Recent Graduate Employment Data
ABA Employment Summaries: Classes of 2017, 2016, 2015, and 2014.
The Law School has long provided data about employment outcomes to prospective students, admitted students, current students, and alumni in various forms. We are pleased to offer this extensive data about employment outcomes and salaries for the four most recent graduating classes, as well as information about where our students who clerk immediately after graduation choose to work after they are finished clerking. We also provide additional detailed information about judicial clerkships and summer employment data.
| Class of 2017 | Class of 2016 | Class of 2015 | Class of 2014 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total Graduates | 214 | 215 | 196 | 210 |
| Employed | 210 | 215 | 192 | 206 |
| Bar Passage Required | 205 | 211 | 190 | 195 |
| JD Advantage | 4 | 4 | 2 | 10 |
| Professional | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Non-Professional | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Unknown | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Pursuing Graduate Degree | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| Unemployed - Start Date Deferred | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| Unemployed - Not Seeking | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Unemployed - Seeking | 2 | 0 | 2 | 3 |
| Employment Status Unknown | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Class of 2017 | Class of 2016 | Class of 2015 | Class of 2014 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Employed - Bar Passage Required | 8 | 10 | 11 | 11 |
| Employed - JD Advantage | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Employed - Other Professional | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Employed - Non-Professional | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Total Funded by Law School/University | 8 | 10 | 11 | 12 |
| Class of 2017 | Class of 2016 | Class of 2015 | Class of 2014 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Law Firms | 69.0% | 67.0% | 70.3% | 65.0% |
| Solo | - | - | - | 0.7% |
| 2-10 | 0.7% | 0.7% | - | 0.7% |
| 11-25 | - | 2.8% | 0.7% | 0.7% |
| 26-50 | 0.7% | 2.8% | - | 0.7% |
| 51-100 | 0.7% | 2.1% | - | 3.0% |
| 101-250 | 1.4% | 4.2% | 5.2% | 3.7% |
| 251-500 | 5.5% | 13.2% | 16.3% | 4.5% |
| 500+ | 91.0% | 74.3% | 77.8% | 85.8% |
| unknown | - | - | - | - |
| Business and Industry | 1.9% | 1.4% | 3.1% | 6.3% |
| Government | 2.9% | 5.6% | 3.1% | 4.9% |
| Public Interest | 4.8% | 6.5% | 5.7% | 6.3% |
| Clerkship | 21.4% | 19.1% | 17.7% | 17.0% |
| Federal | 100.0% | 87.8% | 82.4% | 94.3% |
| State and Local | - | 12.2% | 17.6% | 5.7% |
| Other | - | - | - | - |
| Academia | - | 0.5% | - | 0.5% |
| Other/unknown | - | - | - | - |
| Class of 2017 | Class of 2016 | Class of 2015 | Class of 2014 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Northeast (CT, ME, MA, NH, RI, VT) | 2.4% | 1.4% | 1.0% | 2.4% |
| Mid-Atlantic (NY, NJ, PA) | 19.0% | 23.2% | 24.0% | 19.9% |
| East North Central (IL, IN, MI, OH, WI) | 38.6% | 37.2% | 38.0% | 32.0% |
| West North Central (IA, KS, MN, MO, NE, SD, ND) | 3.3% | 1.9% | 2.6% | 3.4% |
| South Atlantic (DE, DC, FL, GA, MD, NC, SC, VA, WV) | 9.0% | 11.6% | 9.9% | 17.5% |
| East South Central (AL, KY, MS, TN) | 1.9% | 1.9% | 1.6% | - |
| West South Central (AR, LA, OK, TX) | 9.0% | 4.6% | 6.8% | 4.4% |
| Mountain (AZ, CO, ID, MT, NV, NM, UT, WY) | 2.9% | 4.2% | 2.6% | 1.9% |
| Pacific (AK, CA, WA, HI, OR) | 12.9% | 13.5% | 11.5% | 17.0% |
| Foreign | 1.0% | 0.5% | 2.1% | 1.5% |
| Class of 2017 | Class of 2016 | Class of 2015 | Class of 2014 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Illinois | 35.7% | 34.0% | 35.4% | 31.1% |
| New York | 17.6% | 22.3% | 22.4% | 18.9% |
| California | 12.4% | 11.6% | 8.8% | 14.6% |
| District of Columbia | 5.7% | 5.1% | 5.7% | 10.7% |
| Texas | 8.1% | 4.7% | 4.7% | 3.4% |
| Class of 2017 | Class of 2016 | Class of 2015 | Class of 2014 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total Employed Graduates | 210 | 215 | 192 | 206 |
| Number of Full-time Salaries Reported | 209 | 213 | 189 | 196 |
| Percentage of Full-time Salaries Reported | 99.5% | 99.1% | 98.4% | 95.1% |
| 25th Percentile | $66,510 | $65,000 | $64,821 | $65,000 |
| Median | $180,000 | $180,000 | $160,000 | $160,000 |
| 75th Percentile | $180,000 | $180,000 | $160,000 | $160,000 |
| Mean | $141,792 | $135,241 | $127,530 | $123,409 |
| Private Sector | 149 | 147 | 141 | 147 |
| Number of Full-time Salaries Reported | 148 | 146 | 138 | 139 |
| Percentage of Salaries Reported | 99.3% | 99.3% | 97.9% | 94.6% |
| 25th Percentile | $180,000 | $180,000 | $160,000 | $160,000 |
| Median | $180,000 | $180,000 | $160,000 | $160,000 |
| 75th Percentile | $180,000 | $180,000 | $160,000 | $160,000 |
| Mean | $175,088 | $170,301 | $154,728 | $152,414 |
| Public Sector | 61 | 68 | 51 | 59 |
| Number of Full-time Salaries Reported | 61 | 67 | 51 | 57 |
| Percentage of Salaries Reported | 100.0% | 98.5% | 100.0% | 96.6% |
| 25th Percentile | $60,000 | $52,000 | $51,905 | $44,500 |
| Median | $63,000 | $60,882 | $58,500 | $62,000 |
| 75th Percentile | $66,379 | $64,992 | $61,700 | $64,585 |
| Mean | $61,009 | $58,839 | $53,935 | $56,111 |
| Class of 2016 | Class of 2015 | Class of 2014 | Class of 2013 | Class of 2012 | 2012-2016 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Law Firm | 88.5% | 81.8% | 75.8% | 88.9% | 88.9% | 84.5% |
| Government | 7.7% | 9.1% | 24.2% | 11.1% | 2.8% | 11.0% |
| Public Interest | 3.8% | 3.0% | 0.0% | 0.0% | 5.6% | 2.6% |
| Academia | 0.0% | 3.0% | 0.0% | 0.0% | 2.8% | 1.3% |
| Business & Industry | 0.0% | 3.0% | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.6% |
As you can see, UChicago Law graduates find work in every part of the legal profession, as well as in non-legal careers where a law degree is a substantial asset. Our alumni are all over the world, leading the way in private practice, government, public service, business, academia, and the judiciary.
The Law School is proud to provide significant support to students and graduates entering public service. Students who pursue careers in public interest immediately after graduation face unique challenges, and one of the ways the Law School helps to ameliorate those challenges is through postgraduate public interest fellowships and funding, as well as a generous loan forgiveness program.
Please note: Employment and salary information is taken from a variety of sources, including: student self-reporting, alumni surveys, employer information, published salary data, and electronic resources.
Private Sector salaries include graduates in both the Law Firms and Business and Industry categories.
Public Sector salaries include graduates in the Government, Public Interest, Judicial Clerkships, and Academia categories.
Employment categories for the Class of 2017 follow these ABA definitions. Geographic distinctions follow these NALP categories.