Duquesne Kline School of Law in top tier of Pennsylvania bar results

Duquesne Kline School of Law ranks together with three other top-performing Pennsylvania law schools—Villanova University Charles Widger School of Law, the University of Pennsylvania Carey Law School and the University of Pittsburgh School of Law—whose first-time passage rates were all clustered within tenths of a percentage point.

Duquesne Kline School of Law routinely surpasses the Pennsylvania state average bar results, but this year’s strong first-time passage rate exceeds the law school’s historically robust success rate. The Duquesne Kline School of Law 2025 bar results significantly outpace the Pennsylvania state overall first-time passage rate average of 82.47%.

“I couldn’t be more thrilled for our law graduates’ outstanding performance on the Bar Exam,” said Duquesne President Ken Gormley, who is a professor and former dean of Duquesne Kline School of Law at the University. “This result—combined with the Law School’s recent Top 50 Ultimate Bar Passage rate ranking by the American Bar Association—highlights the continued success of the school’s stellar bar preparation initiative and the overall rise of the Law School’s national stature.” 

Duquesne Kline School of Law ranks 6th in the nation for preparing its students to pass the bar exam, according to preLaw Magazine. Duquesne Kline School of Law achieved this rank in 2024, assessed among 187 law schools over a five-year period.

“Our outcomes just keep getting better and reinforce our other achievements, from consistently high and nationally ranked employment results to increasing the median GPA and LSAT scores of our incoming students. This is a team effort, with the credit going first and foremost to our recent graduates. They worked diligently and are an extremely impressive group. I am tremendously honored to share in this achievement with them and am eager to watch their additional successes unfold,” said Dean April Barton.

In her role as director of bar studies, Ashley M. London, associate professor of law, prepares and coaches graduates to excel in the bar exam. Joined by a team committed to successful student outcomes, London leads strategic efforts providing the skills, resources, and mentoring to help graduates pass the bar exam on the first attempt.

“A law school’s true measure of success is not only in the legal and ethical knowledge it imparts, but in the confidence with which its graduates cross the threshold of the bar exam,” says London. “Our faculty and staff display deep commitment to our students from the beginning of their law school journeys until the culmination of these efforts on this examination across all jurisdictions.”

This year is the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania’s sixth administration of the Uniform Bar Exam (UBE). Passing the UBE allows individuals to transfer successful scores to become licensed in other jurisdictions.

This success of Duquesne Kline School of Law’s July 2025 bar results will be celebrated at the Pennsylvania Bar Swearing-In Ceremony the law school will host on Friday, Oct. 17. Pennsylvania Supreme Court Justice Christine Donohue, L’80, will officiate the ceremony at the Supreme Court Courtroom of the Allegheny City-County Building in Pittsburgh. 

Duquesne University

Founded in 1878, Duquesne is consistently ranked among the nation's top Catholic universities for its award-winning faculty and horizon-expanding education. A campus of more than 8,200 graduate and undergraduate students, Duquesne prepares students by having them work alongside faculty to discover and reach their goals. The University's academic programs, community service and commitment to equity and opportunity in the Pittsburgh region have earned national acclaim.

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