University of Southern California Gould School of Law
Los Angeles, California · Private · ABA-approved since 1924 · Data updated November 2, 2026
University of Southern California Gould School of Law is a private law school in Los Angeles, California, approved by the American Bar Association since 1924. It admitted a fall 2025 class with a median LSAT of 169, higher than 86% of ABA-approved schools, saw 94.1% of its first-time bar takers pass in 2025 and placed 94.3% of its 2025 graduates in full-time lawyer jobs.
What stands out
- Tuition and fees of $85,948, more than 98% of schools charge.
- Harder to get into than 95% of schools: it accepted 11.2% of applicants.
- A median scholarship of $40,092, larger than at 94% of schools.
Admissions: LSAT, GPA and acceptance rate
For the class that entered in fall 2025, the University of Southern California received 7,204 completed applications and made 805 offers, an acceptance rate of 11.2%. 228 students enrolled in the first-year class. The typical ABA school accepted 35.8%.
| Entering class, fall 2025 | 25th percentile | Median | 75th percentile |
|---|---|---|---|
| LSAT | 165 | 169 | 170 |
| Undergraduate GPA | 3.73 | 3.91 | 3.97 |
A quarter of the class scored 165 or lower on the LSAT and a quarter scored 170 or higher. An applicant at or above the median, 169, is in the stronger half of this class; one below the 25th percentile is a long shot unless something else in the file stands out.
3 of the entering students were admitted on a GRE score instead of the LSAT.
Where would your numbers fall in this class?
Enter an LSAT score and undergraduate GPA. We compare them with the class that entered in fall 2025. This shows where your numbers sit, not your chances: admissions offices read the whole file.
Tuition, living costs and scholarships
Full-time tuition and fees for 2025-26 are $85,948 a year. That is more than 98% of ABA schools charge. The school estimates living costs of $32,298 a year off campus.
| Annual cost, 2025-26 | Amount |
|---|---|
| Tuition, full-time, resident | $84,034 |
| Fees, full-time, resident | $1,914 |
| Living costs, on campus | $31,686 |
| Living costs, off campus | $32,298 |
| Living costs, at home | $19,798 |
In 2024-25, 95% of full-time students received a grant or scholarship from the school. The median award was $40,092, and the middle half of awards ran from $38,220 to $48,160. Subtract the median award from the full-time tuition and fees above and a typical recipient pays about $45,856 a year in tuition and fees, before living costs. That is a rough guide, since awards vary and some students get nothing.
| Size of grant, all students | Share of students |
|---|---|
| Less than half tuition | 49% |
| Half to full tuition | 45% |
| Full tuition | 0% |
| More than full tuition | 1% |
Scholarships that can be cut. The school reports that it does not award scholarships that are reduced or ended because of grades, other than for failing to stay in good academic standing.
Three years, roughly. At 2025-26 prices, three years of full-time tuition and fees plus off-campus living costs come to about $354,738. With the median scholarship every year, about $234,462. Tuition usually rises each year, so treat this as a floor.
Bar passage
Of 222 graduates who took a bar exam for the first time in 2025, 209 passed: 94.1%. The average for the same exams, weighted by where its graduates sat, was 83.3%, so the school finished a full 10.9 points above that average.
| Where they sat, 2025 | Takers | Passed | School | State average |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| California | 183 | 171 | 93.4% | 82.7% |
| New York | 25 | 25 | 100% | 87.3% |
| 7 other jurisdictions | 14 | 13 | 92.9% | 82.9% |
The ABA also follows each class for two years. Of the 182 members of the class of 2023 who took a bar exam, 180 had passed one within two years: 98.9%.
Jobs after graduation
The ABA counts where each class is working ten months after graduation. Of 227 2025 graduates, 214 (94.3%) had full-time, long-term jobs that require bar passage, and 4 more (1.8%) had full-time, long-term jobs where a law degree is an advantage. At the typical ABA school, 83.4% were in lawyer jobs. 0 (0%) were unemployed and looking for work. 1 of the full-time, long-term jobs were funded by the school.
Law firm jobs by firm size
Shares are of all 227 graduates. Firms of more than 250 lawyers, the usual sense of “Big Law,” hired 143 (63%).
Where graduates work
Most employed graduates stayed in California (181), followed by New York (20) and District of Columbia (4).
Students who leave
In 2024-25, 1 first-year students left the University of Southern California: 0 for academic reasons (0%) and 1 for other reasons, such as transferring to another school (0%).
Transfers run both ways: 7 first-year students transferred out and 20 transferred in from other law schools. The students who transferred in had a median first-year law school GPA of 3.64.
Classes, clinics and faculty
The University of Southern California offered 0 upper-level course titles beyond the first-year curriculum in 2024-25. Of its upper-level class sections, 71% had fewer than 25 students and 5% had 75 or more.
| Hands-on learning, 2024-25 | Number |
|---|---|
| Law clinic seats available | 201 |
| Law clinic seats filled | 160 |
| Field placement (externship) positions filled | 138 |
| Simulation course seats filled | 632 |
| Co-curricular offerings (journals, moot court, etc.) | 105 |
The school reports 87 full-time faculty and 136 more who teach part-time or in other roles. With 650 J.D. students, that is about 7 students per full-time faculty member.
How the University of Southern California compares in California
California has 17 ABA-approved law schools. Among them, the University of Southern California ranks 4th in median LSAT, 4th in first-time bar passage, 2nd in share of graduates in lawyer jobs and 17th-lowest tuition.
| School | Median LSAT | Tuition | Bar pass | Lawyer jobs |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Stanford University | 173 | $79,707 | 99.4% | 86.8% |
| University of California, Los Angeles | 171 | $61,862 | 96.7% | 94.3% |
| University of California, Berkeley | 170 | $66,374 | 94.8% | 96.8% |
| University of California, Irvine | 169 | $61,288 | 89.9% | 92.9% |
| University of Southern California | 169 | $85,948 | 94.1% | 94.3% |
| University of California, Davis | 165 | $59,870 | 93.2% | 91.7% |
| Pepperdine University | 164 | $73,550 | 90.7% | 91.8% |
| Chapman University | 163 | $63,201 | 80.3% | 76.2% |
| Loyola Marymount University (Loyola Law School) | 163 | $71,386 | 79.7% | 85.7% |
| University of San Diego | 163 | $67,751 | 86.7% | 88.6% |
| UC Law San Francisco | 161 | $54,329 | 86.2% | 87% |
| Santa Clara University | 159 | $65,777 | 82% | 75.3% |
| Southwestern Law School | 157 | $63,160 | 72.1% | 78.6% |
| University of the Pacific, McGeorge | 156 | $63,318 | 71.1% | 68.9% |
| California Western School of Law | 155 | $64,870 | 71.4% | 74.1% |
| University of San Francisco | 155 | $59,990 | 80.9% | 76.3% |
| Western State College of Law | 152 | $55,648 | 81.1% | 79.6% |
More on each, and on the California bar exam: law schools in California.
Schools with similar admissions numbers
These five schools admitted fall 2025 classes with the median LSAT and GPA closest to the University of Southern California's, so an applicant who fits here is likely to be a similar fit there. Compare what each costs and how its graduates fare.
| School | Median LSAT | Median GPA | Tuition | Bar pass | Lawyer jobs |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| University of Southern California | 169 | 3.91 | $85,948 | 94.1% | 94.3% |
| University of Florida Gainesville, FL | 169 | 3.91 | $21,804 | 90.2% | 88.8% |
| University of Georgia Athens, GA | 169 | 3.92 | $19,502 | 88.4% | 93.5% |
| George Mason University Arlington, VA | 169 | 3.93 | $27,832 | 86.3% | 81.4% |
| The Ohio State University Columbus, OH | 168 | 3.91 | $37,263 | 93.1% | 88.5% |
| Vanderbilt University Nashville, TN | 170 | 3.91 | $78,799 | 94.6% | 98.2% |
Frequently asked questions
What LSAT score do you need to get into University of Southern California Gould School of Law?
There is no cutoff, but the class that entered in fall 2025 had a median LSAT of 169, with the middle half scoring 165 to 170. The median undergraduate GPA was 3.91. The school accepted 11.2% of applicants.
What is the bar passage rate at University of Southern California Gould School of Law?
94.1% of University of Southern California graduates taking a bar exam for the first time in 2025 passed, against a weighted state average of 83.3%. Within two years of graduating, 98.9% of the class of 2023 who took a bar exam had passed.
How much does University of Southern California Gould School of Law cost?
Full-time tuition and fees for 2025-26 are $85,948 a year. Most students pay less: 95% of full-time students received a grant, with a median award of $40,092.
Do University of Southern California Gould School of Law graduates get jobs?
Ten months after graduation, 94.3% of the class of 2025 had full-time, long-term jobs requiring bar passage, and 1.8% more had full-time, long-term jobs where a law degree is an advantage. 0% were unemployed and seeking work.
Is University of Southern California Gould School of Law ABA-accredited?
Yes. University of Southern California Gould School of Law has been approved by the American Bar Association since 1924, so its graduates can sit for the bar exam in every state.