The rankings make a lot of sense to me. It seemed as though BC was greatly underappreciated. I also predicted Notre Dame would make a leap, although I didn't think it would be so huge.
I don't know how Emory can hold onto its position still. IMO Emory and BC should change positions.
One of the more surprising things I noticed was that Syracuse edged its way back into the top 100. Go figure?
why? objective data, or just personal opinion? Emory has a higher peer assessment, LSAT 75th percentile, better student/faculty ratio, and similar employment/bar passage numbers. BC probably has a more longstanding national reputation, but as far as i can tell, that's the only area where it really edges Emory out.
i know there are others who have posted similar things, but i just don't see how these tiny year-to-year shifts are meaningful in any way. do you really think that BU being edged out by GW or BC being a few spots behind Emory matters at all in the long run? i'm sure no firm adjusts their hiring practices in accordance with minute adjustments in the USNEWS rankings, especially given that the methodology is so opaque and seemingly random. it would seem much more likely that employers have a good idea which schools are T6 (hls, yale, stanford, etc.), lower T14 (duke, cornell, NW, gtown, etc.), T25 (BU, Emory, ND, BC, GW, etc.) and whatever else, and that their opinions don't fluctuate too much with the year-to-year rankings.
although i jumped when i saw the rankings were released, i really hate how everyone is getting worked up about them--US news loves to freak everyone out by moving some schools two or three spots up or down, and it helps them generate attention and sell magazines, but they never do anything meaningful. i think the main reason people on here get so emotionally invested in these rankings is because everyone is so prestige-driven. don't get me wrong--i don't think that's necessarily a good or bad thing--but in the competitive world of law students, everyone is looking for something to feed their ego, and are thrilled if they gain a few spots over rival schools and students, even if it's just on paper.