Employment Outcomes

Few degrees are more versatile than the Juris Doctor – and RWU Law’s Office of Career Development has the resources you’ll need to navigate a successful professional trajectory. Our Assistant Dean of Career Development, Veronica D. Paricio, is a seasoned professional in the field, and is the former Dean of Career Services at the University of Colorado School of Law.

A VERSATILE DEGREE

The economic recession has created unprecedented challenges in the legal job market, both regionally and nationally. In 2010, twice as many people passed the bar exam as there were traditional legal jobs available in the U.S. Since 2004, total employment in law offices has remained flat even as law school enrollment has increased by seven percent.

RWU Law is responding to these broad socio-economic shifts by, among other efforts, increasing our already significant commitment to experiential education – more clinical opportunities, pro bono initiatives, simulation and skills courses and externships, all of which emphasize learning by doing, making our students more practice-ready.

While such institutional measures cannot solve the broader underemployment picture facing recent and future graduates from all law schools, RWU Law graduates are putting their degrees to work in a broad array of professional contexts – from the largest international law firms to community service organizations; from public to corporate settings; and onward to politics, sports and high finance.

In a very competitive job market, the Juris Doctor opens doors that are closed to holders of a bachelor’s degree, while offering flexibility both within and beyond traditional legal career paths. “A law degree really gives you unparalleled career mobility,” notes Dean Bastone. “Lawyers serve as congressmen, college and law school professors, attorneys general, public defenders – not to mention the President and Vice President of the United States. Lawyers work in big-city megafirms; in intimate small and solo practices, and in community organizations serving the public interest. They are found throughout federal, state and local governments and in the diplomatic corps. They run Fortune 500 companies, and they direct hundreds of legal service organizations.”

The training and skills you’ll gain at Roger Williams will help you to forge and maintain a lasting professional relevance in these rapidly changing times.*

*Read the Report of the ABA Commission on the Impact of the Economic Crisis on the Profession and Legal Needs, titled "The Value Proposition of Attending Law School."

Class of 2012 Employment Statistics

Class of 2011 Employment Statistics

Class of 2010 Employment Statistics