Admission Process
Ethan Madore
UVA likes to be liked. From the data, it’s clear that they’re yield-conscious and like to preempt the decisions of other top schools with earlier offers of admission. We recommend getting your application in early, if possible.
UVA Law admissions is led by Natalie Blazer, who has a podcast and gives frequent interviews on her preferences and priorities. UVA also offers generous need and merit-based aid, meaning that candidates who get the nod from HYS are often juggling a more generous offer from UVA.
UVA interviews some, but not all, admits. It tends to be among the hardest on international applicants, admitting very few compared to other top schools.
Application requirements
Essay prompts
Please tell us how your background, perspective, or life experience(s) have led you to pursue law school and/or how they have influenced what you hope to achieve through your legal education. (suggested page limit: two pages double-spaced in 12pt font)
- Law school and the practice of law are both rewarding and challenging. Among the qualities it takes to succeed in both are resilience, integrity, empathy, diligence, maturity, and the ability to engage across differences. Please describe how you have developed, cultivated, and/or exhibited one or more of these qualities in your life. required(maximum characters 3000)
- We understand that professional resumes do not necessarily reflect every major responsibility or position a candidate has ever held. We invite you to further expand upon your work history, familial obligations, or other significant contributions to your household (including part-time jobs or roles assumed while attending high school and/or college). Please note this question is optional. (maximum characters 1500)
- Please describe your interests and hobbies.required (maximum characters 200)
- Some applicants know where they want to begin their legal practice. If you have such specific geographic preferences, please identify them. (maximum characters 200)
Why UVA Law (optional)
If you have specific reasons for wanting to attend UVA Law that are not discussed elsewhere in your application, you are welcome to address those here. Please note this question is optional. (suggested page limit: two pages double-spaced in 12pt font)
Should you wish to address other topics, please upload them here. If multiple topics are addressed, please upload them as separate, descriptively labeled documents.
You will not be penalized if you do not submit optional addenda. Please use your best judgment as to whether optional addenda are relevant to your situation. You should not submit published written work, research projects, theses, or other documents unrelated to the application. They will not be considered.
Attach a current and professional resume.
If the answer to any of these questions is "yes," you must attach an addendum explaining the circumstances. After submitting this application, you have an ongoing obligation to immediately notify the Office of Admissions of new or additional information pertaining to these questions. Note that the existence of a criminal history will not, by itself, disqualify an applicant for admission.
ABA STANDARD 504 STATEMENT: In addition to a bar examination, there are character, fitness, and other qualifications for admission to the bar in every US jurisdiction. Applicants are encouraged to determine the requirements for any jurisdiction in which they intend to seek admission by contacting the jurisdiction. Addresses for all relevant agencies are available through the National Conference of Bar Examiners.
As you provide responses to the questions set forth in this section, please do so carefully and be mindful that in the future, when you seek admission to one or more state bars, you will be required to respond to similar conduct questions. For this reason, please pay careful attention to provide detailed, complete and accurate responses both on this application, as well as in response to similar questions that are posed to you in the future. Failure to provide complete, accurate and consistent responses, or to omit information that is requested, can cause serious problems for you when you are seeking bar admission.
1. Have you ever been subject to verbal or written discipline (informal or formal, and of any type, such as but not limited to warning, reprimand, suspension, dismissal, and/or detrimental impact to any benefit/privilege) for scholastic or other reasons in any of the colleges, universities, graduate or professional schools you have attended (including organizations you have participated in at these institutions), or by any employer?
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Have you ever been cited for, charged with, taken into custody for, arrested for, indicted for, tried for, pled guilty to, or convicted of, the violation of any law, excluding minor traffic or parking violations? Note: incidents involving alcohol or drug possession, driving while intoxicated or impaired, damage to property, injury to person(s), driving without insurance, leaving the scene of an accident, driving on a suspended license, and/or reckless driving are NOT considered minor offenses for the purposes of this section and should be disclosed here. This question does NOT require you to disclose information concerning any arrest or criminal charge that has been expunged at the time you submit this application. This question does NOT require you to disclose incidents that were the subject of a juvenile delinquency or youthful offender proceeding.
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Have you ever been party to a civil lawsuit?
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Are you aware of any charges, discipline and/or accusations pending or expected to be brought against you of any kind that would satisfy any of the foregoing character & fitness-related questions?
This section is optional.
If you would like UVA Law to consider GRE General Test scores, GMAT scores, or both, please attach copies of all such score reports here. These score reports should show the test scores attained as well as the corresponding percentile rank of those scores. While PDFs of your score reports are helpful aids to our Admissions Committee members, they are not a substitute for the official score reports sent directly to UVA Law by ETS and/or GMAC. You must also direct ETS and/or GMAC to send official score reports directly to UVA Law.
JD PROGRAM (First-Year Entry) Application Instructions
We begin accepting applications for the JD program on Monday, September 1, 2025. Applying on or before our March 1, 2026 priority deadline guarantees that we will issue an admissions decision no later than April 10, 2026. If you wish to apply under our Binding Expedited Decision option, we must receive all components of your application by 5:00 p.m. ET on March 1, 2026. Any Binding Expedited Decision applications completed after 5:00 p.m. ET on March 1 will be treated as Regular Decision applications. We will review all Regular Decision applications received after March 1, but we do not guarantee an admissions decision by April 10. All components of the application should be written in your own words, without the use of artificial intelligence tools.
University of Virginia School of Law Admissions Process
The admissions process at the University of Virginia School of Law is designed to build an extraordinary community of students who will thrive in a collegial and academically rigorous environment and go on to become responsible leaders, public servants, and successful members of the legal profession. To that end, we seek an entering class of forward-thinking students who exemplify the qualities of resilience, integrity, empathy, diligence, maturity, and the ability to engage across differences.
At the most basic level, our goal is to understand each applicant as a person, and to evaluate the unique path that led them to apply to UVA. Our evaluation criteria are holistic and necessarily assess all components of the application. We consider intellectual aptitude and academic achievement, as well as individual life experiences, obstacles overcome, contributions through service and leadership, a unique worldview, demonstrations of strength of character, the nature and quality of any work experience, military service, and an applicant's potential to contribute to and succeed at UVA Law.
Understanding each story will enable us to offer admission to students who will thrive at UVA Law and who will contribute to the experience of those around them. We are committed to welcoming, in the words of our University mission statement, "talented students from all walks of life," and will continue to do our best to be a welcoming and inclusive community--one that values the unique gifts of our students and, above all, cares for them as individuals.
We do not consider an applicant's race, financial need, or family history with UVA as part of the admissions decision.
How Applications Are Reviewed
We assess each applicant as an individual in accordance with the University of Virginia School of Law admissions process and LSAC's Statement of Good Admissions Practices. This assessment considers not only standardized test scores and undergraduate grades, but also the strength of an applicant's undergraduate or graduate curriculum, trends in grades, the maturing effect of experiences since college, the nature and quality of any work experience, significant achievement in extracurricular activities in college, service in the military, contributions to campus or community through service and leadership, and personal qualities displayed. An applicant's experiences surmounting economic, social, or educational difficulties with grace and courage, demonstrating the capacity to grow in response to challenge, and showing compassion for the welfare of others can all play a role in the admissions decision.
Race is not a factor in the admissions decision. Neither is an applicant's family history with UVA. Information related to an applicant's race or ethnicity is collected for state and federal reporting requirements. Application readers do not have access to reports or individual or collective class data that includes race, ethnicity, or family ties to UVA.
Financial need is not a factor in the admissions decision. If you wish to be considered for loans or scholarships, including Unsubsidized Student Loans, you must complete the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA), designating the University of Virginia as a recipient of your need analysis report. See www.law.virginia.edu/financialaid for more information.
Admissions decisions are made on a rolling basis. After confirmation of application completion and processing, each file undergoes multiple phases of holistic review. Select applicants will be invited to interview with a member of our admissions committee and notified of their decision shortly thereafter. All interviews are initiated by the Office of Admissions; applicants may not request an interview. Please note that our team manually processes each application and may experience delays during high-volume times. We make every effort to notify applicants of their admissions decision within a reasonable timeframe. The release of decisions is subject to many factors, and delays in decisions do not necessarily reflect negatively on the applicant. We appreciate your patience in this process.
BINDING EXPEDITED DECISION OPTION
If you wish to apply under the Binding Expedited Decision option, you must follow the requirements of the Regular Decision option (below) AND go to the "Binding Decision Option" tab in the e-application and click the box acknowledging agreement with the terms of the Binding Expedited Decision option. Binding Expedited Decision applicants will be notified of their decision within 21 business days of the date we receive all necessary components of the application (including the residency determination for those applicants claiming in-state educational privileges). Applicants admitted through the Binding Expedited Decision option are eligible for both loans and scholarships just like applicants admitted through the Regular Decision option. Please note that most applicants admitted to UVA Law will receive their admissions decision well before they receive any financial aid information. As a result, the Binding Expedited Decision option is best suited only to individuals who are sure that UVA Law is their top choice and who are also prepared to begin law school at UVA in August 2026, regardless of what their financial aid awards may be.
If you wish to apply under the Binding Expedited Decision option, we must receive all components of your application by 5:00 p.m. ET on March 1, 2026. All applications submitted or completed after the March 1 priority deadline will be reviewed as Regular Decision applications.
REGULAR DECISION OPTION
Applicants should ensure that we have received a completed application by March 1, 2026. In addition to the completed, signed application form, you must submit the following items before your application will be deemed complete and forwarded to the Admissions Committee for review:
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Transcript of prior academic record, submitted through the Credential Assembly Service (CAS); -
A valid Law School Admission Test (LSAT), Graduate Management Admission Test (GMAT), or Graduate Record Examination (GRE) General Test score; -
At least two, but no more than four, letters of recommendation; -
A personal statement and a résumé. Other optional addenda may be submitted as described below; -
$85 application fee; and -
Application for Virginia In-State Educational Privileges, if seeking classification as a resident student.
Please note that it can take several days for an application submitted through the LSAC electronic application service to reach us.
Transcript of Prior Academic Record
You must register with LSAC's Credential Assembly Service (CAS). LSAC will receive your undergraduate and any graduate transcripts, copy them, and forward the transcripts to the law schools to which you apply. Do not send your academic transcripts directly to the UVA Law Admissions Office. For more information about the CAS, go to the LSAC website at www.LSAC.org.
Standardized Test Scores
You must submit a score from one of the following approved standardized tests:
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The LSAT; -
The GMAT; or -
The GRE General Test.
The standardized test score or scores that you submit must have been earned on or after June 1, 2020 and must meet any other validity or timing requirements set out by the organization that administers that particular test. See www.lsac.org, www.mba.com, and/or www.ets.org/gre for more information about the three accepted standardized tests and the organizations' score reporting policies.
Because LSAC provides the Credential Assembly Service, any and all LSAT scores you may have earned within the past five years will be reported on the CAS report. If you choose to submit GRE General Test and/or GMAT scores in lieu of or in addition to an LSAT score, we require you to submit all scores that you have earned on that test within the past five years. As an example, Applicant A has taken the LSAT once and the GMAT twice within the past five years. Applicant A's LSAT score will automatically appear on her CAS report; if she chooses to report her GMAT scores as well, Applicant A must direct both GMAT scores to UVA Law. As another example, Applicant B has taken the GRE General Test three times in the past five years but has not taken the LSAT. Applicant B must direct all three GRE scores to UVA Law.
Applicants who submit GRE or GMAT scores must: (1) request that all scores be sent directly to UVA Law; and (2) attach copies of all score reports to their applications. The attached score reports should show both the raw scores attained and the percentile rank of those scores. While the GRE and/or GMAT score reports you attach to your application are a helpful aid to our Admissions Committee members, they are not a substitute for the official score reports sent directly to UVA Law by ETS and/or GMAC. If you are applying with only GRE and/or GMAT scores, we will not consider your application to be complete until we receive your official score reports from ETS and/or GMAC.
UVA Law's school code for GRE score reports is 4266. Please note that this code differs from ETS's code for the University of Virginia. Be sure to use UVA Law's school code - 4266 - when sending your GRE score to UVA Law. Applicants who wish to direct GMAT scores to the law school can search for UVA Law by name.
Letters of Recommendation
You must provide at least two letters of recommendation. We accept no more than four recommendation letters. Recommenders should evaluate your potential as a law student, so letters from members of your college or graduate school faculty who can discuss your academic performance are particularly helpful. If you have been out of school for several years and have difficulty securing an academic reference, you may substitute letters from employers or others who have worked closely with you. In any event, letters should address the skills necessary for rigorous, advanced academic work: the ability to read complex textual material closely, to analyze it carefully, and to present reasoned conclusions in writing and orally; maturity; self-discipline; commitment; and professionalism.
UVA Law requires applicants to submit letters through the LSAC Letter of Recommendation service. This service is included with your CAS registration. Letters submitted through the LSAC service are copied and sent to us along with your CAS Law School Report and can be read online immediately. Updated reports are sent immediately if letters are received after your initial CAS Law School Report has been sent. To use this service, follow the instructions on the LSAC website.
Personal Statement (suggested page limit: two pages double-spaced in 12pt font)
Please tell us how your background, perspective, or life experience(s) have led you to pursue law school and/or how they have influenced what you hope to achieve through your legal education.
Why UVA Law (optional) (suggested page limit: two pages double-spaced in 12pt font)
If you have specific reasons for wanting to attend UVA Law that are not discussed elsewhere in your application, you are welcome to address those here. Please note this question is optional.
Optional Addenda
Should you wish to address other topics, the "Optional Addenda" section can be used to address as many topics as you wish. If multiple topics will be addressed, we prefer that you separate topics and upload each as separately (and descriptively) labeled.
Please do not upload academic projects, publications, or other examples of previous work.
Application Fee
Unless the application fee has been waived, all applicants are required to pay the $85 application fee using a credit card through the LSAC secure server. Follow the instructions on the LSAC website. If you received a waiver for the LSAT or LSDAS fees from the Law School Admission Council, you automatically qualify for an application fee waiver from UVA Law. When you apply electronically through LSAC, the waiver will apply automatically.
Applicants serving in an established public service commitment such as Teach for America, the Peace Corps, Americorps/VISTA, CityYear, or in a Truman Public Service Fellowship, will have the application fee waived. E-mail us at admissions@law.virginia.edu for a fee waiver.
We are happy to waive the application fee for any applicant for whom payment of the fee will prevent them from applying or would pose a hardship. E-mail us at admissions@law.virginia.edu for a fee waiver.
We cannot under any circumstances refund a fee already paid via LSAC.
Application for Virginia In-State Educational Privileges
If you are claiming entitlement to in-state educational privileges, you must submit the appropriate residency application with your application for admission. Failure to submit the application, or to supply any supplemental information that may be requested by the Office of Virginia Status, may delay consideration of your application or result in your classification as a nonresident candidate.
For further information concerning Virginia residency status, see Virginia Residency.
Application Information for International or Foreign-Educated Students
Transcripts of postsecondary work completed at a college or university outside the United States or Canada must be submitted through the LSAC Credential Assembly Service (CAS). The one exception to this requirement is for work completed outside the United States or Canada through a study abroad, consortium or exchange program sponsored by a US or Canadian institution, where the work is clearly indicated as such on the home campus transcript. An International Credential Evaluation will be completed by the American Association of Collegiate Registrars and Admissions Officers and incorporated into your CAS report.
We do not require TOEFL scores from JD applicants. However, applicants should be aware that competency in English is critical to success in the study of law at the University of Virginia, and that demonstrated fluency in English is an important consideration in evaluating applications. Should you choose to submit a TOEFL score, you must contact the Educational Testing Service (ETS) and request that your TOEFL score be sent to LSAC. LSAC's TOEFL code for the CAS is 0058. Your score will be included in the International Credential Evaluation document that will be included in your CAS Law School Report.
Questions about the Credential Assembly Service can be directed to LSAC at (215) 968-1001, or LSACinfo@LSAC.org.
Importance of Full Disclosure and Continued Good Conduct
Lawyers are held to high ethical standards. Failure to disclose an act or event is often more significant, and can lead to more serious consequences, than the act or event itself. Once the application has been submitted, you have a continuing duty to maintain high standards of academic, professional, and personal conduct, in addition to a continuing duty to inform the Admissions Office of any changes to the information in the application, or of any new information without which the application as previously submitted would be inaccurate or incomplete. Your duty to inform the Admissions Office of any changes continues until the time you receive a final admissions decision and, if admitted, until the time you matriculate as a student at the University of Virginia School of Law.
False, misleading, or incomplete answers or statements made in this application, or in any materials submitted to the Admissions Office, the Financial Aid Office, or any administrative unit of the University of Virginia could constitute a basis for denial of admission, rescission of an offer of admission, or denial of admission to the practice of law. Such actions also may be reported to the Law School Admission Council for investigation of misconduct in the admissions process.
The Admissions Committee, through the Office of Admissions, reserves the right to impose any reasonable sanctions on applicants who are found to have violated continued standards of good conduct--including, but not limited to, denial of admission or rescission of an offer of admission.
ABA Standard 504 Statement
In addition to a bar examination, there are character, fitness, and other qualifications for admission to the bar in every US jurisdiction. Applicants are encouraged to determine the requirements for any jurisdiction in which they intend to seek admission by contacting the jurisdiction. Addresses for all relevant agencies are available through the National Conference of Bar Examiners.
Students with Disabilities
Disability status is not a factor in the admissions decision. Prospective students who have questions concerning accommodations for physical disabilities, cognitive disabilities, or other disabling conditions should contact the Office of Student Affairs at studentaffairs@law.virginia.edu or (434) 924-3737. All information will be confidential except to the extent necessary to make accommodations.
Contact Us:
admissions@law.virginia.edu
www.law.virginia.edu/admissions
Phone: (434) 924-7351
FAX: (434) 982-2128
580 Massie Road
Charlottesville, VA 22903-1738
What's actually different about UVA's application
Ethan Madore
- They want 12-point font and have a strict 2-page personal statement limit. If you’ve written your PS in 11-point font (accepted by Harvard, Columbia, and others) you might need to cut a bit for the length requirements. Yale will want the same version as UVA.
- They have a DS prompt, but instead of attaching an essay, you write it directly on the application form. It’s cramped and you can’t do paragraph breaks, so more direct, short answers are more impactful. UVA’s prompt lists several traits they’re looking for, and you should name at least one of them in your reply (e.g. ‘resilience.’) This will require cutting and reshaping.
- You should write a Why UVA. In our data, this is the school where Why X essays make the biggest difference.
- There are a few other fairly low-stakes responses on the application asking you to list major responsibilities, hobbies, and where you want to practice. We recommend doing these—each response is just a few sentences long.