With the number of law school applications for fall 2011 dipping to its lowest level in the past decade nationwide, the Syracuse University College of Law has bucked the national trend by receiving an increase in applicants.

SU’s law school applications for the upcoming fall increased by 8 percent, but the number of law school applicants nationwide decreased by 11.5 percent from last year, said Jaclyn Grosso, director of communications and media relations at the College of Law, in an email.

The College of Law will most likely have the same first-year class size of 255 students as last year, Grosso said. The admissions deadline is April 1. 

The national number of law school applicants for the fall 2011 class is 66,876, the lowest since 2001, according to figures from the Law School Admission Council Inc. that were published in The Wall Street Journal on March 17. The figure represents how much of the application process is complete thus far — 86 percent, according to the article. 

There is no way of knowing why the number of applicants dropped, said Wendy Margolis, the LSAC director of communications.

‘It’s all speculation,’ Margolis said. ‘We’re assuming that they’re seeing media and reports about job situations.’

Students are becoming increasingly aware of the difficulty in securing jobs at firms, according to the Wall Street Journal article. Corporate law firms recently cut back on hiring, and most firms haven’t raised salaries for starting lawyers, according to the article.

The prospects for financial success after law school are not promising, as it may take years of tough work to become a partner, according to the article. 

But many partners at large law firms say the market has nearly stabilized, with intellectual property and energy law continuing to be well-paid  specialties, according to a March 15 U.S. News and World Report article. 

The average salary reported for the SU College of Law’s Class of 2010, employed at more than 100 attorney firms, was $117,000, according to the College of Law admissions website. The average salary reported for government employers was $52,900, according to the site.

Tuition for 2010-11 at SU College of Law is $43,500, according to the College of Law admissions website.

Some schools offer options for debt repayment for students with careers in public interest law who earn low salaries in the public sector, according to the U.S. News and World Report article. 

Julie Rich, a senior history major in the College of Arts and Science, had planned to apply to graduate school to become a history professor, but due to the grim outlook for the career, she chose to attend law school instead. Rich has already been accepted to Seton Hall University School of Law and said she is almost certain she will be attending. 

Rich said she thinks the economy and lack of job opportunities play a large role in students’ decisions. She hopes the current situation improves during her time at law school, she said.

‘Many students have to do judicial clerkships when they graduate instead of going straight into firms like they want to,’ Rich said.  

It’s good for experience, but it’s not like working at a law firm, Rich said. Despite the understanding that fewer students are hired by firms right out of law school, Rich remains hopeful for a future in law.

‘They said the economy’s going to improve in the next few years,’ Rich said. ‘People are optimistic.’

brvannos@syr.edu

Published on March 23, 2011 at 12:00 pm

Contact Breanne: brvannos@syr.edu | @bre_vann