Legal Studies & Jurisprudence

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    Total Degrees​
    Awarded in 2024
    899
    declining 3.64%
    Median In-State​
    Public Tuition
    $11,380
    growing 7.4%
    Median Out-of-State​
    Private Tuition
    $54,660
    growing 3.92%
    Average Wage
    $96,466
    growing 6.57%
    People in Workforce
    100,249
    growing 3.18%
    Average Employee Age
    43.5
    growing 0.791%

    About

    LegalLegal Research & Advanced Professional Studies

    Institutions

    Information about the types of higher education institutions that grant degrees in Legal Studies & Jurisprudence and the types of students that study this field. Cornell University awards the most degrees in Legal Studies & Jurisprudence in the US, but Vermont Law and Graduate School and Albany Law School have the highest percentage of degrees awarded in Legal Studies & Jurisprudence.

    Tuition costs for Legal Studies & Jurisprudence majors are, on average, $11,380 for in-state public colleges, and $54,660 for out of state private colleges.

    The most common sector, by number of institutions, that offers Legal Studies & Jurisprudence programs are Private not-for-profit, 4-year or above institutions (34 total). The most common sector, by number of degrees awarded, is Private not-for-profit, 4-year or above (733 completions).

    Institutions

    Institution with the Most Degrees Awarded in Legal Studies & Jurisprudence (2024)
    1. Cornell University
      205 degrees awarded
    2. Vermont Law and Graduate School
      50 degrees awarded
    3. Liberty University
      49 degrees awarded

    The most common sector, by number of degrees awarded in Legal Studies & Jurisprudence, is Private not-for-profit, 4-year or above (733 completions in 2024).

    The following chart shows the share of universities that offer Legal Studies & Jurisprudence programs, by the total number of completions, colored and grouped by their sector.

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    Tuition Costs for Common Institutions

    $11,380
    Median In-State Public
    $54,660
    Median Out of State Private

    Cornell University has the most Legal Studies & Jurisprudence degree recipients, with 205 degrees awarded in 2024.

    The following bar chart shows the state tuition for the top 5 institutions with the most degrees awarded in Legal Studies & Jurisprudence.

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    Specialized Colleges

    Highest Concentration Institution
    1. Vermont Law and Graduate School
      16.6%
    2. Albany Law School
      7.66%
    3. University of California College of the Law-San Francisco
      6.64%

    Out of all institutions that offer Legal Studies & Jurisprudence programs and have at least 5 graduates in those programs, Vermont Law and Graduate School has the highest percentage of degrees awarded in Legal Studies & Jurisprudence, with 16.6%.

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    Degrees Awarded by County

    Counties with the Most Degrees Awarded in Legal Studies & Jurisprudence
    1. Tompkins County, NY
      205 degrees awarded
    2. Los Angeles County, CA
      74 degrees awarded
    3. Windsor County, VT
      50 degrees awarded

    This map shows the counties in the United States colored by the highest number of degrees awarded in Legal Studies & Jurisprudence by year.

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    Employment

    Information on the businesses and industries that employ Legal graduates and on wages and locations for those in the field.

    The average salary for Legal majors is $96,466 and the most common occupations are Paralegals & legal assistants, Lawyers, & judges, magistrates, & other judicial workers, and Other managers.

    The industry that employs the most Legal majors is Legal services, though the highest paying industry, by average wage, is Machinery, equipment, & supplies merchant wholesalers .

    Yearly Income for Common Jobs

    The closest comparable data for the 6 Digit Course Legal Studies & Jurisprudence is from the 2 Digit Course Legal.
    $96,466
    Average Wage in Workforce
    ± $7,506
    6.57%
    1 Year Growth
    ± 10.2%

    The average salary for Legal majors is $96,466 and the most common occupations are Paralegals & legal assistants, Lawyers, & judges, magistrates, & other judicial workers, and Other managers.

    This chart shows the average annual salaries of the most common occupations for Legal majors.

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    Highest Paying Locations

    The closest comparable data for the 6 Digit Course Legal Studies & Jurisprudence is from the 2 Digit Course Legal.
    Highest Paying Pumas
    1. NYC-Manhattan Community District 8--Upper East Side & Roosevelt Island PUMA, NY
      $504,134
    2. Suffolk County (North Central)--Brookhaven Town (North) PUMA, NY
      $474,587
    3. San Mateo County (Central)--San Mateo (North), Burlingame & Millbrae Cities PUMA, CA
      $335,466

    This map shows the public use micro areas (PUMAs) in the United States colored by the average salary of Legal majors.

    Note that the census collects information tied to where people live, not where they work. It is possible that Legal majors live and work in the same place, but it is also possible that they live and work in two different places.

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    Most Common

    The closest comparable data for the 6 Digit Course Legal Studies & Jurisprudence is from the 2 Digit Course Legal.

    The most common occupations for Legal majors, by number of employees, are Paralegals & legal assistants, Lawyers, & judges, magistrates, & other judicial workers, and Other managers.

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    Most Specialized

    The closest comparable data for the 6 Digit Course Legal Studies & Jurisprudence is from the 2 Digit Course Legal.

    Compared to other majors, there are an unusually high number of Legal majors working as Paralegals & legal assistants, Judicial law clerks, and Lawyers, & judges, magistrates, & other judicial workers.

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    Highest Paid

    The closest comparable data for the 6 Digit Course Legal Studies & Jurisprudence is from the 2 Digit Course Legal.

    The highest paid occupations by median income for Legal majors are Athletes and sports competitors, Radiologic technologists and technicians, and Geoscientists and hydrologists, except geographers.

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    Occupations by Share

    The closest comparable data for the 6 Digit Course Legal Studies & Jurisprudence is from the 2 Digit Course Legal.
    100,249
    2024 Workforce
    ± 7,771
    3.18%
    1 Year Growth
    ± 10.7%

    The number of Legal graduates in the workforce has been growing at a rate of 3.18%, from 97,164 in 2023 to 100,249 in 2024.

    The largest single share of Legal graduates go on to work as Paralegals & legal assistants (13.8%). This chart shows the various jobs filled by those with a major in Legal by share of the total number of graduates.

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    Most Common

    The closest comparable data for the 6 Digit Course Legal Studies & Jurisprudence is from the 2 Digit Course Legal.

    The most common industries that employ Legal majors, by number of employees, are Legal services, Justice, public order, & safety activities , and Elementary & secondary schools.

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    Highest Paid

    The closest comparable data for the 6 Digit Course Legal Studies & Jurisprudence is from the 2 Digit Course Legal.

    The highest paying industries of Legal majors, by average wage, are Machinery, equipment, & supplies merchant wholesalers , Apparel, piece goods, & notions merchant wholesalers, and Other motor vehicle dealers.

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    Industries by Share

    The closest comparable data for the 6 Digit Course Legal Studies & Jurisprudence is from the 2 Digit Course Legal.
    100,249
    2024 Workforce
    ± 7,771
    3.18%
    1 Year Growth
    ± 10.7%

    The number of Legal graduates in the workforce has been growing at a rate of 3.18%, from 97,164 in 2023 to 100,249 in 2024.

    The industry which employs the most Legal graduates by share is Legal services, followed by Justice, public order, & safety activities . This visualization shows the industries that hire those who major in Legal.

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    Specialty Locations

    The closest comparable data for the 6 Digit Course Legal Studies & Jurisprudence is from the 2 Digit Course Legal.
    PUMAS with a relatively high number of Legal majors
    1. NYC-Manhattan Community District 9--Morningside Heights & Hamilton Heights PUMA, NY
      11.5
    2. Lake County (Northwest) PUMA, FL
      10.1
    3. Dakota County (Northwest)--Eagan, West St. Paul & Mendota Heights Cities PUMA, MN
      9.16

    This map shows the public use micro areas (PUMAs) in the United States where there are a relatively high population of Legal majors.

    Note that the census collects information tied to where people live, not where they work. It is possible that Legal majors live and work in the same place, but it is also possible that they live and work in two different places.

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    Diversity

    Demographic information for those who earn a degree in Legal in the United States.

    The average age of a person in the workforce with a degree in Legal is 43.5.

    N/A Female employees are more likely to hold Legal degrees, and Non-resident Alien students are the most common race/ethnicty group awarded degrees in Legal (385 students).

    Workforce Age

    The closest comparable data for the 6 Digit Course Legal Studies & Jurisprudence is from the 2 Digit Course Legal.
    43.5
    Average Age in 2024
    ± 0.969 Years
    0.791%
    1 Year Change
    ± 3.15%

    This chart shows distribution of ages for employees with a degree in Legal. The most common ages of employees with this major are 48 and 39 years old, which represent 3.24% and 3.15% of the population, respectively.

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    Workforce Degrees

    The closest comparable data for the 6 Digit Course Legal Studies & Jurisprudence is from the 2 Digit Course Legal.

    The most common degree types held by the working population in Legal are Bachelors Degree, Professional degree, and Masters Degree.

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    Sex Imbalance for Common Institutions

    Female (56.8%)
    Most Common Sex with a Degree in this Field

    This chart shows the granted degrees by sex at the 5 institutions that graduate the most students in Legal Studies & Jurisprudence.

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    Race & Ethnicity by Degrees Awarded

    This chart shows the number of degrees awarded in Legal Studies & Jurisprudence for each race & ethnicity.

    In N/A, N/A students earned the largest share of the degrees with this major.

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    Race & Ethnicity by Sex

    Degrees
    Most Common Race/Ethnicity and Sex Combination
    1. Non-resident Alien Female
      187 degrees awarded
    2. Non-resident Alien Male
      118 degrees awarded
    3. White Female
      91 degrees awarded

    This chart illustrates the differences by sex for each race & ethnicity of Masters Degree recipients in Legal Studies & Jurisprudence.

    Non-resident Alien Female students, who earn most of the degrees in this field, are the most common combination of race/ethnicity and sex.

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    Global Diversity

    The closest comparable data for the 6 Digit Course Legal Studies & Jurisprudence is from the 2 Digit Course Legal.
    Most Common Countries of Origin
    1. Mexico
      810 degree recipients
    2. China
      809 degree recipients
    3. Philippines
      787 degree recipients
    High Relative Number of Students
    1. Europe
      24 times more than expected
    2. Bahamas
      16.3 times more than expected
    3. Algeria
      11.8 times more than expected

    There are a relatively high number of people that were born in Europe that hold Legal degrees (24 times more than expected), and the most common country of origin by total numbers for non-US students earning a degree in this field is Mexico (810 degree recipients).

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    Skills

    Data on the critical and distinctive skills necessary for those working in the Legal Studies & Jurisprudence field from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Legal Studies & Jurisprudence majors need many skills, but most especially Speaking. The revealed comparative advantage (RCA) shows that Legal Studies & Jurisprudence majors need more than the average amount of Negotiation, Persuasion, and Speaking.

    These two visualizations, one a radial chart and one a bar chart, show the same information, a rating of how necessary the following skills are for Legal Studies & Jurisprudence majors. Toggle between "value" and "RCA" to see the absolute rating of that skill (value) and the revealed comparative advantage (RCA), or how much greater or lesser that skill's rating is than the average. The longer the bar or the closer the line comes to the circumference of the circle, the more important that skill is. The importance of Negotiation is very distinctive for majors, but the Speaking, Active Listening, and Critical Thinking are the three most important skills for people in the field.

    Radar Distribution

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    Bar Chart

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