This seminal study presents data from a random survey of 1,566 undergraduate college students from 4-year colleges in the United States about how likely they are to apply to law school and how they view the future of the legal profession. In addition, the report details the undergraduate majors that students expect will best prepare them for law school and lists the law schools to which they are most anxious to apply.
Data in the 58-page report is broken out by 18 individual and college institutional variables including gender, race/ethnicity, financial background, sexual orientation, regional origins, expected student debt load, SAT/ACT scores, college grades, college major and other variables for individuals, and public/private status, and college/university type/Carnegie class for institutions.
Among other questions we asked: How likely are you to apply to law school at some point in the future? We gave five possible answers to this multiple choice question, which were: 1) Highly Unlikely, 2) Unlikely, 3) Possibly Likely, 4) Highly Likely and 5) I Have Already Applied.
The resulting data set gives a highly detailed road map to the expected law school plans of American undergraduates at 4-year colleges.
Just a few of the report’s many findings are that:
- A shade more than 84% of those sampled thought it was highly unlikely or unlikely that they would ever apply to law school.
- Women were much more likely than men to feel that they were highly likely to apply to law school though men were more optimistic about the economic outlook for the legal profession.
- The population of students who were pretty sure or very sure of what they wanted to do post college were more likely than those who were not too sure of what they wanted to believe that the economic outlook for the legal profession was good.
- The more population intense the area in which the survey participant grew up, the more likely that they were to say that they were highly likely to apply to law school.
Table of Contents
THE QUESTIONNAIRE
Characteristics of the Sample
SUMMARY OF MAIN FINDINGS
How Likely are You to Apply to Law School?
Overall Results for Law School Plans
Law School Plans, Broken Out Age
Law School Plans, by Urban/Suburban/Rural Origins
Law School Plans, by Regional Origins
Law School Plans, by Year of Class Standing
Law School Plans, by Income of Family of Origin
Law School Plans, by Political Affiliation
Law School Plans, by Academic Major or Intended Major
Law School Plans, by Gender and by Private/Public School Status
Law School Plans, by SAT/ACT Scores
Law School Plans, by Race or Ethnic Origins
Law School Plans, by Expected Debt Level at Undergraduate Graduation
View of the Best Undergraduate Majors as a Preparation for Law School
View of the Economic Outlook for the Legal Profession
View of the Economic Outlook for the Legal Profession, Broken Out by Year of Class Standing, Grades and for Public and Private Colleges
View of the Economic Outlook for the Legal Profession, Broken Out by SAT/ACT Scores
View of the Economic Outlook for the Legal Profession, Broken Out by Race/Ethnicity
Schools Frequently Mentioned as Application Targets
Table 1.2 How likely are you to apply to law school at some point in the future? Broken out by age of survey participant
Table 1.3 How likely are you to apply to law school at some point in the future? Broken out for survey participants from rural, suburban and urban areas of origin
Table 1.4 How likely are you to apply to law school at some point in the future? Broken out regional origins of the survey participant
Table 1.5 How likely are you to apply to law school at some point in the future? Broken out by college year class standing
Table 1.6 How likely are you to apply to law school at some point in the future? Broken out by approximate student family annual income
Table 1.7 How likely are you to apply to law school at some point in the future? Broken out by degree of religiosity of the survey participant
Table 1.8 How likely are you to apply to law school at some point in the future? Broken out by type of political beliefs of the survey participant
Table 1.9 How likely are you to apply to law school at some point in the future? Broken out by college grades of the survey participant
Table 1.10 How likely are you to apply to law school at some point in the future? Broken out by current or likely college major of the survey participant
Table 1.11 How likely are you to apply to law school at some point in the future? Broken out by gender of the survey participant
Table 1.12 How likely are you to apply to law school at some point in the future? Broken out for students in public or private colleges:
Table 1.13 How likely are you to apply to law school at some point in the future? Broken out by type of domestic housing arrangement of the survey participant
Table 1.14 How likely are you to apply to law school at some point in the future? Broken out by employment circumstance of the survey participant
Table 1.15 How likely are you to apply to law school at some point in the future? Broken out by sexual orientation of the survey participant
Table 1.16 How likely are you to apply to law school at some point in the future? Broken out by ACT or SAT scores of the survey participant
Table 1.17 How likely are you to apply to law school at some point in the future? Broken out by racial or ethnic affiliation of the survey participant
Table 1.18 How likely are you to apply to law school at some point in the future? Broken out by What do you expect will be your total accumulated student loan debt when you graduate your undergraduate institution?
Table 1.19 How likely are you to apply to law school at some point in the future? Broken out by Roughly about how sure of yourself are you of your post-college education or work plans?
If you are thinking about going to law school what do you think is the best field of study on the undergraduate level to prepare you? (If you are not considering law school then you can skip this question) Broken out by ACT or SAT scores of the survey participant
Table 2.1 Which phrase best describes how you view the economic outlook for the legal profession?
Table 2.2 Which phrase best describes how you view the economic outlook for the legal profession? Broken out by age of survey participant
Table 2.3 Which phrase best describes how you view the economic outlook for the legal profession? Broken out for survey participants from rural, suburban and urban areas of origin
Table 2.4 Which phrase best describes how you view the economic outlook for the legal profession? Broken out regional origins of the survey participant
Table 2.5 Which phrase best describes how you view the economic outlook for the legal profession? Broken out by college year class standing
Table 2.6 Which phrase best describes how you view the economic outlook for the legal profession? Broken out by approximate student family annual income
Table 2.7 Which phrase best describes how you view the economic outlook for the legal profession? Broken out by degree of religiosity of the survey participant
Table 2.8 Which phrase best describes how you view the economic outlook for the legal profession? Broken out by type of political beliefs of the survey participant
Table 2.9 Which phrase best describes how you view the economic outlook for the legal profession? Broken out by college grades of the survey participant
Table 2.10 Which phrase best describes how you view the economic outlook for the legal profession? Broken out by current or likely college major of the survey participant
Table 2.11 Which phrase best describes how you view the economic outlook for the legal profession? Broken out by gender of the survey participant
Table 2.12 Which phrase best describes how you view the economic outlook for the legal profession? Broken out for students in public or private colleges
Table 2.13 Which phrase best describes how you view the economic outlook for the legal profession? Broken out by type of domestic housing arrangement of the survey participant
Table 2.14 Which phrase best describes how you view the economic outlook for the legal profession? Broken out by employment circumstance of the survey participant
Table 2.15 Which phrase best describes how you view the economic outlook for the legal profession? Broken out by sexual orientation of the survey participant
Table 2.16 Which phrase best describes how you view the economic outlook for the legal profession? Broken out by ACT or SAT scores of the survey participant
Table 2.17 Which phrase best describes how you view the economic outlook for the legal profession? Broken out by racial or ethnic affiliation of the survey participant
Table 2.18 Which phrase best describes how you view the economic outlook for the legal profession? Broken out by What do you expect will be your total accumulated student loan debt when you graduate your undergraduate institution?
Table 2.19 Which phrase best describes how you view the economic outlook for the legal profession? Broken out by Roughly about how sure of yourself are you of your post-college education or work plans?
If you are even vaguely considering law school which are some of the schools that you might apply to? Skip this question if you have no interest in this field. Broken out by ACT or SAT scores of the survey participant
Samples
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Methodology
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