Albany Law School

Introduction

Albany Law School is the only law school in the capital of New York State. The location, in the center of state government, provides unprecedented opportunities for internships, field placements, clinical experience, and career advancement. Its faculty is dedicated and accessible. Students have access to New York’s highest court, federal courts, and the state legislature, as well as thriving tech-based businesses.

Academic Experience

Students are challenged by a rigorous academic curriculum where they receive a firm foundation in fundamental areas of law, plus opportunities to shape individual learning to fit their professional interests. First-year students begin to acquire the skills that will become the foundation of a legal career. As part of the innovative Introduction to Lawyering course, students will represent a plaintiff or defendant in a simulated case where they conduct legal research, draft motions and memoranda, and participate in client interviews and negotiations. The class culminates with each student presenting an oral argument before some of the state’s most notable attorneys.

Second- and third-year students can focus their studies in one of several pathways to organize their law school experience. Opportunities include more than 120 field placement internships, many of them in state and federal government positions as well as in law firms and high-tech companies. Students also participate in real-world work through the Government Law Center, Clinic and Justice Center, and study-abroad programs. Some students pursue a joint-degree program with an area graduate school, earning a master’s degree while working toward a Juris Doctor (JD) degree. Each student works with faculty advisors and alumni mentors.

Albany Law and UAlbany

Albany Law School and the University at Albany work together to combine programs and activities to benefit students from both schools. As a small, intimate law school, the collaboration allows the law school to draw on the strengths of a major university.

Real-Life Experience

Albany Law’s legal centers and clinical programs provide the valuable hands-on experience that employers find desirable. Students work alongside committed clinical faculty and practicing attorneys to assist clients with real legal issues relating to health law, domestic violence, taxes, patents, and more. Students also work with prosecutors, judges, and experienced attorneys through the field-placement program, where students choose from 120 structured internships.

Because of the school’s unique location, students interact with leaders in New York state government, including countless Albany Law alumni. In the Government Law Center, students conduct research, contribute to publications, and participate in conferences and special projects that promote the study of the issues facing government, public policy, and public service.

Career Center

From the first week at school, the Career and Professional Development Center helps students develop a career plan and supports them throughout the job search. Professional career counselors help define career goals, craft résumés and cover letters, prepare for interviews, and compare employment offers.

The center is a state-of-the-art facility with multiple interview rooms set aside for professionals to conduct on-campus interviews.

Job fairs, information sessions, workshops, and panel discussions on a variety of employment-related topics occur almost weekly. The center hosts more than 800 interviews each year and conducts off-campus interview programs in metropolitan areas in the Northeast. The alumni are avid supporters of these efforts and participate enthusiastically in center activities.

Graduates find jobs in law firms, government agencies, public interest organizations, and businesses throughout the country. Many Albany Law School graduates work in the New York City metropolitan area, with many alumni in Boston; Washington, DC; and cities across the country.

As the only law school for 90 miles, Albany Law’s job-placement rate is among the best in the state as well as the nation.

Community

The Albany Law School community of approximately 420 students, 35 full-time faculty, and 28 part-time faculty is intimate, collaborative, and supportive. The school welcomes students and faculty with diverse backgrounds and talents, and provides an outstanding environment for the pursuit of scholarship, teaching, and public service.

The small size of the student body fosters an environment that encourages camaraderie and frequent contact between students and faculty. The school is exclusively a law school, with a 11:1 student-faculty ratio.

Campus

Albany Law School shares a 50-acre campus with three other colleges. The law school is a 15-minute walk to downtown Albany, center of the state’s capitol complex.

Albany Law School’s facilities honor its 167-year history, while supporting a 21st-century legal education. The open design of the 53,000-square-foot Schaffer Law Library, a federal depository library, provides an inviting environment with seating for hundreds of students.

The main building of Albany Law School houses contemporary lecture halls, seminar-style classrooms, two modern moot courtrooms, and smart classrooms with wireless Internet access and advanced audio, video, computing, and conferencing systems.

A 45,000-square-foot building built in 2000 houses the Law Clinic and Justice Center, Government Law Center, Career and Professional Development Center, and other administrative offices, as well as several classrooms, including a high-tech distance learning classroom. The new bookstore and student center opened in 2009, along with a new state-of-the-art fitness center.

Student Life

Albany Law School offers dozens of opportunities to participate in student organizations and activities around specific academic, professional, social, cultural, or athletic interests.

Three student-edited journals, the Albany Law Review, the Albany Law Journal of Science and Technology, and the Albany Government Law Review, offer research and writing opportunities.

The nationally recognized Moot Court Program enables students to develop skills and compete against other law schools in trial advocacy, appellate advocacy, client counseling, and negotiating. Student teams often reach the nationals level, and on occasion compete at the international level.

The Capital Region is home to 16 colleges and universities and boasts museums, galleries, restaurants, shops, and theaters, as well as nightclubs for every taste, venues that host professional sporting events, and performing arts centers that attract national acts. The Adirondack, Berkshire, and Catskill Mountains offer skiing, camping, hiking, and water sports, as well as the Saratoga Race Course for thoroughbred and harness racing. Metropolitan centers in New York City, Boston, and Montreal are all within driving distance, and trains run throughout the day to New York City. The major air carriers operate from the Albany International Airport and provide daily nonstop service to most eastern US cities, with connections worldwide.

Admission and Financial Aid

Albany Law School offers grants based on merit ranging from $5,000 to full-tuition scholarships. More than 60 percent of first-year students receive awards that average $18,000 for each academic year.

When evaluating each individual application, the Admissions Committee takes a highly personalized, holistic approach, reviewing LSAT score, undergraduate grade-point average, strength of the undergraduate program, rigor of the undergraduate curriculum, and life experience. The committee seeks to enroll a student body that enriches the educational experience of all of its members. Albany Law School also seeks to provide future members of the bar who reflect the diversity and sensibilities of our society.

Approximately 90 percent of the students qualify for financial aid via federal, state, and private loans, or for part-time employment to assist in meeting educational expenses.

The staff encourages prospective students to visit the campus—meet the faculty, speak with students, and tour the facilities.