By Gwyneth K. Shaw
Samuel Kippen’s Berkeley Law career just started, but he’s already deeply impressed.
“Berkeley Law is living up to its academic reputation. The faculty are experts and their courses have wasted no time getting into the thick of the material. The student body is intelligent, capable, and hardworking,” he says. “If the next three years are like the past week, law school will be a challenging and illuminating experience.”
Kippen and his 364 1L J.D. classmates are just as stellar as the school: Once again, they’re the strongest cohort since the Admissions Office began keeping track, boasting a median GPA of 3.93 and a median LSAT score of 171.
The Class of 2029 hails from 35 states and 11 countries, with students coming from 113 undergraduate institutions. Fifty-five percent are students of color, 59% are women, 33% identify as LGBTQIA+, and 14% are the first in their family to receive a college degree.
The most common majors for the new 1Ls were political science, economics, international relations, history, and psychology, and 11% of them already have an advanced degree. Seven students served in the military. The class ranges in age from 20 to 39, with 8% over 30.
More details are available on the school’s entering class profile page.
“It is wonderful to welcome our terrific 1L class to Berkeley Law,” Dean Erwin Chemerinsky says. “They have superb credentials and bring a wealth of different kinds of experience to law school. Already their professors are commenting that the Class of 2029 is truly extraordinary.”
In addition, Berkeley Law’s LL.M. Program continues to attract a broad range of students: Between the LL.M. executive track, which is completed through either two online and one in-person summer semester or two summers, and the LL.M. traditional track, which involves nine months in person, students earned their first law degree in 43 countries. They also come from a wide variety of professional backgrounds, from TikTok to Tools for Humanity.
Prepared and proactive
Kippen, who hails from Hawai‘i and is a Berkeley Law Public Interest Scholar, says it’s been easy to settle in with the strong group.
“My classmates are open-minded, friendly, and eager to help one another,” he says. “There is already a strong sense of camaraderie among members of the 1L class.”
Anna Gorman has also found the transition into law school smooth, thanks to the well-planned matrix of orientation and events to help new students jump into the academic, experiential, and social community.
“Everyone has been so welcoming and excited to hit the ground running. There are so many opportunities to get involved and the school has been so proactive in helping us find the activities that are the best fit for us,” she says. “I’ve really enjoyed getting to know my classmates — it’s been so special to be surrounded by such passionate, caring people.”
1L students took the Oath of Professionalism from U.S. District Judge Trina Thompson ’86. They’ve been introduced to Berkeley Law’s strong Pro Bono Program, which hosts more than 40 Student-Initiated Legal Services Projects offering students the chance to get hands-on experience in their first semester, and the Clinical Program, which has bolstered its offerings for first-year students in recent years.
They’ve learned about social justice and public interest opportunities through the Thelton E. Henderson Center for Social Justice and met representatives from Berkeley Law’s robust roster of student organizations as well as its 13 student-run journals. The CDO has already given them a chance to start exploring career options, through its Coffee Chat Series with a diverse range of legal employers.
And, of course, they’ve hit the books, connecting with the foundations of the law and Berkeley Law’s expert faculty. It’s a lot, 1L Brian Seiter says, but it’s also exhilarating.
“Dean Chemerinsky told us ‘this week will feel like the longest month of your lives,’ and he was right. But in spite of all the readings, I’ve had a wonderful time over the past week,” he says.
“How long the week has felt is definitely partly because of the work, but it’s also due to being surrounded by new people and new places which has been a really reinvigorating feeling for me.
“Everyone has been interesting. It’s been great meeting people with Ph.D.s, people with young kids and/or cool dogs, and people coming straight from college that have all a common interest in the law and learning at Berkeley.”
Berkeley Law Class of 2029 at a Glance
Berkeley Law’s Class of 2029 is the strongest incoming J.D. class since the school began tracking its academic credentials.
- 365 J.D. students
- 3.93 median undergraduate GPA
- 171 median LSAT score
- 113 undergraduate institutions represented
- 35 states and 11 countries represented
- 55% students of color
- 59% women
- 33% identify as LGBTQIA+
- 14% first-generation college graduates
- 11% hold an advanced degree
- 20–39 age range