Morse Code: Inside the College Rankings

U.S. News Pledges to Publish More Law School Employment Data

December 16, 2010 RSS Feed Print

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U.S. News wants to set the record straight about our decision to publish more of the employment data we collect from law schools as part of our annual Best Law Schools rankings.

U.S. News is in the midst of doing a major redesign of the Education section of usnews.com. The current plan is that the redesign will be rolled out in phases in winter 2011. As part of the redesign process, we took a close look at all the graduate school surveys we conduct to see which data was not being published on usnews.com. U.S. News currently reports the overall percentage of graduates employed at graduation and nine months after graduation.

We also collect, but don't publish, far more information for those two time periods, including the number of grads enrolled in full-time degree programs, the number of graduates whose employment status is unknown, the number that aren't looking for work, the number of grads who are unemployed and looking for work, and the number who have jobs. That data is the basis for the two employment rate calculations that are part of the current Best Law Schools rankings.

U.S. News is committed to adding these new data fields and others from the law school statistical survey to our website. The new data we will be publishing will not impact how the rankings are calculated. The current plan is that the new law data fields for 2008 graduates will be added retroactively as part of the redesign, but not as part of its first phase. If we are unable to add them as part of the redesign rollout, they will be added for 2009 graduates when the upcoming new Best Law Schools rankings are launched in late winter 2011.

U.S. News has also been in discussions with Law School Transparency (LST), a nonprofit formed by Vanderbilt University law students trying to get law schools, the American Bar Association, and the media to disclose and publish far more robust job statistics on recent law school graduates. LST strongly urged U.S. News to publish more of the J.D. job information that we were collecting. Those discussions with LST played a part in our decisions, but were not the catalyst behind our move to publish more employment data.

Why is U.S. News planning to publish more data? Job prospects for new J.D. graduates are far less robust than just a few years ago. Law school students need as much information as possible to help them realistically understand the employment prospects from their school and the economic value of their degree in terms of their ability to pay back loans and earning power. U.S. News believes the information we will be publishing will help current students in those efforts. However, disclosure of employment data by law schools is still woefully lacking given the cost of attendance and poor job market. U.S. News strongly backs all ongoing efforts to require law schools to report even more detailed data on the how recent grads have fared in the job market. We would collect and publish those statistics if they were available.

Check out other coverage on this topic:

--Above the Law: U.S. News to Disclose ALL the Job Info It Collects: But Let's Not Lick Each Other's Popsicles Just Yet

--Wall Street Journal: U.S. News to Offer More Detailed Info In Its Law Rankings

--National Law Journal: U.S. News agrees to provide more guidance on job prospects

--ABA Journal: US News to Disclose More Detailed Jobs Info for Law Grads

--Law School Transparency: U.S. News to reform its disclosure of surveyed employment information

--Credit Slips: US News & Unintended Consequences for Bankruptcy Judges (and the Law Clerks They Hire)

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Law schools are, first and foremost, in business to make money. Never let their commentary on their desire to educate the next generation of legal minds fool you. It is a massive cash cow for every university that has a law school. And this fact is the reason why law schools have a built-in incentive to hide the realities of legal employment from prospective students.
What do the law schools have to lose? Absolutely nothing. Prospective students become enamored of the idea of "being a lawyer," along with its supposed prestige and wealth, and they sign up in droves for law school. The overwhelming majority of them will take on debt burdens of anywhere from $100,000 to $250,000 in the pursuit of this law school-created mirage.
And what do they find upon graduation? One of the most severely crushed job markets of any industry in America. Thousands upon thousands of experienced lawyers laid off nationwide, with law firms skimming the top 30%-40% of graduating classes for new indentured servants. They will pay them $75k to $150k per year (a fraction of what they paid the experienced lawyers that they just laid off), work their fingers to the bone 3,000 to 3,500 hours per year and, when the indentured student-servant is burned out and finally leaves (usually within 3-4 years), they just hire another one just like them out of law school.
Building an honorable profession? Hardly. But they are generating tens of millions of dollars on the backs of the new graduates, who will still carry the burden of the debt they racked up while in law school, the money from which debt went into the pockets of the universities operating the law schools and AGGRESSIVELY marketing their law schools as islands of development for endless prestige and opportunities. Take a look around several of the law schools nationwide (look at a sampling from the top 100, for a start). You will find extensive mention of opportunity, prestige, and fame, with nary a word about the horrific employment market that exists for lawyers TODAY.
A final note for those who doubt the reality of these FACTS: an overwhelming majority of law schools have programs through which they will pay law students "who have not yet found permanent employment" a stipend if they will volunteer their services to a non-profit organization or a government agency. The stipend is usually something insignificant (compared to what the law school has just finished taking in tuition and fees from the student), such as $500-$1,000 per month. But here's the kicker: it only lasts for 6-9 months after graduation.
Coincidence? Don't be a fool. The law schools count these "student-volunteers" as being "employed" when they report their numbers to U.S. News. "Wow!! Law School X shows that 98% of its students are employed within 9 months of graduation. Impressive!!" Or not. A good number of those students are unemployed at month 10.
The BUSINESS of law school desperately needs to be exposed for what it is.

Sandra of CA 12:30PM January 06, 2011

Please consider ranking joint degree MD-PhD programs in your next grad school release. These are of the most competitive graduate programs in the world and each year the number of applicants applying to government funded Medical Scientist Training Programs increases. The mix between graduate school and medical school should make these programs the quintessential examples of what US News is trying to rank. For years, many applicants have been searching for ways to compare and contrast programs that are independent from straight medical school research rankings and straight graduate school rankings at corresponding schools. Futhermore, some programs include multiple universities under one program (ie., Harvard-MIT, Pitt-CMU, Cornell-Rockefeller-Sloan Kettering, among others). It would be a huge help to many of us applicants.

Dennis of MI 7:22PM December 19, 2010

Mr. Morse, have you considered factoring tuition in the college rankings? In light of the massive student loan burden and skyrocketing tuition costs, I think this would be a very relevant factor.
In short, schools that take steps to reduce their costs and budget more efficiently should be rewarded. Conversely, schools that just throw money at a problem - usually at the expense of students should be punished.
I realize that factoring tuition may unfairly favor richer and more established schools. However, I am sure that as discussion on the topic develops, solutions can be developed that will level the playing field.

Steven of TN 1:39PM December 17, 2010