Top Twenty Law Schools Based on the Diversity Index

The Diversity Index measures the number of nonwhite males who attend or teach at law schools. Historically, law schools have been the purveyance of the white male establishment. The entry of women into the legal profession has been the most dramatic change in American law schools in this century. In the 30 years from 1964 to 1994, the number of male law students increased by 113 percent. Female law school enrollment jumped by 2,102 percent. Persons of color are also finding a place in today's American law schools. However, this ranking does not differentiate among law schools as to those that are historically black or from a region with large minority populations and those law schools that have a traditionally white student body; therefore, the lists ranking number of minority students/faculty and ratios to total enrollment/total faculty do not indicate the historical or geographical components to the law schools. Historically, there are no law schools that principally enrolled women; therefore, the comparison of number of women and the ratio to total numbers is significant, indicating a school's success in recruiting a nontraditional population.

1. University of California Hastings
2. Santa Clara University
3. Loyola Marymount University
4. University of Maryland
5. Inter-American University
6. American University
7. Howard University
8. City of University of New York
9. Pontifical Catholic University
10. Nova Southeastern University
11. Southwestern University
12. Temple University
13. University of California at Los Angeles
14. Golden Gate University
15. Georgetown University
16. Northeastern University
17. Loyola University New Orleans
18. North Carolina Central
19. University of New Mexico
20. Texas Southern University

Women Percent of Total Enrollment

1. Northwestern University
2. University of New Mexico
3. District of Columbia
4. North Carolina Central
5. City University of New York
6. University of Puerto Rico
7. Stetson University
8. Howard University
9. Suffolk University
10. University of California Hastings

Women Percent of Full-time Faculty

1. City University of New York
2. North Carolina Central
3. Santa Clara University
4. Roger Williams University
5. Brooklyn Law School
6. Mississippi College
7. Pontifical Catholic University
8. Northeastern University
9. Vermont Law School
10. DePaul University, Syracuse University, University of North Dakota, & University of Washington