[August 19, 2014] |
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Kaplan Survey: Class of 2014 Law School Graduates Give Their Schools Solid Grades in Professor Quality, "Practice Ready" Training and ROI -- But Job Placement Gets More "F"s than "A"s
NEW YORK --(Business Wire)--
According to a Kaplan
Bar Review survey* of over 1,200 law school graduates from the class
of 2014, a strong majority of tomorrow's attorneys give their alma
maters strong marks overall: 40% of law school graduates gave their
overall law school education an "A" (up from 37% in 2012), while 45%
gave it a "B". Only 11% gave their legal education a "C"; and a
relatively small percentage (4%) scored it as below average or failing.
And while law school grads gave their former JD programs generally
favorable marks in a number of subcategories, there was one glaring
exception: job placement. Following are the full results:
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On professor quality: Law school graduates were most generous
in grading their instructors: more than half (52%) gave their
professors an "A", while 37% awarded them a "B" grade. Eight percent
of graduates gave their professors a "C", while "D" and "F" grades
were only doled out by 1% respectively.
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On making them "practice-ready" for the workforce: Graduates
also rated their former law schools highly in this category. 25% gave
their schools an "A", while 40% gave them a "B". A "C" was given by
21%, while 9% assigned a "D" and 4% an "F".
-
On how worthwhile the financial investment ws: Also good news
for law schools: most graduates feel they're getting their money's
worth. Twenty percent awarded an "A" to their alma maters, 33% a "B",
27% a "C", 11% a "D" and 9% an "F". According to American Bar
Association data, in 2013, average tuition at a public law school was
$23,879 per year for in-state residents and $36,859 per year for
non-state residents. The average tuition at private law schools was
significantly more, at $41,984 per year.
-
On helping them find jobs in the law industry: Of the
categories surveyed, this was the only one to receive a double-digit
percentage of "F"s: 15% of students flunked their law schools, while
17% gave their schools a "D". Twenty-eight percent gave their schools
a "C" grade; 27% gave it a "B". Only 13% felt their schools merited an
"A". According to the American Bar Association, 57% of graduates from
the class of 2013 were employed in long-term, full-time positions
where passing the bar is required - slightly up from the class of 2012
- though that percentage varies widely by law school.
"Jobs are top of mind for law school graduates in what continues to be a
challenging job market for new attorneys, so it's not too surprising
that students are tough graders on this front," said Steven Marietti,
vice president and general manager, Kaplan Bar Review. "The survey tells
us that students are happy with the quality of their legal education
overall and still see law school as a worthwhile investment, but they
really want more assistance from law schools in helping them land jobs
in the legal sector. It behooves law schools to do all they can do to
help their graduates secure work, as a program's employment stats for
graduates factors into law school rankings, which in turn is a factor
for law school applicants. We also encourage students to take advantage
of every networking and internship opportunity, which means visiting
your law school's career office early and often."
For more information about Kaplan's survey, contact Russell Schaffer at
212.453.7538 or [email protected].
*The online survey was conducted in August 2014 of 1,273 law school
graduates who took a bar review course with Kaplan Bar Review.
About Kaplan Bar Review
Kaplan Bar Review (www.kaplanbarreview.com)
provides full-service bar review programs in 44 jurisdictions and
Washington DC, making its courses available to over 97% of the U.S.
Bar-taking population. Additionally, Kaplan Bar Review offers
supplemental preparation for the Multistate Bar Exam (MBE).
# # #
Note to editors: Kaplan is a subsidiary of The Graham Holdings
Company (NYSE: GHC)
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