Loyola University New Orleans - School of Law

Nestled in the heart of a vibrant city, Loyola University New Orleans College of Law delivers a top-notch legal education. Students appreciate the school’s flexible curriculum, highlighting that they have “the opportunity to choose [between] common law or civil law.” In fact, they are encouraged to “expand their horizons by taking classes in both areas and to compare the two systems of law in a theoretical and practical way.” The school wants its students to benefit from knowledgeable professionals and “is incredible at getting excellent speakers to give talks on campus. Louisiana Supreme Court justices, local and federal judges, criminal law experts, and many others have given talks about their [respective] fields.” Overall, the administration is “eager to assist its students,” with one student adding, “When one faculty member is unable to assist, they point us to a staffer that is able to answer our questions.” These budding legal scholars benefit from Loyola’s strong “emphasis on legal writing skills and oral argument.” The school is also known for its reputation of “ensuring that students are prepared for the bar and for employment after the bar.”
Of course, the biggest asset of a Loyola legal education remains the faculty. Professors are “extremely knowledgeable…[and] always available to answer questions and tweak their teaching styles for what works best for their students.” They also understand how to foster a classroom environment “where preparation and critical thinking are expected, but where students feel safe to speak up.” One student finds the professors “extremely helpful and have explained confusing topics very well,” while another adds, “Loyola has incredible teachers who are intelligent, kind, persuasive, and dedicated.”

Career

Loyola University maintains strong ties to the legal community that surrounds New Orleans. These connections certainly come in handy when students hit the job market. As this aspiring lawyer asserts, “[Loyola] has an amazing ‘local ranking,’ and I have gotten many job and networking opportunities based upon that.” Some of this success can be attributed to the school’s Career Development Office, which runs the robust On-Campus Interview Program (OCI), inviting numerous law firms, government entities, judges, and corporations from throughout Louisiana to interview students for summer and post-graduate positions. Of course, there are a few who bemoan the college’s regional focus, with one student sharing, “[I wish the school was] better at connecting students with out-of-state firms.” Nevertheless, graduates leave the university ready to kickstart their legal careers. As this satisfied student sums up, “I feel well prepared for the bar and beyond.”

The campus has a “great location in uptown New Orleans” with access to all that the city offers. The school cultivates a communal atmosphere that “feels welcoming” and helps students “succeed both academically and personally.” A classmate further explains, “Since it’s a small school you get the chance to meet most of the students and build friendships, no matter if you are a 1L or a 3L.” Even better, students say their peers “are [some] of the friendliest people you will meet and, more likely than not, if you ask them for help, they will gladly do it with a genuine smile [on] their face.” Students are generally respectful of each other’s differences, with one student sharing, “I've been able to learn from countless different perspectives constantly…in classrooms where all opinions were welcome and heard.These opinions are necessary to see why the legal field is the way it is.” At Loyola, the typical cutthroat law school stereotype doesn’t apply. As one student shares, “I've heard that law school is competitive and students [try] to disadvantage others…At Loyola, the opposite is true,” adding, “Students help one another understand material, and professors want students to be successful in and out of the classroom.” Indeed, “There is no air of competition because students are focused on self-improvement and creating their own path.”