Skipping law school sounds like a great way to save money, but it might actually destroy your career before it starts.
April 15, 2026
Original Paper
Alternative Educational Pathways into the Legal Profession
SSRN · 6560180
The Takeaway
There’s a popular idea that the Bar Association is just an 'old boys' club' trying to keep people out. However, this study found that people who take 'alternative' paths (like apprenticeships) have drastically lower pass rates and significantly worse career outcomes. The quality gap is real: these graduates are not just outsiders, they are demonstrably less prepared for the job and pose a higher risk to the public. It means that gatekeeping might actually be a necessary way to protect you from getting a lawyer who doesn't know what they’re doing. Accreditation is more than just elitism.
From the abstract
Obtaining a law degree from an ABA-approved law school has long been the primary path into the American legal profession. However, some states have alternative educational pathways, including earning a law degree from a non-ABA-approved law school or completing supervised legal study. Using data from 1984 and 2019, we investigate the track record of these alternative pathways into the legal profession. We find that alternative pathways have been available at some point in all but 11 states, rais