The University of Wyoming College of Law in Laramie is the state's only law school, with a small, full-time JD program. Its strengths include energy and natural resources, trial advocacy, rural practice, and public-interest representation.
This guide walks you through how to get into Wyoming Law.
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1. Wyoming Law Admissions Numbers and Statistics
Wyoming Law Class of 2028:
- LSAT: 75th: 160 | Median: 156 | 25th: 153
- GPA: 75th: 3.80 | Median: 3.55 | 25th: 3.32
Wyoming Law Class of 2027:
- LSAT: 75th: 158 | Median: 155 | 25th: 152
- GPA: 75th: 3.72 | Median: 3.46 | 25th: 3.06
Wyoming's entering class decreased slightly, from 77 students in 2024 to 74 in 2025, while applications rose from 376 to 483. Both medians increased, and the LSAT 75th percentile moved up two points. The GPA gains extended across the range, particularly at the 25th percentile.
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. Wyoming Law Application Essays
Personal Statement (required)
The school's instructions:
“Applicants must attach to their electronic application one personal statement. The personal statement should provide information about yourself that you consider significant to our evaluation of your file. We are interested in learning about the qualities that you would bring to the legal profession, the law school classroom, and the community. You may wish to describe a significant experience in your life or to discuss your interest in or motivation for attending law school. A typical personal statement is 2-3 pages. It will be evaluated for writing ability as well as content. Do not treat your personal statement as a narrative of your resume.”
For more on how to write a personal statement, see my Personal Statement Examples and Personal Statement Guide.
Perspective and Contribution
The personal statement's contribution question gives you room to explain how your background shapes your perspective.
For more on how to write a diversity or perspective statement, see my Diversity Statement Examples and Diversity Statement Guide.
For more on making all of these essays work together, see my Cohesive Narrative Guide.
Addenda and Character & Fitness (if applicable)
Answer the disclosure questions completely and keep explanations separate from the personal statement.
I'll be publishing a guide to addenda and character and fitness.
3. Wyoming Law Resume Requirements
Submit a resume covering education, employment, leadership, and service. Describe your responsibilities and results clearly, especially sustained work alongside school. Keep the presentation easy to scan rather than compressing everything into dense paragraphs.
For more on preparing your resume, see my Resume Examples and Resume Guide.
4. Wyoming Law Letters of Recommendation
Wyoming prefers one general and one academic recommendation and accepts up to three. Applicants long out of school may use employers or supervisors instead of professors.
For more on recommendations, see my LOR Guide (Applicants) and LOR Guide (Writers).
5. Wyoming Law Interview Process
Wyoming offers campus tours and individual meetings with admissions, including phone or Zoom conversations about the JD program and application process.
6. Wyoming Law Deadlines and Decision Options
Testing Policy
The LSAT and CAS are required; Wyoming does not accept the GRE instead. A future LSAT registration ordinarily holds review until the new score arrives. An applicant with an existing score can ask admissions to review immediately instead. After a denial or waitlist decision, a new LSAT score within the same cycle can support a request for re-review.
Application Dates and Fees
- Application opens: October 1 for the following fall.
- Early admissions cutoff: December 15 (early applications received before that date; decisions by January 30).
- Regular application deadline: April 30; have the file complete by then.
- Application fee: $50.
Wyoming uses rolling review. Its early admissions schedule gives applicants an earlier decision timetable. The JD is a three-year, full-time, in-person program in Laramie.
7. Wyoming Law Scholarships and Financial Aid
Merit Scholarships
All admitted applicants receive scholarship consideration. Incoming awards generally cover three years, subject to the award requirements, including a cumulative 2.50 GPA, full-time enrollment, timely deposits, the scholarship form, and a thank-you letter. School scholarships do not cover the non-law portion of a joint degree.
Take the conditions seriously. Wyoming's 2025 disclosure reports that three of 67 students entering with conditional scholarships in 2024-2025 had awards reduced or eliminated. Under the school's withdrawal policy, dropping all courses before the add/drop deadline or completely withdrawing causes the entire scholarship award to be rescinded in full.
Tuition and Budget
For 2026-2027, incoming 1L tuition is $622 per credit for residents and $1,278 for nonresidents. At 30 credits, that is $18,660 or $38,340 before fees and living expenses. Continuing resident students have a different per-credit rate.
For a full-budget comparison, the 2025-2026 off-campus JD estimates were $36,344 for residents and $56,434 for nonresidents, including tuition, fees, housing, food, books, and other expenses. Compare net cost after the award, not just the resident tuition headline. Eligible students seeking federal aid should complete the FAFSA; international applicants are not eligible for the school's scholarships.
For more on scholarship strategy, see How to Negotiate Law School Scholarships.
8. Wyoming Law Joint Degree Programs
Wyoming offers three joint degrees within the university:
- JD/MA in Environment and Natural Resources: Work with the Haub School on interdisciplinary coursework and an applied master's project alongside legal study.
- JD/MBA: A four-year program with the College of Business, including a year devoted to MBA study.
- JD/MPA: Approximately three to four years, combining legal education with public administration and preparation for government or nonprofit management.
Apply to law school first. Admission to the master's program is separate, and 1Ls receive information about the joint-degree application process during the first semester.
9. Wyoming Law Employment Outcomes (Class of 2025)
Wyoming Law Class of 2025 employment outcomes (reported to the ABA, measured 10 months after graduation):
- Full-time, long-term bar-passage-required employment (ABA): 85.9%
- BigLaw (firms with 101+ attorneys): 4.7%
- Federal clerkships: 3.1%
- Public service (including government): 39.1%
Wyoming was the largest employment destination, followed by Colorado and Washington, D.C. The pattern favors regional practice and public service over large-firm recruiting. Build your school decision around the kinds of employers and communities where you want to work, then use clinics, summer jobs, and local professional relationships to pursue that goal in Wyoming or Colorado.
10. Wyoming Law Areas of Study and Specializations
Energy, Environmental, and Natural Resources Law: The EENR certificate combines 15 credits of focused coursework with an advanced writing project. Administrative Law and either Environmental Law or Public Lands and Natural Resources Law anchor the curriculum. The Haub School joint degree adds interdisciplinary work for students seeking more depth.
Trial and Appellate Advocacy: The Summer Trial Institute moves from jury selection and trial skills to pretrial motions, a bench trial, and a jury trial before sitting Wyoming judges. Defender Aid and the Prosecution Assistance Program provide additional routes into criminal litigation and appellate work.
Rural Practice and Property: The Rural Law Center and Alan Romero's work in property, agricultural law, and land use connect legal study to rural clients' needs. Estate planning, real estate, and family representation are practical complements for someone planning to serve a smaller community.
Human Rights and Access to Justice: The Center for International Human Rights Law & Advocacy and its clinic connect research with representation and institutional advocacy. Civil Legal Services and Family and Child Legal Advocacy offer a local counterpart, addressing housing, benefits, and family matters for clients who need legal assistance.
11. Wyoming Law Clinics and Experiential Learning
The Alan K. Simpson Center supports a clinical program built around direct responsibility for clients and cases. Offerings include:
- Civil Legal Services Clinic: Work in teams on housing and public-benefits matters, draft pleadings, communicate with clients, and prepare community presentations.
- Defender Aid Clinic: Investigate post-conviction claims, interview incarcerated clients, and develop sentence-reduction and other post-conviction arguments.
- Energy, Environmental and Natural Resources Clinic: Work with the Wyoming Attorney General's Water and Natural Resources Division on litigation and administrative matters.
- Estate Planning and Probate Clinic: Interview clients and prepare wills, powers of attorney, health directives, and probate documents.
- Family and Child Legal Advocacy Clinic: Handle interviewing, discovery, negotiation, and court work involving divorce, custody, domestic violence, and related family issues.
- International Human Rights Clinic: Develop human-rights research and advocacy; the clinic's work has included asylum representation and reports for international institutions.
- Prosecution Assistance Program: Assist prosecutors with hearings and trial preparation or prepare briefs and oral arguments in Wyoming Supreme Court criminal appeals.
Pro Bono and Experiential Learning
Clinical representation includes free services for people with limited resources. The Legal Externship Program also allows credit-bearing work with approved supervisors; students can pursue existing placements or propose a new one for approval. The Summer Trial Institute adds intensive simulation and feedback from practicing lawyers. Clinical prerequisites and limited enrollment make advance planning important, particularly for third-year practice opportunities.
12. Wyoming Law Notable Faculty and Journals
Faculty
- Alan Romero: Senior Associate Dean, William T. Schwartz Distinguished Professor of Law, and Rural Law Center director. He teaches property, land use, agricultural law, and real estate finance and previously clerked on the Tenth Circuit.
- Melissa Ballengee Alexander: Carl M. Williams Professor of Law and Ethics. Her fields include health law, bioethics, and civil procedure; she coauthored Questions & Answers: Health Law after a career that included law-firm partnership.
- Kipp Coddington: Professor of Practice and director of the EENR Clinic and externships. His environmental and energy practice included work at Covington & Burling, Ropes & Gray, and Alston & Bird.
- Jerry Fowler: Professor of Law and International Human Rights Clinic director. His experience includes leading the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum's Committee on Conscience and serving as a senior policy adviser at Open Society Foundations.
Journals
- Wyoming Law Review: This is the school's student-edited journal. It publishes twice annually, with scholarship from professors and practitioners alongside student case notes and comments. Second- and third-year students serve on the editorial staff, and a third-year board manages the publication.
13. Wyoming Law Culture and Student Life
Wyoming's small classes and full-time, in-person structure put repeated contact with classmates and faculty at the center of daily life. The John Burman Student Bar Association, student mentoring, Wyoming Law Review, and clinical work offer different ways to participate. The George W. Hopper Law Library and renovated clinical facilities anchor the academic setting.
Laramie offers a university-town experience rather than a downtown legal campus. Outdoor recreation is part of the appeal, but the professional draw is access to Wyoming's legal community and neighboring Colorado. Think about whether both the setting and that regional career path suit you.
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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 Wyoming 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.