L&C job prospects Forum

[wester0]

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[dissonance1848]

Run away as fast as you can, now, save if you kill it and are environmental lawyer of the century.

[RVP11]

L&C's career services page reports a ~90% employment rate after 9 months with a median salary of 62k and an average of 72k. However, only about a third of students reported salaries. How concerned should I be with that fact?

Assume that 62k was the median and 72k was the average for the top third of the class. Now ask yourself if you still want to attend.

[susanasanjuan]

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[jarofsoup]

Others on this board probably know a lot more than I do about placement or whatever, but I will tell you this: I'm sitting next to a L&C grad from 2009 who was on Law Review, published an article with a professor, and who is a very smart, hardworking guy from what I can tell.

After graduation, he worked general labor jobs to pay the bills, and since then he's bounced around in temp positions. When we send out bills from our office, he's billed out as a "legal assistant" at only ~$40 more than I am, and I actually am just a legal assistant.

The job market in the Pacific NW is really tough, legal or otherwise.

Has he passed the bar? If not this is really common. I agree with you. Lewis and Clark is a great school, but that only goes so far in a small market.

That being said it is one of the cheapest private law schools in the country.

[General Tso]

L&C's career services page reports a ~90% employment rate after 9 months with a median salary of 62k and an average of 72k. However, only about a third of students reported salaries. How concerned should I be with that fact?

Assume that 62k was the top 1/3 and 42k was the average for the entire class. Now ask yourself if you still want to attend.

FTFY

[susanasanjuan]

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[jarofsoup]

Tough love for him.

Is there really even a big law presence in Oregon?

I read somewhere that the majority of Lewis and Clark grads go the public interest, non profit, and gov/ work track.

It would explain the lower salary.

I visited L & C very nice campus, but very sleepy.

[wester0]

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[General Tso]

I guess I should give you guys some more info... As someone who wants to go the public interest/nonprofit route and would be completely content with ~60k a year how concerned should I be with L&C's employment stats?

Public interest is not easily obtained work. People unfortunately still tend to think of district attorney/government/public interest work as something readily had if one is only willing to take a paycut. LRAP + the ability to get quality work experience distorts the public interest job market.

Translation - top students from top schools want those Portland-area public interest gigs just as bad as you do, and they'll have most of them.

[susanasanjuan]

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[83947368]

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[jarofsoup]

I think the issue is not L and C.

It is a regional school in a small market that is depressed with a state government that is going broke like most state govs

[NZA]

If you're interested in living in the PNW, I'd recommend applying to UW, too. It's easily the most well-respected school in the region. You can definitely practice in WA, and almost certainly in OR. Not sure how much competition from folks with degrees from CA schools you'll get in OR, though....

[prismz]

If you're interested in living in the PNW, I'd recommend applying to UW, too. It's easily the most well-respected school in the region. You can definitely practice in WA, and almost certainly in OR. Not sure how much competition from folks with degrees from CA schools you'll get in OR, though....

$$$ numbers at L&C = sticker at UW. If you're set on Portland, consider the money