Two of the most prestigious US law schools have withdrawn from US News & World Report’s influential rankings system, in a blow to the credibility of a tool widely used by prospective students, alumni and recruiters.
In explaining their respective decisions, Yale and Harvard said the assessment — by focusing on test scores and failing to reflect financial aid — undermines their efforts to admit students from low-income backgrounds to train and pursue public service careers.
Heather Gerken, dean of Yale Law School — which has consistently been among the top-ranked schools since the listings began in 1990 — called them “profoundly flawed” in a blog post and added: “They disincentivise programs that support public interest careers, champion need-based aid, and welcome working-class students into the profession.”