Summary: There are different places that law school graduates need to be looking depending on their needs and goals from their legal career.
Law school grads need to be prepared to move where the right job is. They have higher chances of finding jobs in certain areas of the country more than in others. There are cities known for innovation and creativity.
Looking at data from the Class of 2015 through the National Association for Law Placement and the American Bar Association, we are able to determine which geographic areas provide the most entry-level positions for law grads.
The top spot for law grad jobs was in the New York-New Jersey region. No other region compares for the 2015-2016 timeframe. The law schools report a graduate to job ratio of 1.19. That is 1.19 jobs for every graduate in the area. Many regions across the country have improved from two years ago but none to be as strong as the New York area. The New England area is the opposite ratio at 0.56. This means that graduates in this region head to other areas like the New York-New Jersey area to find jobs.
The competition for available jobs in places like New York are fierce because there are more jobs available so everyone flocks there, but it also means there are better chances for the top tier candidates. Add the new pay scale introduced by Cravath earlier this year and the competition for the top paying jobs is even stiffer.
So why is New York booming more than other places? The city is the country’s financial center but is also becoming known as a tech hub. The Silicon Alley has been booming, in part to $7 billion in venture capital investments last year to their cities tech firms. The city’s attorneys were hurt badly by the recession with many of them losing their jobs and starting boutique firms. Now those boutiques are thriving and hiring.
Law schools are also doing their part to help their students find jobs. One Suffolk University Law School student was recommended to a job with Davis Wright Tremaine by her dean. The Seattle office then hired her as an intern and then associate so she decided to move across the country to be close to the clients and other team members.
Some law schools are introducing new programs to help prepare their graduates for the new demands in the legal industry from startups in various fields including health care and data security. Brooklyn Law School developed the Center for Urban Business Entrepreneurship three years ago for greater exploration into the legal needs of entrepreneurs.
Depending on the law graduates expertise or career goals, they may want to look at which regions across the country are booming and in what practice areas. Southern California is still a big tech place so the need for cybersecurity experts is big. If you are an attorney that is mostly concerned with making sure you find a legal job that will help you pay off your loans, consider North Dakota where there are 4.4 lawyers for every 10,000 people.
Do you have tips for law school graduates? Tell us in the comments below.
To read more tips for law school graduates, see this articles:
- Top 25 Cities for Law School Graduates
- How Dual-Degree Options Help Law School Graduates
- Best Metropolitan Cities for Law School Graduates to Gravitate Towards
- Best Small Cities for Law School Graduates to Work In
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