students earn a median salary of . Most students are employed in New York, Washington, D.C., or California.

99.54% of students pass the bar exam within two years of graduation. 14 from the class of 2021 are employed in small law firms (250 or less) and 165 are employed in large law firms (251 or more). 235 students are employed in a position where passing the bar is required and 8 are employed in a role where holding a JD is an advantage. 62 students clerk at the federal level and 7 clerk at the state, local, or territorial level. Additionally, 8 are employed in business or industry, 10 are employed in government, 14 are employed in public interest, and 3 are employed in academia.

There are more than 50 student led groups to join on campus and Durham provides a mix of amenities which can be found in a large city amidst a friendly environment associated with smaller towns. There is an entrepreneurial spirit in Durham as well as plenty of fine dining, opportunities to get involved in the arts, and a unique mix of businesses.