Employment Data for Recent Graduates

Employment Data for Recent Graduates

The information in the tables below is as of 10 months after graduation. This data was reported to the ABA and/or NALP according to their reporting guidelines.

Related: Career Development Facts and Statistics | Map: Where Our Graduates Go | Clerkships by Term and Location | Prominent Alumni | Bar Passage Data for Recent Graduates

Career Brochure (Aggregate Data for Classes of 2019-21, Including Employers Listed by Location and Court District) 
 

ABA Employment Summary Reports

Class of 2021 | Class of 2020 | Class of 2019

Employment Status

  2021 2020 2019
Employed 312 98.1% 311 98.7% 283 99.0%
Pursuing Graduate Degree 1 0.3% 1 0.3% 2 0.7%
Start Date Deferred 1 0.3% 1 0.3% 0 0%
Not Seeking Employment 0 0% 1 0.3% 1 0.3%
Seeking Employment 4 1.3% 1 0.3% 0 0%
Unknown 0 0% 0 0% 0 0%
TOTAL GRADUATES 318   315   286  
Number of graduates receiving funding as Powell, Kennedy or Ruff fellows (included in figures above) 13 4.1% 11 3.5% 7 2.4%

Employment by Industry/Sector

  2021 2020 2019
Law Firms 214 68.6% 216 69.5% 196 69.3%
Judicial Clerkships 63 20.2% 63 20.3% 58 20.5%
Government 19 6.1% 13 4.2% 13 4.6%
Public Interest 16 5.1% 15 4.8% 8 2.8%
Business/Industry 0 0% 4 1.3% 7 2.5%
Academia 0 0% 0 0% 1 0.4%
Unknown 0 0% 0 0% 0 0%
TOTAL EMPLOYED GRADUATES 312   311   283  

Employment Type

  2021 2020 2019
Bar Admission Required/Anticipated 311 99.7% 307 98.7% 277 97.9%
J.D. Preferred 1 0.3% 4 1.3% 6 2.1%
Professional Other 0 0% 0 0% 0 0%
Nonprofessional Other 0 0% 0 0% 0 0%
Undeterminable 0 0% 0 0% 0 0%
TOTAL EMPLOYED GRADUATES 312   311   283  
Full-time, Long-term 309 99.0% 308 99.0% 280 98.9%
Full-time, Short-term 2 0.6% 0 0% 1 0.4%
Part-time, Long-term 1 0.3% 1 0.3% 1 0.4%
Part-time, Short-term 0 0% 2 0.6% 1 0.4%
TOTAL EMPLOYED GRADUATES 312   311   283  

Law Firm Employment

FIRM SIZE 2021 2020 2019
501+ Attorneys 178 83.2% 183 84.7% 161 82.1%
251-500 11 5.1% 15 6.9% 14 7.1%
101-250 6 2.8% 8 3.7% 4 2.0%
51-100 7 3.3% 3 1.4% 7 3.6%
26-50 1 0.5% 1 0.5% 2 1.0%
11-25 5 2.3% 2 0.9% 2 1.0%
2-10 6 2.8% 4 1.9% 5 2.6%
1 0 0% 0 0% 0 0%
Unknown 0 0% 0 0% 1 0.5%
TOTAL LAW FIRM GRADUATES 214   216   196  

Judicial Clerkship Employment

CLERKSHIP TYPE 2021 2020 2019
Federal Courts 50 79.4% 55 87.3% 45 77.6%
State, Local and Territorial Courts 13 20.6% 8 12.7% 13 22.4%
Tribal and International Courts 0 0% 0 0%    
TOTAL JUDICIAL CLERKSHIP GRADUATES 63   63   58  

See also: Clerkships by Term and Location

Salaries

ALL SECTORS 2021 2020 2019
75th Percentile $215,000 $190,000 $190,000
Median $210,000 $190,000 $190,000
25th Percentile $72,750 $72,750 $73,096
Total Graduates in This Category 312 311 283
Salaries Reported 307 307 281
Response Rate 98.4% 98.7% 99.3%
PRIVATE SECTOR (Law Firms and Business/Industry) 2021 2020 2019
75th Percentile $215,000 $190,000 $190,000
Median $215,000 $190,000 $190,000
25th Percentile $205,000 $190,000 $190,000
Total Graduates in This Category 214 220 203
Salaries Reported 211 216 201
Response Rate 98.6% 98.2% 99.0%
PUBLIC SECTOR (Judicial Clerkships, Government, Public Interest and Academia) 2021 2020 2019
75th Percentile $72,344 $69,790 $70,045
Median $66,773 $64,649 $64,009
25th Percentile $61,482 $63,985 $61,971
Total Graduates in This Category 98 91 80
Salaries Reported 96 91 80
Response Rate 98.0% 100% 100%
Graduates receiving funding as Powell, Kennedy or Ruff fellows are included in Public Sector.

Employment Locations

Map of Employment Locations
Map of Clerkship Locations

  2021 2020 2019
District of Columbia 77 24.7% 76 24.4% 60 21.2%
New York 69 22.1% 77 24.8% 67 23.7%
Texas 31 9.9% 27 8.7% 28 9.9%
Virginia 28 9.0% 27 8.7% 30 10.6%
California  28 9.0% 22 7.1% 17 6.0%
All Other States 78 25.0% 82 26.4% 81 28.6%
International 1 0.3% 0 0% 0 0%
Unknown 0 0% 0 0% 0 0%
TOTAL EMPLOYED GRADUATES 312   311   283  


Bar Passage Data for Recent Graduates