Top Law Schools

Who went/goes to UMAINE. What have you heard about the top graduates salaries?

Just remember that whatever they put out for USNWR is likely bogus. Don't go in expecting a 160k job.

dresden doll wrote:Just remember that whatever they put out for USNWR is likely bogus. Don't go in expecting a 160k job.

+1.

If you go to Maine, you should expect to stay in Maine or a surrounding state and you'll likely have to scrap for a job. But then again, that's true at most non-elite schools, so I am in no way trying to disparage the school.

Basically, if you want to be a lawyer, can get a decent scholarhsip to go to Maine, are satisfied with working in Maine after graduation, and are satisfied starting out at a low starting salary, then Maine is probably an okay choice. Just don't take out massive loans expecting a six-figure job in NYC by going to Maine.

I think the ideal from U Maine Law would be to break into the Portland market.. from what I gather than can be tough to do. But maybe someone on here knows what class percentile you would want to be in to land a good job in Portland Maine and what that job would pay? (sorry I can't help with that, but I'm actually kind of interested in the answer myself)..

A quick NALP search shows top entry level salaries in the state of Maine around 77k-80k (all in Portland). Looks like there may be a total of around 10-12 openings like that per year typically. I'd imagine Maine grads get a good chunk of those jobs, probably even most of them. (Of course, you'll have to compete with the rest of your class for those jobs, keep that in mind).

http://nalpdirectory.com/

Next step would be to research the individual firms, e.g.:

http://www.pierceatwood.com/

As for other jobs, I'd bet that fewer than 5 students each year from Maine Law School get a job outside of Maine that pays more than the Portland firms. Probably 0-2 is typical.

Very cool ^^^

I got a callback from a Maine firm by sending my resume. Didn't end up doing it, though.

I have interviewed with a number of Portland firms. They all seem like a great place to make a career. The hard thing is that there are so few positions, so you really need to stand out. A few people I talked to had come from smaller Maine firms. I think it takes a lot of leg work. Maine is a great place to live and work, but best to come out of Maine Law with little debt so that you can afford to work at a Maine salary. BTW, I think the partners at the firms do pretty well, and the Maine firms really seem to want to keep associates around long term.