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

Career Brochure (Aggregate Data for Classes of 2015-17, Including Employers Listed by Location and Court District) 
 

ABA Employment Summary Reports

Class of 2017 | Class of 2016 | Class of 2015

Employment Status

  2017 2016 2015
Employed 288 97.3% 323 97.9% 356 97.0%
Pursuing Graduate Degree 1 0.3% 0 0% 1 0.3%
Start Date Deferred 1 0.3% 0 0% 1 0.3%
Not Seeking Employment 1 0.3% 1 0.3% 1 0.3%
Seeking Employment 4 1.4% 6 1.8% 7 1.9%
Unknown 1 0.3% 0 0% 1 0.3%
TOTAL GRADUATES 296   330   367  
Number of graduates receiving funding as Powell, Kennedy or Ruff fellows (included in figures above) 8 2.7% 19 5.8% 30 8.2%

Employment by Industry/Sector

  2017 2016 2015
Law Firms 217 75.3% 224 69.3% 227 63.8%
Judicial Clerkships 32 11.1% 58 18.0% 69 19.4%
Government 23 8.0% 22 6.8% 34 9.6%
Public Interest 6 2.1% 12 3.7% 10 2.8%
Business/Industry 9 3.1% 6 1.9% 13 3.7%
Academia 1 0.3% 0 0% 3 0.8%
Unknown 0 0% 1 0.3% 0 0%
TOTAL EMPLOYED GRADUATES 288   323   356  

Employment Type

  2017 2016 2015
Bar Admission Required/Anticipated 280 97.2% 315 97.5% 346 97.2%
J.D. Preferred 7 2.4% 7 2.2% 10 2.8%
Professional Other 1 0.3% 0 0% 0 0%
Nonprofessional Other 0 0% 0 0% 0 0%
Undeterminable 0 0% 1 0.3% 0 0%
TOTAL EMPLOYED GRADUATES 288   323   356  
Full-time, Long-term 287 99.7% 317 98.1% 350 98.3%
Full-time, Short-term 0 0% 3 0.9% 1 0.3%
Part-time, Long-term 1 0.3% 3 0.9% 1 0.3%
Part-time, Short-term 0 0% 0 0% 4 1.1%
TOTAL EMPLOYED GRADUATES 288   323   356  

Law Firm Employment

FIRM SIZE 2017 2016 2015
501+ Attorneys 175 80.6% 174 77.7% 161 70.9%
251-500 20 9.2% 24 10.7% 31 13.7%
101-250 10 4.6% 9 4.0% 8 3.5%
51-100 7 3.2% 6 2.7% 6 2.6%
26-50 1 0.5% 6 2.7% 3 1.3%
11-25 2 0.9% 3 1.3% 5 2.2%
2-10 2 0.9% 2 0.9% 12 5.3%
1 0 0% 0 0% 1 0.4%
Unknown 0 0% 0 0% 0 0%
TOTAL LAW FIRM GRADUATES 217   224   227  

Judicial Clerkship Employment

CLERKSHIP TYPE 2017 2016 2015
Federal Courts 28 87.5% 48 82.8% 58 84.1%
State and Local Courts 4 12.5% 10 17.2% 11 15.9%
Other 0 0% 0 0% 0 0%
TOTAL JUDICIAL CLERKSHIP GRADUATES 32   58   69  
Number of graduates receiving funding as Powell, Kennedy or Ruff fellows (included in figures above) 0 0% 1 1.7% 4 5.8%

Salaries

ALL SECTORS 2017 2016 2015
75th Percentile $180,000 $180,000 $160,000
Median $180,000 $180,000 $145,000
25th Percentile $110,000 $66,510 $61,000
Total Graduates in This Category 288 323 356
Salaries Reported 285 313 346
Response Rate 99.0% 96.9% 97.2%
PRIVATE SECTOR (Law Firms and Business/Industry) 2017 2016 2015
75th Percentile $180,000 $180,000 $160,000
Median $180,000 $180,000 $160,000
25th Percentile $180,000 $180,000 $145,000
Total Graduates in This Category 226 230 240
Salaries Reported 224 221 232
Response Rate 99.1% 96.1% 96.7%
PUBLIC SECTOR (Judicial Clerkships, Government, Public Interest and Academia) 2017 2016 2015
75th Percentile $68,036 $64,094 $61,897
Median $62,000 $60,210 $58,531
25th Percentile $58,000 $51,188 $40,000
Total Graduates in This Category 62 92 116
Salaries Reported 61 92 114
Response Rate 98.4% 100% 98.3%
Graduates receiving funding as Powell, Kennedy or Ruff fellows are included in Public Sector.

Employment Locations

Map of Employment Locations
Map of Clerkship Locations

  2017 2016 2015
New York 80 27.8% 74 22.9% 71 19.9%
District of Columbia 67 23.3% 66 20.4% 60 16.9%
California  23 8.0% 25 7.7% 33 9.3%
Virginia 21 7.3% 36 11.1% 59 16.6%
Texas 16 5.6% 23 7.1% 24 6.7%
All Other States 74 25.7% 93 28.8% 105 29.5%
International 7 2.4% 5 1.5% 4 1.1%
Unknown 0 0% 1 0.3% 0 0%
TOTAL EMPLOYED GRADUATES 288   323   356  

 

Bar Passage Data for Recent Graduates