Top Law Schools

I'm trying to figure out which school will give me the best shot at employment at a BigLaw firm. This website gives percentages of graduates employed at the top 250 firms for the various law schools: http://tippingthescales.com/2015/02/the ... w-schools/. My question is: when a school is reported as having 58% of grads employed at a BigLaw firm, does that mean 42% of their grads tried to get a BigLaw job and didn't? Are we assuming 100% of the people in these schools want to have a BigLaw job?

I'm just unsure of how to look at these percentages when comparing schools and their placement into BigLaw. I just wouldn't want to make a stupid decision about paying sticker at T14 because they had a high % at a BigLaw job if I could get to BigLaw from a T20/25 with a good scholarship.

It doesn't mean anything about the other 42%. They may be working in DA's office, boutique firm, further academic work, clerking, or waiting tables.

You need to look at Law School Transparency, which gives a breakdown of employment outcomes by school (specifically their school reports).

Bluex12 wrote:I'm trying to figure out which school will give me the best shot at employment at a BigLaw firm. This website gives percentages of graduates employed at the top 250 firms for the various law schools: http://tippingthescales.com/2015/02/the ... w-schools/. My question is: when a school is reported as having 58% of grads employed at a BigLaw firm, does that mean 42% of their grads tried to get a BigLaw job and didn't? Are we assuming 100% of the people in these schools want to have a BigLaw job?

I'm just unsure of how to look at these percentages when comparing schools and their placement into BigLaw. I just wouldn't want to make a stupid decision about paying sticker at T14 because they had a high % at a BigLaw job if I could get to BigLaw from a T20/25 with a good scholarship.

No, it's the %age of graduates working in those jobs. Your question exposes the shortcoming of #'s, and it's further exposed when you rely on #'s placed in a particular geographic region as evidence of strength in that region.

If you're looking at something specific like top 250 firms then LST isn't as useful because those #'s can't be gamed. For general employment statistics or salaries, schools are completely justified in using tactics that would be considered fraudulent if used in other industries and it's settled law beyond any doubt that students are 100% at fault for relying on school reported #'s. For these general numbers, LST is useful because they're the only source that provides #'s that you aren't a fool to rely on.