Passing rate for 4th bar exam '1st in nation', 64 applied and 63 passed
After being second place last year, finally topped the ranks.
15 of 33 full-time professors with attorney backgrounds, 28 part-time professors currently working as attorneys.
Strengths such as student eye-level support, dedicated practical education, and junior-senior and colleague mentoring
[2015-4-22]
<View of the Law School>
YU (President Noh Seok-kyun) is renewing records for the second straight year in the bar exam. In the 4th bar exams that were just recently announced, the YU Law School placed 'first in national passing rate' among 25 law schools around the nation. After placing second place in the 3rd bar exams, YU finally topped the rankings.
According to the announcement for 'passers of the 4th bar exams' by the Ministry of Justice, of the 2,561 applicants (including second and third time exam-takers), 1,565 passed the bar exam, and thus recording 6.11% compared to the number of applicants, and 78.52% passing rate compared to the max number of applicants that can pass (2,000). In particular, the national passing rate of first-time test-takers this year was found to be 74.74% (1,222/1,635).
The YU Law School recorded a passing rate of 98.44%, which is a whopping 24% higher than the national first-time passing rates in the nation, thus taking first place in the first-test passing rate in the country. Of the 70 enrollment quota, a total of 64 of the fourth batch of graduates, excluding those in military service and leave-of-absence for childcare, applied for the bar exam for their first time, and excluding just one student, a total of 63 passed the exam.
According to an internet cafe portal on Daum (Seoroyeon) for law schools, and law school personnel from around the country, it was identified that universities that recorded higher than 90% for first-time test-taking passing rates were YU, Seoul National University, Yonsei University, and Aju University, thus having only four law schools in the nation with such record.
<Mock Court at the YU Law School>
Such feat by the YU Law School was predicted in the 3rd bar exam. 63 students from the third batch of graduates applied for the exam with 57 passing, and thus recording a 90.47% passing rate. This was the second highest in the nation just behind Yonsei University (91.30%).
The secret to such success was found in the management policy of the YU Law School that said that they would provide full support if it could help with the studies of students. For example, as some students complained that it was uncomfortable study, the desks in study rooms were all changed to desks being 30cm longer than before, while also providing a 24 hour study hall. They also provided a wide array of convenience facilities such as lounges, sleeping rooms, small kitchens, and shower rooms so that students could take a rest after long hours of studying.
The generous scholarships are also well known in which 90% of benefits are given to excellent staff and students of the YU Law School. Of the 33 full-time professors, 15 have backgrounds as judges, prosecutors and attorneys, and there are also 28 current judicial members serving as part-time professors to provide a practical education. Former Supreme Court Justice Bae Ki-won and Former Prosecutor General Jung Sang-myung are also chair professors at the YU Law School. Former Supreme Court Justice Cha Han-sung is also serving as a chair professor for the second straight year.
The full-time professors are giving all they can so that students can achieve their dreams of working for the judicial system by giving up their vacations and offering special lectures and study groups at schools. For students who want to become law clerks or prosecutors, professors are assigned to students one-on-one for individual teaching. The passion of the YU Law School professors who always think first about their students and do not even hesitate to bring food to students studying late into the night is motivating the students greatly.
Another strength is that counselors exclusively for students of the Law School work full-time to systematically counsel students and find solutions for them. Researcher Lim Young-joo (44) of the Student Counseling Center, who helped counsel students for the past three and a half years, said, "Three to four students come every day because of the pressure they feel before big exams or anxiety about the future. I think that by sharing their worries and having someone be sympathetic with them can be very encouraging so that they can go back to their studies. I feel a great sense of accomplishment thanks to students who call me even after they graduate to say thank you."
Lee Seo-yeon (34), who graduated from the Department of Sociology at Ewha Womens University and worked as a journalist for three years and enrolled at the YU Law School in March 2012, said, "I did not major in law as an undergraduate, but because of my wish to work in the judicial sector to bring light to the dark parts of our society, I left my job and enrolled at the Law School. But the course was much more difficult than I expected. However, thanks to the passionate guidance of my professors, the full support of the school, and the tight friendship with colleagues, seniors and juniors, I was able to concentrate on my studies and achieve my dream. I am very thankful, and with a great sense of responsibility, I will become an outstanding person of the law that can bring honor to my school."
Other universities are constantly making requests in order to benchmark the key to the success of the YU Law School.
YU President Noh Seok-kyun said, "This is the achievement of continuing the capacities and tradition of the YU Law School that fostered numerous talents including 15th National Assembly Floor Leader Kim Soo-han and Supreme Court Justices Lee Byeong-hoo and Bae Ki-won," while adding, "The school will spare no support for our law school so that being in a provincial area is not a handicap, but something to be proud of that shows one's intense efforts."
Law School Dean Geum Tae-hwan said, "These are the results of the professors, employees and students becoming one and working together," and added, "While we expect many challenges such as the opening of the legal market, we will continue to do our best to foster judicial professionals equipped with legal ethics, expertise, and diligence."
Meanwhile, the YU Law School also displayed considerable achievement for employment rate of graduates. The employment rate of the first batch of graduates was 90.09%, which was 7th in the nation and first in the non-Seoul area, while the 2nd batch and 3rd batch recorded employment rates of 91.8% and 96.5%, respectively. Its graduates also include one judge, two prosecutors, and 11 trial researchers (law clerks). Such achievement also had an impact on the admissions competition, and in 2014, the competition was 9.59 to 1 (2nd in the nation), while in 2015 it was 7.3 to 1 (4th in the nation), thus setting records fitting to a 'prestigious law school'.
