by our College Data Analytics Team
It’s not easy to decide which college to attend when there so many options available for students. College Factual has developed its “Schools Highly Focused on Legal Research Major in the Southeast Region” ranking as one item you can use to help make this decision.
Legal Research is the 114th most popular major in the country with 12,336 degrees awarded in 2021-2022. In , legal research graduates who were awarded their degree in , earned an average of $66,544 and had an average of $65,720 in loans still to pay off.
Across the Southeast region, there were 1,480 legal research graduates with average earnings and debt of $64,135 and $43,444 respectively.
This year’s “Schools Highly Focused on Legal Research Major in the Southeast Region” ranking analyzed 30 colleges that offered a degree in legal research. The colleges and universities that top this list are recognized because their legal research program is one of the largest majors offered at the school.
See our ranking methodology to learn more.
Since picking the right college can be one of the most important decisions of your life, we’ve developed the “Schools Highly Focused on Legal Research Major in the Southeast Region” ranking, along with many other major-related rankings, to help you make that decision.
To further help you make the college decision, we’ve developed a unique tool called College Combat that allows you to compare schools based on the factors that matter the most to you. Test it out when you get a chance! You may also want to bookmark the link and share it with others who are trying to make the college decision.
The colleges and universities below are the best for southeast region legal research students.
Out of the 30 schools in the Schools Highly Focused on Legal Research Major in the Southeast Region that were part of this year’s ranking, Florida Memorial University landed the #1 spot on the list. Florida Memorial University is a private not-for-profit institution located in Miami Gardens, Florida. The school has a small population, and it awarded 26 ’s degrees in 2021-2022.
Read more about Legal Research at Florida Memorial University
You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend Wake Forest University. The school came in at #2 for the Schools Highly Focused on Legal Research Major in the Southeast Region. This medium-sized school is located in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, and it awarded 78 ’s legal research degrees in 2021-2022.
With a undergrad student-to-faculty ratio of 10 to 1, it’s easy to see that the school is committed to helping their undergraduates succeed. With a freshman retention rate of 94%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students. The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 0.3%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
Out of the 30 schools in the Schools Highly Focused on Legal Research Major in the Southeast Region that were part of this year’s ranking, St. Thomas University landed the #3 spot on the list. STU is located in Miami Gardens, Florida and, has a medium-sized student population. In 2021-2022, this school awarded 33 ’s legal research degrees to qualified students.
Since the school has a undergrad student-to-faculty ratio of 10 to 1, those pursuing a degree will have more opportunities to interact with their professors. The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 1.3%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Out of the 30 schools in the Schools Highly Focused on Legal Research Major in the Southeast Region that were part of this year’s ranking, Loyola University New Orleans landed the #4 spot on the list. Loyola New Orleans is a private not-for-profit institution located in New Orleans, Louisiana. The school has a small population, and it awarded 12 ’s degrees in 2021-2022.
The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 2.8%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Read more about Legal Research at Loyola University New Orleans
Out of the 30 schools in the Schools Highly Focused on Legal Research Major in the Southeast Region that were part of this year’s ranking, University of Miami landed the #5 spot on the list. University of Miami is a fairly large private not-for-profit school situated in Coral Gables, Florida. It awarded 144 ’s legal research degrees in 2021-2022.
With a freshman retention rate of 93%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students. The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 0.6%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
With a ranking of #6, James Madison University did quite well on the 2023 Schools Highly Focused on Legal Research Major in the Southeast Region list. James Madison University is a large public school situated in Harrisonburg, Virginia. It awarded 80 ’s legal research degrees in 2021-2022.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 0.8%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%. With a freshman retention rate of 91%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students.
Stetson University did quite well in the 2023 Schools Highly Focused on Legal Research Major in the Southeast Region ranking, coming in at #7. Stetson University is a private not-for-profit institution located in DeLand, Florida. The school has a small population, and it awarded 22 ’s degrees in 2021-2022.
The low undergrad student loan default rate of 1.0% is a good sign that students have an easier time paying off their loans than they might at other schools. For comparison, the national default rate is 10.1%.
Emory University ranked #8 on this year’s Schools Highly Focused on Legal Research Major in the Southeast Region list. Emory University is a fairly large private not-for-profit school situated in Atlanta, Georgia. It awarded 58 ’s legal research degrees in 2021-2022.
With a freshman retention rate of 95%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students. The undergraduate student-to-faculty ratio of 9 to 1 is a sign that students will have more opportunities to engage with their professors one-on-one. The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 0.4%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
With a ranking of #9, Samford University did quite well on the 2023 Schools Highly Focused on Legal Research Major in the Southeast Region list. Samford University is a private not-for-profit institution located in Birmingham, Alabama. The school has a medium-sized population, and it awarded 33 ’s degrees in 2021-2022.
With a freshman retention rate of 89%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students. The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 0.9%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Nova Southeastern University landed the #10 spot on the 2023 Schools Highly Focused on Legal Research Major in the Southeast Region ranking. This large school is located in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, and it awarded 72 ’s legal research degrees in 2021-2022.
The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 0.6%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Florida State University landed the #11 spot on the 2023 Schools Highly Focused on Legal Research Major in the Southeast Region ranking. Tallahassee, Florida is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out ’s legal research degrees to 186 students in 2021-2022.
Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 94%. The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 1.0%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Duke University landed the #12 spot on the 2023 Schools Highly Focused on Legal Research Major in the Southeast Region ranking. Duke is a fairly large private not-for-profit school situated in Durham, North Carolina. It awarded 138 ’s legal research degrees in 2021-2022.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 0.1%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%. Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 98%. Since the school has a undergrad student-to-faculty ratio of 6 to 1, those pursuing a degree will have more opportunities to interact with their professors.
University of Florida ranked #13 on this year’s Schools Highly Focused on Legal Research Major in the Southeast Region list. Gainesville, Florida is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out ’s legal research degrees to 95 students in 2021-2022.
The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 97%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year. The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 0.9%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
George Mason University landed the #14 spot on the 2023 Schools Highly Focused on Legal Research Major in the Southeast Region ranking. GMU is located in Fairfax, Virginia and, has a large student population. In 2021-2022, this school awarded 46 ’s legal research degrees to qualified students.
The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 0.8%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Liberty University landed the #15 spot on the 2023 Schools Highly Focused on Legal Research Major in the Southeast Region ranking. Lynchburg, Virginia is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The private not-for-profit school handed out ’s legal research degrees to 179 students in 2021-2022.
The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 2.0%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
The University of Alabama ranked #16 on this year’s Schools Highly Focused on Legal Research Major in the Southeast Region list. UA is a large school located in Tuscaloosa, Alabama that handed out 30 ’s legal research degrees in 2021-2022.
The low undergrad student loan default rate of 1.2% is a good sign that students have an easier time paying off their loans than they might at other schools. For comparison, the national default rate is 10.1%. With a freshman retention rate of 89%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students.
With a ranking of #17, University of Richmond did quite well on the 2023 Schools Highly Focused on Legal Research Major in the Southeast Region list. University of Richmond is located in University of Richmond, Virginia and, has a small student population. In 2021-2022, this school awarded 1 ’s legal research degrees to qualified students.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 0.8%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%. With a freshman retention rate of 92%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students. The undergraduate student-to-faculty ratio of 8 to 1 is a sign that students will have more opportunities to engage with their professors one-on-one.
Tulane University of Louisiana came in at #18 in this year’s edition of the Schools Highly Focused on Legal Research Major in the Southeast Region ranking. Tulane University of Louisiana is a private not-for-profit institution located in New Orleans, Louisiana. The school has a fairly large population, and it awarded 22 ’s degrees in 2021-2022.
Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 94%. The impressive undergraduate student-to-faculty ratio of 8 to 1 means that students may have more opportunities to work more closely with their professors than they would at other schools. The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 1.3%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
With a ranking of #19, Georgia State University did quite well on the 2023 Schools Highly Focused on Legal Research Major in the Southeast Region list. Georgia State University is a public institution located in Atlanta, Georgia. The school has a large population, and it awarded 18 ’s degrees in 2021-2022.
The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 2.3%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Read full report on Legal Research at Georgia State University
Florida International University came in at #20 in this year’s edition of the Schools Highly Focused on Legal Research Major in the Southeast Region ranking. Located in Miami, Florida, this large public school handed out 39 diplomas to qualified ’s legal research students in 2021-2022.
Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 90%. The low undergrad student loan default rate of 2.0% is a good sign that students have an easier time paying off their loans than they might at other schools. For comparison, the national default rate is 10.1%.
Read full report on Legal Research at Florida International University
University of Georgia came in at #21 in this year’s edition of the Schools Highly Focused on Legal Research Major in the Southeast Region ranking. UGA is a public institution located in Athens, Georgia. The school has a large population, and it awarded 25 ’s degrees in 2021-2022.
Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 95%. The low undergrad student loan default rate of 0.8% is a good sign that students have an easier time paying off their loans than they might at other schools. For comparison, the national default rate is 10.1%.
University of Virginia - Main Campus came in at #22 in this year’s edition of the Schools Highly Focused on Legal Research Major in the Southeast Region ranking. This large school is located in Charlottesville, Virginia, and it awarded 43 ’s legal research degrees in 2021-2022.
The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 97%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year. The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 0.5%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Vanderbilt University landed the #23 spot on the 2023 Schools Highly Focused on Legal Research Major in the Southeast Region ranking. This fairly large school is located in Nashville, Tennessee, and it awarded 55 ’s legal research degrees in 2021-2022.
The impressive undergraduate student-to-faculty ratio of 8 to 1 means that students may have more opportunities to work more closely with their professors than they would at other schools. The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 97%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year. The low undergrad student loan default rate of 0.5% is a good sign that students have an easier time paying off their loans than they might at other schools. For comparison, the national default rate is 10.1%.
Mississippi College did quite well in the 2023 Schools Highly Focused on Legal Research Major in the Southeast Region ranking, coming in at #24. Mississippi College is a private not-for-profit institution located in Clinton, Mississippi. The school has a small population, and it awarded 0 ’s degrees in 2021-2022.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 1.0%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
University of Mississippi came in at #25 in this year’s edition of the Schools Highly Focused on Legal Research Major in the Southeast Region ranking. This large school is located in University, Mississippi, and it awarded 7 ’s legal research degrees in 2021-2022.
The low undergrad student loan default rate of 2.2% is a good sign that students have an easier time paying off their loans than they might at other schools. For comparison, the national default rate is 10.1%. With a freshman retention rate of 88%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students.
Read more about our data sources and methodologies