Seattle University School of Law offers full-time and hybrid Flex JD programs. Its strengths include legal writing, public service, and technology law.
This guide walks you through how to get into Seattle University Law.
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1. Seattle University Law Admissions Numbers and Statistics
Seattle University Law Class of 2029:
- LSAT: 75th: 163 | Median: 161 | 25th: 156
- GPA: 75th: 3.83 | Median: 3.64 | 25th: 3.25
Seattle University Law Class of 2028:
- LSAT: 75th: 162 | Median: 159 | 25th: 155
- GPA: 75th: 3.80 | Median: 3.60 | 25th: 3.22
Seattle University Law Class of 2027:
- LSAT: 75th: 160 | Median: 157 | 25th: 153
- GPA: 75th: 3.72 | Median: 3.53 | 25th: 3.21
These are the 2026, 2025, and 2024 entering cohorts. The combined profiles include part-time students. In 2025, Seattle enrolled 209 first-year students: 150 full-time and 59 part-time. It received 2,304 applications and made 897 offers.
The LSAT median rose two points in each successive year, while the GPA median also increased.
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. Seattle University Law Application Essays
Personal Statement (required)
The school's instructions:
“typed, double-spaced, no more than two pages. The statement should detail how your lived experiences have motivated your law school journey. We encourage you to discuss challenges overcome, leadership roles, special skills you possess or any other information you wish to highlight.”
For more on how to write a personal statement, see my Personal Statement Examples and Personal Statement Guide.
The required statement itself invites perspective and background.
For more on how to write a diversity or perspective statement, see my Diversity Statement Examples and Diversity Statement Guide.
Scholarship Essays (if applicable)
Scholars for Justice requires an additional essay, at most two double-spaced pages, about public service and contribution to the program's mission. The Douglas R. Nash scholarship requires a two-page statement about commitment to Native American or Alaska Native issues.
For more on making all of these essays work together, see my Cohesive Narrative Guide.
Addenda and Character & Fitness (if applicable)
Seattle permits an optional one-page addendum about academic indicators or information not addressed elsewhere.
Address required character-and-fitness disclosures separately and completely.
I'll be publishing a guide to addenda and character and fitness.
3. Seattle University Law Resume Requirements
A resume is required. Include your academic background, community service, and employment history. Relevant service also supports consideration for the Community Service Stipend.
For more on preparing your resume, see my Resume Examples and Resume Guide.
4. Seattle University Law Letters of Recommendation
Submit two letters of recommendation directly through LSAC's Credential Assembly Service. Seattle identifies professors or professional colleagues who can assess your work ethic, analytical ability, and writing skills.
For more on recommendations, see my LOR Guide (Applicants) and LOR Guide (Writers).
5. Seattle University Law Interview Process
Seattle offers phone and virtual meetings with admission counselors, along with Sullivan Hall tours. Use a conversation to discuss your program choice and the practical demands of full-time or Flex study.
6. Seattle University Law Deadlines and Decision Options
Testing Policy
Seattle accepts the LSAT, GRE, or JD-Next. A valid LSAT is the primary test even when another score is submitted. A GRE-only or JD-Next-only admit who later takes the LSAT may have admission and scholarship revoked pending receipt and reevaluation of that score.
If you're considering the GRE, read my LSAT vs. GRE guide before deciding.
Application Dates and Fees
- Application opening: September 1 on the annual rolling-admission calendar.
- Access Admission: Complete the regular JD application by January 1. Selected students complete a required summer program beginning in June.
- Priority deadline: March 1.
- Final deadline: July 1.
- Application fee: $70, automatically waived for summer/fall 2027 applications submitted by February 1, 2027.
- Last eligible tests: June 2027 LSAT or GRE; February 2027 JD-Next course and April 2027 exam.
Program Formats
Flex JD is a structured, part-time hybrid program normally completed in 3.5 years. It combines online study, evening live classes, and five campus weekends per academic year. Seattle identifies jurisdictions, including New York, where this format does not meet current bar-eligibility educational requirements.
7. Seattle University Law Scholarships and Financial Aid
For 2026-2027, JD tuition is $2,144 per credit. The standard 30-credit, nine-month full-time budget includes $65,052 in tuition and fees and $99,514 in total estimated attendance costs. Summer enrollment changes the budget.
Academic Honors, Presidential, Trustee, and Washington State scholarships have renewal conditions. Among conditional-scholarship recipients who entered in 2024-2025, 36 of 140 had awards reduced or eliminated after the first year. Compare the renewal terms alongside the award amount.
Scholars for Justice provides three years of full tuition. Its February 6 application deadline includes the JD application, additional essay, and up to two public-service recommendations. Recipients commit to 100 hours of pro bono and community work, graduate with at least a 3.0 GPA, and complete at least one year of public service within three years after graduation.
The Douglas R. Nash Native American Law Scholarship provides three years of full tuition, with a March 10 deadline and a separate statement. A tribal elder's letter is optional but strongly encouraged. The Community Service Stipend provides $3,000 for the first year to eligible service-program and military participants, without a separate application.
For more on scholarship strategy, see How to Negotiate Law School Scholarships.
8. Seattle University Law Joint Degree Programs
Seattle offers four JD/master's combinations within the university. Each requires separate admission to both programs.
- JD/MBA: The Albers School of Business and Economics advertises a minimum four-year full-time plan combining law with its Professional MBA.
- JD/MSF: Albers' Master of Science in Finance combination has a minimum three-year full-time plan, with additional time for prerequisites or part-time study.
- JD/MPA: Public Administration pairs legal study with public management, using an initial year in each program followed by mixed coursework.
- JD/MACJ: Criminal Justice combines legal study with criminology, research, and administration. Current students apply to the other program during their first fall term.
The partner graduate programs are transitioning to semesters for fall 2027; the law school already uses semesters.
9. Seattle University Law Employment Outcomes (Class of 2025)
Seattle University Law Class of 2025 employment outcomes (reported to the ABA, measured 10 months after graduation):
- Full-time, long-term bar-passage-required employment (ABA): 75.5%
- BigLaw (firms with 101+ attorneys): 7.8%
- Federal clerkships: 0.0%
- Public service (including government): 29.4%
Washington is the dominant employment market, followed by California and the District of Columbia. The public-service share and relatively smaller large-firm share matter when comparing Seattle with other offers. Build your decision around the market and type of practice you actually want, and the debt required to get there.
10. Seattle University Law Areas of Study and Specializations
Legal Writing and Advocacy: The required nine-credit writing sequence moves from predictive memoranda to motions, appellate briefs, and oral argument. The first-year Real Clients assignment uses an issue identified by a clinic or legal nonprofit, connecting research and analysis to an actual legal problem.
Technology and Intellectual Property: The Technology, Innovation Law, and Ethics Institute connects intellectual property with privacy, cybersecurity, artificial intelligence, and entrepreneurship. Trademark clinical work and the technology journal offer concrete ways to develop this interest beyond an introductory course.
Civil Rights and Public Interest: The Civil Rights Clinic works on appellate advocacy, while Scholars for Justice connects students with the Access to Justice Institute. These opportunities make service experience relevant to both the application narrative and a defined course of study.
International and Tribal Law: International Human Rights clinical work reaches regional and international bodies. The Tribal Practice Clinic works in Swinomish and Makah courts. These are distinct legal systems and practice settings, giving applicants a more specific connection than a general interest in helping people.
11. Seattle University Law Clinics and Experiential Learning
The Ronald A. Peterson Law Clinic's 2026-2027 offerings include:
- Child Representation Clinic: Represent children in dependency cases in King and Pierce Counties, including client interviews, negotiation, and courtroom advocacy.
- Civil Rights Clinic: Work on briefs and representation in state and federal appellate cases involving equal-justice issues.
- Defender Clinic: Assist juvenile and adult clients facing charges or seeking relief from prior criminal-system involvement.
- Housing Justice Clinic: Interview tenants, negotiate, and prepare eviction hearings with the King County Bar Association's Housing Justice Project.
- Immigrant Justice Clinic: Develop cases involving immigration benefits and removal defense through client interviews, research, and advocacy.
- International Human Rights Clinic: Work with clients and organizations on litigation, research, and advocacy before human-rights bodies.
- Trademark Law Clinic: Conduct clearance searches, prepare federal applications, and respond to trademark-office inquiries.
- Tribal Practice Clinic: Represent clients in Swinomish and Makah courts, particularly in family and dependency matters, with community travel.
- Workers' Rights Clinic: Partner with the Fair Work Center on worker counseling and employment claims.
The Arts Legal Clinic does not satisfy the experiential-learning requirement. Federal Tax and Regulatory Environmental Law and Policy clinics are limited-seat exchanges based at the University of Washington, not Seattle U's own in-house clinics.
Pro Bono and Experiential Learning
Separately, externships combine supervised legal work with academic requirements and can be full-time or part-time. Approved placements may be paid. Flex students become eligible for externships in spring of their second year; pro bono work through the Access to Justice Institute offers another service route.
12. Seattle University Law Notable Faculty and Journals
Faculty
- Margaret Chon: Donald and Lynda Horowitz Endowed Chair for the Pursuit of Justice and TILE faculty director; studies intellectual property and co-edited Improving Intellectual Property: A Global Project.
- Brooke D. Coleman: Fredric C. Tausend Professor of Law; teaches civil procedure and federal courts and is lead author of Learning Civil Procedure.
- Thomas Antkowiak: Professor of Law and International Human Rights Clinic director; researches reparations and previously served as a senior attorney at the Inter-American Court of Human Rights.
- Deborah Ahrens: Professor of Law; teaches criminal law, procedure, and evidence and brings public-defense experience to her work on policing and sentencing.
Journals
Student publications include the Seattle University Law Review, Seattle Journal for Social Justice, American Indian Law Journal, and Seattle Journal of Technology, Environmental & Innovation Law. They provide distinct outlets for general legal scholarship, public-service interests, tribal law, and technology-related research.
13. Seattle University Law Culture and Student Life
Sullivan Hall brings classrooms, faculty offices, student support, and the law library together. Student organizations include the First Generation Lawyers Coalition, Public Interest Law Foundation, Native American Law Students Association, and Business & Entrepreneurship Law Association. Every law student belongs to the Student Bar Association.
Flex students have a designated SBA leadership role and can participate in journal write-on remotely. The program still requires substantial weekly work: Seattle estimates at least 30 hours, including classes and preparation. For working applicants, the community is accessible through a different schedule, not a lighter academic commitment.
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Related Reading
→ How to Build a Smart Law School List
→ Should You Apply Early Decision to Law School?
→ How to Negotiate Law School Scholarships
→ 6 Proven Steps to Get Off a Law School Waitlist
→ How to Get Into Law School Below Both Medians
→ What Holistic Law School Admissions Really Means
→ Blog Directory
Note: While I try to keep this guide up to date, always verify deadlines, requirements, and policies at the Seattle University 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.