Frequently asked questions TRU Faculty of Law

Applications for the fall intake open on September 1 and will continue to be accepted, along with supporting documents, until the final deadline of February 10. Our evaluation process operates on a rolling basis, with offers made prior to the deadline. Hence, we strongly encourage the timely submission of complete applications. Discretionary applicants are looked at only after the application deadline. If you apply under the Discretionary Category and you are a competitive applicant, you will be assessed under the General Category instead. 

Visit the applications page for instructions on how to apply.

Visit the applications page for instructions on how to apply.

(Fall 2026 Intake) The application fee for Canadian students is $129.30 and is non-refundable. The application fee for international students is $180.70 and is non-refundable. We do not offer fee waivers. Further details are available on the applications page.

You may select from one of the following three categories of Admission: General Applicant, Indigenous Canadian Applicant or Discretionary Applicant.

All Applicants:

General Applicant
Obtained an undergraduate degree in an approved course of study from a degree-granting institution; or

Successfully completed the first 3 years (minimum 90 credits) or more of an approved course of studies leading to an undergraduate degree from a degree-granting institution (with at least 30 credits of upper-level courses); or

Successfully completed the first two years of studies leading to an undergraduate degree at a degree-granting institution and be currently enrolled in the third year of the degree program. (An offer of admission will be conditional on successful completion of the third year by June 30 of the academic year in question with a minimum of 90 credits at a degree-granting institution, and maintenance of the academic average obtained in the first two years of studies. 30 of the 90 credit requirements must be completed at the senior level).

Indigenous Canadian Applicant: If you are Indigenous, you may apply in either the General or the Indigenous Canadian applicant category. The Faculty considers the applicant's involvement in Aboriginal communities and organizations, and the applicant's intention to use their legal training to advance the concerns and interests of Aboriginal Peoples. Applicants are required to establish their Aboriginal ancestry. In addition, a personal statement, two letters of recommendation (at least one academic if possible, otherwise two non-academic letters would be accepted), a resume/CV, LSAT score and official transcripts are required. See the Indigenous Applicants page for more information.

Discretionary Applicant: Include details about your circumstances in the "Discretionary Facts" text box of the application (max 4000 characters). If you need additional space, please email a PDF to lawadmissions@tru.ca.

A limited number of seats are offered under this category per year. Applicants applying in the Discretionary category are normally required to have completed the first two years of an approved
course of studies leading to an undergraduate degree at a degree granting institution. Because of special circumstances in life, your application may not be as competitive as a general applicant and you may seek admission under the Discretionary category. Examples of special circumstances in life include disability or special needs, financial disadvantage, age (over 30), membership in a historically disadvantaged group, residency in a small and/or remote community, or any other factors that you would ask the Admissions Committee to consider. Please provide a reason for your lower than average LSAT or GPA, and explain how you have overcome your circumstances and are now able to succeed in law school. 

The type of undergraduate degree you select is not important to us. We encourage you to complete a bachelor’s degree in a discipline that you enjoy. We find that students who enjoy what they learn, likely get better grades. TRU Law accepts students into the faculty from a variety of academic disciplines, which creates an enriched and diverse environment in the law school. You can expect that students in your class will come from a variety of undergraduate, social, socio-economic, and cultural backgrounds.

Only official transcripts will be accepted, and they must be sent directly from the granting institution. If you are in the process of completing your fall semester, please wait until your final fall grades are posted before requesting your post-secondary institution to send us your transcripts. Your application will not be assessed until those grades are completed and received.

Official electronic copies can be sent to lawadmissions@tru.ca (if using MyCreds type in our email address).

If the institution is sending hard copies, please have them sent to:

• Admissions, Faculty of Law
• Thompson Rivers University
• 805 TRU Way
• Kamloops, BC, V2C 0C8

No. We require all your grades completed by December 31, of the year prior to the intake year (ie. if applying for Fall 2027, we would require final transcripts for grades completed by December 31, 2026).

Your LSAT must be written by January of the intake year.

Be sure to note on your application when you will be taking the LSAT and include your LSAC ID number.  If you are writing the January LSAT, we will only review your file if a prior score is competitive, otherwise, we'll wait for the January score to become available.

Your highest LSAT score completed by January of the intake year. If you have a score on file when you apply, we will use that score. If you're competitive, you'll receieve an offer, if not, we'll await your next test score and re-assess your file before making a final decision. 

To register for the LSAT, please visit www.lsac.org.

Reference letters are not accepted for the General applicant category.

For the Discretionary and Indigenous applicant categories, two letters of reference are required. After you apply, you will gain access to your TRU Applicant Portal. There you will input the information of your 2 referees and a link will be sent to them requesting your letter. Once they have completed the letter and submitted it, the letter will populate on your checklist and show as "received".  Do not have your reference letters emailed. 

Applicants are responsible for requesting letters from their referees through the TRU Applicant Portal (you will gain access to this after your application is received in the system). TRU Law does not reach out to them to request a letter. 

Non-academic references should be written by someone who has had interactions with you in a professional capacity and is not related to you. Examples of non-academic references include a current employer, a former employer, or an individual from an organization that you have volunteered with.

Through the personal statement, members of the admissions committee attempt to develop some insight into your history, experience, and character.

TRU Faculty of Law is interested in selecting excellent candidates who will thrive and succeed in law school and beyond. TRU law students and graduates have in a short time built a reputation as self-starting, resilient, collaborative, and ethically-centred.

We are proud of a student body that is representative of Canada’s diverse population, and we produce graduates who serve communities throughout British Columbia and the nation. We are committed to improving access to legal education and legal services for Canada's Indigenous peoples, and also for communities throughout the interior of the province.

We invite you to identify any ways in which your background, interests, and ambitions align with any of the objectives of the Faculty of Law and will contribute to the vibrant culture and continued success of the law school and its growing body of graduates. Your personal statement should be no longer than 750 words.

The personal statement is reviewed holistically in the Discretionary and Indigenous categories. The personal statement and resume do not factor into the final decision for the General category. However, discrepancies, inconsistencies, or other details from your personal statement or resume may require further review by the committee and may result in them declining your application. 

Be sure to log in to your TRU Applicant Portal once you have received your email to do so. There you will find your checklist items and application status details. If you have trouble logging in, reach out to the IT Department at ITServiceDesk@tru.ca

First year tuition (for the 2025/26 school year) is $22,165.92 plus $1,599.12 in fees. Please note, tuition and fees tend to go up by about 2% per year. This includes $248 for the Health & Dental Plan. International student fees for 1L (2025/26) comes to $53,147.14 for tuition and fees (not including the Health and Dental plan).

No. The JD program at TRU Law is a full-time, 3-year program. First-year students can expect to have classes Monday through Thursday from 8:30am to 4pm.

It is a three-year degree program.

Most TRU Law students choose to article after graduation. In the past four years, 99-100% of students known to be seeking articles reportedly secured them within nine months of graduation. Students have been successful in obtaining positions in private practice, including with well-known regional, national, and international law firms. They’ve obtained clerkship positions with various Canadian courts, and they’ve obtained jobs with government employers, non-profits, and corporations.

TRU Law students and alumni receive year-round support from the TRU Law Career Services Office, which provides career-related information and services for them to connect with the legal community.

For details about job placements, please see our Employment Outcomes page.

There is no minimum GPA or LSAT required to apply, however, this is a competitive program, so the stronger your grades and LSAT score are, the more likely you are to be accepted.

For the General Category, the GPA has a weight of 60% and is calculated using your most recent four full-time semesters of academic coursework towards your bachelor's degree (converted to TRU’s 4.33 grade scheme, if applicable). Full-time means at least 3 academic, graded courses per term. The LSAT has a weight of 40%. 

Under the General Category, the LSAT and GPA ranges vary greatly. This past cycle, the average GPA was 3.85 and the average LSAT was 159, though there were successful candidates with scores higher and lower than those averages as higher GPA can outweigh a lower LSAT (for example). Please note that our averages can and do change each year. A score that may have been sufficient in years past, may not be strong enough the following year.

Indigenous and Discretionary applicants are reviewed holisitically. 

Reference letters cannot be sent prior to applying. We prefer that your transcript comes in after you apply, if possible. 

The Admissions Committee will see all of your grades from your post-secondary institutions, however, only the most recent four full-time semesters of academic coursework towards your undergraduate degree will be used to calculate the admissions GPA.

We do not drop any of those grades.

Since pass/fail grades do not provide us with enough information about your abilities, these courses are not considered when calculating your GPA.

Not necessarily. Completed files will be reviewed first. If they are competitive, they will receive an early offer, if not, you’ll hear back from us later in the cycle.

Yes! Students are happy to chat and help. Please reach out to a TRU Law ambassador here.

No. We will register you into all your first-year courses. You will be able to see your schedule in late June on your myTRU portal.

No.

Some offers will be sent out as early as November. We hope to have all files reviewed by the end of April each year. Please note that this is subject to the number of applications each year and staffing levels.

Only complete files get reviewed. If your file remains incomplete at the end of February, your file will not be reviewed.

All classes will be at the TRU Kamloops campus in B.C. View our map.

- Tuition is due on Sept. 4, 2026. More details here.

• Aboriginal Student Services
• Counselling Services
• Accessibility Services
• Wellness Programs

Find Off-Campus Housing resources here.

Students interested in TRU’s On-Campus Housing should visit TRU Housing

There are a number of options available in Kamloops for childcare. Parents electing off-site daycare options have a variety of alternatives in most communities. These are a few resources:

• www.childcarechoices.ca
• www.kamloopsy.org
• www.canadachildcaredirectory.com

TRU offers an on-campus daycare centre.

Information about financial aid can be found at TRU Financial Aid, or by contacting the Financial Aid office at 250-828-5024.

TRU students have access to medical and health services on campus. The clinic is in the Old Main building next to Student Street. For further information, please visit Health and Safety or TRUSU Health & Dental

For a listing of Kamloops doctors accepting new patients, visit College of Physicians and Surgeons of BC or call the Royal Inland Hospital at 250-374-5111.

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