Law Schools Ranked By Job Placement Rates

12

Updated as noted below

The ABA has provided a ton of data on law school job placement and I've tried to summarize it here – comparing the placement rate ranking with the U.S. News ranking,  and providing actual placement numbers.  The numbers set out here represent the percentage of graduates in the class of 2015 who found full-time long term positions (JD required or where a JD was an advantage) within nine months after graduation.  This is the number many ranking organizations use, though I recognize that there are other  ways to slice the data.  As I note below, I have excluded law school funded positions.

This ranking uses the freshest data currently available and – compared to what you can find for pretty much any other discipline outside of law – a pretty damn good data set.    We only wish business schools and other similar programs would give this sort of guidance to applicants.

I think a big takeaway is that the US News ranking doesn't actually predict how well graduates of a given school will do on the job market.  One conclusion from this data is that any school recruiting solid students (as opposed to students who probably don't belong in law school)  can deliver those students good job outcomes if it trains them well and provides good support from bar prep through career planning.  (It helps to be in a region with jobs or a region that is not a net importer of law grads.)

It's also worth pointing out that this chart suffers from an infirmity it shares with US News: it tends to over-state the gaps between law schools.  Another way to read this chart is to think in clumps – schools in the +/- 85% placement range; those in the +/- 75% placement range; etc.  But I do think there may be real differences between schools with 80% rates and those with 65% rates.

This ranking doesn't get at salaries – though, having looked at the data, I have a strong sense that there are really only about 15 schools where more than 33% of the graduating class scores a large firm job.   US News is actually pretty good at this element of ranking: if you want a big firm job, the US News top 15-20 is a reasonably good guide.  But US News ceases to be very predictive of large firm placement after that point.   This list also has anomalies: Yale is #20, but that probably has more to do with the choices that students made rather than the options they encountered.  And Georgetown?  My theory is that their career strategies office is good for students seeking big firms, but has work to do with the other 63% of the class.

The schools with the biggest gaps between this ranking and US News?  Figure that out for yourself – there are some whoppers!

Update:  I've decided that it would be more accurate and useful to round placement results to the nearest whole number and describe virtual ties as ties.  As I discuss above, my goal is to provide information without overstating gaps between schools.  Schools that are tied are listed in order of their precise rank.  With this change, Yale is now #18.  In this analysis, I excluded law school funded positions – consistent with US News – in large part because it is impossible to determine how many of these graduates would have been able to secure long-term full-time employment in the absence of law school assistance.   

Update 2: A kind reader has alerted me to at least one error – the numbers provided to the ABA by South Texas on their form are inconsistent with the numbers set out in the ABA spread sheet.  I am not going to change anything yet, but I hope that over the next day or two, I can identify any other conflicts between the forms and the spreadsheet.  If there is an error or two, I can fix that easily.  If problems are more pervasive, I'll pull and rework it entirely.  For now, please note that based on the employment form submitted to the ABA, South Texas seems to have a 62% placement rate, rather than a 54% rate,  which puts it at 152 rather than 172.

Update 3, Nov. 30, 12:30 pm: I have adjusted the chart to reflect what I expect are accurate numbers.  As I discuss in this post, there are discrepancies between data reported by the ABA in individual school summaries and in the overall compilation spread sheet.  This list reflects the numbers reported by schools in their individual school summaries.  These changes shifted the rankings a bit.  I have inserted asterisks after schools whose ranking changed after switching to the data provided on the individual school summary.  In a later post, I will detail the changes.   I believe the numbers are now as accurate as I can make them.  

So without further ado: 

Job Placement Rank US News Rank School Percentage
1 7 PENN 93%
2 11 DUKE  92%
2 60 KENTUCKY 92%
4 13 CORNELL  91%
4 2 HARVARD  91%
4 4 CHICAGO 91%
7 6 NYU 90%
7 4 COLUMBIA  90%
9 2 STANFORD  89%
9 12 NORTHWESTERN – PRITZKER 89%
11 8 MICHIGAN 88%
12 8 VIRGINIA 87%
12 65 SETON HALL 87%
12 8 CALIFORNIA-BERKELEY 87%
15 55 BAYLOR  86%
15 30 OHIO STATE – MORITZ 86%
15 18 WASHINGTON UNIVERSITY (ST. LOUIS) 86%
18 25 ARIZONA STATE – O'CONNOR 85%
18 20 IOWA 85%
18 1 YALE  85%
21 45 GEORGE MASON – SCALIA 84%
21 57 NEBRASKA 84%
21 86 ARKANSAS – FAYETTEVILLE 84%
21 45 SMU – DEDMAN 84%
25 30 BOSTON COLLEGE 83%
25 33 GEORGIA 83%
25 86 TULSA 83%
25 16 VANDERBILT * 83%
29 100  INDIANA – INDIANAPOLIS – McKINNEY 82%
29 22 EMORY  82%
29 50 FLORIDA STATE  82%
29 111 IDAHO 82%
29 40 WASHINGTON AND LEE  82%
29 48 FLORIDA – LEVIN 82%
29 40 WAKE FOREST * 82%
29 103         FLORIDA INTERNATIONAL *    82%
37 74 ST. JOHN'S 81%
37 15 TEXAS  81%
37 28 ALABAMA 81%
37 60 NEW MEXICO 81%
37 17 UCLA 81%
37 40 COLORADO 81%
37 60 CINCINNATI 81%
44 111 DRAKE 80%
44 65 CONNECTICUT 80%
44 65 KANSAS 80%
44 97 WEST VIRGINIA 80%
44 103 STETSON  80%
49 22 NOTRE DAME 79%
49 92 RUTGERS  79%
49 82 LOUISIANA STATE – HEBERT 79%
49 111 DREXEL – KLINE 79%
49 92 LOUISVILLE 79%
49 25 INDIANA – BLOOMINGTON – MAURER 79%
49 60 OKLAHOMA 79%
49 129 ALBANY  79%
57 20 BOSTON UNIVERSITY 78%
57 82 SAINT LOUIS  78%
57 33 WISCONSIN 78%
57 50 HOUSTON 78%
57 65 MISSOURI – COLUMBIA 78%
57 38 NORTH CAROLINA 78%
57 111 ST. THOMAS (MINNESOTA) 78%
64 123 MISSOURI-KANSAS CITY 77%
64 78 UNLV – BOYD 77%
64 19 SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA – GOULD 77%
64 45 UTAH – QUINNEY 77%
64 33 UNIVERSITY OF WASHINGTON (SEATTLE) 77%
64 unranked MISSISSIPPI COLLEGE 77%
64 74 CARDOZO  77%
64 25 GEORGE WASHINGTON  77%
72 123 MARQUETTE  76%
72 37 FORDHAM  76%
72 33 WILLIAM AND MARY  76%
72 unranked FAULKNER  76%
72 123 MONTANA 76%
72 74 VILLANOVA – WIDGER 76%
78 50 TEMPLE – BEASLEY 75%
78 48 MARYLAND – CAREY 75%
78 136 PACE  75%
78 14 GEORGETOWN  75%
82 144 NORTHERN ILLINOIS  74%
82 55 RICHMOND 74%
82 111 BALTIMORE 74%
82 92 SOUTH CAROLINA 74%
82 144 OKLAHOMA CITY  74%
82 143 SOUTH DAKOTA 74%
82 82 NORTHEASTERN 74%
82 65 LOYOLA – LOS ANGELES 74%
90 123 TEXAS TECH  73%
90 97 BROOKLYN  73%
90 40 ILLINOIS 73%
90 106 CREIGHTON  73%
90 22 MINNESOTA 73%
90 65     TENNESSEE * 73%
90 57 GEORGIA STATE * 73%
90 100 BUFFALO * 73%
98 30 CALIFORNIA-DAVIS 72%
98 111 HOFSTRA U 72%
98 50 TULANE  72%
98 72 DENVER – STURM 72%
102 136 ARKANSAS, LITTLE ROCK 71%
102 60 MIAMI 71%
102 57 CASE WESTERN RESERVE  71%
102 132 QUINNIPIAC  71%
102 unranked SAMFORD – CUMBERLAND 71%
106 123 MERCER  70%
106 103 CATHOLIC 70%
106 100 BUFFALO 70%
106 86 PSU - DICKINSON LAW 70%
106 106 WASHBURN  70%
106 123 WYOMING 70%
106 100 MICHIGAN STATE  70%
113 40 ARIZONA – ROGERS 69%
113 132 GONZAGA  69%
113 unranked BELMONT 69%
113 97 WAYNE STATE  69%
113 111 DEPAUL  69%
113 140 MITCHELL|HAMLINE 69%
113 111 NEW YORK LAW SCHOOL * 69%
120 86 PSU – PENN STATE  68%
120 78 PITTSBURGH 68%
120 111 TEXAS A&M  68%
120 unranked MEMPHIS – HUMPHREYS 68%
124 82 NEW HAMPSHIRE  67%
124 132 WILLAMETTE  67%
123 unranked ROGER WILLIAMS  67%
127 86 CHICAGO-KENT  66%
127 28 CALIFORNIA-IRVINE 66%
127 106 CLEVELAND MARSHALL 66%
127 132 VERMONT  66%
127 144 TOLEDO 66%
127 86 SYRACUSE 66%
127 50 CALIFORNIA-HASTINGS 66%
127 111 DUQUESNE  66%
135 38 BRIGHAM YOUNG – CLARK 65%
135 unranked WIDENER-COMMONWEALTH 65%
135 unranked REGENT  65%
135 72 LOYOLA -CHICAGO 65%
135 unranked SOUTHERN ILLINOIS  65%
135 unranked JOHN MARSHALL LAW SCHOOL (CHICAGO) 65%
141 136 CHAPMAN  64%
141 unranked SUFFOLK  64%
141 unranked LINCOLN MEMORIAL – DUNCAN 64%
141 unranked NOVA SOUTHEASTERN  64%
141 131 CITY UNIVERSITY OF NEW YORK 64%
141 unranked NORTHERN KENTUCKY  64%
147 65 PEPPERDINE  63%
147 unranked DAYTON 63%
147 92 HAWAII 63%
157 136 AKRON 63%
147 106 U OF MISSISSIPPI 63%
152 74 SAN DIEGO 62%
152 144 CAMPBELL  62%
152 92 LEWIS AND CLARK  62%
152            unranked SOUTH TEXAS * 62%
152 unranked ST. MARY'S * 62%
157 unranked NEW ENGLAND LAW 61%
157 78 AMERICAN 61%
157     144 NORTH DAKOTA * 61%
160 unranked TOURO – FUCHSBERG 60%
160 78 OREGON 60%
159 144 PACIFIC – MCGEORGE  60%
163 106 HOWARD  59%
164 unranked CALIFORNIA WESTERN  58%
164 111 MAINE, UNIVERSITY OF 58%
164 unranked CONCORDIA  58%
164 unranked WIDENER – DELAWARE 58%
168 unranked APPALACHIAN * 57%
169 unranked ATLANTA'S JOHN MARSHALL LAW SHOOL 56%
169 unranked VALPARAISO  56%
169 unranked WESTERN NEW ENGLAND  56%
172 unranked ELON  55%
173 unranked CAPITAL  54%
173 unranked SOUTH TEXAS  54%
173 111 SEATTLE  54%
173 129 SANTA CLARA 54%
173 unranked SOUTHERN  54%
177 unranked MASSACHUSETTS -DARTMOUTH 53%
177 unranked CHARLESTON  53%
177 unranked ARIZONA SUMMIT  53%
177 140 LOYOLA – NEW ORLEANS 53%
181 unranked LIBERTY  52%
182 unranked DETROIT MERCY 51%
182 unranked  LA VERNE 51%
182 unranked ST. THOMAS (FLORIDA) 51%
182 unranked WESTERN STATE  51%
182 unranked OHIO NORTHERN  51%
187 unranked FLORIDA A&M  50%
187 unranked DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA -CLARK 50%
189 unranked SAN FRANCISCO 49%
189 unranked BARRY  49%
191 unranked SOUTHWESTERN  48%
191 unranked     AVE MARIA * 48%
193 unranked NORTH CAROLINA CENTRAL  44%
194 unranked TEXAS SOUTHERN  43%
194 unranked WHITTIER  43%
196 unranked THOMAS M. COOLEY  42%
197 unranked FLORIDA COASTAL  41%
197 unranked GOLDEN GATE  41%
199 unranked U OF PUERTO RICO 40%
200 unranked THOMAS JEFFERSON  39%
201 unranked CHARLOTTE 37%
202 unranked PONTIFICAL CATHOLIC UNIVERSITY OF P.R. 22%
203 unranked INTER AMERICAN UNIVERSITY OF PUERTO RICO 14%

 

12 Comments

  1. Anon
    Reply
    November 29, 2016,

    The Yale results are not an anomaly but a function the double digit percentage of graduates who clerk…I would have thought you knew that.

  2. anon
    Reply
    November 29, 2016,

    Anon

    Unfair snark. Dan pointed out: "Yale is #20, but that probably has more to do with the choices that students made rather than the options they encountered."

  3. Dan Filler
    Reply
    November 29, 2016,

    The ABA treats judicial clerkships as LTFT JD required. Among Yale's 213 graduates, 11 were in school-funded positions and 7 more were pursuing graduate degrees. I don't assume that any of these folks were necessarily unable to get LTFT work of some sort – thus the "options" language.

  4. Captain Hruska Carswell, Continuance King
    Reply
    November 29, 2016,

    Stop arguing already. All of these legal jobs are moot on January 20th. President Elect Trump Tweeted tonight that his first act as Leader will be to kill all the lawyers.

  5. AnotherAnon
    Reply
    November 30, 2016,

    Do these data include or exclude school-funded jobs?

  6. Anon
    Reply
    November 30, 2016,

    Data should exclude school-funded, but as far as I can tell do not.

  7. PaulB
    Reply
    November 30, 2016,

    The value of the data as presented is questionable. One number that jumps out is Seton Hall's ranking as #12. This reflects the huge percentage of graduates who spend their first year as a clerk to local judges in NJ. There are so many "clerks" that this is of little help in finding a quality permanent position. I believe that LST excludes state clerkships in their data presentation, even though a state Supreme Court clerkship would usually be highly beneficial for a new graduate.

  8. Charles Sullivan
    Reply
    November 30, 2016,

    It's true that Seton Hall has a large number of students taking clerkship positions. It's also true that our survey of students coming out of clerkships (for the class of 2014, which means the survey was conducted in 2015) showed an employment of 96.72%. These results are basically due to successful efforts to reduce class sizes to match available employment opportunities for our graduates.

    Charles A. Sullivan

  9. Anonymouse
    Reply
    December 2, 2016,

    For the school noted (South Texas), there is no discrepancy between their form and the numbers in the ABA database. Both check out to 218 FTLT BPR and JDA jobs (206+12), and all of the "above the line" (i.e. the top box on the form) numbers match between the form and the database. Their form on their own ABA required disclosures web page also matches the information on the form and database on the ABA employment outcomes web page. So, not sure what happened there with the analysis…

    If there ever is a discrepancy, though, the data on the individual school "form" is the more accurate, as that data generates automatically and instantly from the individual school entries on the EQ sub-page of their AQ page, so it would reflect any changes or updates (which are required to be made, as new/different information is discovered, pursuant to the ABA Protocol), whereas the full spreadsheet containing data for all schools combined is only periodically updated.

  10. tbk9
    Reply
    December 2, 2016,

    I've done a similar ranking-type exercise using NALP and LST data. https://www.reddit.com/r/lawschooladmissions/comments/4obacu/calculated_law_school_employment_and_suggested/

    I did some job-weighing to try and account for how different jobs are more prestigious/sought-after and to mitigate some absurd results (like Kentucky above Yale), though some still exist (like Seton Hall above Georgetown).

    I also attempted to use salary data to suggest a cost of attendance, which should smooth out some other wrinkles (e.g., Baylor is ranked above USC, but that doesn't mean spending $200K at Baylor is a better option than spending $200K at USC).

    It's just a quick little analysis I did and there are probably some methodology flaws, but I think it makes sense.

  11. John Steele
    Reply
    December 2, 2016,

    Thomas Jefferson is No. 1 in debt load (172k) and No. 200 (of 203) in job placement rates. How has the ABA or some regulator not shut down the school yet? It makes Trump University look like a wise investment.

  12. anon
    Reply
    December 2, 2016,

    John Steele

    Golden Gate (add: take a look at its bar pass rates) is a contender for that coveted prize for the worst of the worst on the bottom rung.

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