A Message from Dean Patrick E. Hobbs
At Seton Hall Law, we recognize that the decision to attend law school is a truly important one, and, as with all major decisions, information is key. We believe, through our own experience and that of our alumni, that the value of a law degree, and in particular, a Seton Hall Law degree, shows significant reward throughout the course of one’s lifetime.
Based on recent graduate employment in top law firms, the National Law Journal named Seton Hall Law a “Top 50 Go-To Law School” in 2012, ranking us at 39th for graduates placed in the nation's top 250 law firms, and 35th for associates who were promoted to partner within those firms. Based on percentage of graduates employed in the highly coveted federal judicial clerkships, in 2011 U.S. News & World Report ranked Seton Hall Law 29th among all law schools. Based on the number of practicing attorneys across the country who are selected as Super Lawyers, in 2010, the last year tallied, Seton Hall Law was ranked 40th in the nation. These are past results that we are proud of.
But we also understand that integral to the decision-making process is the more immediate prospect of your employment after graduation, and a further understanding of the kinds of employment which our graduates undertake. And although employment information is readily available elsewhere, published each year through NALP, ABA-LSAC and, to some extent, U.S. News & World Report, we thought it might also be of some help to publish it here as well, presenting the data in a more accessible format.
In addition, we’ve recently undergone an independent audit of our published admissions data (median LSAT & GPA data along with scholarship award rate and renewal data).
We are also expanding the compilation of data beyond the ABA and NALP requirements such as tracking the employment success of our judicial clerks over time, which can be seen in one of the charts below.
Typically, our employment rates in the last several years have run in the mid-90 percent range. However, the employment rate and breakdown for the classes of 2010 and 2011 reflect the economic condition of the nation at large: the downturn has affected industry across the U.S. and law firms are not immune. I invite you to review our employment data as submitted to the ABA and NALP for f urther breakdowns regarding salary, firm size and more specifics on what kinds of jobs our graduates landed in the accompanying detailed charts. Notably, of the 94 graduates (32.1%) who decided to immediately enter into private practice, 29 took positions with large firms (101+ attorneys).
To view the ABA Placement Data Summary for the Class of 2011, click here.
| Class of 2011 Employment Type |
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| As submitted to the ABA, March 15, 2012. |
As you can see in our employment reports, many graduates enter into judicial clerkships. A conversation with any clerk or a hiring partner will tell you why: there is no better way to build a professional network, refine legal skills and increase your marketability. As you’ll see in the chart below - which tracks our judicial clerks over the past three years and where they landed afterward we found a 98% employment rate among the 307 of 348 clerks for whom we were able to collect information. When we include the 31 graduates for whom we do have information, the employment rate is 86.5%. Of those for whom we have information, 228 (74%) went into private practice after their clerkship, with 63 of those (27.6%) taking positions in large firms (101+ attorneys).
| Post-clerkship employment of graduates from classes of 2007, 2008 and 2009 |
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This chart will be updated in May 2012 to reflect employment of graduates for the class of 2011.
Again, the decision to attend law school is one of the more important decisions you’ll ever make. I encourage you to research and ask questions. Seton Hall Law offers a number of scholarships to help make law school more affordable: in 2010, 65% of our incoming class received scholarship funding, 50% of them received $25,000 or more; and nearly 80% of those students renewed those scholarships the following year.
Is law school worth it? I ask you, in return: do you want to be a lawyer? Personally, I believe the law is one of the most rewarding avocations you could ever pursue, but it is not a golden ticket to immediate wealth. The law is a lifetime proposition. Go to law school only if you know you want to be a lawyer, and you know your law school offers excellent education and career opportunities. I am confident those are attributes you will find at Seton Hall Law.