Employment Statistics
The Law School’s employment statistics are derived from survey information submitted voluntarily by our graduates. Not all surveys are returned nor are all survey questions answered. This information is not exhaustive, nor does it represent a complete picture of graduate employment information or the job market.
American Bar Association (ABA) Employment Summaries
For additional information not included on the ABA Summaries, please access the tabs below:
Class of 2012
University of Mississippi School of Law graduated 165 students in 2012.Employment outcomes are reported annually to the American Bar Association (ABA) for accreditation and regulatory purposes. Law schools complete an Employment Questionnaire in strict accordance with ABA information and definitions. Find the complete report on ABA Employment Questionnaires.
Information contained in the charts below supplements the data provided to the ABA. Note: Fifty-one of the 130 (39%) graduates who are working submitted salary information; therefore, the information below should be viewed accordingly. Salary information on graduates who opted to not reveal their pay, solo practitioners, contract attorneys and other job holders working for other than a standard monthly salary are not included.
Salaries
| Employment Type | # Reported | Median | Mean |
| Academia | 1 | $50,000.00 | $50,000.00 |
| Business | 1 | $42,000.00 | $42,000.00 |
| Government | 5 | $46,220.00 | $46,000.00 |
| Judicial Clerkship | 13 | $48,653.85 | $54,000.00 |
| Law Firm | 30 | $82,383.32 | $85,000.00 |
Employer Location
| State | Number of Jobs |
| Alabama | 7 |
| California | 2 |
| District of Columbia | 6 |
| Florida | 3 |
| Georgia | 5 |
| Louisiana | 1 |
| Massachusetts | 1 |
| Minnesota | 1 |
| Mississippi | 74 |
| Missouri | 1 |
| New York | 2 |
| North Carolina | 1 |
| Ohio | 1 |
| South Carolina | 2 |
| Tennessee | 14 |
| Texas | 5 |
Class of 2011
The University of Mississippi School of Law graduated 151 students in 2011.
110 graduates, or 83.3% of the class, were employed within nine months of graduation.
The following represents the employment status of 132 out of 151, or 87.4% of the class.
Employment by Type
Detailed Summary of Employment Status
| Employed Law Firm – Attorney full-time | 57 | 37.75% |
| Employed Law Firm – law related part-time | 4 | 2.65% |
| Employed – Opened Solo Practice | 3 | 1.99% |
| Employed Legal Temp Agency | 3 | 1.99% |
| Employed Law Firm – Non-attorney position | 2 | 1.32% |
| Employed – Business & Industry law-related | 6 | 3.97% |
| Employed – Business & Industry non-law related | 2 | 1.32% |
| Employed – Academia full-time | 1 | 0.66% |
| Employed – Academia part-time | 1 | 0.66% |
| Employed – Federal Government | 6 | 3.97% |
| Employed – State/Local Government | 9 | 5.96% |
| Judicial Clerkship Federal | 6 | 3.97% |
| Judicial Clerkship State | 3 | 1.99% |
| Self-Employed –non-legal | 1 | 0.66% |
| Public Interest | 4 | 2.65% |
| Pursuing Graduate Degree F-T | 11 | 7.28% |
| Unemployed – Seeking | 13 | 8.61% |
| Employment Status Unknown | 19 | 12.58% |
Salaries
Note that only 35/151 graduates reported salaries
| Employment Type | Median | Mean |
| Law Firm (based on 21 reported salaries) | $67,500.00 | $65,928.57 |
| Business (Based on 4 reported salaries) | $65,000.00 | $66,250.00 |
| Government-Federal (based on 2 reported salaries) | N/A | $54,740.50 |
| Government-State (based on 2 reported salaries) | N/A | $43,000 |
| Judicial Clerkship – State (1 salary of $47,000.00 reported) | N/A | N/A |
| Judicial Clerkship-Federal (1 salary of $57,000.00 reported) | N/A | N/A |
| Public Interest (no salaries reported) | N/A | N/A |
Law Firm Employment Breakdown
By far, over half (58.18%) of the employed 2011 graduates work in private practice. Of those in private practice, the largest concentration (73%) of graduates work in small to mid-sized law firms staffed by less than 25 attorneys. Contrary to popular belief only twenty-seven percent (27%) of graduates in private practice work for large law firms staffed by 26 or more attorneys, and six-figure salaries.
| Solo | 3 |
| 2 – 10 | 36 |
| 11-25 | 8 |
| 26-50 | 4 |
| 51-100 | 5 |
| 101-250 | 5 |
| 251-500 | 2 |
| 501+ | 1 |
| 64 |
The percentage of graduates working in business and industry is a distant second, accounting for 13.6% of all graduates reporting. Even smaller percentages of the class are employed by federal and state government, federal and state judges, public interest organizations and in academia.
Employer Location
Based on 102 graduates who submitted Information on employer location.
| Alabama | 3 |
| Connecticut | 1 |
| DC | 5 |
| Florida | 8 |
| Georgia | 3 |
| Indiana | 1 |
| Louisiana | 1 |
| Maryland | 1 |
| Mississippi | 61 |
| Tennessee | 13 |
| Texas | 2 |
| Virginia | 2 |
| West Virginia | 1 |
| 102 |
Class of 2010
The University of Mississippi School of Law graduated 162 students in 2010. One hundred seven (107) graduates, 74.3% of the class, were employed within nine months of graduation. The Office of Career Services obtained the employment status of 144 out of 162, or 88.9% of the class.
Employment Status
| Employment Status | Number | Percent |
| Employed F-T | 104 | 64.2% |
| Employed P-T | 3 | 2.0% |
| Enrolled in LLM Programs | 16 | 9.8% |
| Seeking Employment | 21 | 12.9% |
| Employment Status Unknown | 18 | 11.1% |
Employment Type
| Employment Setting | Number | Percent |
| Private Practice (includes 3 part-time attorneys) | 55 | 51.40% |
| Business (2 legal positions; 10 non-legal positions) | 12 | 11.2% |
| Government-Federal | 7 | 6.5% |
| Government-State | 3 | 2.8% |
| Judicial Clerkship-County | 7 | 7.5% |
| Judicial Clerkship-Federal | 5 | 4.7% |
| Judicial Clerkship-State | 7 | 6.5% |
| Military (one active duty; one JAG) | 2 | 1.9% |
| Non-Profit | 1 | 1.0% |
| Employer Unknown | 7 | 6.5% |
Employer Location
| State | Number | Percent |
| Alabama | 6 | 5.6% |
| DC | 3 | 2.8% |
| Florida | 1 | 0.9% |
| Georgia | 6 | 5.6% |
| Louisiana | 2 | 1.9% |
| Mississippi | 62 | 58.1% |
| Missouri | 1 | 0.9% |
| South Carolina | 1 | 0.9% |
| Tennessee | 10 | 9.3% |
| Texas | 4 | 3.7% |
| Virginia | 3 | 2.8% |
| West Virginia | 2 | 1.9% |
| Wisconsin | 2 | 1.9% |
| Unknown | 4 | 3.7% |
Salaries
| Employment Type | Median | Mean |
| Private Practice (n=23) | $75,000.00 | $77,178.96 |
| Business (n=8) | $58,500.00 | $57,875.00 |
| Government-Federal (n=5) | $54,000.00 | $55,183.00 |
| Government-State (n=1) | $45,000.00 | $45,000.00 |
| Judicial Clerkship-County (n=5) | $35,400.00 | $33,360.00 |
| Judicial Clerkship-State (n=7) | $53,000.00 | $52,255.43 |
| Judicial Clerkship-Federal (n=5) | $56,411.00 | $56,682.00 |
Salaries by Firm Size
| Size of Firm | Mean Salary | Location |
| 101-250 (N=3) | $105,000.00 (N=3) | MS and AL |
| 51-100 (N=3) | $101,250.00 (N=2) | MS |
| 26-50 (N=12) | $71,188.00 (N=8) | MS, TN, WV |
| 11-25 (N=8) | $59,500.00 (N=4) | GA,VA,TN,MS |
| 2-10 (N=3) P-T | $55,023.00 (N=5) | MS,GA |
| 2-10 (N=3) P-T | $28.00/hr P-T (N=2) | GA |