Marquette's Law School has been ranked 97th in the nation by U.S. News & World Report in "America's Best Graduate Schools 2008," once again making it a Top-100 school. Additionally, the dispute resolution program offered by the Law School was ranked 6th nationally, and the legal writing program was ranked 26th.

Joseph Kearney, dean of the Law School, said in an e-mail that while Marquette's ranking has moved a few places up and down in the past few years, "the trend for Marquette Law School over the past decade unquestionably has been upward."

"It is not so much changes in the past year that have made a difference, as it is the cumulative effect of some good decisions by the Law School and the university over the past decade," Kearney said.

Tom Worsfold, a first-year law student, chose Marquette for law school based on its location, programs, faculty and ranking.

"When I was looking, it was in the 'Top 100' (law schools) but it fell out," Worsfold said. "It's great to see it back up there."

William Wiener, dean of the Graduate School, was excited about Marquette's new status.

"There are about 4,500 colleges and universities in the country, and when you start getting programs in the 'Top 100' that's quite a feat," Wiener said.

Kearney said the dispute resolution program offered by the law school received a top-10 ranking, thanks primarily to his colleagues Andrea Schneider, Janine Geske and Jay Grenig, all professors of law; Geske is a "distinguished" professor.

According to Kearney, the program aims "to ensure that our students become skilled at resolving problems even apart from formal lawsuits."

"Arbitration, negotiation and mediation are all alternatives to litigation," Kearney said. "Our initiatives in this area have taught our students a broader range of strategies that will enable them to help clients and achieve just results."

According to Wiener, several other professional studies programs were highly ranked.

The part-time MBA in business administration is 17th in the nation, the physician's assistant program is 40th, the College of Nursing is 54th, midwifery is 18th and biomedical engineering is 37th.

"The rankings are not the be-all end-all," Wiener said. "But they are some measure of quality."

Wiener said there is a six-year cycle review process for all of the graduate schools, in which they are reviewed and recommendations are made to increase productivity and improve curriculum in order to ensure the highest-quality programs.

According to Worsfold, students are likely to appreciate such efforts, as graduate school is important for future employment.

"It is important to go to a higher-ranking graduate school, especially law school because the first thing employers notice on your resume is what school you're coming from," Worsfold said.

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