How Law School Job Rates Changed This Year

May 10th, 2016 / By Kyle McEntee

Originally published on Above the Law.

Last week, the American Bar Association released the latest law school employment data. The entry-level market for new graduates remains grim.

Nationally, the legal job rate is up slightly from 58% to 59.2% for 2015 graduates. However, the raw number of legal jobs declined to levels not seen since 2011. The number of new entry-level jobs at large firms, on the other hand, remains steady — although the types of jobs offered by large firms continue to diversify.

With fewer students enrolled today, jobs rates in 2016 and beyond should improve, even if the raw number of jobs continues to decline. But given that law schools still face significant financial pressure, administrators will be tempted to increase enrollment to keep the doors open. Current employment rates indicate that, for the vast majority of schools, that is not an equitable idea.

Despite the number of law school graduates declining for the last two years, 27% of law schools placed less than half of their class in long-term, full-time legal jobs (including solo practitioners). The percentage has declined from 32% over the past two years.

Schools at the high end of the market improved too. In 2015, 14% of schools placed at least 75% of their graduates in long-term, full-time legal jobs. This is nearly double the number of schools with that legal employment rate compared to the previous two years.

Overall, however, just 43% of all law schools saw an increase in their legal job rate this year, despite an average enrollment change of -9%. The average enrollment change for schools with declining legal job rates was -8% compared to -10% at schools with improving legal job rates. In other words, enrollment change accounts for some difference, but regional factors likely account for more. Additional factors include the strength of the local and regional economies, demographic shifts, and how close-by schools adjusted enrollment in 2012.