NALP Bulletin+
January 2024
There have been long-standing disparities in employment outcomes for graduates of color as compared to White graduates and new data from NALP's Class of 2022 Employment Report and Salary Survey show that while some of these gaps have narrowed over the past eight years, others have widened. For example, although gaps have lessened for Asian, Black, and Latinx graduates, concerning increases are observed in several areas for Native American, Alaska Native, Native Hawaiian, and other Pacific Islander graduates.
Chart 1 displays differences in employment rates by race/ethnicity (in percentage points) as compared to all graduates for the classes of 2015-22. A negative number indicates a lower percentage of employed graduates compared to graduates overall and a positive number indicates a higher percentage of employed graduates compared to the class as a whole. From 2015-2019, Black graduates experienced the largest differential in employment rates as compared to all graduates; however, Native Hawaiian and other Pacific Islander graduates had the biggest gap in 2020 and 2021, and Native American and Alaska Native graduates had the lowest overall employment rate for the Class of 2022. Since 2015, employment rate gaps have narrowed by about two to three percentage points for Asian, Black, and Latinx graduates.
The number of Native American, Alaska Native, Native Hawaiian, and other Pacific Islander graduates in each class year is relatively small as seen in Table 1; therefore, their employment rates may be more subject to fluctuation from year to year. For these racial groups, differences in employment rates have varied and include years of both positive and negative differentials as compared to all graduates. In contrast, employment rate differentials for White graduates have been relatively stable, ranging from one to two percentage points above the overall class figure.
Due to the higher employment rate for White graduates, disparities in employment rates are further magnified when using White graduates as the comparator but follow the same general patterns. Gaps between Black or African American and White graduates have narrowed somewhat from about eight percentage points in 2015 to approximately four points in 2022. For the Class of 2022, the largest gap (seven percentage points) existed between Native American/Alaska Native graduates and White graduates.
Chart 2 depicts differences by race/ethnicity in the percentage of graduates employed in bar admission required jobs as compared to all graduates from 2015-2022. As with the employment rate data, gaps have generally narrowed for most racial groups, except for Native and Indigenous graduates — where gaps have increased in recent years. Over the last three class years, there has been an 18-20 percentage point differential for Native Hawaiian and other Pacific Islander graduates and a 9-15-point differential for Native American and Alaska Native graduates.
Despite narrowing, Black graduates have consistently experienced some of the largest gaps in the percentage of graduates employed in bar admission required jobs as compared to the class overall. However, this differential has declined by more than eight percentage points since 2015 — dropping from 17.5 percentage points in 2015 to approximately nine percentage points in 2022. During this same period, the gap for Asian graduates has been cut in half — dropping from approximately four to two percentage points. The differential for Latinx graduates has closed from the three to four percentage point range to now just under one point. In contrast to other racial/ethnic groups, the percentage of White graduates employed in bar admission required jobs has consistently been about three to four percentage points higher compared to graduates overall.
As with employment rates, the higher level of employment in bar admission required jobs for White graduates means that these disparities are further exacerbated when using White graduates as the comparator, although the same overall trends remain. Gaps between Black graduates and White graduates have narrowed somewhat from about 21 percentage points in 2015 to 12 percentage points in 2022. The largest differential for the Class of 2022 existed between Native Hawaiian and other Pacific Islander graduates and White graduates, at nearly 22 points. Differences in the percentage of employed graduates in bar admission required jobs for other racial groups as compared to White graduates ranged from about four to 18 percentage points. (See Table 2.)
While White graduates have consistently had the highest overall and bar admission employment rates, employed Asian graduates take the highest percentage of jobs in private practice — with rates from five to eight points higher compared to the overall class figures from 2015-2022. Similarly, Latinx graduates have consistently had higher rates of employment in private practice, but to a lesser extent, with rates of one to two points above the class. For Black graduates, the private practice employment gap has narrowed by about nine points, dropping from approximately 15 to six points, however, they continue to work in law firms at a lower rate compared to most other racial/ethnic groups, except for Native and Indigenous graduates — who experienced double digit gaps for the Class of 2022. (See Chart 3 and Table 3.)
While there has been some positive progress in reducing disparities in employment outcomes, significant gaps persist, especially for Black, Native American, Alaska Native, Native Hawaiian, and other Pacific Islander graduates. The increasing disparities in several outcome areas for Native and Indigenous graduates over the last few years are also a cause for concern.
Additional data on disparities in employment outcomes are available in Jobs & JDs: Employment and Salaries of New Graduates, Class of 2022 — available now in the NALP Bookstore.
Table 1. Employment Rate by Race/Ethnicity and Gender, Classes of 2015-2022
| 2015 | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | |||||||||
| Employment Rate (%) | # of Graduates* | Employment Rate (%) | # of Graduates* | Employment Rate (%) | # of Graduates* | Employment Rate (%) | # of Graduates* | Employment Rate (%) | # of Graduates* | Employment Rate (%) | # of Graduates* | Employment Rate (%) | # of Graduates* | Employment Rate (%) | # of Graduates* | |
| All Graduates | 86.7% | 38,627 | 87.5% | 35,815 | 88.6% | 33,966 | 89.4% | 33,510 | 90.3% | 33,007 | 88.4% | 33,235 | 91.9% | 34,562 | 92.1% | 35,078 |
| All Men | 87.2% | 19,835 | 87.6% | 17,944 | 88.6% | 16,666 | 89.9% | 16,279 | 90.3% | 15,339 | 87.6% | 14,875 | 91.7% | 15,093 | 92.1% | 14,710 |
| All Women | 86.2% | 18,385 | 87.6% | 17,092 | 88.8% | 16,413 | 89.3% | 16,199 | 90.6% | 16,447 | 89.4% | 16,569 | 92.4% | 17,289 | 92.7% | 18,003 |
| White/Caucasian Graduates | 88.4% | 25,219 | 89.4% | 23,088 | 90.7% | 21,544 | 91.3% | 20,776 | 92.1% | 20,060 | 90.1% | 19,870 | 93.1% | 21,028 | 93.4% | 21,402 |
| White/Caucasian Men | 88.5% | 13,946 | 88.9% | 12,570 | 90.4% | 11,516 | 91.0% | 11,053 | 91.8% | 10,201 | 89.0% | 9,870 | 93.8% | 10,264 | 93.1% | 9,753 |
| White/Caucasian Women | 88.4% | 11,200 | 90.0% | 10,378 | 91.3% | 9,859 | 91.6% | 9,486 | 92.5% | 9,493 | 91.4% | 9,715 | 92.6% | 10,091 | 93.9% | 10,712 |
| Asian Graduates | 82.3% | 2,970 | 82.8% | 2,815 | 85.5% | 2,821 | 86.3% | 2,709 | 86.4% | 2,545 | 85.7% | 2,473 | 90.3% | 2,674 | 90.1% | 2,767 |
| Asian Men | 81.7% | 1,271 | 81.8% | 1,206 | 85.7% | 1,211 | 86.5% | 1,119 | 84.6% | 1,016 | 85.2% | 1,006 | 90.6% | 1,007 | 89.7% | 1,022 |
| Asian Women | 82.7% | 1,681 | 83.5% | 1,588 | 85.4% | 1,583 | 86.0% | 1,561 | 87.9% | 1,478 | 86.2% | 1,421 | 90.6% | 1,588 | 90.7% | 1,615 |
| Black or African American Graduates | 80.6% | 2,808 | 82.1% | 2,694 | 82.5% | 2,601 | 84.2% | 2,652 | 85.4% | 2,552 | 83.8% | 2,447 | 88.6% | 2,303 | 89.2% | 2,553 |
| Black or African American Men | 81.2% | 1,012 | 83.0% | 996 | 80.8% | 950 | 85.7% | 929 | 86.5% | 882 | 83.9% | 838 | 87.9% | 816 | 89.0% | 830 |
| Black or African American Women | 80.2% | 1,777 | 81.5% | 1,678 | 83.5% | 1,627 | 83.4% | 1,676 | 84.7% | 1,632 | 83.9% | 1,574 | 88.9% | 1,420 | 89.7% | 1,637 |
| Latinx Graduates | 83.7% | 2,461 | 84.6% | 3,063 | 85.5% | 2,998 | 87.7% | 3,423 | 88.1% | 3,547 | 87.0% | 3,297 | 90.7% | 3,325 | 91.6% | 3,521 |
| Latinx Men | 85.0% | 1,089 | 85.5% | 1,317 | 86.3% | 1,304 | 88.6% | 1,543 | 88.3% | 1,523 | 85.4% | 1,393 | 89.4% | 1,322 | 91.3% | 1,385 |
| Latinx Women | 82.6% | 1,364 | 83.9% | 1,725 | 85.2% | 1,646 | 87.3% | 1,782 | 87.9% | 1,972 | 88.3% | 1,846 | 91.6% | 1,908 | 91.9% | 1,986 |
| Native American and Alaska Native Graduates | 84.8% | 164 | 83.8% | 136 | 91.7% | 121 | 89.3% | 112 | 85.5% | 117 | 84.1% | 113 | 88.6% | 114 | 86.5% | 126 |
| Native American or Alaska Native Men | 86.0% | 86 | 78.0% | 59 | 90.4% | 52 | 93.8% | 48 | 83.3% | 48 | 87.5% | 48 | 89.6% | 48 | 88.7% | 53 |
| Native American or Alaska Native Women | 83.3% | 78 | 88.2% | 76 | 94.0% | 67 | 85.2% | 61 | 85.9% | 64 | 83.6% | 61 | 87.3% | 63 | 85.5% | 69 |
| Native Hawaiian and other Pacific Islander Graduates | 86.2% | 65 | 89.1% | 55 | 90.0% | 40 | 89.7% | 39 | 92.9% | 42 | 81.5% | 88 | 81.1% | 53 | 92.2% | 51 |
| Native Hawaiian or other Pacific Islander Men | 88.5% | 26 | 91.3% | 23 | 87.5% | 24 | 100.0% | 15 | 90.0% | 20 | 81.3% | 32 | 79.2% | 24 | 95.2% | 21 |
| Native Hawaiian or other Pacific Islander Women | 84.6% | 39 | 87.1% | 31 | 93.8% | 16 | 86.4% | 22 | 95.5% | 22 | 81.3% | 48 | 84.6% | 26 | 92.3% | 26 |
| Multiracial Graduates | 85.4% | 1,675 | 85.9% | 970 | 86.7% | 976 | 89.2% | 1,024 | 89.7% | 929 | 88.3% | 1,048 | 92.7% | 1,175 | 89.8% | 1,220 |
| Multiracial Men | 85.3% | 791 | 85.8% | 487 | 83.8% | 470 | 89.8% | 462 | 87.0% | 377 | 87.4% | 437 | 91.4% | 477 | 89.6% | 479 |
| Multiracial Women | 85.5% | 880 | 85.9% | 476 | 89.2% | 499 | 88.8% | 554 | 91.5% | 540 | 89.4% | 583 | 93.4% | 655 | 90.4% | 685 |
Source: NALP Employment Report and Salary Survey, 2015-2022
*For whom employment status and the appropriate demographic information was reported.
Note: Data are not reported out separately by race/ethnicity for gender non-binary graduates and graduates who chose to self-identify their gender due to the small number of graduates.
| 2015 | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | |
| All Graduates | 66.6% | 67.7% | 71.8% | 72.8% | 76.2% | 74.6% | 78.2% | 79.9% |
| All Men | 67.0% | 67.5% | 71.2% | 72.8% | 75.5% | 73.2% | 77.5% | 79.8% |
| All Women | 66.4% | 68.1% | 72.8% | 73.7% | 77.2% | 76.7% | 79.6% | 81.2% |
| White/Caucasian Graduates | 69.7% | 70.9% | 75.2% | 76.6% | 79.8% | 78.0% | 81.0% | 82.7% |
| White/Caucasian Men | 69.3% | 70.3% | 73.9% | 75.6% | 78.4% | 75.9% | 79.4% | 82.1% |
| White/Caucasian Women | 70.2% | 71.7% | 77.0% | 78.1% | 81.1% | 80.3% | 82.8% | 83.9% |
| Asian Graduates | 62.7% | 64.3% | 68.6% | 69.6% | 70.6% | 71.9% | 75.8% | 78.0% |
| Asian Men | 60.6% | 61.1% | 66.4% | 68.3% | 66.2% | 68.5% | 73.9% | 76.0% |
| Asian Women | 64.5% | 66.4% | 70.4% | 70.7% | 73.7% | 74.2% | 77.9% | 80.1% |
| Black or African American Graduates | 49.1% | 51.2% | 57.2% | 57.5% | 62.4% | 62.5% | 65.9% | 70.6% |
| Black or African American Men | 49.7% | 51.7% | 54.9% | 58.3% | 61.7% | 62.3% | 64.8% | 70.8% |
| Black or African American Women | 48.8% | 51.0% | 58.8% | 57.2% | 62.6% | 62.6% | 66.3% | 71.0% |
| Latinx Graduates | 63.3% | 64.1% | 68.2% | 71.2% | 73.1% | 73.1% | 77.2% | 79.0% |
| Latinx Men | 63.9% | 63.5% | 68.3% | 70.0% | 73.2% | 69.6% | 75.9% | 77.6% |
| Latinx Women | 62.7% | 64.6% | 68.5% | 73.1% | 73.1% | 75.6% | 78.2% | 80.4% |
| Native American or Alaska Native Graduates | 65.2% | 63.2% | 70.2% | 72.3% | 63.2% | 65.5% | 69.3% | 65.1% |
| Native American or Alaska Native Men | 67.4% | 57.6% | 69.2% | 72.9% | 58.3% | 62.5% | 70.8% | 64.2% |
| Native American or Alaska Native Women | 62.8% | 67.1% | 71.6% | 70.5% | 65.6% | 68.9% | 69.8% | 66.7% |
| Native Hawaiian or other Pacific Islander Graduates | 53.8% | 65.5% | 60.0% | 59.0% | 73.8% | 56.8% | 58.5% | 60.8% |
| Native Hawaiian or other Pacific Islander Men | 53.8% | 69.6% | 41.7% | 80.0% | 75.0% | 50.0% | 50.0% | 47.6% |
| Native Hawaiian or other Pacific Islander Women | 53.8% | 61.3% | 87.5% | 45.5% | 72.7% | 60.4% | 65.4% | 73.1% |
| Multiracial Graduates | 63.5% | 63.0% | 67.4% | 72.9% | 77.2% | 73.5% | 78.6% | 76.8% |
| Multiracial Men | 62.6% | 61.8% | 63.4% | 74.9% | 74.8% | 72.1% | 78.8% | 77.7% |
| Multiracial Women | 64.5% | 64.3% | 70.9% | 71.3% | 78.7% | 75.6% | 78.5% | 77.1% |
Source: NALP Employment Report and Salary Survey, 2015-2022
Note: Data are not reported out separately by race/ethnicity for gender non-binary graduates and graduates who chose to self-identify their gender due to the small number of graduates.
Table 3. Percentage of Employed Graduates Working in Private Practice, Classes of 2015-2022
| 2015 | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | |
| All Graduates | 51.3% | 52.9% | 54.4% | 54.8% | 55.2% | 56.8% | 57.0% | 58.0% |
| All Men | 53.0% | 54.5% | 55.6% | 56.2% | 57.1% | 58.4% | 58.2% | 59.8% |
| All Women | 49.7% | 51.4% | 53.4% | 53.6% | 53.7% | 55.7% | 56.4% | 57.5% |
| White/Caucasian Graduates | 52.3% | 53.7% | 55.2% | 55.5% | 55.8% | 56.6% | 56.6% | 57.8% |
| White/Caucasian Men | 53.9% | 55.0% | 55.9% | 56.7% | 57.9% | 58.3% | 58.0% | 59.5% |
| White/Caucasian Women | 50.3% | 52.1% | 54.3% | 54.2% | 54.0% | 55.4% | 55.7% | 56.7% |
| Asian Graduates | 57.8% | 58.0% | 59.4% | 62.1% | 62.1% | 65.0% | 63.6% | 65.7% |
| Asian Men | 56.6% | 58.9% | 57.4% | 64.5% | 59.8% | 62.3% | 61.8% | 65.2% |
| Asian Women | 58.8% | 57.4% | 61.3% | 60.6% | 63.7% | 67.1% | 65.1% | 67.1% |
| Black or African American Graduates | 35.9% | 38.9% | 40.4% | 41.9% | 43.6% | 45.9% | 45.9% | 51.8% |
| Black or African American Men | 38.8% | 42.0% | 41.3% | 44.1% | 46.5% | 46.3% | 48.1% | 53.7% |
| Black or African American Women | 34.2% | 37.3% | 40.0% | 40.5% | 42.1% | 45.7% | 45.0% | 51.6% |
| Latinx Graduates | 53.2% | 54.9% | 56.3% | 55.5% | 55.9% | 57.9% | 57.9% | 58.9% |
| Latinx Men | 53.9% | 55.7% | 59.3% | 55.2% | 57.5% | 60.7% | 59.8% | 60.2% |
| Latinx Women | 52.7% | 54.4% | 54.2% | 55.7% | 54.3% | 56.7% | 57.2% | 58.5% |
| Native American or Alaska Native Graduates | 51.8% | 41.2% | 49.5% | 44.0% | 46.0% | 50.5% | 43.6% | 42.2% |
| Native American or Alaska Native Men | 56.8% | 50.0% | 66.0% | 44.4% | 45.0% | 42.9% | 46.5% | 51.1% |
| Native American or Alaska Native Women | 46.2% | 35.8% | 36.5% | 42.3% | 49.1% | 58.8% | 41.8% | 37.3% |
| Native Hawaiian or other Pacific Islander Graduates | 39.3% | 36.7% | 41.7% | 37.1% | 41.0% | 51.5% | 48.8% | 44.7% |
| Native Hawaiian or other Pacific Islander Men | 43.5% | 33.3% | 38.1% | 33.3% | 44.4% | 53.9% | 47.4% | 25.0% |
| Native Hawaiian or other Pacific Islander Women | 36.4% | 40.7% | 46.7% | 36.8% | 38.1% | 48.7% | 45.5% | 62.5% |
| Multiracial Graduates | 49.0% | 50.2% | 49.6% | 56.7% | 55.1% | 57.6% | 57.4% | 56.5% |
| Multiracial Men | 48.9% | 52.6% | 50.5% | 60.5% | 60.4% | 59.7% | 60.1% | 59.0% |
| Multiracial Women | 49.3% | 47.7% | 49.2% | 53.9% | 52.4% | 56.5% | 55.9% | 56.1% |
Source: NALP Employment Report and Salary Survey, 2015-2022
Note: Data are not reported out separately by race/ethnicity for gender non-binary graduates and graduates who chose to self-identify their gender due to the small number of graduates.
