Newbie question: Where do I found out what tier my school is in?

[jetcat33]

There are different tier schools. I get that. Is there an official listing of what schools belong to what tier? Before you ask me why I don't know what tier my school is in (yes, it's an important consideration), let me explain that I am at the University for another degree - the law degree is part of a dual-degree program.

Also, I see people talking about t4, t1, etc. In that sense they mean "tier" 4, etc.
In other situations, people use "t" to mean "top" i.e "top 4."
What's the official (if there is one) way of denoting "top" and "tier"?

jetcat33

 

These arent' life-defining questions, but I'd still be interested to know.

[jd2b06]

Here is where you find the rankings:

http://www.usnews.com/usnews/edu/grad/rankings/law/lawindex_brief.php

[Highway]

Also, I see people talking about t4, t1, etc. In that sense they mean "tier" 4, etc.
In other situations, people use "t" to mean "top" i.e "top 4."
What's the official (if there is one) way of denoting "top" and "tier"?
/quote]

Most people with say T1, T2, T3, or T4 to denote the tier. If you see T14, that is the top 14 schools (Yale, Harvard, Stanford, etc.) They are denoted that way because none of them have ever fallen below rank 14.

[tacojohn]

Also, I see people talking about t4, t1, etc. In that sense they mean "tier" 4, etc.
In other situations, people use "t" to mean "top" i.e "top 4."
What's the official (if there is one) way of denoting "top" and "tier"?

Most people with say T1, T2, T3, or T4 to denote the tier. If you see T14, that is the top 14 schools (Yale, Harvard, Stanford, etc.) They are denoted that way because none of them have ever fallen below rank 14.

They haven't never fallen out of the T14, they've just been in the top 14 spots for a long time.  I think it's around 20 years, either just below or just above, I don't remember for sure.  Texas, Vandy, UCLA, and USC took turns up in the top 14 for a while back in the 70's and 80's.

[jetcat33]

At usnews.com, the tiers are split "Top 100, Tier 3, Tier 4." So where does that leave tier 2? Where does tier 1 stop and tier 2 start?

[Frappe]

At usnews.com, the tiers are split "Top 100, Tier 3, Tier 4." So where does that leave tier 2? Where does tier 1 stop and tier 2 start?

Schools 51-100 are considered tier 2.

[LibertyBell]

I will state the obligatory "don't sweat the tiers" message.  While tiers can matter for particular jobs, it doesn't matter nearly as much as people here think.  And even though it seems like everyone is going to t14 schools, most everyone here is also a liar.  There tons of other things to consider when choosing a law school, don't go by tier alone.