2026 CLASS PROFILE AND ABA 509 DATA

Illinois Champaign Law School Admissions: LSAT, GPA, Cost, and Jobs (2026)

People assume a 166 median LSAT guarantees a strong bar pass rate. It doesn't always: Illinois's 2024 class passed the bar at just 72.5%, even with a median GPA of 3.8 and an acceptance rate of 32.9%. Nearly the whole class gets a grant, with 98.7% receiving some award against the $46,500 sticker.

The 2026 entering class

Illinois Champaign Law School's 2026 entering class had a median LSAT of 168, up 2 from 166 in 2025. The median GPA was 3.85.

YearLSAT 25thLSAT 50thLSAT 75thGPA 25thGPA 50thGPA 75th
20261641681703.553.853.94

Source: the school's own 2026 class profile, as of September 26, 2026. These numbers can shift until the 2026 ABA 509 reports publish. Everything below this section is 2025 ABA 509 data.

What it takes to get in

These are the school's own reported 25th, 50th, and 75th percentile LSAT and GPA numbers from its ABA Standard 509 filing, the same disclosure every accredited law school has to file each year. The 50th percentile is the median: half the admitted class scored above it, half below.

YearLSAT 25thLSAT 50thLSAT 75thGPA 25thGPA 50thGPA 75th
20251601661683.53.83.9
20191571621643.43.73.8
20151581611633.33.53.7

The median LSAT is up 4 points since 2019 and the median GPA moved +0.1. The bar moved here.

What you get out (Class of 2024)

Class year reported2024
FT/LT employed, 10 months out82.4%
Biglaw (101+ lawyer firms)10.8%
Federal clerkships0%
Government + public interest24.1%
Bar pass rate72.5%

82.4% of the 2024 class landed a full-time, long-term job within 10 months, 10.8% went to biglaw, and with a 72.5% bar pass rate, the outcomes here trail what the LSAT numbers alone would predict.

Your odds

A 166 LSAT is Illinois's median, with the middle 50% running from 160 at the 25th percentile to 168 at the 75th. The acceptance rate is 32.9%. Run your own numbers through the calculator before you spend a filing fee guessing.

What it costs

Sticker tuition (2025)$46,500/yr
Resident$36,500/yr
Nonresident$46,500/yr
3-year sticker total$139,500
Pays full sticker1.3%
Gets some grant98.7%

Of 472 students: 1% pay full sticker, 39% get a grant under half tuition, 60% get half tuition or more.

98.7% of the class received a grant and just 1.3% paid full sticker, so a score above the 168 75th percentile is mostly about the size of the award, not whether you get one.

Schools like Illinois Champaign

These 6 are the closest match by median LSAT, then median GPA, out of all 196 schools in the 509 master (as of 2026). Use them as your realistic comparison set, not the list of "reach" schools everyone starts with.

FAQ

What LSAT score do you need for Illinois Champaign Law School?

The median LSAT for Illinois's 2025 class is 166. The 25th percentile is 160 and the 75th is 168, up from a 162 median 6 years earlier.

What GPA do you need for Illinois Champaign Law School?

The median GPA is 3.8. The 25th percentile is 3.5 and the 75th is 3.9.

What is Illinois Champaign Law School's acceptance rate?

32.9% for the 2025 cycle, based on 709 offers out of 2,153 applications.

How much does Illinois Champaign Law School cost with and without aid?

Nonresident sticker tuition is $46,500 a year, or $139,500 over 3 years. Illinois residents pay $36,500 a year instead. 98.7% of the class received a grant, and only 1.3% paid full price.

What jobs do Illinois Champaign Law School graduates get?

82.4% of the 2024 graduating class had a full-time, long-term job within 10 months. 10.8% went to biglaw, and none of the class landed a federal clerkship that year.

Is Illinois Champaign Law School worth it at sticker?

It's a mixed case. The near-universal grant rate of 98.7% makes the sticker price close to irrelevant for most students, but an 82.4% placement rate and a 72.5% bar pass rate are softer than the 166 median LSAT would suggest, so the outcomes deserve more scrutiny than the admissions numbers do.

Source: ABA Standard 509 Information Reports, 2015 to 2025, via LSAT Unplugged's 509 master. Verify against the school's filing before relying on it. Last updated 2026-09-30.