The National Jurist, a law student magazine, recently published a poll titled “Best Value Law School,” which named Washburn University 31 in the nation.

According to the magazine, the 65 top-ranking schools were chosen based upon their ability to “carry a low price tag and prepare their students incredibly well for today’s competitive job market.”

The specific criterion used to put rankings on schools began first with in-state tuition prices: the lower the price, the higher on the list. The next measurable standard was the employment rate of each school and the rate of school bar passage. There was a stronger emphasis on employment rate in this year’s poll, because of the state of the economy.

Washburn’s ranking came from its $14,950 in-state tuition, an employment rate of 92.40 percent, and a school bar passage rate of 90 percent, one percent higher than the state bar average.

The No. 1 ranking school was North Carolina Central University School of Law. Their final results consisted of an in-state tuition of $5,707, an employment rate of 87 percent, and school bar passage rate of 86 percent. North Carolina’s state bar average was 78 percent.

In response to this recognition, Thomas J. Romig, Dean of the Law School, said, “Washburn University School of Law provides our students a great legal education at a very reasonable cost. We offer the quality education found in many private law schools, but at a public law school price. Because of the continued generosity of our alumni, we are able to keep costs low.”

Among all the schools ranked, The National Jurist also took into account the presence of clinical programs. At Washburn, students have the opportunity to take part in clinical programs which allow them to participate in an actual law firm, working on real cases, with real clients.

The Washburn Law Clinic offers three clinics in the areas of litigation, appellate and transactional. Within the Litigation Clinic, students can choose from four separate categories of practice: children and family law, criminal defense, state tribal court practice and civil litigation. In the appellate clinic students have the opportunity to write felony criminal appeal briefs under the supervision of a Kansas Appellate Defender. Students can practice small business and transactional law in the Transactional Clinic.

The mission of the Washburn Law Clinic is “to contribute to the education and development of law students into thoughtful, skilled, ethical attorneys by providing them with the opportunity to practice law and represent clients while under the personalized supervision of an experienced faculty attorney.”