How to Get Into Georgia State Law (2026-2027 Guide)

Georgia State University College of Law is based in downtown Atlanta, with full-time and part-time JD programs. Its strengths include health law, entertainment and intellectual property, land use, and public interest.

This guide walks you through how to get into Georgia State Law.

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Admissions numbers
Application essays
Resume
Recommendations
Interviews
Deadlines and testing
Scholarships and cost
Programs and curriculum
Employment outcomes
Areas of study
Clinics and experience
Faculty and journals
Student life

1. Georgia State Law Admissions Numbers and Statistics

Georgia State Law Class of 2029:

LSAT: 75th: 164 | Median: 161 | 25th: 159
GPA: 75th: 3.85 | Median: 3.69 | 25th: 3.49

Georgia State Law Class of 2028:

LSAT: 75th: 163 | Median: 160 | 25th: 158
GPA: 75th: 3.82 | Median: 3.64 | 25th: 3.45

The fall 2026 entering profile raises the LSAT median one point and the GPA median 0.05 over fall 2025. Enrollment increased from 237 to 265, entirely through growth in the full-time division. Both blocks combine full-time and part-time entrants.

Aim to be at or above at least one median to be competitive. Above both puts you in a stronger position. Below both medians, this is a prayer, not a reach.

For context on how medians affect your strategy, see How to Build a Smart Law School List.

2. Georgia State Law Application Essays

Personal Statement (required)

Georgia State asks why you are pursuing legal study at its College of Law and invites relevant experiences, qualifications, and other information. The statement must be typed and no longer than two double-spaced pages. It should explain your interest in law school and the goals you hope to pursue with a JD, while showing abilities beyond the numerical parts of your application.

For more on addressing school interest within this personal statement, see my Why X Essay Guide.

For more on how to write a personal statement, see my Personal Statement Examples and Personal Statement Guide.

For more on making your whole application work together, see my Cohesive Narrative Guide.

Addenda and Character & Fitness Resources

I'll be publishing a guide to addenda and character and fitness.

3. Georgia State Law Resume Requirements

Keep your resume focused on outcomes and impact. Employment, education, and substantive responsibilities should be easy to follow without repeating the personal statement.

For more on preparing your resume, see my Resume Examples and Resume Guide.

4. Georgia State Law Letters of Recommendation

Georgia State requires two letters of recommendation and accepts up to four. Letters must be less than two years old. Professors are preferred; applicants several years removed from college may use employers.

For more on recommendations, see my LOR Guide (Applicants) and LOR Guide (Writers).

5. Georgia State Law Interview Process

Georgia State does not grant personal admissions interviews to first-year applicants.

6. Georgia State Law Deadlines and Early Decision

Testing Policy

Georgia State accepts the LSAT or GRE, considering scores from the past three years. June is the last LSAT administration for regular fall admission; Early Decision requires testing by November.

If you're considering the GRE, read my LSAT vs. GRE guide before deciding.

Application Dates and Fees

Applications Open: September 1.
Early Decision Application Deadline: December 1.
Merit Scholarship Priority Deadline: March 15.
Regular Application Deadline: June 1.
Application Fee: $50.
Decision Process: Rolling admissions.

Early Decision

Early Decision is binding. Admitted applicants must immediately withdraw other applications and may not start new ones. Applicants cannot simultaneously pursue another school's binding Early Decision option. Violating these commitments results in revocation of admission.

For a full breakdown of early decision strategy, see Should You Apply Early Decision to Law School?

Gateway Scholars

Gateway Scholars begins with fall 2027 admission and can account for up to 25% of the entering class. Eligible students and graduates within two years of their bachelor's degree can apply without the LSAT or GRE. Participating institutions belong to the University System of Georgia, State University System of Florida, or The Texas State University System. Requirements include a 3.50 GPA after six full-time undergraduate semesters, no reportable LSAT, and an SAT or ACT score above the 85th percentile earned before entering the participating institution. The completion deadline is November 1, with decisions by January 15 and a $500 deposit due March 15. Taking the LSAT after Gateway admission voids that admission; unsuccessful Gateway applicants seeking regular consideration must take the LSAT.

7. Georgia State Law Scholarships and Financial Aid

Merit and Named Scholarships

March 15 is the priority deadline for merit consideration. Georgia State also uses its scholarship portal for named awards, with additional applications for eligible candidates. The Atlanta Law School Legacy Endowed Scholarship supports incoming second-career students; the Ronald W. Blasi Scholarship supports incoming students interested in tax or business law who demonstrate financial need.

Georgia State has awarded conditional scholarships requiring a 2.50 GPA and minimum enrollment. Renewal terms belong in your assessment of the offer, not just the first-year award amount.

Costs and Public Interest Funding

For 2025-2026, the ABA-reported annual full-time tuition was $16,162 for residents and $37,886 for nonresidents, plus $1,434 in fees. Estimated off-campus living expenses were $26,693.

Submit the FAFSA for need-based assistance. Public interest summer grants range from $2,500 to $7,500, depending on eligibility and available funding. The Justice John Paul Stevens Summer Public Interest Fellowship and Public Interest Law Association also support qualifying unpaid work.

For more on scholarship strategy, see How to Negotiate Law School Scholarships.

8. Georgia State Law Dual Degree Programs

Options include:

JD/MBA: Business administration with Georgia State's J. Mack Robinson College of Business.
JD/MBA/MHA: Law, business, and health administration with Robinson.
JD/MCRP: City and regional planning with Georgia Tech's College of Design.
JD/Master of Professional Accountancy: With Robinson's School of Accountancy.
JD/MPH: With Georgia State's School of Public Health, generally completed in four years.
JD/MPA: Public administration with the Andrew Young School of Policy Studies.
JD/MPP: Public policy with the Andrew Young School.

Applicants must gain admission to each participating program separately. Credit sharing reduces the combined coursework; the sequence depends on the particular degree combination.

9. Georgia State Law Employment Outcomes (Class of 2025)

Georgia State Class of 2025 employment outcomes (reported to the ABA, measured 10 months after graduation):

Full-time, long-term bar-passage-required employment (ABA): 88.7%
BigLaw (firms with 101+ attorneys): 25.6%
Federal clerkships: 0.5%
Public service (including government): 17.4%

Georgia accounts for the overwhelming majority of placements. Washington, DC and South Carolina are distant secondary destinations. Larger firms make up a meaningful share, but the broader picture is a Georgia-centered professional network extending across firms, government, and public interest employers. That geographic concentration matters more to your school choice than the small federal clerkship share.

10. Georgia State Law Areas of Study and Specializations

Health Law: The Center for Law, Health & Society connects the health law concentration with public health, bioethics, healthcare policy, and interdisciplinary research. HeLP adds representation of families whose legal problems affect children's health.

Entertainment and Sports: The Center for Entertainment, Sports and Intellectual Property supports the Entertainment, Sports and Media Law concentration. Its Legal Life Of series follows the legal issues in a public figure's career, connecting transactions and negotiation to actual industry practice.

Intellectual Property: A separate IP concentration covers litigation, transactional practice, and prosecution. Coursework and patent-drafting opportunities connect the legal protection of inventions and creative work with the businesses that use them.

Environmental and Land Use Law: The Center for the Comparative Study of Metropolitan Growth supports the concentration and Urban Fellows program. Students work across law and planning on development, disaster resilience, and historic preservation.

Public Interest: The Center for Access to Justice studies unmet legal needs and connects students with supervised service. Its work complements the Public Interest Law and Policy concentration and the school's community-facing clinics.

11. Georgia State Law Clinics and Experiential Learning

Students can pursue transactional, litigation, and dispute-resolution work:

Community Development & Entrepreneurship Law Clinic: Provide transactional representation to organizations pursuing community development and social change.
Health Law Partnership Legal Services Clinic: Work with medical partners on housing, education, benefits, and other problems affecting low-income families served by Children's Healthcare of Atlanta.
Philip C. Cook Low-Income Taxpayer Clinic: Interview clients, prepare appeals and settlement proposals, and draft petitions in federal tax disputes, including representation before the Tax Court.
Immigration Clinic: Develop client relationships, conduct intake, and work on immigration representation under faculty supervision.
Capital Defender Clinic: Assist defense teams with investigation, forensic evidence, and advocacy in death-penalty cases and direct appeals.
Mediation Clinic: Train as a mediator and help resolve landlord-tenant and small-claims disputes.
Olmstead Disability Rights Clinic: Work with Atlanta Legal Aid on access to community services, special education, and disability integration, including administrative advocacy.
FHLBank Atlanta Heirs' Property Law Clinic: Scheduled to begin client casework in spring 2027, initially focusing on estate planning. Students will interview and counsel clients and prepare legal documents. Part-time students receive enrollment priority.

Pro Bono and Experiential Learning

The JD requires six experiential credits, including Lawyering Advocacy. Externship placements have included the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and Fulton County Superior Court. Pro bono projects include Atlanta Volunteer Lawyers Foundation housing work and the Fulton Family Law Information Center. Students assist with intake, research, and forms under attorney supervision. Part-time students can participate in clinics, but client work and scheduled classes still require time beyond evening coursework.

12. Georgia State Law Notable Faculty and Journals

Faculty

Leslie E. Wolf: Ben F. Johnson Jr. Chair in Law and Distinguished University Professor. Studies health law and research ethics; served on the federal Secretary's Advisory Committee on Human Research Protections.
Jonathan Todres: Distinguished University Professor and Catherine C. Henson Professor of Law. Studies children's rights and co-edited The Oxford Handbook of Children's Rights Law.
Ryan Rowberry: Professor and Janice C. Griffith Chair in Law. Studies property, historic preservation, and legal history; co-authored Historic Preservation Law in a Nutshell.
Sarah Stein: Assistant Clinical Professor and director of the FHLBank Atlanta Heirs' Property Law Clinic. Leads the new clinic's estate-planning and heirs' property work.

Journals

Georgia State University Law Review: Articles and student notes, including the Peach Sheets legislative-history issue.
Journal of Comparative Urban Law and Policy: Comparative articles on urban growth, development, housing, infrastructure and environmental law.

13. Georgia State Law Culture and Student Life

Full-time and part-time students share a downtown law school with trial advocacy, moot court, and public interest organizations. The law library's upper floors include collaborative areas, a reading room, and an outdoor terrace. The mix of recent graduates and working professionals gives students different perspectives on the same legal problems.

Atlanta places healthcare institutions, corporate legal departments, courts, and legal aid organizations within the school's professional orbit. The part-time JD takes four to five years; full-time students face a 20-hour weekly employment limit. Choose the division that fits your actual work commitments.

Want Help Getting Into Georgia State Law?

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Note: While I try to keep this guide up to date, always verify deadlines, requirements, and policies at the Georgia State Law website before applying.

Think you spotted an outdated requirement or something that doesn't look right? Email moshe@sharperstatements.com with the school and a link to the current information.