More 2024 law grads find jobs than in 2023, new ABA data shows
For the third year in a row, law school graduates in 2024 were more likely to find jobs than their peers who graduated a year earlier, according to data released Wednesday by the ABA’s Section of Legal Education and Admissions to the Bar.
As of March 15, or roughly 10 months after graduation, 33,931—or 87.1%—2024 grads of the 194 ABA-approved law schools, were employed, according to an April 23 ABA press release. They had jobs that are full time, long term and require either bar passage or for which having a JD is seen as an advantage.
That compares to 85.6% of 2023 grads and 84.6% of 2022 grads, according to ABA figures.
“Despite initial concerns that the class of 2024 employment outcomes might be impacted by an anticipated contraction in the market and increased size of the graduating class, the percentage of recent law school graduates employed in full-time, long-term bar-admission-required/anticipated or JD-advantage jobs has reached another record high—which is good news for the graduates,” said Jennifer L. Rosato Perea, the managing director for accreditation and legal education at the ABA, in the press release.
The biggest percentage increase comes in government jobs, where 4,693 grads in 2024 landed jobs, up 20.1% from 2023 grads, while the the number of solo practitioners decreased to 186 grads for the class of 2024, an 8.4% decrease from 2023 grads. The majority of 2024 grads, 20,983—or 53.9%—landed in law firm positions, up 13% from 2023 grads.
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