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2021 NALP Annual Conference Handouts
NALP Press Release, October 19, 2022
Market for New Law Graduates Steady - Hovering around 89% for Third Year
Employment for the Class of 2019 - Selected Findings Report. August 2020.
2021 Associate Salary Survey - Sample Instrument for Review
NALP 2021 Report on Diversity in U.S. Law Firms
Preliminary employment outcomes for the Class of 2022
Employment for the Class of 2020 - Selected Findings Report. August 2021.
NALP: Non-Binary Resources
February 2022 Perspectives on 2021 Law Student Recruiting
NALP Ten Timely Resources for OCI Success
NALP Press Release, May 10, 2023
NALP's 50th Anniversary Bulletin Advertising Opportunities
NALP Press Release, March 30, 2022
NALP Press Release, March 22, 2023
Gender Non-binary Work Group of the NALP Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Section, June 2024
NALP's 50th Anniversary - Member Sponsorship
NALP Research: Class of 2020 Buying Power Index
August 2015. Associate Exit Interview Template, Interview Script, Sample Job Descriptions to provide an overview of the types of emerging jobs
Many NALP members enter into career counseling with a JD but no formal training in career counseling. This special feature offers tips on the skills required.
By Shannon DeGennaro and Doug Ebeling, NALP Bulletin, October 2019.
Resources for LGBTQ+ information
NALP Class of 2021 Preliminary ERSS Findings Webinar
NALP Board Meeting Summaries
NALP Press Release, February 27, 2023
ERSS Graduate Survey, Class of 2019
Thank You For Subscribing to NALP's media list
November 2020. Students and alumni may need assistance not only in figuring out whether an offered salary is reasonable based on the nature of the employer and its market, but also in identifying points for negotiation and in going through the negotiation process.
This article outlines some of the recent changes that have occurred to the most common immigration programs for international law students, explores areas that may change going forward, and provides suggestions for how to manage this uncertainty.
Weekly Industry News Digest for Legal Career Professionals. Each week NALP provides a summary of news articles of interest to legal career professionals.
By Lisa Abrams and Leslie Scolnick Hauser. November 18, 2009.
NALP New Membership Application
NALP Perspectives on 2020-21 Law Student Recruiting
Jobs (Updated October 29, 2025)
Market for Class of 2008 Law Graduates Shrinks
José Bahamonde-González and Melanie Rowen interview four lawyers about professional attire for non-binary legal professionals.
Market for New Law Graduates at Highest Level in 20 Years, Approaching 92%, 2008
Perspectives on 2022 Law Student Recruiting
September 2021. NALP's JD Advantage Work Group provides a template for creating an Emerging Careers Week.
How can PD leaders guide students in owning and amplifying their professional identities using online engagement? Here are some simple tips to get started.
NALP Press Release, January 12, 2023
Presented on February 5, 2015.
Preparing for your first experience with an ABA re-accreditation site visit to your career services office? Here are some tips on what to expect.
NALP Press Release, March 1, 2022
National Employment Outcomes for the Class of 2020, August 2021.
Tips for Navigating the 2026 NALP Annual Education Conference
Perspectives on 2023 Law Student Recruiting, March 2024
FOLLOW-UP EMAIL ON RECOMMENDER DIRECTORY, NALP OSCAR WORKING GROUP, May 20, 2009
Overall Median Salaries Rise and Private Practice Employment Remains Strong for the Class of 2020, Even as Other Key Employment Metrics Decline Due to the Pandemic. August 25, 2021.
2018 Annual Conference - Session Descriptions
ERSS Graduate Survey, Class of 2019. Fillable PDF Form.
The American Bar Association (ABA) Standards require site visits for fully approved law schools every ten years. My school recently underwent our visit, so I want to share what I learned from the process, how I prepared, and best practices.
Can lawyers, a group that traditionally avoids pooling information, especially when such knowledge sharing crosses firm lines, collaborate in such an effort? The answer, in short, is yes — and then some.
By Paula Davis-Laack and Patrick Krill, PD Quarterly, February 2018.
NALP members can expect to find collaboration, camaraderie, and learning experiences at the 2019 NALP Annual Education Conference in San Diego, CA. There will also be time for attendees to explore this beautiful city; following are some activities that are a short walk from the hotel.
The JD Career Advisors Section is for NALP members who have an interest in or responsibility for the career development of law students and alumni.
Judicial Clerks Remain Less Diverse than Law Graduates Overall, NALP Research, October 2022. judicial clerks, judicial clerkships, diversity
NALP 2020 Report on Diversity in U.S. Law Firms
NALP Research on Non-Binary Law School Graduates, December 2020
NALP Press Release, February 2, 2021
Does a Gender Pay Gap Exist for New Law Graduates and Has It Changed Over Time?, NALP Bulletin, October 2019
A checklist of things to consider in your planning, implementation, and assessment of your program.
NALP JD Advantage Guide, August 2025
2015 Annual Conference - Session Descriptions
NALP President Beth Moeller of UCLA Law offers key takeaways learned from a challenging 2020, with many lawyers and law students working remotely during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Class of 2022 Employment and Salary Outcomes Shatter Records - Future Classes May Face a Tougher Market
2017 Annual Conference - Session Descriptions
NALP Press Release, January 12, 2022
NALP Research on Diversity & Demographics
Web-based enterprises offer JD students and graduates an unprecedented opportunity to circulate their resumes electronically. Here are some tips for avoiding pitfalls (and some explanations for those who wonder why some resumes appear the way they do).
National Employment Outcomes for the Class of 2012, July 2013.
National Employment Outcomes for the Class of 2013, July 2014.
NALP Research: Employment for the Class of 2015 - Selected Findings.
NALP Press Release, April 14, 2021
National Employment Outcomes for the Class of 2014, July 2015.
Innovating Talent Management in Law Firms Webinar Series. Presented November 28, 2017.
NALP Research: Class of 2024 Buying Power Index
The NALP Foundation is launching research panels that involve NALP members.
The Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Section is for NALP members with a particular interest in or responsibility for advocating for diversity, equity, and inclusion in legal education and legal employment.
This "binder" will help new NALP members learn about the organization.
By Alexi Freeman, Associate Professor of the Practice at the University of Denver Sturm College of Law, June 2020
In the technological age, the legal job search has shifted from hardbound book resources to primarily online databases. Since there are vast numbers of online databases, it can be daunting for a law student to conduct an online search.
Welcome New NALP Members. Find helpful resources to get you better acquainted with your new NALP. membership
What should a career counselor tell students to do and what pitfalls should they avoid to make their online networking easier and more effective?
RESUME (Updated February 11, 2025)
Say goodbye to sweaty palms and nervous handshakes and learn to take advantage of the power of online professional networking.
University of Akron School of Law’s Alisa N. Benedict O’Brien and University of Hawaii, William S. Richardson School of Law’s Trisha Nakamura examine the overlap and connections between career services offices and externships.
Making the Best Case for NALP Conference Attendance
NALP Research: Summer 2020 Outcomes Survey Instrument
NALP Research: Buying Power Index - Class of 2014, March 2016
NALP Research: Class of 2016 Buying Power Index, April 2018
Presented January 24, 2014.
University of Akron School of Law’s Alecia Bencze offers tips for newer professionals in the legal field about how to build their online persona.
NALP New Career Models Task Force, 2014
If you expect your firm to stand behind an alumni program and promote it to your alumni, you need to first tell them exactly what the program is and what's in it for the firm.
View archive issues for the last 8 NALPnow! email newsletters, which share information on NALP news and events.
First-year job searches, alumni alerts, and 2008 award winners.
December 2020. Despite the shift at law firms to virtual and shortened summer programs in 2020, offer and acceptance rates remained near or at historical highs, but summer program class sizes continued to shrink.
NALP Research: Race/Ethnicity & Gender
Presented February 13, 2019.
Diversity, Equity & Inclusion Resources. June 2020.
NALP Bulletin+ article by Executive Director Nikai L. Gray discussing the evolving recruiting timeline for Big Law firms.
NALP press release, June 22, 2022
Member Town Hall discussion slides presented on July 15, 2020.
NALP 2022 Report on Diversity in U.S. Law firms, January 2023
NALP 2023 Report on Diversity in U.S. Law Firms
This Resource Guide offers a full range of information on establishing a successful nontraditional-track attorney program. April 2013.
University of the Pacific, McGeorge School of Law’s Leah Adams explores how the developments of 2020 will impact diversity fellowships this year and beyond.
NALP Research: Buying Power Index Class of 2010
Instructions for Compiling and Reporting for Class of 2019, Spring 2020
NALP Research: Buying Power Index Class of 2011, January 2013
NALP Research: Employer Types with Average Salary for Class of 2020
November 2020. An overview of the NALP Class of 2020 Employment Report and Salary Survey (ERSS) data collection process
This author didn't expect his attempt to buy a home to become a refresher on effective career advising practices.
NALP Research: Class of 2018 Buying Power Index, November 2019
Diversity isn't just about recruiting diverse lawyers -- it's also about ensuring that they feel respected and valued within the organization. This is where inclusion comes in, but how can it be turned from an abstract concept into real-world activities and made a part of firm culture? One way is through your firm events.
This case study of accounting firm recruiting of LLM Taxation graduates will also be of interest to all career services professionals who are seeking ways to work more effectively with non-legal employers.
By Elizabeth Armand Di Giovanni, Beth Johnson, and Mary Schaus, NALP Bulletin, August 2010.
NALP Research: Buying Power Index Class of 2012, September 2013
By David M. Diamond, NALP Bulletin, October 2012.
Jenner & Block’s Courtney Carter, Squire Patton Boggs’ Rafael Langer-Osuna, and Nicole Netkin-Collins of the University of Colorado talk about how to increase diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) efforts for gender non-binary legal professionals at law firms.
2013 Annual Conference - Session Descriptions
Sidley Austin’s Jody Rosen Knower makes the case for legal professionals to attend PDI 2021, which takes place Dec. 2-3 in Washington, DC, returning to an in-person format after a virtual conference last year.
A look at the search for non-traditional jobs in the public sector.
A growing number of law schools are requesting the ability to offer online and hybrid JD programs from the Council for the Section of Legal Education and Admissions to the Bar. How do career development offices meet the needs of these students?
Research Director Danielle A. Taylor summaries key trends on race and ethnicity from Jobs & JDs: Employment and Salaries of New Law Graduates, Class of 2021.
Presented by Randall Dean on April 16, 2020.
Venable’s Traci Mundy Jenkins recaps the 2021 Annual Education Conference, which was held virtually due to the COVID-19 pandemic and featured a plenary with Haben Girma, the first deafblind graduate of Harvard Law School.
How can one best support students who are interested in pursuing a non-traditional career path? This author offers a Canadian perspective.
Press Release on 2018 Public Service Attorney Salary Survey, July 9, 2018.
University of Utah S.J. Quinney College of Law’s Jaclyn Howell explains why a mentorship program specific for students pursuing a Master of Legal Studies degree is beneficial for law schools.
2019 PDI conference brochure. December 5-6, 2019.
CORA (Updated April 25, 2024)
NALP Director of Research Danielle A. Taylor shares highlights on legal employment findings for the Class of 2021 from NALP’s annual Employment Report and Salary Survey.
Trends (Updated October 22, 2025)
NALP Research: Trends
Entering the field of legal recruitment or career services can be a daunting assignment for a non-lawyer. Here are some tips.
How to maintain a big-picture focus on professional development in conversations with associates and partners in unprecedented times.
NALP's Judith Collins explores jobs data from 1991-2021 to identify trends.
Presented January 29, 2014.
As law schools step into the world of online learning, legal career professionals need to be prepared to work with online students and to anticipate new ethical questions that may arise in the delivery of career services.
Conveying firm culture through a variety of media -- podcasts, BlackBerrys, the web.
NALP Press Release, March 27, 2024
By Marta Ricardo and Jeanine Dames, NALP Bulletin, January 2012
Full report on the second round of pulse surveys measuring the impact of COVID-19 on law schools and legal employers.
Press Release: Entry-Level Recruiting Volumes Plunge, Some Start Dates Deferred, Perspectives on Fall 2009 Law Student Recruiting, March 2, 2010
2027 NALP Annual Education Conference RFP
The NALP Law Student Professional Development Section presents an excerpt from a forthcoming E-Guide entitled "From Law Student to Lawyer: The E-Guide to E-Professionalism," to be available on NALP's website this fall.
Despite the obvious benefits and shorter time commitments, convincing the students most qualified for judicial clerkships to seek them is challenging. Fortunately, there are many ways to engage students on the topic of judicial clerkships, and the earlier the better. Developing a comprehensive plan to put information before students from the beginning of law school is key.
2014 Annual Conference - Session Descriptions
Presented January 25, 2018. NALP Legal Recruiting Summit.
Presented January 20, 2016.
NALP non-discrimination policy changed to reflect Solomon Amendment struggle.
NALP Research, Changes in the Racial/Ethnic Representation of Summer Associates Since the Great Recession, May 2022
2026 NALP Professional Development Institute RFP
NALP Press Release, January 9, 2024
Two Perspectives on Military Veterans, NALP Bulletin, February 2020
Nutter Chief Talent and Equity Officer Kristin Leary shares three program highlights for PDI 2021, which takes place Dec. 2-3 in Washington, DC, returning to an in-person format after a virtual conference last year.
This interest group is open to any NALP member who holds the top role of any sort, broadly defined, in a career office at a law school.
By Beth Moeller, NALP Bulletin, October 2017.
When most law students think of courthouse jobs, they think of judicial clerkships, but many attorneys find deeply satisfying non-traditional legal careers in and around the courts.
Presented February 21, 2012.
The student should be ready to package the non-offer and present it to future employers in the best possible light, without misrepresenting the situation at all.
University of Kansas School of Law’s Meredith Wiggins and Howard University School of Law’s Robert Wright Jr. have a conversation about working at law schools despite not attending law school.
NALP Resources for Native and Indigenous Students
National Employment Outcomes for the Class of 2011, July 2012.
The Law Student Professional Development Section is for NALP members with an interest in or responsibility for educating law students about expectations of professionalism in the legal profession.
National Employment Outcomes for the Class of 2010, June 2011.
June 11, 2020. Full report on the first round of pulse surveys measuring the impact of COVID-19 on law schools and legal employers.
National Employment Outcomes for the Class of 2009, June 2010.
The Well-Being Section is a community for NALP members who have an interest in or responsibility for the well-being of law students and lawyers.
visas; international LLMs
A strong network has always been an important tool for employers seeking to quickly connect with talented candidates. However, some employers and some geographic locations rely more on professional contacts to spread the word about job opportunities than others. Employers may want to adopt a variety of tactics when designing a recruitment strategy to avoid the hazards of a homogenous workforce. But based on my outreach and research as the PSJD Fellow, I believe that open hiring via company websites and/or online job boards provides an excellent and affordable first step.
Methods for advancing the professional development function at your organization, including finding a sponsor, demonstrating value, personalizing training, and making it enjoyable for everyone.
NALP Research: What Share of 2L Summer Program Offers and Acceptances Are a Result of Precruiting? October 2021
Prepared by the Sexual Harassment and Recruiting Conduct Work Groups of the JD Career Advisors and Recruiting Sections. 2019.
In the last five years or so, we have seen a mini-explosion of openly transgender students enrolling in or transitioning at law schools across the country.
By Beth Moeller and Kisha Nunez, NALP Bulletin, November 2017.
NALP Press Release, March 12, 2024
The Canadian Section is for NALP members with a particular interest in Canadian legal education, Canadian law school career services, and issues surrounding legal employment and admission to the bar in Canada.
While doing employer outreach, you can glean important information that will assist students with their job searches.
NALP Research: Survey of Law Firm Competency Expectations for Associate Development, November 2020
Review of What Can You Do With a Law Degree?
This year NALP’s Jobs & JDs: Employment and Salaries of New Graduates — Class of 2019, available at www.nalp.org/bookstore, features the first in-depth analysis of employment and salary outcomes for non-binary law school graduates.
Schulte Roth & Zabel’s Doug Ebeling and McGeorge School of Law’s Molly Stafford describe how to navigate office dynamics while striving to create a welcoming and supportive environment for gender non-binary individuals.
This network is open to any NALP member who holds a chief role of any sort, broadly defined, and is meant to facilitate information sharing and best practices among its members.
By David B. Jaffe, PD Quarterly, February 2018.
The Recruiting Section is for NALP members who are responsible for, or who have an interest in, issues related to law school outreach, summer programs, and entry-level lawyer recruiting.
The Public Service Section is for NALP members who have an interest in or responsibility for advising law students whose career paths lead to public sector, public interest, and pro bono work during law school and after graduation.
National Employment Outcomes for the Class of 2015, August 2016.
The Newer Professionals Section is for NALP members who have been in the profession for four years or less.
National Employment Outcomes for the Class of 2017, August 2018
University of California Berkeley School of Law’s Terrence J. Galligan looks back at NALP’s history following the Great Recession from 2009 to present day 2021, the last of a three-part series celebrating the association’s 50th anniversary year.
NALP’s individual graduate employment data, which includes a variety of demographic information, allows us to compare general characteristics with more detailed information on law school graduates and the kinds of jobs they take.
This Section is for NALP members working in career services offices with three or fewer career services professionals.
The International and Advanced Degree Advising and Recruiting section is for NALP career services members who advise domestic and international LL.M. degree candidates and for NALP legal employer members who hire graduates with LL.M. degrees.
National Employment Outcomes for the Class of 2016, August 2017.
NALP Webinar, May 6, 2021.
NALP Research: Full-time Salaries for Jobs Lasting at Least One Year, by Employer or Job Type — Class of 2020
The Lawyer Professional Development Section is for NALP members who are interested in or have a responsibility for law firm professional development programming.
Resume (Updated February 12, 2025)
2026 NALP Directory of Legal Employers Information
By Lisa M. Dickinson, NALP Bulletin, June 2008.
National Employment Outcomes for the Class of 2019, August 2020.
National Employment Outcomes for the Class of 2018, July 2019.
NALP: JD Advantage Resources
NALP’s Executive Director Nikia Gray examines the potential fallout from the Supreme Court’s Students for Fair Admissions decision on the racial and ethnic diversity of our profession.
By James G. Leipold, NALP Bulletin, February 2020.
NALP research on lawyers with disabilities
New online tools may not replace traditional methods of finding lateral lawyer candidates, but some of these new tools are well worth considering as you develop recruiting strategies.
NALP Report on Diversity, December 2019
December 2018. Full text of NALP Principles.
NALP's Report on the Survey of Legal Employers on 2020 Summer Outcomes and First-Year Associate Plans was released in December 2020 and includes information on the outcomes for 1Ls and 2Ls participating in summer programs, as well as the latest data on first-year associate start dates.
The Experienced Professionals Section includes NALP members who self-identify as "experienced" in the legal recruitment and professional development industry and seek to collaborate with similarly situated colleagues.
Find information on how to become a member of NALP, the National Association for Law Placement
NALP Research: Entry-level and Lateral Hiring
NALP research on member salaries, including career services offices and legal employer personnel in the U.S. and Canada
NALP Research: Trends in Median Reported Salaries — Class of 2020
NALP Diversity Infographic: Disabilities, June 2016. Data from NALP Diversity Report
December 12, 2018. NALP's Principles for a Fair and Ethical Recruitment Process urge members to aspire to the highest ethical and professional standards, and to maintain policies and procedures that allow students to meaningfully choose between competing offers and allow employers to effectively manage their recruitment processes.
NALP Research, Representation of Women and People of Color in U.S. Law Firms in 2020, June 2021
NALP Webinar: Disparate Outcomes: Another Look at NALP’s Employment and Salary Data, October 20, 2021
New NALP Recruiting Guidance Emphasizes Fairness and Reasonableness, December 12, 2018
NALP Director of Research Danielle Taylor outlines key findings on first-year salaries for associates from the 2021 Associate Salary Survey report, which is available at www.nalp.org/bookstore.
Southwestern Law School’s Jody Stein outlines steps for how legal career advisors should respond, in both words and actions, when a law student reports experiencing discrimination at a non-profit organization.
For this holiday season, the author explores ways to de-emphasize alcohol for social connection. Whether it’s a conference reception, firm holiday party, or your own gathering, she suggests ways to normalize not-drinking for both well-being and belonging.
Employment data for the Class of 2019
NALP members, get involved in the association and meet other members by joining a section, volunteering for a leadership position, and more.
NALP Webinar: Lateral Lawyer Integration
Director of Research Danielle Taylor provides details on results from NALP’s Survey on 2021 Lateral Hiring, which shows an 111% increase in lateral hiring last year in comparison to 2020.
Should law firms that have listings in the NALP Directory of Legal Employers provide demographic data about their equity and non-equity partners?
Perspectives on Law Student Recruiting
NALP Webinar: Considering Consulting
Findings on First-Year Salaries from the NALP 2023 Associate Salary Survey
Each year NALP surveys the graduating JD class to learn about the employment experiences of new law graduates.
Squire Patton Boggs’ Rafael Langer-Osuna, University of California Berkely School of Law’s Melanie Rowen, and Molly Stafford of the University of the Pacific McGeorge School of Law examine what NALP members need to know about recent legislation that targets non-binary and transgender individuals.
2017 National Report: Survey for Law Students Who Interviewed with Law Firms for Summer 2017
NALP Press Release, October 16, 2024
The Judicial Clerkship Section is for members who interested in preparing law students for judicial clerkships or managing the departure and return from employer organizations of associates who pursue judicial clerkships.
The Legal Employer Alumni Relations/Programs Section is intended to include NALP members who have an interest in or responsibility for alumni related issues.
February 19, 2014 press release: Entry-level Law Firm Recruiting Remains Mostly Flat
NALP Press Release, January 9, 2019
Surveying candidates to whom your firm made offers can yield important information on what is and isn't working. Here are some tips for creating an online survey.
One of the most important aspects of leaning into diversity and inclusion as a non-diverse member of your community can be shouldering more of the burden of educating people from privileged groups, thereby offering those from traditionally marginalized groups a much-needed break. We do not mean “taking over” the work or overshadowing diverse colleagues by identifying yourself as the new D&I expert. Instead, we mean supporting and promoting diversity and inclusion efforts, as well as being at the forefront of helping your institution identify systemic “isms” and becoming an active voice in the work of diversity and inclusion.
Part 2 of the article series on recent legislation targeting anti-trans and non-binary individuals by authors Rafael Langer-Osuna of Squire Patton Boggs, University of California Berkely School of Law’s Melanie Rowen, and Molly Stafford of the University of the Pacific McGeorge School of Law.
Ad Hoc Committee on Law Clerk Hiring, Federal Law Clerk Hiring Plan. December 2019.
NALP Survey on 2025 Lateral & 3L Hiring
Press Release on Employment for the Class of 2015 - Selected Findings. August 17, 2016.
Why is NALP’s data on employment outcomes for a school sometimes different from the ABA’s data published for that school?
The reciprocity information and links included on this site have been provided by NALP member law schools and are posted here as an information service only. NALP recommends that you contact the appropriate school to confirm current policies.
NALP Press Release, December 18, 2019
NALP Research: Perspectives on Law Student Recruiting annual report, March 2020
NALP Research, Native American and Alaska Native Law Students and Lawyers, December 2023
NALP Research: Starting Salaries - Class of 2020
Compare NALP's bimodal salary curve over several years
The NALP Foundation, 2014.
Recruiting Competition Intensifies, While Legal Hiring Levels Remain Steady, 2007
PD Corner, NALP Bulletin, February 2013.
Press Release, October 11, 2022
February 20-22, 2020, Portland, OR
Forms (Updated October 10, 2025)
Forms and tools to aid communication among job seekers, employers, and law schools
NALP's JD Advisors Section prepared this Best Practice Guide for managing employer outreach.
December 11, 2013 press release
NALP Webinar, May 17, 2021. Learn about updated procedures to address misconduct, resources available to law clerks and other judicial employees, and the approaches taken by individual courts.
NALP 2009-2010 Evaluating Leadership Working Group
Prelaw (Updated October 27, 2025)
Information for prelaw students and advisers
Biennial report on salaries and duties of legal career professionals in law firms and legal employers. 2014.
We are both contributors and stakeholders in cultivating a supportive environment within the entire law school community for non-U.S. trained attorneys.
Bulletin+, NALP's Digital Magazine, presents news and issues of professional interest to NALP’s members.
Presented October 6, 2015.
By Heather Jarvis. Recruit and Retain the Best and Brightest in Spite of Their Student Loan Debt: NALP's Step-by-Step Guide for Public Service Employers Webinar, March 12, 2013.
Help Along the Way: A New Approach to Workplace Conduct in Federal Courts Webinar, May 17, 2021
NALP nominations kick off on November 1. Nominate yourself or a colleague for a NALP leadership role.
New NALP Research on LGBTQ Lawyers By Gender in U.S. Law Firms, November 2023
NALP research related to the Canadian legal market
2016 Annual Conference - Session Descriptions
What's coming next for OSCAR?
Press Release on Employment for the Class of 2019 - Selected Findings. August 12, 2020.
Press release on 2016 Report on Diversity in US Law Firms, January 4, 2017
Press release on 2017 Report on Diversity in US Law Firms, December 15, 2017.
December 12, 2018. The NALP Board of Directors voted to make significant changes to NALP's Principles and Standards for Law Placement and Recruitment Activities, which will now be known as the NALP Principles for a Fair and Ethical Recruitment Process.
NALP Research, The Demographics of Equity, 2011
September 2021. This is a template to consider when creating a law school JD Advantage Career Fair.
NALP Research, Racial/Ethnic Representation of Class of 2019 Judicial Clerks, February 2021
2026 NALP Survey of Legal Career Professionals
NALP and The NALP Foundation, 2012
NALP Research: Representation of Women and Minorities Among Equity Partners Has Increased Only Slightly, 2017
Biennial report on salaries and duties of legal career professionals in law firms and legal employers. 2008.
NALP press releases on research topics and other news are available here.
CSOs associated with newer law schools face special challenges as they strive to create and promote new programs and services while assisting in increasing the reputation and visibility of their school.
Case Western’s Michael McCarthy and UIC John Marshall Law School’s Paul Johnson explain how employers and applicants can improve the job application process for lawyers and law students with disabilities.
NALP's Nominating Committee encourages all members to consider nominating themselves or a colleague for NALP leadership.
NALP 2025-2026 Nominating Information. Learn about the process for nominating someone for NALP leadership or accepting a nomination.
NALP Press Release, October 19, 2009
Employment Patterns — 20-Year Trends — 1982 - 2002, NALP Bulletin, August 2003
Research: Women and Minorities at Law Firms by Race and Ethnicity - New Findings for 2015, NALP Bulletin, January 2016
NALP Research: Law Firm Jobs — Where They Are and Who Takes Them — Class of 2000, NALP Bulletin, July 2001
March 2020 report. Authors: Yolanda Cartusciello, Partner, PP&C Consulting; Aric Press, Partner, PP&C Consulting; Danielle A. Taylor, Director of Research, NALP
NALP Research: Women and Minorities Maintain Representation Among Equity Partners, Broad Disparities Remain, 2016
Class of 2025 Canadian Articling Snapshot Survey
Coaching is one of the fastest growing professions today, experiencing explosive growth and becoming an increasingly popular method for improving performance and sustaining action and learning.
As more and more lawyers and law students flock to Twitter, there are more conversations among members of the legal industry taking place on Twitter. Law school career professionals can follow these conversations and advise law students on how to capitalize on these interactions. To help you get started in following or engaging in the conversations, here are 10 hashtags frequently used by the legal profession.
NALP Research, The Demographics of Equity - An Update, 2013
By Heather Jarvis. Lighten the Pressure on Your Lawyers with Student Loan Debt: NALP's Step-by-Step Guide for Law Firms Webinar, March 13, 2013.
NALP Research, Representation of Women and Minority Equity Partners Among Partners Little Changed in Recent Years (2019)
2024 NALP Recruiting Survey, September 2024
NALP Research: Women and Minorities at Law Firms by Race and Ethnicity - New Findings for 2016, February 2017
Biennial report on salaries and duties of legal career professionals in law firms and legal employers. 2012.
2026 NALP Election Information
If your school is thinking about adding an externship program for LL.M. students, this article explains three ways students can benefit from an externship and some tips on how to make your externship program a success.
By Tom Schoenherr and Caryn Schreiber, NALP Bulletin, September 2010.
The Representation of Women and Minorities Among Equity Partners Sees Slow Growth, Broad Disparities Remain, NALP Bulletin, April 2014
NALP Research, Despite Small Gains in the Representation of Women and Minorities Among Equity Partners, Broad Disparities Remain, 2015
Self-care and wellness are key to thriving in a career as a Public Interest Advocate. The reasoning for this is rather obvious since Public Interest Law Students train to serve the unmet legal and social needs of underserved communities and individuals. This challenging career choice requires healthy advocates who know how to stay well and how to manage stress before it starts managing them.
When I came to West Virginia University College of Law two years ago, it was obvious that the OCI program was more diverse than at many schools. But students were still seeing it, and responding to it, as a program for big firms looking for top students. We have attempted to tackle this problem with a three-pronged approach: collecting data, redoubling our efforts, and rebranding our OCI program.
NALP Resources for Career Services
Create an inclusive environment for Indigenous students by learning the history, making territorial acknowledgements, taking the time to learn, showing up and listening, and identifying available resources.
Newcomer's Corner column addressing social learning
An overview of non-traditional attorney career models within the legal industry. March 2013.
May 2021. Summarizes findings from a survey conducted in November and December 2020 and examines the skill sets and abilities that legal employers are seeking to develop in their associates.
NALP Research, Law Firm Diversity Wobbles: Minority Numbers Bounce Back While Women Associates Extend Two-Year Decline, 2011
These two questions can be important coaching tools to add to your toolkit.
NALP’s annual nominating process is undergoing some changes. In response to public health, social, and economic exigencies, the timeline for the process has been accelerated and nominations open September 1.
When this year's nominating cycle kicks off in November, here are a few reasons you should consider running for Vice-President for Finance.
If we look at negotiation broadly, as "influencing" for a desired outcome, then we may begin to see how many opportunities there are to influence or negotiate and how important these opportunities are to our career path.
I found that until I needed it, I didn’t think much about parental leave. I want to share my story as well as tips sourced from the NALP community. If you are preparing for parental leave, you have a lot of change coming up and I hope this helps make your preparation easier.
NALP Research, How Is the Racial/Ethnic Representation of Summer Associates Changing? (2025)
Employer outreach is often reactive. Here are some tips for strategic planning to make outreach more effective.
For new NALP members looking to get the “411” on the organization, or for anyone who may just need a refresher, here are some of the most frequently asked questions and their answers.
Here are some tips for recruiters on preparing for the spring.
By Elizabeth Armand and Malini Nangia, NALP Bulletin, December 2008.
NALP 2020 Annual Education Conference Virtual Programming
Greiner Consulting Group’s Melanie Heller provides advice for making virtual mentorships a success for both the mentor and the mentee.
Georgetown University Law Center’s Sunita Iyer reflects on methods for helping law students prepare for on-campus interviews (OCI) held virtually.
NALP and The NALP Foundation, 2011 Report
Law Firm Jobs Taken by New Graduates - Class of 2001, NALP Bulletin, April 2003
By Elizabeth Armand and Malini Nangia, NALP Bulletin, December 2008.
Laughter is truly the best medicine, and we need to enlist it as our fix for August and incorporate it into our lives all year long. I have found that laughter is a powerful antidote to stress. Nothing works faster to bring your body back into balance than a good laugh. Many wellness programs now incorporate laughter, given its ability to lighten your burdens, inspire hope, connect you to others, and keep you focused, grounded, and alert.
Project management is a phased approach to managing a project. Here is how one firm introduced project management training for its lawyers.
Class of 2019 Attains Highest Employment Rate in 12 Years as Uncertainty Looms for the Class of 2020
Employment data for the Class of 2000
Biennial report on salaries and duties of legal career professionals in law firms and legal employers. 2010.
James G. Leipold announces his plans to retire as NALP’s Executive Director in October 2022 after 18 years at the helm of the nonprofit organization.
Fordham Law School’s Linda Sugin explains the benefits of establishing and constantly improving peer mentorship programs to support law school students.
More strategic selection of interviewers yielded positive results for one firm.
How can you interview to find the lawyers who already speak confidently and professionally or can be trained to do so?
Mastering the skill of learning how to deal with change can bring benefits to young lawyers starting their careers.
Biennial report on salaries and duties of legal career professionals in law firms and legal employers. December, 2018.
NALP Research: New Findings on Disparities in Employment Outcomes Based on Level of Parental Education, November 2021
The return on investment (ROI) in alumni networking can be significant. Investing resources in an alumni program has the potential to result in significant ROI over time, from professional networking opportunities to substantive billable work.
This article will address some of the pros and cons of using LinkedIn Groups for your alumni program and offer step-by-step instructions on how to start one of your own.
International law students enrich their campus environments in many ways, including by contributing their knowledge and lived experiences to their academic and professional interactions in their law school communities. However, much like with any other special population of students, this group presents a unique set of challenges to the career professionals who advise them. Engagement with career services programming is one of the most significant
Talent Systems reflect both the past and future of great corporate law firms. In the year 2017, however, talent management professionals must grapple with the present; in doing so they can become among the most important strategists and leaders within the legal profession.
NALP: Inclusion Resources
NALP Press Release, April 2, 2020
Presented March 11, 2020.
Employment data for the Class of 2006
Northeastern's program for unemployed graduates may spark ideas for other schools — and for some employers involved in outplacement — as they seek to help sustain the spirit of lawyers searching for jobs in a difficult market.
Sharing these ten steps with alumni can help them manage salary negotiations more effectively.
USC Gould School of Law’s Sarah Gruzas share best practices for supporting international students in the role of coordinating and communicating with your law school’s visa and immigration advisors.
NALP Diversity Infographic: Women, June 2016. Data from NALP Diversity Repoort
Brown Rudnick LLP’s Alexandra Gharghoury and McDermott Will & Emery LLP’s Amanda Ryan examine strategies for lateral associate recruiting in a market with lots of job activity related to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Press Release on Employment for the Class of 2012 - Selected Findings. June 20, 2013
Race/Ethnicity and the Geographic Distribution of Law Firm Jobs Taken by New Graduates - Class of 2008, NALP Bulletin, October 2009
NALP Press Release, March 18, 2020
For students pursuing public interest internships, CSO professionals often need to be able to offer financial planning guidance.
A new resource will soon be available for NALP law school members seeking to enhance their schools' LRAPs.
New Regional Representative and Conference Planning Coordinator roles were created by recent NALP Bylaws changes.
Tips for gathering feedback and evaluations from summer associates.
Press Release on Employment for the Class of 2014 - Selected Findings. July 30, 2015.
NALP research staff will be conducting a survey in mid-October to gather information about what, if anything, law schools are currently doing to increase the pool of minority candidates for clerkships.
All too often, interviewing attorneys assume it's their job to "tell them what we do" or just "sell the firm" — a role that requires a lot of talking but not much listening to the candidate.
A creative writing class offered unexpected insights into career counseling.
William & Mary’s first, university-wide, professional development day included a session, about confidence and vulnerability that resonated with me. I now ask my students, what advice would they give to their younger selves?
National Employment Outcomes for the Class of 2008, June 2009.
_ (Updated February 15, 2024)
tips for employers and schools on domestic LLM students
Presented on October 11, 2017.
NALP Press Release, June 1, 2017
NALP's Public Service Law Network Worldwide has undergone a redesign to make it more accessible to public interest employers and job seekers.
How can we best prepare diverse associates to excel in the legal environment, and what unique design features can be incorporated into professional development programming to achieve the desired outcomes of retention and promotion of diverse associates?
Here's a snapshot of ideas you might consider as you prepare to explore beautiful San Francisco during the NALP Annual Education Conference!
Content for law school professional development professionals at the upcoming Professional Development Institute 2017.
By Julie Anna Alvarez, NALP Bulletin, March 2012.
One of the core objectives expressed in NALP's 2005-2010 Long Range Strategic Plan is to provide vision and expertise in research concerning professional development.
A review of E-Learning for Law Firms by Steven H. Gluckman and Peter Glowacki
NALP offers resources that are helpful when assisting GLBT law students and alumni.
As anyone who has achieved success in an alternative business career will verify, the keys to success for an alternative job seeker are networking and making contacts.
With federal judicial application deadlines just past, now is the time to look at ways to encourage state judicial clerkship applications in the coming year.
In today's global environment, career counselors need to be prepared to advise the increasing numbers of international J.D. students who are enrolling in U.S. law schools.
Preparation and follow-through are critical for law students getting ready for their experiential opportunities, whether externships, work placements, summer positions, or articling roles.
I am excited to ask you to begin thinking about leadership within our own association, NALP. You have the ability to truly make a difference in the continued success of NALP by nominating yourself or any other NALP member for leadership positions within our organization.
Starting a new role in the professional development, recruitment and/or associate/student programs space at a law firm can be daunting, especially if you are transitioning from a legal position or entering from a different field. This article includes some helpful pointers as you step into your new role.
NALP Mark of Distinction awarded to Assistant Dean Vanessa Merton of Pace University Law School.
Review of It's Who You Know: The Magic of Networking in Person or on the Internet
Learn how one member took on a diversity role at her law school and what she learned along the way.
This five-part outline can help students move closer to their public interest career objectives.
Judicial clerkship interviews are unique. Help your students prepare by zeroing in on the important details about the judge, the opportunity, and themselves.
NALP offers various resources for professionals new to the legal field to connect and grow their networks, including hosting the Newer Professionals’ Forum event.
Being a part of distributed teams working across the country or across the globe can be a challenge. A thoughtful approach to cross-time zone work and the tools that facilitate it can turn these challenges into opportunities.
As lawyers apply their time, energy, and talent to different, higher-value activities in the near future, what are the implications for PD professionals in law firms and law schools?
Director of Research Danielle A. Taylor analyses data on graduates self-reporting disabilities from NALP’s Jobs & JDs: Employment and Salaries of New Graduates, Class of 2021.
Following up on law month's article on the challenges faced by transgender people in the job search process, this month's article focuses on the steps that employers can take to create non-discriminatory workplaces.
We all know the value of mentorship, and many law schools work to provide opportunities for students through established student/professional mentoring programs. For the small/solo career development office, offering a successful mentoring program can be a challenge due to the time and resources a program can require. There is no one perfect program for any school or city. What matters is that you find what works for you, your students, and your professional community. With that in mind, I offer these tips for evaluating or creating a mentorship program.
Tips for 2Ls seeking public interest fellowships.
The REAL Project introduces law students -- and sometimes law firm associates as well -- to work for rural justice.
Empowerment and Leadership, Tried and True Methods for Women Lawyers
On October 27, 2005, over 570 members and friends of the LGBT legal community gathered in San Diego to attend the 2005 Lavender Law Conference organized by the National Lesbian and Gay Law Association (NLGLA).
These tips can help you create a better institutional environment for LGBT law students or lawyers.
Here are some steps career services offices can take to ensure they are truly prepared to assist students and employers during on-campus recruiting.
Collaboration between CSOs and experiential learning programs can provide the practical learning opportunities that are especially important for students planning to pursue public service careers.
Creating a safe and inclusive CSO environment begins with educating administrators and counselors.
Court clerks should ask themselves why they wouldn’t want to work for a senior judge instead of why they would.
Alisa Benedict O'Brien shares some of the "hot topics" discussed and navigated by small and solo career services offices in the past academic year.
With an ever-changing backdrop, what are ways to ensure the continued success of judicial clerkships moving forward? In this article, we explore key concepts that can continue to support a thriving judicial clerkship program through uncertain times.
NALP Research: Race/Ethnicity and the Geographic Distribution of Law Firm Jobs Taken by New Graduates - Class of 2015, November 2016
2020 report on salaries and other benchmarks of legal career professionals in law firms and employers. September 2020.
Presented by Marla Warner on April 14, 2020.
By Ginna Galbraith and Stephanie M. Deckter, NALP Bulletin, February 2012.
Here's some help with navigating the alphabet soup of non-immigrant visas that may be useful to international lawyers.
This article provides help in sorting out the web-based resources for students interested in judicial clerkships.
Get the most from student receptions.
We set out to conduct an informal survey of NALP law school members to learn what you found were the most typical alternative careers among your alumni. Interestingly, patterns developed within the discrete NALP regions.
A new free tool from Access Group can help borrowers select and plan for the best repayment options for their loans.
Executive functioning (EF) is gaining increasing attention in professional development spaces, especially in efforts to better support neurodivergent lawyers. EF refers to a set of cognitive processes that are essential for effective planning, adapting to challenges, and achieving goals.
Employment data for the Class of 2001
In January, NALP surveyed offices of attorneys general in the U.S. states and territories to get a sense of the hiring market. Here's what was learned.
Here are some tips to help recruitment professionals manage the administrative aspects of lateral hiring.
In this economic downturn, career service professionals find it increasingly important to focus a portion of their programming on preparing law students for the small firm employment segment
Review of The Lawyer's Career Change Handbook: More Than 300 Things You Can Do with a Law Degree
There are hundreds of potential circumstances that could thrust persons within your organization into personal crises. Don't wait for the worst to decide how you would respond - or to learn about your firm's EAP (Employee Assistance Program).
Sue Schechter and Tom Schoenherr cover the history of the NALP Public Service Section for the 50th Anniversary of NALP in 2021.
What would you do with a few extra hours per week? Spend more time with family? Start a blog? Engage in self-care? By using a few tools and tips to get more organized and efficient, you could gain a little bit more time — let’s get started!
This article outlines several activities to quickly boost mood and reduce stress. Try them out when meeting with a frazzled student or lawyer, or if your to-do list starts to feel overwhelming. A five-minute investment in yourself is worth it every time.
Rudhir Krishtel examines ways to evolve our approach to business development in order to drive substantial diversity, equity, and inclusion change within our community.
Often lawyers’ professional development training focuses on substantive legal skills, ethics, and increasingly, soft skills like time management, communication, and leadership. But one critical area remains underdeveloped in many law firms: financial literacy.
This article provides tips and resources for those counseling students on state judicial clerkship opportunities.
By Kristine McKinney, NALP Bulletin, October 2017.
Networking is a valuable tool that can help people build contacts and expand professional opportunities.
This article highlights the takeaways from two recent NALP education programs designed to offer simple, ready to use resources that career counselors can implement to operationalize self-assessment materials on their campuses.
Students who want to pursue positions in nonprofit organizations should research the organizations' missions.
In a profession where word of mouth and reputation trump nearly everything else, you truly can't afford not to hit the ground running and let NALP coach you along the way, according to this past attendee of the Newer Professionals' Forum.
The ‘High Performance’ equation is understood as the optimal state in which three elements come together: IQ (intelligence quotient), EQ (emotional quotient), and BQ (body quotient/ intelligence).Developing EQ skills is beneficial in two ways: the first is to retain talent (external benefit), and the second is to reach our own optimal state of performance (internal benefit).
NALP's Nominating Committee asks members to consider nominating themselves or their colleagues to serve as NALP leaders.
At Mercer University School of Law, we are a smaller school of roughly 400 students, but we pride ourselves on an active alumni network. This article looks at some of the ways that our alumni show up (and show out) to help enrich the professional development of our students.
Presented by Lorri Olan, on November 14, 2013.
NALP 2025 Canadian Associate Salary Survey
NALP Press Release, November 4, 2010
Federal work study programs benefit students, schools, and the communities they serve. Here are some tips for making these programs work.
To be a successful advocate, we must go beyond marketing and put to use our expertise in strategic planning, persuasion, and education.
A firsthand account of OCI in the aftermath of Katrina.
This article presents a collection of outreach attempts, an examination of why some work and some don't, and finally a close look at why the difference between small firms and larger firms means they cannot be approached by schools in the same way.
The ABA has developed two programs designed to help increase the opportunities for diverse law students to land judicial clerkships.
Advice for working with International Master of Laws (LLM) students, including professional development, LinkedIn and networking lunches and other events at law firms and bar associations.
Sourcing lateral candidates effectively starts with convening your partners to discuss their thoughts and expectations for the search.
Law firms have increasingly utilized coaching as an important component of their talent management offerings. While the number of law firms with a dedicated internal coach is on the rise, most coaching at firms is done by external coaches. Hiring external coaches is a significant investment of time and budget resources, so it is important to employ best practices in managing your relationship with the external coach.
These five strategies recognize that successful partner professional development goes beyond individual development to focus on development of a lawyer's practice.
How should your retention strategy look for 2023? Two PD experts map out the options and identify potential strategies to help you keep your best talent.
This article focuses on a basic idea: pro bono is about the private bar performing public service. Many law firms approach pro bono with intentionality, considering it a firm-wide endeavor and not just the individual obligation of each professional at the firm.
Generative AI is poised to have a profound impact on all facets of the legal profession. Chira Perla examines how law students and legal recruiters might use the technology.
Presented August 1, 2018.
Here are two key tips to help you begin your journey as a career coach.
preparing lawyers for fall recruiting
“Everyone has the power for greatness, not for fame but greatness, because greatness is determined by service.” — Martin Luther King, Jr. These words form a touchstone for our Nominating Committee, and we hope they resonate with you as the NALP nomination season opens! Now is the perfect time to recognize that power in others — and acknowledge it in yourself — as we seek new NALP leaders.
Attracting and retaining top talent is a strategic imperative. One often overlooked but crucial element of this strategy is pre-onboarding – the process that occurs between a partner accepting an offer and their first official day at the firm. Done well, pre-onboarding sets the stage for a seamless transition, fostering a sense of belonging and readiness that can significantly enhance performance, integration, and long-term satisfaction.
General principles and considerations, plus a checklist, to help newer career services professionals learn to work through the high volume of resume reviews efficiently and thoroughly.
NALP Press Release, May 22, 2019
LGBTQ Lawyers & Graduates
We're nearly a quarter of the way into 2007 -- a good time to review how well we are doing at achieving both our personal and professional goals for the year.
Law schools have developed numerous approaches to teaching the substance of law and providing academic support, but few have studied how brain function and care impact performance.
NALP Press Release, July 25, 2024
Developing a pre-call checklist and a law school fact sheet will help you approach any employer outreach call confidently.
While the future may be changing with the NextGen Bar Exam, the future is now for today’s law students and anyone who takes the bar exam before any changes are officially made. Research shows that enhancing study in areas related to time and mindset can increase the odds of bar passage.
Resources from Virtual Town Hall on virtual OCI/virtual job fairs/returning students. June 23, 2020.
_ (Updated February 11, 2025)
The Carnegie Foundation's new report on educating lawyers suggests that law schools are effective in teaching students to think like lawyers but less successful in teaching expert practice and professionalism.
The mission of IFLP is to produce more legal professionals who have strong legal knowledge plus foundational training in allied disciplines — in other words, T-shaped legal professionals.
NALP Research: Race/Ethnicity and the Geographic Distribution of Law Firm Jobs Taken by New Graduates , October 2008
This troubleshooting chart will help you overcome any obstacles that pose "glitches" interfering with your ability to register for the upcoming conference in Palm Springs.
NALP has recently released a free webinar on the public interest job search. Here are a few highlights.
NALP Press Release, March 13, 2019
NALP Press Release, March 26, 2025
NALP Press Release, May 28, 2025
Developing learning objectives is one tool for developing a curriculum that is designed to facilitate the process of students graduating with a capacity to conduct themselves with integrity and confidence.
Even as we await a decision next summer from the United States Supreme Court about whether or not the Solomon Amendment violates the First Amendment, NALP member law schools continue to face on-campus recruitment visits by the United States military
NALP's employment data from 1994-2004 reflect changing demographics; however, as the table shows, in some job categories women and minorities continue to be significantly under-represented, while in others women and minorities are over-represented.
In light of streamlined budgets at law firms and law schools, one way to maximize diversity efforts at your institution is to partner with nonprofit organizations and bar associations that offer diversity programming and services.
Those of us working on diversity programs know that buy-in from the top is imperative to our success. This is one reason the Leadership Council on Legal Diversity is intriguing to many NALP members.
Budgeting for 2013? The Board has set dues and conference fees for the coming year.
Here are some of the reasons law school professionals will find the programming at the 2011 Professional Development Institute valuable.
Helping students navigating well-being and mental health issues during crisis situations such as the COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic.
A career on Capitol Hill can be a great choice for law graduates interested in policy. Here are five tips for pursuing jobs on the Hill.
Here are some tips for law school professionals to share with students to help them stay connected to their personal and professional goals and cultivate a fulfilling career.
Here are some suggestions for enhancing a law school pro bono program and expanding participation.
Establishing a foundation of well-being early in your career not only helps you navigate the present, but it also builds confidence and resilience that will carry you forward for years to come.
NALP’s latest analyses from the "Class of 2024 Employment Report and Salary Survey" reveal that despite the decreasing number of graduates entering JD Advantage careers over the last decade, the vast majority of these positions (86%) remain high-quality jobs in terms of being both long-term and full-time.
Law schools are beginning to explore new ways of better preparing students for the realities of practice.
This article suggests steps law schools and legal employers can take now to help the fall season go more smoothly.
Bylaws (Updated September 12, 2025)
Employee Resource Groups are a growing trend in organizations that wish to manifest a commitment to diversity and inclusion and provide a context for minority employees to contribute to their firm's or company's strategic business objectives.
From the fight to repeal "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" to the constitutional challenge of California's Proposition 8, 2010 was an active year for LGBT advocates.
At its recent July meeting, the NALP Board set base fees for conferences in the coming year as well as 2012 membership dues rates.
NALP members are invited to contribute to the NALP blog.
These tips can help recruitment professionals stay fresh through the the transition in the recruiting season.
This new Summit on October 6 will be an ideal opportunity for NALP members to join in on the excitement and discussion of emerging careers for law graduates.
Whether this year is your first law student recruiting season or your tenth, here are five tips for getting through the season successfully and (hopefully) with minimal impact on your blood pressure.
Board Sets Dues and Conference Fees for 2019
Political activism has been on the rise since the 2016 election on both sides of the political spectrum. And with the “Trump bump” in law school applications, we can expect there may be an increase in the number of law students engaged in social activism. As career counselors, we should be prepared for how this activism may impact a student’s job search — specifically, in working for the judiciary.
As a CSO advisor, I realized how advantageous it would be for both CSO professionals and law students to embrace legal podcasts as a versatile career development learning tool — especially since, as CSO professionals are all too aware, it is challenging to convince students to attend live professional development programs. We all hear the familiar excuses that students are too busy or overwhelmed to attend programs. Further, CSO advisors sometimes experience challenges in recruiting speakers for live events. For both of these reasons, legal podcasts can prove useful as a supplemental professional development resource for both law students and...
tips for success in the recruiting season
At its July meeting, the NALP Board of Directors set dues rates for 2016 as well as base member rates for conferences.
Chapman and Cutler’s Shannon Burke provides tips on supporting diversity committees and diverse partners at law firms.
Kelley Drye & Warren’s Caitlin Raybourn provides tips for the first time through planning a purposeful summer program for law students at law firms.
For law students, the real value of a summer job is gaining relevant legal experience, skills, and knowledge. Having a self-directed learning plan in place at the outset of a summer job can help ensure that students accomplish the desired outcomes.
What’s new in resume and cover letters? Reed Smith LLP’s Jennifer H. Fried and Drake University Law School’s Carole A. Tillotson offer tips for cultivating conversation with students.
The end of the year provides the opportunity for reflection and appreciation. This article outlines seven questions to guide you in contemplation of what you lived, learned, and loved, and what lies ahead.
NALP Research, Women and Minorities at Law Firms - Additional Findings for 2017
Law Firm Jobs Taken by New Graduates - Distribution by Race/Ethnicity, NALP Bulletin, August 2004
Working with Generative AI: Getting Practical for Immediate Impact Webinar
During the mad rush that is the fall recruitment season, one law school population that may get overlooked by law firms is evening (or part-time) students.
With loan payments averaging $700 to $1,000 a month, along with rent, groceries, and transportation costs, it really is impossible for a new graduate to accept a public interest job paying $30,000 per year.
While these tips focus specifically on students from China, they may also be helpful in working with international students generally.
It's not too early to start thinking about the many Tampa Bay area attractions you (and perhaps your family) may want to take advantage of before or after NALP's 2013 Annual Education Conference.
Raindance: The Business Development Guidebook for Lawyers is a practical workbook that focuses on the basics of business development, whether it be to build a practice, grow an existing practice, or find a niche.
While continuing to offer high-level professional development programming for legal employers, the 2013 Professional Development Institute will also offer sessions for law school members.
Not only was the overall employment rate for the Class of 2010 the lowest rate since 1996, but NALP research analyses reveal a job market with many underlying structural weaknesses.
The 2017 Report from the National Task Force on Lawyer Well-Being as well as cultural shifts in the legal profession have prompted law firms and legal employers to commit to well-being initiatives. The issue is how to create an impactful and effective program. At the NALP/ALI CLE Professional Development Institute (PDI) in December, we heard confusion among participants about how to create buy-in, how to handle the realities of practice that are leading to increased stress and anxiety among associates, how to address mental health, how to handle alcohol at events, and much more. While this article can’t provide all of the answers, we hope to ...
Law firm mergers trigger a range of emotions — uncertainty, fear, anxiety, and even grief. Given the increase in the number of law firm mergers in recent years, it is likely that you or someone you know has gone through, or will go through, this experience. While we all recognize that when faced with the prospect of a merger, we will need to do something, we don’t always know exactly what that “something” should be. This unknown is what triggers a variety of emotions. Concentrating on the three W’s — what you need to know, when you need to know it, and why this knowledge is important — provides structure, clarity, and a path forward. Combinin...
For too many law students, self-care — particularly involving mental health issues — can become an isolating struggle. As public interest career counselors, we can help to end the silence about mental health challenges by beginning to adopt an intentional plan of addressing law student concerns. In many of our own communities, we can already see hopeful changes, such as efforts to foster dialogue, raise awareness, and provide support and services that help students gain better access to counseling, medical treatment, and other means of maintaining mental wellness.
Networking is not just about meeting people but also about building relationships.
As the recruiting cycle has lengthened from a heavy first quarter to cover the entire year, we thought it could be helpful to shout out a Top Ten List for Working with External Recruiters.
Five law firms with large nontraditional tracks — King & Spalding, Orrick, Ropes & Gray, Seyfarth Shaw, and Winston & Strawn — give practical tips for successfully hiring and retaining nontraditional-track attorneys.
Strategic data collection helps public interest advisors evaluate their resources and overall impact and effectiveness in supporting public interest careers.
The Guidance for Working with Trans Students created by NALP’s Gender Non-Binary Workgroup, contains a list of helpful terms to review, a list of informative FAQs and a comprehensive list of valuable resources to provide on-going support for this community.
Salary transparency laws, which require eligible employers to disclose salary ranges and compensation information on public job postings, aim to address wage discrepancies and promote fair compensation.
Students should take full advantage of their experience at law firms by building their internal network with lawyers and other students. Establishing this internal profile and network can lead to future sources of work, as well as access to valuable mentorship.
Duquesne University School of Law’s Maria D. Comas offers a four-step approach to building NALP Section member engagement on NALPconnect.
This spring the national debate over accreditation heated up when the Supreme Courts of Texas and Florida each announced that they are separately exploring whether to maintain American Bar Association (ABA) Council accreditation as a prerequisite for bar admission, a move that could significantly impact the career mobility and opportunities of law graduates and lawyers. NALP recently submitted public comments to each court explaining its position on this critical issue: maintaining a national accreditation system is vital for the success and longevity of legal careers.
It may seem unlikely that 1970s sitcoms would have much to offer today’s legal profession. As the legal profession refines its diversity and inclusion strategies amid ongoing change, these decades-old shows remind us that inclusion requires honesty, curiosity, and a willingness to learn — even from unexpected places.
NALP (Updated August 20, 2025)
Jobs for New Law Graduates — Trends from 1991-2001, NALP Bulletin, August 2002
The program was offered at the perfect time of year when firms were able to schedule the build day to serve as a community service project for their summer program.
How can you encourage a student interested in environmental law to look beyond the Department of Interior and Environmental Protection Agency?
Two work groups of the NALP Public Service Section will be working this year in the areas of the public interest job market (including associate deferrals) and federal employment.
Maintaining good relationships with alumni can help build your firm's business, boost recruiting efforts, and more. Here are some suggestions for promoting alumni engagement.
Here are some ideas for finding the time and resources to counsel alumni while also counseling current students about a tough market.
Lateral hiring was up by 48% in 2011 compared with 2010.
Legal Project Management offers an example of how teams and clients can be aligned.
Learn how one school has added creative programming to develop leadership skills in its law students.
All NALP members have access to NALPconnect, a members-only online community where members can join sections, connect, collaborate, and share.
For Neal, Gerber & Eisenberg LLP, involving lawyers from the firm's counsel track in all aspects of PD programming has yielded dramatic benefits both for the lawyers and the firm.
As talent development leaders, we instinctively know that without career ownership, there can be no career resilience. But what does that really mean, and how are those qualities instilled?
NALP Executive Director James G. Leipold analyzes the data from the Perspectives on 2021 Recruiting report, which shows increased competition for entry-level talent amid a surge in the demand for legal services.
Press release on Employment for the Class of 2017 - Selected Findings. August 2, 2018.
Presented August 9, 2016.
My year as President of NALP has been adventurous, interesting, and rewarding.
Identifying, assisting, and tracking alumni judicial clerks can seem a bit like trying to herd cats, but there are benefits both for the alumni and for the school. Here are some suggested strategies.
Both the Federal appropriations law and the Trump administration’s recent measures to overhaul immigration laws present significant challenges to foreign students’ ability to obtain judicial clerkships.
Venable’s Traci Mundy Jenkins calls on NALP’s leadership and members to take meaningful action to continue to foster diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) in the legal profession.
Penn State Dickinson Law’s Tom Lee explains why legal employers should consider neurodiverse candidates in their recruiting practices.
Reviewing resumes, cover letters, and other application documents is a key aspect of being a career counselor. This guide is meant to help provide a framework for how to conduct effective document review while still honoring your own style of feedback and communication.
Having a passion for an employer's goals is a strong sellling point when an employer is awash in a sea of good candidates.
Four important elements to a successful work assignment program include: a motivated work coordinator; quality assignments; a well-organized assignment tracking system; and a thorough process that provides substantive feedback and evaluations.
While federal clerkship options for international students are limited, state courts may still offer some options.
It's the perfect time for law school career services professionals to start thinking about how to collect survey information from 2010 graduates.
University of British Columbia Peter A. Allard School of Law’s Tracy Wachmann explains how small U.S. law schools could learn from the successes of Pro Bono Students Canada.
As you consider your own work-related resolutions, use these tips to examine how technology can increase your efficiency in the workplace.
Academic advisors lean on basic principles to help them answer these tough questions, and law school career counselors are more than capable of using them as well. Having some basic knowledge in academic advising can not only help counselors assist students in these matters but also help in the relationship-building process.
Over the past decade or so, the number of law school graduates who pursue JD Advantage positions has risen from 8.8% to 16.9%.3 But what does one need to do to secure a JD Advantage position? As someone who is currently going through the process of finding a JD Advantage job, I want to share with you my perspectives on best practices for a JD Advantage job search. I’ve written the remainder of this article as advice I would give to someone who wants to pursue a JD Advantage job search.
International students enrolled in the growing number of two-year J.D. programs are different from the typical J.D. or LL.M. students law firms are accustomed to recruiting.
Repetition in marketing and use of different channels builds stronger brand awareness for law schools.
As employers begin to explore new 1L engagement activities, they should take stock of any existing relationships between their lawyers and law schools.
Chapman and Cutler’s Shannon Burke shares some of the program highlights and what to expect at the 2022 NALP-ALI Professional Development Institute, Dec. 1-2 in Washington, DC.
With client demand on the upswing, partners assume that associates would be embracing new billable work. But partners are frustrated because now some associates seem less interested or reluctant to take on more work.
This article examines three types of focus to implement emotional intelligence in your daily life as a leader and provides some strategies to unleash success as a leader.
Each year, law schools explore effective ways to prepare incoming students for the rigors of legal education. St. Mary’s University School of Law has developed an innovative, multi-phase orientation program that extends far beyond traditional welcome sessions, offering a comprehensive approach for student success.
If you are a PD professional, you may have been asked by lawyers in your firm for advice or resources about how they can manage colleagues effectively when everyone is working remotely. This article is intended to provide practical advice about managing at a distance that you can share with supervising lawyers.
NALP's Executive Director updates the membership about a change coming to PD Quarterly in May 2021 with the launch of Bulletin+
How do you maximize training and professional development at law firms and law schools while juggling a shoestring budget? This article offers five ideas to help take your training budget the extra mile.
While mentorship remains integral to legal professional development, its effectiveness depends significantly on mentee preparedness. Moving upstream and embedding coaching and coaching-informed conversations into your mentorship models will enhance mentorship outcomes by cultivating identity formation, goal clarity, and developmental ownership.
While staying competitive is a legitimate, pro-competitive reason for being interested in collecting information about the compensation packages offered by other law firms, care must be taken to gather this information in a manner consistent with goals
Information for law school career services regarding NALP's annual Employment Report & Salary Survey (ERSS)
Given the often unpredictable timing of expenditures, a move to a rolling budget appears to be the most effective route to take.
Some advice for students on preparing for and obtaining a job as a public defender.
Employers who remind students of NALP's timing guidelines might ultimately help themselves by prompting students to accept or decline offers more quickly.
Here are tips to help law school career services professionals to build credibility and counsel alumni more effectively.
Now is the time to reflect on the advice you've been giving to new law students and associates and take some time to invest in your own self-development.
The job market has been brutal and may seem to some to be akin to the environment of a zombie apocalypse where the streets are barren, the future is uncertain, and fear is experienced every day. Here are some tips for equipping students not only to survive but to thrive in this market.
More than just a social media success story, the Ice Bucket Challenge provides valuable lessons for professional services firms interested in taking their citizenship and community initiatives to the next level.
Here are 10 tips to help you get the most from the Annual Education Conference.
These tips can make phone and video interviews less awkward and more productive.
Here are excerpted findings from the 2010 Public Sector and Public Interest Attorney Salary Survey .
Whether we work in career services, lawyer professional development, or recruiting, we can become innovative leaders within our institutions.
Informational interviewing is especially vital to a public service job search. Here are five tips to share with students.
The path to a clerkship can be quite varied, with some Federal Courts participating through OSCAR, but not all. Every state handles State Court clerkships differently, and a handful of specialty courts are thrown into the mix.
Students who pursue law as a second career offer unique strengths but also pose special challenges for career services offices. At Loyola, the majority of our second-career students are pursuing their degrees on a part-time basis and take classes mostly at night. We also have stu¬dents who leave a previous profession to devote themselves full-time to law school. Most of these students are juggling family and work obligations, along with school work. While these students can be highly motivated and focused, with excellent time-management skills, they also often have some misperceptions about the value of career services that prevent them from ...
While it can be easy to get on board with the idea of strategic planning, a clear understanding of what it is and how to do it ensures an effective process and results.
The content of recommendation letters is in a judge's mind before a candidate even walks in the door.
Alston & Bird LLP’s Erin Springer makes the case for internal strategic partnerships during the COVID-19 pandemic and in times of uncertainty.
President Elect, Alison Ashe-Card, reminds us that Thanksgiving is a season, not just a holiday, and a time “to cherish moments spent with loved ones, appreciate the blessings we have, and share our abundance with those in need.”
Recent data from NALP indicates there is a significant hiring gap between Native American and Indigenous students and their classmates. To address this, many law schools are taking steps to make their institutions more welcoming and supportive spaces for this group.
SMU’s Mary Beth Nielsen and Borden Ladner Gervias LLP’s Angela Sordi identity 10 tips that can help your law firms improve the recruiting process for neurodivergent law students and attorneys.
Cassels Brock & Blackwell LLP’s Jennifer Lau explains why the 2023 NALP Annual Education Conference in Vancouver will include a territorial acknowledgement.
Snell & Wilmer’s Kristen Uhl Hulse explores how a concept known as the Learning Dialogue can help shape ongoing professional development for lawyers in a remote-hybrid environment in the return to a new normal with the COVID-19 pandemic.
Presented August 1, 2017.
Research: Salary Trends for New Law Graduates - 1985-2013, NALP Bulletin, January 2015
Here are some tips on how to counsel students who do not participate in fall OCI or who do not find a job through the OCI program.
The 2008 NALP Awards of Distinction Committee encourages all members to submit nominations.
The rewards of visiting employers on their own turn can be measured in greater opportunities for your students, the chance to bolster your law school's reputation in the community, and development of new allies in an increasingly competitive job market.
Review of Full Disclosure: The New Lawyer's Must-Read Career Guide
Tips for preparing for judicial clerkship application season.
What do we say to convince our public interest students to consider opportunities in rural areas? Here are a few of the things we might tell them.
To effectively innovate, we need to be on the same page as the leaders of our organizations and have a thorough understanding of how and why the profession is in its current state.
These techniques can help you manage yourself and your work so you can enjoy a measure of balance in your life.
The Uniform Bar Exam can make it easier to take the test in a more relaxed environment, stay licensed, or even make career transitions.
McGuireWoods’ Stephanie Felder offers ideas on how to maximize training and professional development on a shoestring budget and during uncertain times.
Whiteford Taylor Preston LLP Chief Legal Talent Officer Meredith J. Kahan shares her unique perspective on the recruiting process after going through her own job search during the pandemic.
Here are 10 time management and organization “hacks,” tips, or shortcuts to make life just a little bit easier. While these are specific to Microsoft Outlook, some can be adapted to other email programs.
In the legal profession, the journey to success is built on a foundation of essential skills including enthusiasm, ownership of work, adding value, growth focus in select areas, relationship building, and visibility – that play a critical role in shaping a lawyer's professional trajectory.
Paul Marchegiani writes, "Law students and clients find the Performance Ladder framework useful because it honors verbal precision, logical structure, and clarity, while putting these essential qualities in their broader context, all without sacrificing individual expression and client service."
NALP’s Judith Collins highlights some of the insights gained from comparing 2020 data to the recently released 2022 NALP Survey of Legal Career Professionals in Employer Organizations.
The beginning of a new year is a perfect time to take a closer look at your current time and management strategies. Here are some guiding principles built off best practices, habits and routines that can help you with this process.
This article offers a primer to introduce, or reacquaint, career services professionals to Title IX and its scope.
A new NALP Experienced Professionals Section has been launched and invites interested members to join.
With increasing frequency, students are seeking assistance in securing jobs both inside the US and abroad that have international components.
NALP Foundation to have its own Executive Director.
preparing students for callbacks
Large firms do much 3L hiring these days, yet this "just in time" entry-level hiring can be a way to respond to changing market conditions and develop a talented team of lawyers.
These tips can help 1Ls avoid common pitfalls.
Consider nominating yourself or a colleague for a NALP leadership role.
nominations process soon to open. nominate yourself or a colleague.
Members of NALP's 2020 Annual Education Conference (AEC) share recommendations for hot spots in Montreal, Canada.
In order to advise law students on compliance as an emerging job market, advisors themselves need to know more about this field and how students can best position themselves for success.
There are important differences between cover letters and the type of diversity statements needed to apply for diversity fellowships and scholarships.
Three authors from Orrick share lessons learned from providing PD for non-partnership track lawyers at their firm and discuss why investing in these lawyers should be part of the PD mandate.
Elisabeth Beal and Shahrzad Poormosleh explore lessons learned from the COVID-19 pandemic response at five law schools related to transitioning existing content to a virtual format, building new content, and preparing for post-pandemic legal education.
As artificial intelligence continues to transform legal recruiting, our cover story offers practical tips on how to harness AI to simplify lawyer hiring and improve outcomes. This guide is intended to help legal recruiters leverage AI for core tasks like summarizing, creating, analyzing, and consulting while maintaining confidentiality and ensuring accuracy. As a collaborative assistant, AI can empower recruiters to elevate their approach to talent acquisition and help improve hiring results.
Salaries of public interest attorneys
Organizing your time is key during this busy season.
Examines the importance of wellness for law students and lawyers and ways legal career professionals can help to promote wellness within their organizations.
The new Department of Homeland Security ... employs 170,000 people and is the third largest department in our federal government. The following is a brief current overview of DHS structure and suggestions for locating attorney and law student positions.
As brand new career services offices, you have that rare opportunity to learn from other schools' experiences while also having the flexibility to be creative.
Here are some things law students can do to continue their professional development during the summer.
LGBT law students and lawyers may face unique concerns in their job searches. These resources can help.
NALP conference registration costs and membership rates for 2018, including the 2018 NALP Annual Education Conference.
These tips will help students get the most from attending a public interest career fair.
The 2024 Annual Education Conference will be held in Boston, and the Conference Planning Team provides a preview of what to expect in the city.
Here are some important considerations for designing and implementing a business development coaching program, as well as appropriate measures of success.
Presented January 23, 2014.
NALP Research: LGBT Representation Among Lawyers in 2015
Over the past decade, more and more firms have forged international alliances, many with foreign firms with a pre-existing corporate culture. One of the most difficult aspects of business for a multinational firm to overcome is recruiting.
As the competition for recruiting top talent continues to increase, follow-up techniques are becoming more critical in the recruiting process.
The questions were different at this Lavender Law. Students were no longer asking whether to be out in the job search process but rather how out they can be. . . .
How can carer services be effectively delivered to an evening student population that may feel cut off from law school life - and from opportunities to gain legal experience?
Balanced hours programs can have numerous positive effects on a firm's bottom line: decreased costs, improved quality of hiring, increased client satisfaction, development of new business, and increased productivity and morale.
At some point in our lives, we have all had the opportunity to participate on a committee or to work on a group project or to be a member of a team.
Here are some ways even a small CSO can build diversity initiatives into ongoing work.
Here are some steps even the smallest CSOs can take toward effective employer outreach.
Board sets membership dues and conference fees for 2014.
What is different and why in the Principles & Standards applying to working with 1Ls?
The OSCAR Program Manager offers insights into the Judiciary's decision-making process for the Oscar Program, and, more recently, the Federal Law Clerk Hiring Plan.
five ideas for fall career services programming
Here are some steps you can take to gear up for a successful lateral recruiting season by honing your firm's message, streamlining the process, and setting goals.
These are the books experienced professionals recommend to newcomers to career services.
Attorneys are turning to virtual meetings during the COVID-19 pandemic. Learn about strategies and the science behind delivering successful presentations from Thompson Hine’s Carole Deeter.
Northwestern Pritzker School of Law's Jazzma Pryor outlines the roadblocks for students of color who pursue a judicial clerkship opportunity.
While there is no one-size-fits-all approach to building an orientation program, this article presents five best practices for designing an effective orientation.
LinkedIn groups for law firm alumni provide a valuable platform for maintaining connections. Law firms can create a thriving online community that benefits alumni and the firm.
This new model for lawyer professional development — far better aligned to the present and future than the old, divided responsibility model — is offered as a starting point for a revolution in talent development.
Press Release, Employment of Class of 2009 - Selected Findings, May 20, 2010
Press Release on Employment for the Class of 2011 - Selected Findings. June 7, 2012.
Press Release on Employment for the Class of 2016 - Selected Findings. August 2, 2017.
Press Release on Employment for the Class of 2018 - Selected Findings. July 31, 2019.
While acknowledging that much progress has been made, the BASF report suggests that much work remains to ensure inclusive workplaces for LGBT employees.
The US Equal Employment Opportunity Commission issued of a new fact sheet promoting and describing ways in which legal employers may apply the reasonable accommodations obligation described by the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA).
Employers who remind students of NALP's timing guidelines might ultimately help themselves by prompting students to accept or decline offers more quickly.
Information on proposed change to NALP's Timing Guidelines.
Whether you're a newcomer to the field or simply to your organization, you want to make a good first impression. Here are some tips for putting your best foot forward.
This new book by Joan Williams and Rachel Dempsey has a great deal to offer not only to individual women but also to those who are striving for more inclusive workplaces.
Participation in a city group can be particularly beneficial for a newer professional.
Whether your law school is starting or enhancing a Loan Repayment Assistance Program (LRAP), these tips can help.
Methods for maximizing the effectiveness of your diversity committee to ensure opportunities for women and people of color.
Tips for maximizing the value of your affinity group, including getting buy-in, establishing an annual meeting, securing a budget, collaborating, setting goals and aligning your law firm’s core values to foster inclusion and diversity.
Nominating Committee Chair Clara Solomon and Vice Chair Michael Nguyen explain why you should nominate your colleagues for a NALP leadership position before this year’s application period closes on November 18.
Research Director Danielle A. Taylor outlines trends in public interest law firm careers from Jobs & JDs: Employment and Salaries of New Law Graduates, Class of 2021.
NALP and the NALP Foundation report on the 10th annual U.S. Law School Alumni Employment and Satisfaction Study for the Class of 2009.
Succession planning is becoming increasingly important for many law firms as their leaders move toward retirement. Talent management professionals are well-positioned to take the lead in creating or improving their firms' succession planning process.
When a lawyer or summer associate who is disabled or neurodivergent approaches you, a Professional Development expert, seeking support, it is an opportunity to reinforce your organization’s commitment to a truly inclusive culture. Your role is pivotal in transforming a moment of vulnerability into a pathway for empowerment and success.
By tapping into NALP’s resources, getting involved, and staying connected, members can transform everyday interactions into a vibrant professional network. The result is a stronger sense of community, richer collaboration, and connections that support growth at every stage of a legal career.
By Julie Anna Alvarez and Robert White. NALP Bulletin, November 2012.
Research: LGBT Representation Among Lawyers in 2016, NALP Bulletin, January 2017
Presented August 11, 2020
NALP (Updated June 8, 2020)
Law student programs can provide safe and supportive environments for an authentic practice experience in how a legal professional works to get work.
NALP Research, A Demographic Profile of Judicial Clerks — Patterns of Disproportionality, 2010
They need to do some heavy networking in their area of choice so that they can at least recognize the major players in a given industry. The networking should be both vertical and horizontal.
employment rate continues upward trend for class of 2018 total number of law firm jobs increases for first time in five years.
NALP Research: Women and Minorities at Law Firms — What Has Changed and What Has Not in the Past 25 Years (2018)
Presented by Heather Jarvis, March 12, 2013.
When I moved from Kansas to Washington, D.C., to "take the reins" of NALP, I was ... very excited about the opportunity to partner with an organization that had logged many achievements yet still seemed to have so much untapped potential.
One firm's experience may suggest ways that other firms can strengthen their mentoring programs.
Here are some tips on increasing opportunities for students at small and medium firms.
We are in a profession saturated with hard-working, extremely efficient, reliable people who typically put their jobs first. Here are some tips from other NALP members for avoiding burnout and maintaining a balanced life.
Law Firm Recruitment in Canada: Job Search Advice for Students and Associates
These strategies can help women re-entering the workforce gain the confidence they need to succeed.
It can be more difficult to establish a rapport when interviewing by phone or Skype, but these tips will help.
If your CSO has not considered creating programming for recent grads, or wants to enhance such programming, here are some ideas to get the conversation started.
Understanding these four different styles of adult learning can help you develop more effective presentations.
NALP Long Range Strategic Plan for 2015-2020
This speed networking event was easy to administer and helped students build interviewing skills.
A look at employment trends over the past decades.
Here's how one CSO launched a Non-Traditional Careers Track as part of its Professional Development Lecture Series class to provide business development programs for law students.
A focus on communication and on class cohesion is essential in managing a multi-office summer program.
Indigenous people are significantly underrepresented in the legal profession. Even in 2017, they continue to face social and economic challenges in pursuing legal education. In the last 40 years, approximately 1,000 Indigenous people have graduated with a law degree in Canada. If Indigenous people were proportionately represented, there would be over 3,300 practicing lawyers today. This shortage of Indigenous lawyers suggests that there is still a long way to go before there is an equitable and diverse legal profession.
NALP President Beth Moeller from UCLA Law describes the adaptability and resiliency of law students in 2020, particularly new students facing a different process due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
“Be kind, be calm, and be safe.” How the wise words of Dr. Bonnie Henry, British Columbia’s Health Officer and COVID-era household name across Canada, can help with your OCI preparations on Zoom.
Strategic planning pays dividends many times over — from an increased sense of calm and control to the opportunity to make more meaningful contributions and elevate the role of PD within the organization.
Washington and Lee University School of Law’s Freda Coleman-Jackson offers best practices to increase student engagement in a virtual environment.
Now more than ever, borrowers need guidance from advisors and mentors about navigating student loan repayment - this article provides six best practices to keep graduates informed and on top of their student loans.
This open letter to first-year associates taps into the rules of retail to offer advice for success. NALP members and PDQ subscribers have permission to share this article with their new associates and third-year law students
The NALP nomination process opens on November 4. Here is a more in-depth look at one of the roles for which nominations are sought.
NALP Press Release, July 22, 2010
NALP (Updated August 20, 2025)
NALP Research, LGBT Representation Among Lawyers in 2018, February 2019
New public service resources
Law schools can play a role in reversing the trend of high attrition for women in law firms.
Jessica Fry raised just under $13,000 in less than three months to support herself in her dream public service job. Her creative mix of fundraising efforts may spark ideas for other students.
These six tips will help students get past their reluctance to network.
Awards of Distinction nominations due by January 15.
The NALP Board of Directors has announced provisional timing guidelines for the 2010 recruiting cycle, adopting a 28-day rolling response deadline for candidates not previously employed by the employer, and a November 1 response deadline for candidates who have been previously employed by the employer.
Judicial clerkships are just as beneficial for students interested in public service careers as for those who want to pursue private practice, but public service-minded students are often much less likely to consider clerkships.
While winter break offers a welcomed reprieve, it also presents an ideal opportunity for law students to devote time to strategic professional activities that will further their career goals.
With fall OCI upon us, here is a helpful summary of the provisional changes to Part V of the Principles and Standards.
As career services professionals prepare to work with 1Ls, it is important to incorporate familiarizing students with the intricacies of navigating the legal profession into first-semester programming.
Here are some insight into what NALP dues are for and how the NALP budgeting process works.
If you work with law students, you are probably aware that we are operating under a new federal law clerk hiring plan — and that we are quickly approaching the time for judges to begin looking at applications from current 2Ls. The plan, which is a two-year pilot program, provides that for the Class of 2020, federal judges “will not seek or accept formal or informal clerkship applications, seek or accept formal or informal recommendations, conduct formal or informal interviews, or make formal or informal offers before June 17, 2019.” Practically speaking, this means that law students will be applying for, and potentially interviewing for, fede...
Whether you are brand new to the legal placement field or have some experience under your belt, here are some tips for making the most of your first Newer Professionals’ Forum:
University of Ottawa’s Staci Angelis explores the effects of burnout and stress on lawyers and professionals in the legal field.
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, others have widened.
The new NALP Form is the first substantial overhaul of the NALP Form in years.
After two years of year-over-year double-digit increases, from 2009-2010 and again from 2010-2011, aggregate lateral hiring has now declined for the second time in a row from 2012 to 2013, finishing out the year just over 7% lower than in 2012.
Here are some resources that can help LGBT law students evaluate potential employers.
Here are a few resources and ideas for helping public service-minded students who want to begin the process of exploring international opportunities.
This article captures the experiences of three openly GLBT attorneys who practice outside major metropolitan markets and shares their advice to career services professionals and legal employers.
This summer, in response to the changing economy, law firms might think about focusing at least one summer program event on giving back to the community through a volunteer event, and also perhaps about moving one event to a nonprofit venue like a museum or public theater.
These tips will help students craft more effective cover letters.
Sometimes it's helpful to remember the ultimate reasons we are legal career professionals.
awards of distinction nomination deadline is January 22, 2013.
The consolidation of patent cases among fewer judges in a given district means great opportunities for students, as this article explains.
A summary of the discussions and outcomes from the Reimagining Recruiting Design Thinking Workshop and NALPathon held in March 2019 in Washington, DC.
As of this spring there are at least 80 law schools offering such degrees with a variety of names including Master of Science in Legal Studies, Master of Arts in Law, Master in Law, Master of Science in Jurisprudence, Master in Jurisprudence, and Master in Law (I am going to refer to them all as MLS program for the purposes of this column). Two questions arise for law schools with these programs that are essential to ask and answer. Do law schools that enroll students in Legal Master’s Programs for Non-Lawyers owe those students professional career counseling and career development services? And, is there a potential conflict of interest for ...
Apps and programs have been developed and implemented to streamline process management and project management, making processes more efficient, reducing variance and waste, and increasing quality. But the stakes for the legal field are higher than those for ride-sharing or food delivery apps — if technology can improve access to justice for those who have traditionally been left out in the cold, then software engineers will have truly made the world a better place. They are already off to a good start.
You probably already know that the NALP Annual Education Conference offers a huge array of valuable programming and networking benefits, but consider these tips when making your case to attend.
These tips will help law graduates set SMART goals for their continuing job searches.
Over the past 20+ years, law school graduates have become an increasingly diverse group, yet NALP employment data for graduates over this period shows that in some job categories women and minorities continue to be under-represented, while for other type of jobs women and minorities are over-represented.
Beyond disclosure, we should challenge our processes to ensure we are allowing neurodivergent candidates to highlight their skills, abilities, and potential. Small adjustments can make a big impact on the experiences we create.
Lawyers perpetually manage huge volumes of difficult work in an intensely competitive environment, often forgetting to care about clients or themselves. Now some law firms are discovering the potential of mindfulness training.
The Catholic University of America, Columbus School of Law’s Rachel Lawrence examines how to encourage law students who are seeking careers in public service to pursue their passion.
Director of Research Danielle Taylor looks at results of NALP's Survey on 2022 Lateral Hiring.
The Work in Japan program cleverly fuses the work of the alumni office and the career development office with the curricular aspirations of the school.
Junior associates expected supervising partners to be mentors. Many supervisors did not share that expectation...
You're in a meeting with a student and it's clear there are some deeper issues. Here are a few possible ways of leading into the topic of a student's need for personal counseling.
Strategies some firms have employed to cope with the challenges of early interviewing week.
The University of Toronto has responded to the new economic reality by adding networking components to most of their student programs.
Many law school students and graduates who are not U.S. citizens assume they are ineligible to apply for state and federal judicial clerkships or are detered by the maze of rules and regulations. This article provides a summary of the relevant information for non-U.S. citizens considering a post-graduate clerkship.
One emerging trend that combines concerns both for providing practical training for new lawyers and for providing access to justice for those who can't afford a lawyer is the modest means/affordable fee delivery of services.
A member of the conference planning team shares an inside look at the Annual Education Conference planning process.
Recent bylaws changes have created new NALP leadership opportunities.
Collaboration can lead to more effectiveness not only in recruiting but also for other departments.
Technology, the economy, and additional factors are giving rise to new career models within law firms and other organizations. A new resource guide addresses the implications for NALP members and their constituencies.
Employers and law schools alike continue to express concern that more should be done to prepare graduates for success in the practice of law. Many of us are asking one another, “How can we bridge this gap?” Law schools have taken note, and several are instituting new programming as a result.
As has been reported earlier, in the February 2018 NALP Bulletin and in NALP’s Report on Diversity in U.S. Law Firms in 2017, just over 8% of partners at major US law firms in 2017 were minorities and almost 23% were women. For associates the figures were just over 23% and about 45.5%, respectively. These figures have generally gone up over time.
There are certain things in life that we must find time for, and that we must not take for granted.
Starting with the Class of 2014, NALP expanded the demographic information collected on law school graduates to include sexual orientation and gender identity, thus yielding NALP's first employment outcome analyses in this area.
In recognition of the continued evolution of law student recruiting, and the latest phenomenon of simultaneous 1L and 2L recruiting, NALP’s Board of Directors dedicated time to thoughtfully discuss these issues. This article derived directly from those discussions, with a goal of providing guidance regarding updated terminology for law student recruiting as well as considerations for employers, law students, and career services professionals navigating the legal recruitment landscape.
Effective use of AI can increase the value a firm delivers to its clients while also accelerating attorney professional development. How should PD leaders leverage the potential of AI, and how can AI enhance PD programs?
The NALP Annual Education Conference (AEC) on April 14-17 serves as an opportunity to network, gain fresh perspectives, spark new ideas, and foster collaboration with our peers through programming and networking events. This article highlights all of the amazing venues and things to do while attendees are in Hollywood, Florida for the event.
NALP Executive Director Nikia Gray explains the most powerful force shaping today’s diversity, equity, and inclusion landscape is not policy or court decisions, but fear. Amid unprecedented disruption, leaders face changes that are unfamiliar and disorienting, particularly in the political and legal terrain around diversity issues, heightening anxiety that they could make costly mistakes.
What Do We Know About Transgender Law Graduates?, NALP Bulletin, December 2019
Leadership Opportunities - President
By Andrew Chapin, NALP Bulletin, December 2009.
Press Release on Employment for the Class of 2010 - Selected Findings. June 1, 2011.
In the work environment, diverse employees often face a daily pressure: how much should — or can — they divorce themselves from what makes them unique and different without "losing themselves"?
Whether or not professionalism is in the title of your office, you can raise your school's professionalism profile through curriculum and programming.
public service; Civil Justice Inc.
The author suggests books that have been helpful and influential in her work as a career development professional.
More than 1,700 jobs taken by the Class of 2011 were funded by the graduates' law schools through a variety of bridge fellowship programs, grants, and other programs.
Implementing an effective training program to ensure the 2Ls you employ meet certain core competencies by summer's end is one surefire way to add more substance to your summer program and build skills in future associates.
When you implement a broader employer outreach strategy utilizing resources that are all around you, you will find yourself better able to achieve other career services goals.
With today's free social media tools, today's law students and job candidates can create their own personal brand and position themselves as experts-in-training looking for the right opportunity.
Here are three things career advisors can do to help students better connect with local bar associations.
The benefits of a financial well-being program to a law firm include a better workplace culture and improvements to the bottom line.
Summit Law Group’s J. Chad Mitchell and Chicago-Kent College of Law student McKay Mitchell review the Jack Newton book, The Client Centered Law Firm.
While there is no silver bullet for retaining diverse associates, the shared interests and outcomes from partnering beyond one organization benefit individuals, law firms, and the legal industry.
Combining the efforts of a law firm's PD and D&I department can strengthen the effectiveness of both.
Villanova Charles Widger School of Law’s Sharon Buckingham reflects on the importance of volunteering for professional development as part of a recap for the 2021 NALP PSJD Public Service Mini-Conference in December 2021.
New NALP President Karl Riehl of Epstein Becker Green summarizes important takeaways from the first in-person Annual Education Conference (AEC) in three years that took place during April in New Orleans.
Pro Bono Corner, NALP Bulletin, January 2013.
Association of Pro Bono Counsel (APBC), March 25, 2009
Because for many bloggers the world that they create is very personal, they can forget to censor the information that they reveal - never considering that a potential employer entering their name in a search engine might land on their blog
Even those alumni who are already on LinkedIn may lack an understanding of the site's purpose and its value in a job search. This article will help career advisors discuss effective use of LinkedIn with alumni.
The truth is that introverts can be very good at networking; they just need to approach making connections with people differently.
When a faculty member asks a student to do an initial draft of a recommendation letter, how can a student best take advantage of the opportunity?
Without the involvement of the white men who are an organization's key decision makers, diversity and inclusion efforts will have only limited success.
NALP members are invited to submit nominations by January 17, 2011, for 2011 Awards of Distinction, which will be presented at the 2011 NALP Annual Education Conference.
With the DADT repeal, it is likely that CSO professionals will have to take the initiative in hosting conversations with faculty, students, and law school deans about how to approach military recruiting and military careers.
Externships allow students to engage in actual legal work, thus helping them become more practice ready.
University of Denver Sturm College of Law’s Alexi Freeman and Kristen Uhl Hulse offer best practices for supervising law students in remote work settings.
One of the ways that a law school's employer outreach professional can be invaluable is by bringing back to the CSO information about what firms look for in entry-level hires.
NALP has updated data collection efforts for its Employment Report & Salary Survey (ERSS) to reflect evolving language for gender identification and race/ethnicity.
Betsy Armour writes about the ins and outs of retirement and succession planning for you and your team.
The Professional Development Consortium has announced adoption of the first competency model for legal professional development practitioners.
Structured interviews offer law firms the opportunity to make lateral hiring more consistent, data driven, and efficient. By linking evaluations to firm specific competencies and standardizing both questions and scoring, firms can reduce bias, improve decision-making, and strengthen long-term talent outcomes.
A leadership role in NALP will result in benefits not only to you but also to your employer -- but how do you convince your employer of that?
Some tips on interviewing from hiring partners and recruitment managers.
Applications Due in February for Next Fulbright International Education Administrators Program in Germany
In his new book, author David Freeman has captured the wisdom of 27 other business development experts to provide lawyers with a head start on learning rainmaking.
NALP's Research Director takes a look back at salary trends from 1985-2013 in both current dollars and constant dollars.
Here are new NALP analyses on both grant-funded positions and job start dates for Class of 2011 law graduates.
Safe Space programs have been instituted to establish an easily identifiable network of allies who can provide support and mentoring.
Over the past two decades there has been both remarkable change and constancy in the entry-level legal employment market.
Can NALP research shed light on how to achieve a target size for a law firm summer program?
One handout from the session “Winning Strategies for Supporting Diverse Clerkship Applicants” at the April 2018 NALP Annual Education Conference was a directory of diversity judicial internship and clerkship programs. Armed with this list, how do you get students to apply? This article will address some common barriers.
In 2014, Stetson Law originated a highly collaborative forum for student professional development nicknamed BLaST (Best Law Student Trajectory). BLaST is a grassroots initiative that emerged when the then-directors of Career Development (now Career and Professional Development), Bar Preparation and Academic Success, and International and Graduate Programs got together to find ways to market programs, products, and services to students collectively, rather than in competition with each other.
Before we know it, the OCI season will be upon us, and it is during this hectic time that workplace self-care is most needed yet often neglected. With a bit of preparation and intention, however, self-care can actually save you time at work and help you accomplish your goals, all while maintaining your well-being during the recruiting madness. Here is an offering of helpful self-care ideas with tried-and-true examples from your NALP colleagues. We hope these tips help you tackle OCI with less stress and worry.
Leaders from the Center for Women in Law and the NALP Foundation share results of a joint study on opportunities for women of color in the legal profession.
NALP Director of Public Service Initiatives Sam Halpert examines the lasting impacts of EO 13590, the Executive Order issued by former President Donald Trump and revoked by President Biden in January 2021.
PD professionals can play a leadership role in the transformation of legal culture by following these practical suggestions for implementing well-being policies and practices in the law firm environment.
When comparing compensation across cities, the salary figure alone doesn’t tell the whole story. NALP's research looks at the relative buying power of the U.S. dollar in a location and how far a new law graduate’s paycheck will stretch as an important consideration as well.
The new Timing Guidelines in effect for the coming fall include a provision about extensions for students actively pursuing a public interest position.
Update on The NALP Foundation's activities.
If you are the recruiting or training and mentoring manager (or, more likely, some combination of both) at a mid-sized law firm, your departments may be straining under the requests for additional services, especially if you are the only staff person
Students who receive offers from small and mid-sized firms need to understand what's negotiable and what's not, and they need to learn to look at the total offer.
There are some important changes to note in the nomination process this year.
The seemingly insurmountable obstacles to landing that first job can be daunting and frustrating to law students. Career counselors can help students break the search down into bite-sized pieces.
Here are answers to some of the most frequently asked questions about how the New York pro bono requirement affects non-U.S. trained LL.M. students.
Why should your school report on LGBT enrollment in the NALP Directory of Law Schools and how can you get started? Here are some tips from the schools already reporting that information.
Faculty "Practice Groups" are facilitating more frequent and substantive one-on-one interactions between faculty and students at American University Washington College of Law.
New work groups and new initiatives for the new year
Nominations for 2012 Awards of Distinction are due by January 17, 2012.
Personal connectivity is key to fostering a robust law firm alumni network or program.
If you are a recruiter, you are probably accustomed to seeing students who have already secured post-graduate clerkships interview at your firm during the recruiting season. Did you notice a drop in that trend last summer? The reason is the new federal law clerk hiring plan. This article outlines the plan, its potential impact on law firms, and suggestions for moving forward.
Legal careers relating to data collection and privacy are on the rise. For law students and lawyers, this increase provides an opportunity in terms of both traditional attorney and JD Advantage careers. Industry research shows that while data privacy is still a relatively new field, 35% of privacy officers who came to their work from another field came from a legal background. The same industry research shows that hiring and salaries are on the rise.
Preparing properly for an interview can make all the difference. Eva Wisnik offers advice for responding to the tough questions.
NALP’s Sexual Harassment and Recruiting Conduct: Considerations for Legal Employers and Law Schools offers a series of guidelines to promote a safe and healthy work environment for all.
Sheryl Roberts examines the myriad of issues related to on-campus interviews for legal employers following the COVID-19 pandemic.
Varnum LLP’s Katie Hoekstra and Irwin Fritchie Urquhart & Moore’s Adam Kancher highlight the local attractions in New Orleans, home to NALP’s 2022 Annual Education Conference, which returns to an in-person event after virtual conferences in 2020 and 2021.
Director of Research Danielle A. Taylor provides an overview of key takeaways related to JD Advantage jobs from NALP’s Class of 2020 Employment Report and Salary Survey.
Now that NALP’s annual nomination process is open, we hope that you will nominate yourself and your colleagues. As you’re thinking about throwing your hat in the ring and deciding who else you might want to nominate, we thought it would be helpful for you to hear from a few NALP colleagues who have held some of these leadership positions. within our organization.
Many law schools recognize that students who are planning to pursue careers as public interest lawyers can benefit from specialized attention and training during law school. Not only do public interest students often feel left out of the mainstream when the majority of their peers pursue private sector careers, but they also encounter different issues in their job search process and throughout their careers. Public interest student groups, certificate programs, competitive fellowship programs, and dedicated advisers are all ways that law schools attempt to bridge this gap and nurture new public interest lawyers into existence.
Right now, if you are anything like me, you are at the height of professional development programming at your school and are desperately starting to look for the “light at the end of the tunnel” in May. But, how can you maximize that time just after graduation to prepare an exceptional student PD program for the following year? Here are a few tips that can be helpful.
The absence of formal indicia of competence for new American lawyers is potentially disastrous. We have both the opportunity and the responsibility to create a principled competence framework to underlie the bar admission process.
Spoken with Authority founder Christine Clapp shares communication skills for new lawyers.
NALP's Future of the Legal Workplace Advisory Group provides strategies to keep the focus on the future and how we can best serve our organizations.
NALP member Eric Bono of the University of Denver Sturm College of Law interviews Dr. Beth Spencer about preparing your pets for the return to work following a pandemic.
Career offices can play an important role in providing leadership training to student groups -- to the benefit of both students and career offices.
In 2002, a fifth-year attorney in a private law firm earned a median of $115,000, while her or his public sector counterpart most likely made less than $45,000 a year.
Law school and law firm career professionals, students, and lawyers must know the rules of the road in the complex and changing digital frontier.
Some trends are emerging in the post-recession employment market, and most law schools could be doing more to prepare their students to take advantage of the opportunities this new job market is going to present.
As law student debt-loads continue to increase, some of the long-established federal loan repayment and forgiveness programs students may be counting on may soon be constricted.
Many career development professionals might be surprised to learn that the NALP Principles and Standards are not just timing guidelines but also address fairness in the hiring process more broadly, including setting as an ethical standard that preferential treatment should not be extended to any student or employer
Change creates both challenges and opportunities in all facets of our work lives. Change is undeniably necessary, and new people, new ideas, and new structures can yield better results for the mission or goal of an organization. While best practices vary depending on the individual and the situation at hand, there are several ways to more gracefully weather most times of change.
Eight insights for how to improve your support and coaching of lawyers and law students.
Career counselors at law school CSOs offer important advice on professionalism, interviewing, when to speak up, general operating instructions and other broad workplace topics for law students.
How many callback interviews are needed to result in one accepted offer for the summer program? The answer has been surprisingly consistent over the last 16 years.
The Diversity & Flexibility Alliance's five-step process for developing and supporting a successful flexible work program addresses not only part-time options but also such options as telecommuting and flexible hours programs.
One of the most thoughtful inquiries into the future of the profession comes from a law professor, a law firm partner, and a former general counsel who have jointly authored an essay called "Lawyers as Professionals and as Citizens: Key ROles and Responsibilities in the 21st Century."
Just starting work in a law school career office? Here are some tips for hitting the ground running.
Columbia Law School’s Julie Anne Alvarez Rivera shares 10 tips for counseling law students virtually on videoconferencing platforms during the COVID-19 pandemic.
McDowell Hetherington’s Amy Hancock details a new series of student tips videos on www.nalp.org from the Developing the Professional Lawyer Work Group
NALP President Traci Mundy Jenkins of Venable LLP describes how NALP is grateful for a new day with an opportunity to search for a new Executive Director.
These three pieces of advice can help public-interest minded students who want to participate in OCI.
To remain engaged and hopeful when doing this critically important — yet difficult — work, it is helpful to celebrate the small victories and to identify simple, practical, and impactful measures that can help to advance diversity and inclusion. The five suggestions summarized in this article are fairly easy to implement and can help to create a culture of inclusivity and ensure that efforts are successful.
The overall employment rate for the Class of 2017 was 88.6% of graduates for whom employment status was known, up by 1.1 percentage points compared with 2016. The Class of 2017 is only the third to record an increase since 2007. Thus, the overall employment rate remains more than 3 percentage points below the 91.9% reached in 2007, which stands as the highest rate since 1988.
To increase diversity in the legal profession, we must create more pipeline programs that recruit, prepare, and support students of color. Building skills-based programs is cost-effective, can be targeted, yields observable results and allows firms to ultimately build a more diverse profession, while minimizing legal risks.
Cassels Brock & Blackwell LLP’s Jennifer Lau outlines travel tips to Vancouver, where the NALP Annual Education Conference takes place from April 25-28, 2023.
Law school career counselors should be attuned to the unique experiences of first-generation students when providing career advice. Advice that fosters security and support, allows career counselors to better communicate to first-generation students.
Pro Bono Corner, NALP Bulletin, March 2013
Your law school’s or law firm’s next short-term pro bono projects could be the reason that lawyers make time for pro bono or that future lawyers provide the pro bono services our communities desperately need.
When a student who is disabled or neurodivergent approaches you, a career development expert, seeking support, the way you respond to and work with the student is pivotal in transforming a moment of vulnerability into a pathway for empowerment and success.
NALP Research, Women and Minorities at Law Firms by Race and Ethnicity - An Update (2015)
Want to expand your professional horizons? Anyone who is assuming new responsibilities can gain insights from these suggestions for developing a road map to success.
Four salary distribution graphs provide insight into changes in the distribution of full-time entry-level salaries from 1991 through 2006 -- and offer a better understanding of why medians don't tell the whole story.
These tips can help you involve more of your firm's associates in pro bono work that not only serves the community but also furthers associate professional development
A continuation of a dialogue on student professionalism that began at the Annual Education Conference.
Summary of issues related to the 2004 judicial clerkship hiring plan.
This month PSLawNet will become PSJD, a new Fellowship Guide will be released, and a new Fellow will join the NALP staff.
A member of the conference planning team taps into her Irish story-telling roots to share the reasons she keeps coming back to NALP Annual Education Conferences.
Over the coming year several newly appointed groups will be helping to chart NALP's course for the future.
This is the year you are ready to put your hat in the ring for Vice-President on the NALP Board, but it's the year for Vice-President for Finance. Are you cut out for that?
How can law firm leaders ensure that their behaviors match their intentions, and what can women and diverse lawyers do to find sponsors?
US News has announced that it will soon change its method for estimating an at-graduation employment numbers for schools that do not report this information.
The first encounters 1Ls have with career counselors can set the stage for later success.
Knowing how to get the most from Symplicity can enhance the effectiveness of both large and small career services offices and help you streamline your operations.
If you would like to teach law students and lawyers to stop committing social gaffes on social media (and perhaps learn more about social media yourself), the NALP E-Guides on E-Professionalism can help.
Here's how a Canadian firm introduces summer associates to timekeeping and docketing and recovers more costs from clients in the process.
Law school graduates from the Class of 2017 who were transfer students were more likely to be employed as of March 15, 2018, compared to the class as a whole — and to have obtained a job in a large law firm. These are the bottom-line findings based on information on graduate transfer status collected for the first time for the Class of 2017.
This past April, the Massachusetts Law School Consortium sponsored an event for member schools’ students called The JD Advantage — Exploring Career Paths You May Never Have Imagined. This was the first event of its kind for the Consortium and set the stage for future events focused on educating our students about the multitude of career paths beyond the traditional practice of law. What follows is a summary of the steps our Consortium took to plan and execute the event. We share this guide in the hope that other state and regional law school groups and consortia will be interested.
Social justice solo practitioners and small firms are increasingly seen by students and alumni as aspirational and not as a fallback plan. Young lawyers embracing the gig economy find solo practice an appealing option for the increased flexibility and independence it offers. How can we help create a more defined path for these students?
A new Presidential administration means a new start to federal judicial confirmations. When should law students and alumni begin applying?
For career service professionals in charge of our departments’ employer outreach, the task of creating an employer outreach strategy to access these emerging legal career employers seems daunting. With the field being so broad, how does one even begin to formulate an employer outreach strategy? Assigned this enormous endeavor for my career services department, I decided to tackle this task by tweaking a successful employer outreach strategy I have been using for traditional legal employers. With a few key changes, I created a four-step process that breaks down outreach to emerging legal employers into bite-size, digestible pieces. Hopefully, ...
During a recession, law firms that focus on retooling instead of layoffs find themselves in a better position to ramp back up in the recovery.
NALP Director of Research Danielle Taylor details some of the key takeaways from NALP’s Class of 2020 Employment Report and Salary Survey, including the first indications of the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the legal employment market.
Director of Research Danielle A. Taylor examines NALP data on how fall recruiting for summer programs at law firms has changed over time, as well as the impact on callback ratios during the COVID-19 pandemic.
According to the latest findings from NALP’s Employment Report and Salary Survey, the Class of 2022 attained the best employment rate in 35 years and a record share of graduates working in bar passage required jobs, among other highwater marks.
Best practices for approaching associate and new attorney integration in a hybrid and virtual world that has been forever changed by the COVID-19 pandemic.
The NALP Foundation shares data from the recently released Law School Alumni Employment & Satisfaction Study for the Class of 2021. The study has historically explored employment levels, career satisfaction, and assessment of legal education’s efficacy, and this year it adds important new information on graduates’ career aspirations and geographic dispersion while continuing to highlight the ongoing high levels of mobility for young lawyers at the three-year mark after graduation.
This article provides an overview of trends, data, and key takeaways that we hope will assist small and mid-size law firms in preparing for the upcoming 1L and 2L student recruiting seasons.
NALP research on public interest salaries
NALP Research: LGBT Representation Among Lawyers in 2019
An in-house career advisor demonstrates a firm's commitment to the career development of its lawyers. The suggestions in this article are starting points for creating a foundation on which to build and expand the position.
Paula Patton was honored during the Annual Education Conference in Toronto for her contributions as NALP Executive Director and for her role in launching and heading the NALP Foundation.
Review of Attorney and Law Firm Guide to the Business of Law
Over the last eighteen months, Vinson & Elkins has been engaged in a unique and far-reaching enterprise to approach women's retention and advancement at the firm as a financial imperative and strategic initiative.
An array of tips for getting the most from the NALP Annual Education Conference.
The expertise and leadership of law firm PD professionals can make a real difference in helping legal aid attorneys access training opportunities and thus in building bridges with the pro bono community.
Assessing these four factors can enhance the effectiveness of career counseling.
Federal judges have a good deal of latitude regarding background checks for judicial clerkship applicants. Here is a guide to what applicants should expect.
Board adopts clarifying changes to Parts IV and V of the Principles and Standards
With October 10 being World Mental Health Day, and the ABA having recently moved their observance of Law Student and Lawyer Mental Health Day to October 10 as well, this seems like a good time to share my experiences with a keynote speaker whose message might help each of us recalibrate our wellness levels as we recover from the recent recruiting cycle and prepare for the approaching holiday season.
One law school's experience with a poverty simulation experience demonstrated that compassion and empathy can be learned.
Even if you have a small staff, there are simple steps you can take that will promote pro bono engagement among your law students and allow your law school to begin benefiting from pro bono work.
The overall employment rate for the Class of 2015 was unchanged from that for the Class of 2014, at 86.7% of graduates for whom employment status was known, but that statistic doesn't tell the whole story.
Past NALP President Gina Sauer, who is President of Attavita, shares seven tips for virtual presentations in the legal profession, including using signposts and being patient with Q&A sessions.
There has been positive progress in reducing disparities in employment outcomes for graduates of color as compared to White graduates. NALP’s Class of 2023 Employment Report and Salary Survey shows modest progress yet significant gaps persist for Black, Native American, Alaska Native, Native Hawaiian, and other Pacific Islander graduates and NALP plans to closely monitor this data moving forward.
The Cleveland Annual Education Conference will include a variety of educational options for recruiters of all experience levels and cater to the diverse focal points of our roles.
Mental Performance Coach Jayne Rossworn explains how legal careers advisors can use concepts that help athletes bounce back from injury to help law students thrive after job search setbacks.
Aoife Delargy Lowe of Equal Justice Works explains the important takeaways for legal professionals related to the U.S. Department of Education’s Temporary Waiver Opportunity for Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF).
Ellen Dalicandro and Katrina Henn explain how WeirFoulds LLP in Toronto, Ontario created a successful mentoring program for mid-level associates.
While PDI is the premier conference for PD professionals — and for good reason — there will be programs of interest to nearly every NALP member.
NALP Research, Increasing Diversity of Law School Graduates Not Reflected Among Judicial Clerks, 2014
Associates are the best source of feedback when it comes to your firm's professional development efforts. Here are some tips on getting their input.
If your firm is considering adding or enhancing a career counseling program for your firm's lawyers, consider these factors in deciding whether to turn to outside consultants or internal staff to implement the program.
Creating Pathways to Diversity - Mentoring Across Differences: A Guide to Cross-Gender and Cross-Race Mentoring
Candidates who want to transition to the public sector or public service need to be able to point to specific examples of where they have worked or volunteered in this area.
The repeal of DADT marks the formal end of an historic period of discrimination that often played itself out in law school career services offices around the country, but questions remain.
Here are the top ten reasons to consider attending (or registering someone from your staff) for the 2012 Newer Professionals' Forum in San Antonio.
Pro bono work offers kinds of hands-on experiences associates often can't get elsewhere.
Learn how one Canadian firm uses a simple, low-tech tool to help ensure summer students/associates get feedback throughout the summer.
The NALP Foundation has just released its associate attrition findings for calendar year 2013.
The Class of 2013 reported taking 820 jobs in legal services, but that number would look far different without positions funded by law schools.
What should law students do in response to the COVID-19 pandemic? Jecqueline Kepner and Jennifer Perrigo offer tips to stay calm and move forward.
DePaul University College of Law’s Lauren Worsek explains how law schools have used pro bono programs a means for students to contribute work safely and have also created other unexpected positive outcomes, creating a compelling case for continuing remote programs post-pandemic.
There is incredible value in all of the concurrent educational sessions at PDI, but I want to highlight a few that are of particular interest to law school members.
Findings on JD Advantage jobs in the legal profession from NALP’s graduate employment data from the Class of 2018.
The impact of the COVID-19 on job interviews, and tips for your students on how to adjust to getting important information out during the pandemic.
Everyone agrees that mentoring programs can benefit law students and alumni, but how does a busy CSO tackle establishing or enhancing a mentoring program? This simple model can be a helpful guide.
These tips for judicial clerkship candidates, who may increasingly encounter behavioral interviewing questions, also offer pointers for other job candidates and for career counselors.
Learn how one school is preparing students for success by including programming that cultivates self-awareness and teaches students how to manage stress.
It's no secret that the most accurate graduate employment data is the information that is self-reported by graduates, but how can you get your graduates to respond?
These eight critical skills will mark the superior lawyer of the 21st century.
The Annual Conference Planning Committee, and especially your Local Hosts, are getting more excited by the day to welcome you to Cleveland for the 2025 Annual Education Conference from April 8-11! This is your quick guide to getting to Cleveland and what to expect once you’re here.
2015 National Report: Survey of Law Students Who Interviewed with Law Firms for Summer 2015
By Katie Dilks, NALP Bulletin, June 2010.
NALP Press Release, April 16, 2015
This year's Public Service Section work groups offer new opportunities for involvement by private sector and government employer NALPers.
As we celebrate the “most wonderful time of the year,” many of us in career services are turning our focus to our recent graduates. Bar results are out in most states, and we are beginning the final push to both help our graduates find positions and collect employment data on those positions. As we focus on these two goals, a few obstacles can make the work more challenging. First, how do we re-engage graduates who are feeling angry, hopeless, or dejected? In particular, how do we reengage graduates who are directing these feelings toward the career office? Second, for graduates who have secured employment, but are not responding to requests ...
It is important for women law students — and those who advise them — to be aware of where early pay gaps may exist and of how those gaps may widen over time in their chosen employment sector.
Whether you are a first-time conference attendee or a seasoned NALPer, this April you will have the opportunity to experience NALP's first conference outside of the U.S.
NALP research takes a look at employment trends for the Classes of 1985-2014, including law firm jobs taken by firm size by each class.
The CCRAA and the continued need for additional LRAPs.
The answer is varied but, in the final analysis, it seems that a little of both will be served at firms around the country as employers attempt to balance the demands of the economy with the demands of a competitive student market.
Suggested law school career services strategies for coping with the impact of changes in the employment market.
The 2009 NALP Annual Education Conference was a time for reconnecting, re-energizing, and having the tough conversations.
Y-ME fundraising at Annual Education Conference
Making the switch from school side career services to employer side professional development was not really much of a switch: it's just at a later stage of lawyers' continuous learning.
Isn't it ironic that many lawyers spend more time and energy planning their vacations than they do planning their careers?
In some situations, the most effective thing you can do is work collaboratively with other schools, particularly when you are reaching out to markets where you have few or no connections.
Now is your chance to nominate a person or organization for a 2013 Award of Distinction. The nomination process is simple.
Pro bono can be just as important to the professional development of a firm's most senior lawyers as to its junior associates.
Beyond all of the substantive programs, one of the greatest benefits of the NALP Annual Education Conference is the "inside track" attendees gain and the value this "inside track" offers to their organizations.
Even busy 1Ls with little or no prior work experience can find opportunities that will help them demonstrate their commitment to public interest work and their understanding of the clients public interest organizations serve.
Here are some tips to help career advisors navigate what can seem an intimidating judicial clerkship application process.
Career services professionals can play a key role in helping students learn when and how to negotiate a job offer.
Legal services employers are looking for somewhat different characteristics in resumes. Here are some tips.
Law firms: What else should law schools be doing to prepare students for success?
Here are some tips for career counselors and law students on the art of effective grant seeking.
women and minorities representation
These seven suggestions can help you sneak wellness strategies in through the back door.
NALP's Vice-President for Finance provides an overview of the NALP budgeting process.
With increased competition in the legal market, many LLM students wonder whether a JD might give them more leverage. This article identifies factors students should consider when assessing JD programs and preparing applications.
Sharon Buckingham with Villanova’s Charles Widger School of Law offers basic tips for helping students of color pursue legal career in the public interest and public service fields.
With many jurisdictions having canceled and delayed bar exams, and many states offering practice pending admission/provisional licenses for new law grads, University of Akron’s Alisa Benedict O’Brien highlights resources and strategies for career services professionals to consider in this unique post-grad world.
Law schools are increasingly offering students opportunities to earn both a JD and a second graduate degree, accelerating the time period that would be required to complete the two programs consecutively. At some schools, close to 15% of JD students pursue a dual or joint degree. The intended goals and potential benefits of dual degree programs are wide-ranging. Because of this, these programs create unique challenges for JD professional development professionals and joint degree students. However, if you advise joint degree students, you can use the following six essential building blocks to help your joint degree students assemble the targe...
School-side attendance of the Professional Development Institute has risen year after year. Here are some reasons for law school members to go to this year's PDI.
Returning to work after maternity leave is a breaking point for many attorneys. Get this critical transition right and you'll improve retention, recruiting, and firm reputation.
As employers consider new policies for remote and hybrid work, and lawyers desire the flexibility of working remotely, they may be caught off guard by a variety of licensing, tax, and other logistical implications if they reside in a different jurisdiction from where their employer is located.
NALP research analyses take a more in-depth look at the representation of women and minorities among partners and associates.
Three Mercer University School of Law Professors share insights on professional identity formation from the new book, Law Student Professional Development and Formation: Bridging Law School, Student, and Employer Goals, by Neil W. Hamilton and Louis D. Bilionis.
Whether you want to learn what other firms are doing, sharpen your competitive edge through reporting, hear the latest on AI, or simply take the pulse of today’s legal market,you cannot afford to miss NALP's 2026 Annual Education Conference.
A perspective on what accommodations for disabilities are really about.
"Plugged in" Millennials need to be encouraged to take advantage of all networking opportunities, not merely those online.
One of the ways NALP has documented the salaries of law school graduating classes is with a picture. This column looks at salary distribution curves and salary medians over time.
As summer programs wind down and fall recruiting begins, the topics of target sizes for the next year’s summer program and of how to achieve those targets and desired yields may become subjects of discussion. NALP research has long documented summer program sizes and outcomes, as well as the level of fall recruiting activity for 2Ls and those outcomes, in annual Perspectives on Law Student Recruiting reports. There is an additional question that NALP’s research can answer: How many callback interviews are needed to result in one accepted offer for the summer program?
When a public service-minded student is considering private sector options such as summer diversity programs, counselors should help students to understand the pros and cons of different avenues and make informed decisions.
As the Regional Resource Council begins to take shape, it is exciting to see its first steps toward becoming a hub of information and activity for members.
Learn about new gender identity and sexual orientation questions coming with data collection for the Class of 2014 — and about why the LGBT Section will soon become the SOGIE Section.
NALP's Director of Public Service Initiatives outlines three upcoming efforts to gather and distribute essential data on the public service legal employment market -- and also offers five "musts" for international public interest job seekers.
This action plan can help 3Ls prepare effectively for the bar exam while still furthering their public interest job hunt, managing their finances, and maintaining their sanity.
There are virtually endless facets to being effective career services professionals. Here are some quick tips that help in a few of these roles.
Regardless of a career center’s office structure or the bandwidth of its staff, many advisors provide support throughout a student’s job search — from résumé development to salary negotiation. Within this process, international students often need different types of support than their domestic peers. International students, for example, might need help accurately using English figures of speech in their cover letters or appropriately emailing prospective employers. Below are some practices to consider when serving an international law student population in the job search.
NALP's Vice President of Member Services shares the secrets of the Regional Resource Council and its activities, an important part of NALP's DNA.
AI is no longer optional; it is essential to the business of law — changing how lawyers practice, how firms create value, and, ultimately, how many lawyers they need and what kinds of expertise they must have.
September 18, 2013 press release on 2013 Associate Salary Survey
The relative isolation of women in the upper echelons of male-dominated organizations can lead to intra-gender and inter-generational conflict that may limit the success of women. This article outlines common threats and suggests ways to address these threats.
Practical Suggestions for Improving Diversity in Tough Economic Times
Each April, we get to come together with like-minded and equally sore-chinned colleagues to debrief, de-stress, teach, and learn in an environment that at a minimum can be described as collegial, and at best can be described as nurturing. I mean, in what other professional organization can you leave it all on the dance floor rocking out to “Uptown Funk” one night and learn about bimodal salary distribution curves the next morning? But this is not a review of the conference or a plug for next year’s event (although, let’s face it, Montreal will be fabulous!). This is my perspective from nearly 14 years in this profession on how NALP has facili...
Searching for ways to give virtual feedback during the COVID-19 pandemic? Nicolas Jelfs-Jelf provides a series of best practices in the June 2020 NALP Bulletin.
By Mark Goldfarb, NALP Bulletin, February 2014.
By Julie Anna Alvarez, NALP Bulletin, September 2014.
By Marta Ricardo and Robert White, NALP Bulletin, July 2013.
NALP Director of Research Danielle Taylor shares Selected Findings on employment outcomes and salaries from Jobs & JDs: Employment and Salaries of New Graduates, Class of 2019.
One professional from a small CSO explains how an Annual Education Conference session helped her transform a key program offered by her CSO.
Here are some ways that career counselors can help to open doors for law students with disabilities.
By staying engaged throughout the summer and providing practical guidance rooted in real world expectations, we can help our students make strong first impressions, avoid missteps, and build lasting professional relationships. In doing so, we not only support their individual success, but we also strengthen the reputation of our institutions and the legal profession as a whole.
Press Release on Employment for the Class of 2013 - Selected Findings. June 19, 2014.
October 9, 2014 press release on 2014 Associate Salary Survey
NALP's ABA Section 303 Professional Identity Guidance Work Group has developed a Toolkit including best practices and other resources to assist law school member organizations in complying with Amended ABA Standard 303.
By Christina Jackson, NALP Bulletin, December 2015
A perspective on what accommodations for disabilities are really about.
The importance of gathering this information should not be underestimated when recruiting from a new generation of attorneys.
Successful mentoring is only part of the equation; finding and cultivating sponsors is also critical to a lawyer's career development — and especially critical for women and diverse lawyers.
I have seen some 1Ls who may have been struggling their first year really blossom during the summer and gain a lot of confidence, and come back with a new outlook for the academic year their second year.
Wake Forest University School of Law’s Alison Ashe-Card, University of the Pacific, McGeorge School of Law’s Molly Stafford, and Villanova University Charles Widger School of Law’s Nicole Netkin-Collins close out the final installment of their six-part series on dismantling racism in the legal profession with more questions than answers.
Here are some suggestions for ways CSOs can best share information with development and alumni affairs offices.
The Regional Resource Council facilitate communication within each NALP region and acts as a liaison between members and the NALP leadership.
Employer outreach is, in the grand scheme of the history of law school career services offices, a relatively new and burgeoning field, and here are some of the ways it can make a difference.
Career counselors can share these tips with third year students who do not yet have jobs.
Change is on the horizon, and nowhere is this more evident than in progressive law firms that are showing thought leadership in their efforts to develop, manage and retain top legal talent.
The overall employment rate for the Class of 2013 was 84.5%, and although the employment picture for this class contained some positive markers as graduates found more jobs than the previous class and more of these jobs were full-time and long-term, the large size of the class more than offset these gains.
Abigail L. Perdue’s comprehensive and thoroughly readable soft-covered treatise, The All-Inclusive Guide to Judicial Clerking (West Academic Publishing, 2017), is a window into the meticulous and methodical work ethic needed to succeed as a federal judicial law clerk.
NALP Research, August 2020
