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“[I]f we assume that the point of academic work is to reveal the truth, rather than to engage in the defense of a professional cartel from which law professors benefit more than almost anyone else, then this work needs to be done.”

The work to which Paul Campos referred in the last sentence of this April 2011 New Republic piece involved honest analysis of (wretched) job placements for law school graduates.

And now, with the latest numbers on applications to America’s law schools – not surprisingly, given the lack of jobs, they’re way, way down, especially among America’s smartest students – the work also involves an honest look at tuition, law professors’ salaries, and the outrageous rate at which new law schools (most notoriously, the one at Irvine, and the one at U Mass) are opening.

On the salary issue: As Campos noted in a comment on this blog:

A range of $140K to 300Kish is accurate for top law schools… Mid-tier schools are more likely to have a range from the low $100s to the mid $200s. Lower tier schools pay less, perhaps $80K to high $100s.

At Above the Law, a writer asks, “could the decline in law school applicants mean tuition cuts [and therefore lower salaries] are on the way?,” and answers no: “[I]nstead of listening to reason, law school tuition is still on the rise.”

It’s really a kind of let them eat cake madness.

Margaret Soltan, April 12, 2012 3:04PM
Posted in: professors

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One Response to ““[I]f we assume that the point of academic work is to reveal the truth, rather than to engage in the defense of a professional cartel from which law professors benefit more than almost anyone else, then this work needs to be done.””

  1. Michael McNabb, Attorney Says:

    The law school at the University of Minnesota is ranked No. 20 in U.S. News & World Report. It has released statistics from its class of 2010 as of February 15, 2011.

    Of the 284 graduates, 15 were unemployed and 52 held short term positions.

    There were responses from 37% of graduates known to be employed in the private sector. The median salary was $110,000.

    There were responses from 30% of graduates known to be employed in the public sector. The median salary was $52,000.

    It is likely that the median salaries would be lower if all graduates responded.

    See Career Statistics at http://www.law.umn.edu/careers/career-facts-and-statistics.html.

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