Known as the top law schools in the country, Tier-1 law schools represent the best law schools available. This includes such as schools as Harvard, Yale, Stanford, the University of California, Berkley-Boalt Hall, Hastings, Dartmouth and Columbia. Because of their popularity and high rankings, some of the schools can be very expensive to attend, assuming one gets accepted. They demand the highest grade history and law school exam score, and competition is fierce. Students also have the highest bar exam passing rates of all tier schools.
Referred to as the bottom of the heap, Tier-4 law schools provide an acceptable law degree that allows a student to take a bar exam in any of the 50 states. However, because the law school itself did not rate as high under the American Bar Association's review, its degree is considered acceptable only. While many graduates of these schools will find jobs as lawyers, they will not be able to compete for positions in prestigious firms very well, and the chance of obtaining clerkships with judges are slim. Such schools tend to be predominantly private universities or colleges, which tend to charge more to attend. However, getting in is easier, since they accept lower entrance exam scores and grade histories.
Graduates from Tier-1 law schools will be recruited by big name law firms. Such graduates also compete heavily for clerkships to add to their early resumes working for a judge (the higher the court level, the better). Those who get into politics will use their school connections to leverage appointments, working in high-profile political positions and eventually considering careers as elected officials.
Because a Tier-4 degree is not going to allow a student access to high-end law in multi-million dollar firms, the school type is better suited for those who interested in being a general litigating lawyer. Government jobs tend to be targeted for graduates' first years of work to gain experience litigating, then eventually striking out as a sole practitioner. In many cases such graduates also eventually form small partnerships to pool resources.