HLS Facts and Figures

Faculty

  • Student to Faculty Ratio 7:1
  • Full-time Faculty 119
  • Lecturers on Law 150+

Curriculum and Advising

  • What to Expect from the Educational Experience at HLS

    Harvard Law School provides a lively, full-time, in-person rigorous educational environment. For generations, its teachers have taken instruction and pedagogy very seriously. Learn more about what the HLS faculty expect of our students.

  • First-Year Curriculum

    First-year students are divided into seven sections of approximately 80 students each with a faculty leader to create a sense of community.

    The required first-year curriculum is made up of: 

    • Civil Procedure
    • Constitutional Law
    • Contracts
    • Criminal Law
    • January Experiential Term
    • Legal Research and Writing
    • Legislation and Regulation
    • Property
    • Torts
    • Upper-level Elective during Spring term

    More than 40 not-for-credit 1L reading groups led by faculty members. 

  • Upper-Level Curriculum

    The upper-level curriculum has 550+ courses, clinics, reading groups, seminars, and writing groups.

    J.D. degree requirements include:

    Experiential learning

    • Experiential learning
    • International and Comparative Law Course
    • Negotiation/Leadership
    • J.D. Written Work
      • Analytical Paper
      • Professional Writing
    • Professional Responsibility
    • 50 hours of Pro Bono

    More than 250 courses and seminars with 25 or fewer students

  • Cross-Registration

    Ninety-seven J.D. students cross-registered for at least one course in the 2025–2026 school year.

    J.D. students may count up to 12 cross-registration credits toward their J.D. HLS students are permitted to cross-register at any school within Harvard University (except the Extension School), as well as MIT, and the Fletcher School at Tufts University.

  • Joint Degree and Special Programs

    Students interested in combining legal education with advanced training in a field not covered by one of HLS’ joint/coordinated degree programs can seek to combine their J.D. program with another graduate degree program. Examples of programs pursued by past students:

    • J.D./M.T.S. or M.Div. (Harvard Divinity School)
    • J.D./M.A.I.A. (Fletcher School at Tufts University)
    • J.D./M.P.A. (Princeton University)
    • J.D./M.S. (Carnegie Mellon University)
    • J.D./Ph.D. (Columbia University)

Public Service

  • The Bernard Koteen Office of Public Interest Advising (OPIA) is dedicated to supporting and encouraging law students and lawyers to incorporate an ongoing commitment to public service work throughout their careers
  • HLS students are required to serve 50 pro bono hours before graduation. The average HLS student in the 2025–2026 academic year served 630 pro bono hours
  • Up to $1.1M in grant awards is available to graduating students pursuing careers in public service through the Public Service Venture Fund
  • Almost 55% of 1Ls received Summer Public Interest Funding (SPIF) during the summer of 2025

Real-World Experience

  • Hours of pro bono legal services since 2005 7.5M
  • Clinical placement areas of law 35+
  • Class of 2026 students who participated in clinics 93%

Clinics, Pro Bono and Student Practice Organizations

Panelist speaking

Research Programs and Centers

Harvard Law School’s research programs and centers produce cutting-edge work in a wide range of fields and disciplines while providing students with valuable research and clinical opportunities and the chance to work directly with faculty members on projects at the cores of their scholarly agendas.

Research Programs & Centers

Student Life

Student Orgs and Journals

International

Each year, hundreds of Harvard Law School students bring their talents and energy into the world

  • Over 100 courses and reading groups in international, foreign, or comparative law
  • One comparative or international law course is required
  • More than 30 clinics, student organizations, and journals have an international focus
  • More than 160 HLS students travel to 50+ countries for courses, clinics, research projects, and fieldwork in a typical year
  • HLS has study abroad agreements with 10 universities across 9 countries
  • 8,100+ alumni live and work outside of the United States

Career Outcomes

  • 97.5% of Class of 2023 graduates were employed at 10 months
  • In the past decade, 600+ students have secured public interest fellowships immediately after graduation or after a clerkship
  • More than 400 private sector employers participate in the HLS Early Interview Program
  • 250+ HLS alumni serve as law clerks on federal and state courts each year
  • 20% of clerks at the Supreme Court in the past five years have been HLS graduates
  • 680+ CEOs/Chief Executives are HLS graduates

Financial Aid

  • Roughly 60% of J.D. students receive financial aid
  • 31 % of students receive need-based grants
  • Summer Public Interest Funding (SPIF) provides guaranteed stipends for summer work
  • Roughly 10% of J.D. students participate in the Low Income Protection Plan (LIPP) immediately following graduation
  • Loan options are available so all students can finance their three years at HLS

J.D. Admissions

Graduate Program Admissions