For Immediate Release March 11, 2002
Contact: Brian SheaPhone: 410/706-0023 Cell: 717/880-2267[email protected]
School of Law Applications Surge
The University of Maryland School of Law will choose its fall 2002 class from the largest applicant pool in its history, with nearly 5,000 applicants vying for 225 spots. The record number of applications marks an almost 85 percent increase over last year, continuing a strong upward trend in applications.
"We've already established ourselves as one of the top legal institutions in the country. The quality of education will grow even stronger as we attract the best possible students at the School of Law," says Karen H. Rothenberg, JD, MPA, dean of the School.
The size of the current first-year class -- larger than usual because of an unprecedented acceptance of offers of admission last year -- means the incoming fall 2002 class will be smaller. That will raise the bar considerably for students hoping to enroll this fall, the first class to start its legal education in the School's new building.
Maryland is a destination for top students across the country, thanks in part to the standards set by the clinical, health law, and environmental law programs. Maryland is the only public law school with three specialty programs ranked in the top five in the nation by U.S. News & World Report. The School is also the home of The Business Lawyer, published in conjunction with the American Bar Association, the most widely circulated law review in the nation.
Burgeoning public policy programs and cutting-edge scholarship in areas such as business law and intellectual property enrich the School's academic program while providing an important resource to the state and region, Rothenberg adds.
The School will move to its new building in July. Rothenberg says the facility will allow the School to provide the best legal education for the 21st century. The building is designed for innovative learning and to create a sense of community for students, faculty members, and staff.
Even before its opening, the building has been nationally recognized, both for its accessibility features, which substantially exceed the requirements of the Americans With Disabilities Act, and the integration of the latest technology into legal education.
There will also be more space for student activities, a full complement of computer connections in classrooms and at library stations, audio-visual and computer systems, and three courtrooms, including a ceremonial courtroom where students and the public can watch cases being heard before state and federal courts.
The plans for the Thurgood Marshall Law Library are equally exciting. The library will have more space in all areas from special collections to additional group-study rooms, and two computer labs, one dedicated to training and teaching, the other for research.
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