Experts & Views
DISCLAIMER
a)The India Today law school rankings have been a topic of constant debate over the years and for the most part, can be a redundant topic. However, do read on to see what is the best way in which a law school ranking system can be undertaken and who should undertake the same.
b)The views espoused in this post are completely unbiased.
c)Expecting that students from colleges whose names appear in the top 10 list would be dead against criticizing the rankings, I would request objectivity on their part while reading the post so that a better ranking system by the BCI or any like governing body can be suggested.
The famous India Today ‘India’s best colleges’ rankings are back. And yet again, they have delivered according to their expectations. While more NLU’s have made it to the top 10 list this time around, which evidences the fact that a preliminary research to understand the system of the CLAT has been undertaken, the rankings have still been poorly researched and have been compiled according to convenience. Merely interviewing NLSIU and NALSAR Vice Chancellors while mentioning NLU Jodhpur as NLIU, Jodhpur on Rank 8 and bringing GNLU into Rank 9 while making its entrance exam as a separate one, distinct from the CLAT, again raises questions as to why India Today even makes the effort to rank law schools.
The India Today rankings have always been the most awaited college ranking system and on a closer look, it can be observed that apart from Law, other avenues of education are more deeply researched and are better compiled. It is based on a perceptual and factual scoring system which grades colleges on a pre determined scale.
Law has seen a recent surge in terms of awareness, exposure and development and therefore, college rankings have never been more important for a college student in India. But, dependability upon a ranking system has always been questionable.
In the US, the American Bar has almost by custom, made it a point to not participate in law school rankings, at times even stating that ‘these rankings are a misleading and deceptive, profit-generating commercial enterprise that compromises U.S. News and World Report's journalistic integrity." Standard factors considered for the ranking are placement, academic exposure, and selectivity in admission, faculty resources and expenditures. There was even a report (Maccrate Report) by the American Bar Association in 1992 to streamline the education system in 1992 which was met by vehement opposition by the top 14 law colleges appearing in the ranking list.
In the UK, The League Tables of British Universities published by various sources such as the Guardian, the Independent etc. is the most preferred ranking system. This ranking system is much more holistic with reliance not purely on academic/research oriented factors. The factors used to assess universities include not only the quality of research but other factors which are relevant to undergraduate students such as teaching quality, entry standards, drop out rates, student satisfaction and graduate job prospect. Even these rankings have been criticized for the varying weights given to various factors before they are actually published.
Coming back to India, the situation as stated above, suffers from a combination of multiple drawbacks. To begin with, factual errors such as stating the name of a law school incorrectly, speak volumes about how reliable these rankings are, in addition to this, law as a field requires specific criteria to be assessed for grading, Always, a common mode to assess law schools has been through ‘Placement’, and this gets reflected in the ranking as well since perceptual criteria would be based on it. Therefore, most people only look at the placement and how compatible the vice chancellor of the college is with recruiters and the media, completely missing the issue as to whether a student is holistically developed in the environment he is given.
Other factors mentioned are also very abstract and subjective and don’t really indicate the true picture, for instance, student care, exposure and quality of academic input in colleges apart from NUJS, NALSAR or NLSIU would always be questionable since they are older and better equipped, at least as far as general perception goes(subject to correction of course). Therefore, there exists no authenticity on which any of the scores given to a law school for a particular aspect mentioned can be verified. Most students would rely on a magazine ranking to decide where exactly they are heading blinded by rankings which by itself are unsure of what they portray. For instance, University Law College, Bangalore could provide better academic input in terms of the number of guest lectures and legal luminaries who teach students compared to any of the newer NLU’s. Reputation of a college in a law school ranking can be adjusted at will through means most people are aware of but this adjustment of reputation comes at the comforting convenience of a student taking admission into a highly ranked law school even though it does not offer what he may require.
The Bar Council of India has undergone a sea change in terms of the number of reforms it has introduced. The announcement of the Bar Exam was a brilliant move, so was the plagiarism software. A ranking system devised by the Government based on factors determined solely by the Law Ministry to be released on a periodical basis can be the best means to assess the true caliber of law schools. India can be a first in this regard, and it would go a long way in helping students choose the best college according to their convenience and requirement. Not every student looks for a placement, students interested in research could go to a law school which is best suited for research, if the ranking does rank colleges properly in each criteria instead of stating that a college is ranked 5 and randomly puts rank 5 in all categories mentioned. Government approved ranking systems do exist in other fields such as engineering and students taking up courses in Engineering have the dual benefit of being better informed and better equipped; Law too can be a field which can be benefited almost immediately from the same.
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this is blasphemy!!!!!
i hope other newspapers such as mint do better.
this is utterly disgraceful.
No offence to anybody, but guys keeping CLC above NLU, Jodhpur and NUJS. Is such kind of ranking is some joke??
Today for law students and law aspirants ( I mean CLAT aspirant), the major deciding factor is the placement and the resources available in the colleges and if we compare the placement of NLU Jodhpur, NUJS etc. and such other colleges like CLC etc. who even does not have any proper and regular classes also, then we can easily understand how these rankings are been given.
Common PPL instead of believing in fake rankings we can have rankings on the basis of placement and resoruces available.
@Kian, why can't we have some kind of poll on basis of some parametres on Legally India itself.
-NLIU has got a one page advertisement in India Today this time around. Didn't want to bring this up and hurt anyone's sentiments.
-I am not from NLU J. So I have no love lost for it.
I think its time someone came out with a ranking of weeklies and show India today their place.
I limit my comment to this point and not to the broader scope of your blog, which I understand is not directed at any colleges in particular.
I am not saying that the rankings are right or wrong. I am saying that there is no point crying wolf or "blasphemy" and whining like a woman in labour. Sit back and work hard. The best ones will get there. Most of the "original" top 5 are known to everyone. So you can stop thinking that India Today will make a diffrence to anyone. Or for that matter ranting here would.
I am not saying NUJS or NLUJ or others are bad, but you should open your eyes and analyse other colleges too. if other colleges do not advertise their activities on other sites does not mean they are bad.
It is also a fact that most of the NLIU students opt for litigation or judicial services. It does not mean that Amarchand and others dint pick them while NUJS opts for Corporate. So that is not the way to judge by which big firm goes to which college.
So chill and stop cribbing. NLIU, NUJS, NLUJ all rock and don't bother about these rankings. Think about your career.
You were supposed to practice, whereas you join jobs.
Maybe that is where NUJS is lacking, they think placement is everything. Are they producing "lawyers" ... NO !
But sorry. That's not the case.
I totally support #16's view on this point.
how demeaning for NLIU, Bhopal students!
the only thing lacking was good infrastructure, but considering the fact that NLUJ is 5 years younger to NLIU and doesnt take any grant, it presently has comparable infra.
further, as a matter of fact NLSIU, NALSAR, NUJS & NLUJ are the only 4 recognised colleges abroad for LLM courses in IVY League and Magic Circle Firms. Even for that matter Indian firms like AMSS & Luthra only recognise these 4.
its abt time that people like u in NLIU realise whats the difference in ur own University and outside it bc if there is any recognition which is relavant it is the last bit only and nothn else which NLIU clearly doesnt have.
Would not wish to be stepping foot on barren land, surrounded by garbage. I still don't know how they got better marks on infrastructure. Loaning books from NJA helps, I guess.
"The India Today rankings have always been the most awaited college ranking system and on a closer look, it can be observed that apart from Law, other avenues of education are more deeply researched and are better compiled. It is based on a perceptual and factual scoring system which grades colleges on a pre determined scale."
We are clearly taking the rankings of the other avenues on face value while being emotive about our own. Ask IItians what they really think of their conterparts moving up and down. They too might just be up to some India Today bashing. We'll be happy to find company!
All I want to say is that we must not mud sling on the basis of opinions that we have.
The law departments of LSE/King's/UCL are even smaller than NUJS because they are in central London. Does this mean that Cardiff University, which has a much bigger law campus, is better than these places?
What you state is very true. But, when I did put in this statement, it was based on the presumption that ranking law schools in India requires a higher degree of skill and caliber as compared to other fields since the awareness that people have right now about this field is a recent phenomenon (7-8 years tops). Fields like Engineering, Arts, Science, Commerce are much easier to grade in India which is why as compared to law, students from these fields don't have so many complaints, its preset for the most part.
students from GLC and ILS are working in kuthra and AMSS...so ur argument that these firms only recognise a few law schools....is completely wrong.....people frm these colleges are pursuing their LLM frm IVY league universities....and this year ILS and GLC have had placements on par with NLUJ ....
all the top colleges have their pros and cons....and all produce.....lawyers....these rankings are crap everyone knows that....
"A ranking system devised by the Government based on factors determined solely by the Law Ministry to be released on a periodical basis can be the best means to assess the true caliber of law schools."
This is what the post intended to convey! And even the diclaimer pleaded for objectivity.
@ppl cribbing that NLIU is better than NUJS- Kindly go and see how 99 % CLAT takers {like me} have filled up the preference system , we have given NUJS preference over NLIU,even if it was placed 4th in the OMR sheet, after NLIU.
@ppl cribbing over the "small" campus of NUJS- ppl, getting a 5 acre plot of land in Cannaught Place of Delhi may be 10 times costlier than getting a 50 acre plot in Noida. NUJS is in the heart of the city.....and the V-C is much more intelligent than all of us to have taken that decision.....and students do not come to law schools to enjoy the ambience and "vastness" of there college......they come there to study the priciples of law.....and certainly not to take part in sports events as my friend #28 pointed out.
@ppl cribbing over Placements- Yes , NUJS does offer good placements, anyone has a problem with that?? and if someone thinks that Legal Advisors {the ppl who are placed} have lesser knowledge of law etc. than lawyers, well.....i'd rather give way to such an "intelligent " person
"Samajhdaar ko ishaara hi kaafi hai"
u surma bhopalis...go bask in the ur two minutes of glory...have some paan...bill it to NLU J...
hahahahha! epic!
lol i guess nlujodhpur is a big metro with people visiting you'll everytime... check out the top best indian cities to live in... jodhpur doesnt feature far off while bhopal stands at 11... bhopal is the state capital with excellent infrastructure and roads unlike a desert where u have none...not even a proper airport..we all know nlu jodhpur placements sucked this time and no int firm came visiting them...1 who got into ashurst i dont want to comment on the public forum how she made it there... i guess u nlu jodhpur students know tht better... ull talk too much rest of ur faculty stories and this yr placement stories wld be revealed... including ur director saying he dint care about placements and breaking your placement committee ... dont jump or fly too much cos we know about you too... and nujs??
Which Director are you talking about? NLU-J has a vice chancellor!
Whoever wrote that crap about NLIU being "ranked" third in the CLAT List, FYI its not a "ranking". The CLAT colleges are just listed in chronological order or establishment!!
You fool NUJS was 4th on the OMR sheet after NLIU because NUJS was established after NLIU. That's why CNLU comes in last in the list. The order of placing in the OMR sheet is irrelevant to the ranking of the law school.
STUDENTS KNOW VERY WELL THAT NUJS IS THE 3rd BEST LAW SCHOOL OF THE COUNTRY.
@40 - i know my comment has been deleted........and also of the guy who defamed me........u'd rather ask that person to check his decency....that guy started it all..and then u shouldn't expect me to let him do away with it.......without giving his share of what he deserved........he started it, I gave it an ending.........tit for tat
India Today rankings are crap.
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