On Tuesday The Faculty Lounge carried a post by Dan Filler ranking law schools using ABA employment data. The ranking included a few oddities, such as Kentucky Law being tied for #2 and Georgetown Law being tied for #78. I think these types of results should put a person on "inquiry notice" that there might be something wrong with the methodology.
I decided to use a technique have written about in the past to produce a better ranking of law schools by ABA employment data. Professor Filler's post really isn't fair to excellent schools like Georgetown, and is especially harsh to UC Irvine, which Professor Filler's approach ranks at #127. My technique takes into account all of the ABA data and uses a dimensionality reduction technique to squash the data into a single dimension. It counts some categories as negatives and some as positives, and uses information about "biglaw" versus "small law" jobs, etc.
This ranking, which I denote A-Rank to distinguish it from Filler's F-Rank, is far from perfect, but it is clearly a significant improvement and I think readers will find it more informative. I wrote this up quickly, so please feel free to comment on any errors or omissions.
UPDATE: If you like this post, here's a link to a new post on the subject that looks at two dimensions of employment outcomes, breaking this ranking down into "prestige" employment and other employment.
A-Rank |
US News Rank |
Law School |
1 |
4 |
CHICAGO, UNIVERSITY OF |
2 |
4 |
COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY |
3 |
7 |
PENNSYLVANIA, UNIVERSITY OF |
4 |
6 |
NEW YORK UNIVERSITY |
5 |
11 |
DUKE UNIVERSITY |
6 |
13 |
CORNELL UNIVERSITY |
7 |
2 |
HARVARD UNIVERSITY |
8 |
8 |
VIRGINIA, UNIVERSITY OF |
9 |
2 |
STANFORD UNIVERSITY |
10 |
8 |
MICHIGAN, UNIVERSITY OF |
11 |
1 |
YALE UNIVERSITY |
12 |
8 |
CALIFORNIA-BERKELEY, UNIVERSITY OF |
13 |
12 |
NORTHWESTERN UNIVERSITY |
14 |
16 |
VANDERBILT UNIVERSITY |
15 |
14 |
GEORGETOWN UNIVERSITY |
16 |
17 |
CALIFORNIA-LOS ANGELES, UNIVERSITY OF |
17 |
19 |
SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA, UNIVERSITY OF |
18 |
28 |
CALIFORNIA-IRVINE, UNIVERSITY OF |
19 |
15 |
TEXAS AT AUSTIN, UNIVERSITY OF |
20 |
20 |
BOSTON UNIVERSITY |
21 |
30 |
BOSTON COLLEGE |
22 |
22 |
EMORY UNIVERSITY |
23 |
22 |
NOTRE DAME, UNIVERSITY OF |
24 |
18 |
WASHINGTON UNIVERSITY |
25 |
25 |
GEORGE WASHINGTON UNIVERSITY |
26 |
40 |
WASHINGTON AND LEE UNIVERSITY |
27 |
22 |
MINNESOTA, UNIVERSITY OF |
28 |
40 |
ILLINOIS, UNIVERSITY OF |
29 |
37 |
FORDHAM UNIVERSITY |
30 |
65 |
SETON HALL UNIVERSITY |
31 |
33 |
WILLIAM AND MARY LAW SCHOOL |
32 |
30 |
CALIFORNIA-DAVIS, UNIVERSITY OF |
33 |
60 |
KENTUCKY, UNIVERSITY OF |
34 |
20 |
IOWA, UNIVERSITY OF |
35 |
40 |
COLORADO, UNIVERSITY OF |
36 |
55 |
BAYLOR UNIVERSITY |
37 |
28 |
ALABAMA, UNIVERSITY OF |
38 |
30 |
OHIO STATE UNIVERSITY |
39 |
33 |
GEORGIA, UNIVERSITY OF |
40 |
38 |
NORTH CAROLINA, UNIVERSITY OF |
41 |
45 |
SOUTHERN METHODIST UNIVERSITY |
42 |
97 |
BROOKLYN LAW SCHOOL |
43 |
48 |
FLORIDA, UNIVERSITY OF |
44 |
33 |
WASHINGTON, UNIVERSITY OF |
45 |
97 |
WEST VIRGINIA UNIVERSITY |
46 |
40 |
ARIZONA, UNIVERSITY OF |
47 |
74 |
ST. JOHN'S UNIVERSITY |
48 |
111 |
IDAHO, UNIVERSITY OF |
49 |
74 |
CARDOZO SCHOOL OF LAW |
50 |
111 |
HOFSTRA UNIVERSITY |
51 |
50 |
FLORIDA STATE UNIVERSITY |
52 |
82 |
NORTHEASTERN UNIVERSITY |
53 |
25 |
INDIANA UNIVERSITY - BLOOMINGTON |
54 |
78 |
UNIVERSITY OF NEVADA - LAS VEGAS |
55 |
65 |
MISSOURI, UNIVERSITY OF |
56 |
131 |
CITY UNIVERSITY OF NEW YORK |
57 |
50 |
CALIFORNIA-HASTINGS, UNIVERSITY OF |
58 |
50 |
TEMPLE UNIVERSITY |
59 |
92 |
RUTGERS UNIVERSITY |
60 |
40 |
WAKE FOREST UNIVERSITY |
61 |
82 |
LOUISIANA STATE UNIVERSITY |
62 |
33 |
WISCONSIN, UNIVERSITY OF |
63 |
60 |
NEW MEXICO, UNIVERSITY OF |
64 |
129 |
ALBANY LAW SCHOOL OF UNION UNIVERSITY |
65 |
65 |
TENNESSEE, UNIVERSITY OF |
66 |
74 |
VILLANOVA UNIVERSITY |
67 |
78 |
AMERICAN UNIVERSITY |
68 |
92 |
SOUTH CAROLINA, UNIVERSITY OF |
69 |
38 |
BRIGHAM YOUNG UNIVERSITY |
70 |
72 |
DENVER, UNIVERSITY OF |
71 |
50 |
TULANE UNIVERSITY |
72 |
25 |
ARIZONA STATE UNIVERSITY |
73 |
45 |
GEORGE MASON UNIVERSITY |
74 |
60 |
OKLAHOMA, UNIVERSITY OF |
75 |
65 |
KANSAS, UNIVERSITY OF |
76 |
57 |
CASE WESTERN RESERVE UNIVERSITY |
77 |
123 |
MERCER UNIVERSITY |
78 |
60 |
CINCINNATI, UNIVERSITY OF |
79 |
123 |
MONTANA, UNIVERSITY OF |
80 |
57 |
GEORGIA STATE UNIVERSITY |
81 |
48 |
MARYLAND, UNIVERSITY OF |
82 |
55 |
RICHMOND, UNIVERSITY OF |
83 |
106 |
HOWARD UNIVERSITY |
84 |
65 |
CONNECTICUT, UNIVERSITY OF |
85 |
123 |
TEXAS TECH UNIVERSITY |
86 |
65 |
LOYOLA MARYMOUNT UNIVERSITY-LOS ANGELES |
87 |
57 |
NEBRASKA, UNIVERSITY OF |
88 |
103 |
STETSON UNIVERSITY |
89 |
136 |
PACE UNIVERSITY |
90 |
33 |
UNIVERSITY OF BUFFALO-SUNY |
91 |
82 |
SAINT LOUIS UNIVERSITY |
92 |
60 |
MIAMI, UNIVERSITY OF |
93 |
86 |
PENNSYLVANIA STATE - DICKINSON LAW |
94 |
74 |
SAN DIEGO, UNIVERSITY OF |
95 |
50 |
HOUSTON, UNIVERSITY OF |
96 |
92 |
LOUISVILLE, UNIVERSITY OF |
97 |
82 |
NEW HAMPSHIRE UNIVERSITY OF |
98 |
111 |
DREXEL UNIVERSITY |
99 |
unranked |
MISSISSIPPI COLLEGE |
100 |
123 |
MARQUETTE UNIVERSITY |
101 |
92 |
HAWAII, UNIVERSITY OF |
102 |
97 |
WAYNE STATE UNIVERSITY |
103 |
86 |
ARKANSAS, FAYETTEVILLE, UNIVERSITY OF |
104 |
144 |
NORTH DAKOTA, UNIVERSITY OF |
105 |
103 |
FLORIDA INTERNATIONAL UNIVERSITY |
106 |
100 |
MICHIGAN STATE UNIVERSITY |
107 |
86 |
SYRACUSE UNIVERSITY |
108 |
65 |
PEPPERDINE UNIVERSITY |
109 |
111 |
DRAKE UNIVERSITY |
110 |
106 |
CREIGHTON UNIVERSITY |
111 |
132 |
GONZAGA UNIVERSITY |
112 |
45 |
UTAH, UNIVERSITY OF |
113 |
123 |
MISSOURI-KANSAS CITY, UNIVERSITY OF |
114 |
86 |
TULSA, UNIVERSITY OF |
115 |
86 |
PENNSYLVANIA STATE - PENN STATE LAW |
116 |
144 |
NORTHERN ILLINOIS UNIVERSITY |
117 |
78 |
PITTSBURGH, UNIVERSITY OF |
118 |
111 |
ST. THOMAS, UNIVERSITY OF (MINNESOTA) |
119 |
100 |
INDIANA UNIVERSITY - INDIANAPOLIS |
120 |
106 |
WASHBURN UNIVERSITY |
121 |
72 |
LOYOLA UNIVERSITY-CHICAGO |
122 |
unranked |
NOVA SOUTHEASTERN UNIVERSITY |
123 |
unranked |
REGENT UNIVERSITY |
124 |
111 |
DUQUESNE UNIVERSITY |
125 |
78 |
OREGON, UNIVERSITY OF |
126 |
unranked |
APPALACHIAN SCHOOL OF LAW |
127 |
143 |
SOUTH DAKOTA, UNIVERSITY OF |
128 |
103 |
CATHOLIC UNIVERSITY OF AMERICA |
129 |
unranked |
MEMPHIS, UNIVERSITY OF |
130 |
111 |
SEATTLE UNIVERSITY |
131 |
unranked |
BELMONT UNIVERSITY |
132 |
unranked |
SOUTH TEXAS COLLEGE OF LAW |
133 |
123 |
WYOMING, UNIVERSITY OF |
134 |
106 |
MISSISSIPPI, UNIVERSITY OF |
135 |
111 |
BALTIMORE, UNIVERSITY OF |
136 |
86 |
CHICAGO-KENT COLLEGE OF LAW-IIT |
137 |
unranked |
SAMFORD UNIVERSITY |
138 |
unranked |
TOURO COLLEGE |
139 |
92 |
LEWIS AND CLARK COLLEGE |
140 |
111 |
DEPAUL UNIVERSITY |
141 |
unranked |
SOUTHERN ILLINOIS UNIVERSITY-CARBONDALE |
142 |
111 |
TEXAS A&M UNIVERSITY |
143 |
132 |
WILLAMETTE UNIVERSITY |
144 |
unranked |
ROGER WILLIAMS UNIVERSITY |
145 |
unranked |
JOHN MARSHALL LAW SCHOOL |
146 |
132 |
VERMONT LAW SCHOOL |
147 |
144 |
CAMPBELL UNIVERSITY |
148 |
unranked |
LIBERTY UNIVERSITY |
149 |
106 |
CLEVELAND STATE UNIVERSITY |
150 |
unranked |
WIDENER UNIVERSITY-DELAWARE |
151 |
136 |
AKRON, UNIVERSITY OF |
152 |
unranked |
ELON UNIVERSITY |
153 |
144 |
OKLAHOMA CITY UNIVERSITY |
154 |
136 |
ARKANSAS, LITTLE ROCK, UNIVERSITY OF |
155 |
unranked |
DAYTON, UNIVERSITY OF |
156 |
111 |
NEW YORK LAW SCHOOL |
157 |
140 |
LOYOLA UNIVERSITY-NEW ORLEANS |
158 |
140 |
MITCHELL|HAMLINE |
159 |
unranked |
ST. MARY'S UNIVERSITY |
160 |
unranked |
CHARLESTON SCHOOL OF LAW |
161 |
unranked |
WIDENER-COMMONWEALTH |
162 |
unranked |
FAULKNER UNIVERSITY |
163 |
144 |
MCGEORGE SCHOOL OF LAW |
164 |
129 |
SANTA CLARA UNIVERSITY |
165 |
111 |
MAINE, UNIVERSITY OF |
166 |
144 |
TOLEDO, UNIVERSITY OF |
167 |
132 |
QUINNIPIAC UNIVERSITY |
168 |
unranked |
SUFFOLK UNIVERSITY |
169 |
unranked |
WESTERN NEW ENGLAND UNIVERSITY |
170 |
unranked |
NORTHERN KENTUCKY UNIVERSITY |
171 |
136 |
CHAPMAN UNIVERSITY |
172 |
unranked |
DETROIT MERCY, UNIVERSITY OF |
173 |
unranked |
NEW ENGLAND LAW | BOSTON |
174 |
unranked |
SAN FRANCISCO, UNIVERSITY OF |
175 |
unranked |
ST. THOMAS UNIVERSITY (FLORIDA) |
176 |
unranked |
CALIFORNIA WESTERN SCHOOL OF LAW |
177 |
unranked |
VALPARAISO UNIVERSITY |
178 |
unranked |
OHIO NORTHERN UNIVERSITY |
179 |
unranked |
TEXAS SOUTHERN UNIVERSITY |
180 |
unranked |
GOLDEN GATE UNIVERSITY |
181 |
unranked |
FLORIDA COASTAL SCHOOL OF LAW |
182 |
unranked |
WESTERN STATE COLLEGE OF LAW |
183 |
unranked |
CAPITAL UNIVERSITY |
184 |
unranked |
FLORIDA A&M UNIVERSITY |
185 |
unranked |
UNIVERSITY OF LA VERNE |
186 |
unranked |
AVE MARIA SCHOOL OF LAW |
187 |
unranked |
SOUTHWESTERN LAW SCHOOL |
188 |
unranked |
BARRY UNIVERSITY |
189 |
unranked |
ARIZONA SUMMIT LAW SCHOOL |
190 |
unranked |
NORTH CAROLINA CENTRAL UNIVERSITY |
191 |
unranked |
SOUTHERN UNIVERSITY |
192 |
unranked |
LINCOLN MEMORIAL |
193 |
unranked |
CONCORDIA LAW SCHOOL |
194 |
unranked |
UNIVERSITY OF MASSACHUSETTS DARTMOUTH |
195 |
unranked |
PUERTO RICO, UNIVERSITY OF |
196 |
unranked |
WHITTIER LAW SCHOOL |
197 |
unranked |
THOMAS M. COOLEY LAW SCHOOL |
198 |
unranked |
DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA |
199 |
unranked |
THOMAS JEFFERSON SCHOOL OF LAW |
200 |
unranked |
CHARLOTTE SCHOOL OF LAW |
201 |
unranked |
ATLANTA'S JOHN MARSHALL LAW SHOOOL |
202 |
unranked |
PONTIFICAL CATHOLIC UNIVERSITY OF P.R. |
203 |
unranked |
INTER AMERICAN UNIVERSITY OF PUERTO RICO |
UPDATE: The employment ranking presented here tracks US News fairly closely, as shown in the chart below (unranked schools set at the lowest rank of 150). Of course, US News may feed back into employment outcomes, which could cause some of this. But even if US News ranking affects employment outcomes, it still shows that this ranking is a better measure of employment.
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