Vanderbilt Law School Career Services

Will a Vanderbilt Law Degree Equip You to Achieve Your Career Goals?

ELIZABETH WORKMAN | Assistant Dean, Career Services

One of the most important questions prospective law students ask when choosing a law school is whether their degree will serve them well in pursuing a career after they graduate.

It’s a smart question. Law school requires a significant investment of time and money, and it’s important to evaluate law schools based on the quality of the education they offer. But there’s another extremely important consideration: the quality of assistance you will receive as you explore your career options.

Our program is designed to provide you with the resources and support you need to achieve your career goals. Beginning in the first year, you will meet individually—and often—with a career counselor dedicated to your success. You will learn how to develop your resumé, emphasize your strengths, and identify opportunities well suited to your aptitudes and goals. You will also have an opportunity to participate in mock interviews conducted by practicing attorneys. Through our comprehensive program of coaching and counseling, you will learn how to think about your job search strategically, pursue summer jobs that will enhance your resumé, and make good long-term career decisions based on your personal situation.

Vanderbilt hosts a large On-Campus Interview session each August that begins with a virtual interview program for select legal employers in major legal markets, including New York, Washington, D.C., Dallas, Houston and Chicago. We also host fall and spring career fairs and a smaller spring OCI session for students seeking summer employment. Participating employers include law firms located throughout the nation, government departments and agencies, federal and state prosecutors and defenders, and legal nonprofits.

This book highlights the results of our program, including legal employers who interviewed our students during OCI and other interview sessions in recent years and those who hired our graduates. I’m proud of the students and graduates whose success and hard work are reflected here, and I look forward to the opportunity to work with you as a Vanderbilt Law student to achieve your career goals.

Elizabeth Workman Assistant Dean, Career Services

Dedicated to Your Success

Vanderbilt has one of the most successful career services programs among the nation’s leading law schools, providing comprehensive resources to help students explore top-tier career options and to guide graduates to employment opportunities across the United States and around the world. Led by Assistant Dean Elizabeth Workman, our experienced and dedicated counselors work one-on-one with students starting in the first year.

The results speak for themselves. Each year, employment outcomes for new Vanderbilt J.D. graduates consistently stand among the best in the nation for positions requiring bar passage, including coveted federal judicial clerkships and employment in the nation’s largest law firms and in government and public interest positions.

J.D. Class of 2021

Vanderbilt Law graduates launch careers in every employment sector and consistently secure top-tier legal employment across the nation and around the world.

192

Total

graduates

96% of 2021 graduates were employed 10 months after graduation. See pages 26–27 for more information.

85%

of 2021 graduates took employment outside Tennessee across 23 states, Washington, D.C., and abroad (84% of 2017–21 graduates took employment outside Tennessee across 41 states, D.C., and abroad).

Class of 2021 most popular destinations: New York, 18%; Tennessee, 15%; Washington, D.C., 13%; Texas, 10%; Georgia, 8%

See pages 19, 22–23 and 26 for more information.

$190,000

J.D. Class of 2021 private sector median salary; average salary $172,492 (based on 130 of 142 graduates reporting salaries). Public sector median salary $65,056; average salary $65,154 (based on 31 of 42 graduates reporting salaries). See page 27 for more information.

Vanderbilt J.D. Class of 2021

Vanderbilt is recognized by a number of entities that examine career prospects for graduates of U.S. law schools in different ways:

5th, Above the Law Top 50 Law Schools 2022 based on employment outcomes, cost, and student debt

9th, Best for Federal Clerkships, The Princeton Review 2021, based on student surveys

11th, Federal Judicial Clerkship Report of Recent Law School Graduates, 2020 Edition (based on ABA data), Derek T. Muller, excessofdemocracy.com

13th, National Law Journal/Law.com, ranking of law schools based on percentage of 2019 graduates working as federal judicial clerks or at law firms of 100 or more lawyers

13th, Law schools that sent the highest percentage of 2021 graduates to the nation’s 100 largest law firms, National Law Journal/Law.com

The ABA does not rank schools based on employment outcomes. We have determined Vanderbilt’s rank based on public ABA data available at abarequireddisclosures.org/EmploymentOutcomes.aspx.

13TH 11TH

Percentage of 2021 graduates employed in full-time, longterm positions as lawyers (90.1%, based on ABA data)

Percentage of 2021 graduates employed as full-time, longterm federal judicial clerks (8.3%, based on ABA data)

Expert Advice. Excellent Outcomes.

Vanderbilt’s Career Services program has a well-earned reputation for its effectiveness in helping students and graduates to secure top-tier employment and meet individual career goals.

• Low ratio of students to employment counselors means a high level of individual support

• Expert help developing your professional resumé

• Expert help improving your interviewing skills

• Workshops and other opportunities to learn how legal employers approach hiring and employment, how firms are financed, how to succeed as a summer associate and beginning lawyer, how to get a public interest job, and other valuable topics

ON-CAMPUS INTERVIEWS (OCI)

Legal employers representing hundreds of offices located throughout the nation and abroad come to Vanderbilt each fall to interview second- and third-year students for summer and permanent employment. See pages 3–5 for a list of participating employers.

1L JOB FAIRS

VLS hosts career fairs for 1Ls seeking summer employment attended by law firms with offices throughout the nation, where students can meet potential employers in an informal setting. See page 11 for more information.

SPRING OCI SESSION

Employers from law firms throughout the Southeast typically visit Vanderbilt Law each spring to interview first-year students for summer employment.

JOB FAIRS

Students may attend job fairs nationwide that focus on special career interests, minority hiring, public interest employment and regional positions. See page 7 for more information.

RESUMÉ FORWARDING

Throughout the year, nearly 400 employers solicit resumés from Vanderbilt students and post job listings with the Career Services office.

ALUMNI LEADS LIST

The Career Services office supports Vanderbilt Law graduates for life. Employers around the nation advertise positions for experienced attorneys through our Leads List, which is accessible to our graduates online and updated continuously.

TRAVEL FUND

VLS supports travel for second- and third-year students who obtain interviews from job postings or direct applications to employers.

JUDICIAL CLERKSHIP PROGRAM

Vanderbilt offers a facultyled judicial clerkship program that helps students apply for competitive clerkships. See pages 12–14 for more information.

PUBLIC INTEREST LAW

Vanderbilt’s assistant dean for public interest works intensively with students interested in careers in public interest law and coordinates a broad array of curricular and co-curricular public interest opportunities. See pages 16–17 for more information.

ESTHER LEE | Class of 2021 Associate, Fox Rothschild, New York

My Career Services counselor was an incredible resource throughout law school. She helped me prepare for interviews and navigate the complicated waters of OCI to successfully find 1L and 2L positions. I secured my 2L summer associate position, which turned into a postgrad offer, through OCI.

On-Campus and Virtual OCI by location of offices:

Vanderbilt hosts a large On-Campus Interview session each fall for second-year students and a shorter spring session for first-year summer positions. The following list shows all employers who participated in Vanderbilt’s OCI fall program by conducting in-person and virtual interviews with students during the past three OCI seasons (2020, 2021 and 2022) by the office locations for which they were hiring associates.

ALABAMA

Birmingham Baker Donelson

Bradley Burr & Forman

Lightfoot Franklin & White Maynard Cooper & Gale Waller

Huntsville Bradley

Mobile Burr & Forman

Montgomery Bradley

ARIZONA

Phoenix Husch Blackwell Perkins Coie Polsinelli Snell & Wilmer

CALIFORNIA

Century City O’Melveny & Myers

Irvine Jones Day

Knobbe Martens Olson & Bear

Los Angeles Alston & Bird Dechert

Foley & Lardner Fox Rothschild Husch Blackwell Jones Day Kilpatrick Townsend King & Spalding

Knobbe Martens Olson & Bear McDermott Will & Emery McGuireWoods

Nelson Mullins Riley & Scarborough Norton Rose Fulbright

O’Melveny & Myers

Paul Hastings Perkins Coie Reed Smith

Simpson Thacher

Newport Beach O’Melveny & Myers

Oakland Husch Blackwell

Orange County

Paul Hastings Snell & Wilmer

Thompson Hine

Vorys Sater Sey More & Pease

Palo Alto Alston & Bird

Baker Botts

Paul Hastings Simpson Thacher

San Diego Foley & Lardner

Jones Day

Knobbe Martens Olson & Bear Paul Hastings Perkins Coie Ropes & Gray

San Francisco Alston & Bird

Arnall Golden Gregory Baker Botts Dechert

Foley & Lardner Fox Rothschild Goodwin Proctor Hunton Andrews Kurth Jones Day

Kilpatrick Townsend King & Spalding

Knobbe Martens Olson & Bear Lieff Cabraser

Manatt Phelps & Phillips McDermott Will & Emery McGuireWoods

O’Melveny & Myers

Paul Hastings Reed Smith Ropes & Gray Snell & Wilmer

Silicon Valley Alston & Bird

Foley & Lardner Goodwin Procter Jones Day Kilpatrick Townsend O’Melveny & Myers

Walnut Creek Kilpatrick Townsend COLORADO

Denver Dinsmore & Shohl Foley Lardner Husch Blackwell Kilpatrick Townsend Merchant & Gould Nelson Mullins Riley & Scarborough Polsinelli Snell & Wilmer

CONNECTICUT Groton Dinsmore & Shohl

DELAWARE

Wilmington Fox Rothschild Reed Smith Richards Layton & Finger Skadden

WASHINGTON, D.C. Alston & Bird Baker Botts Baker Donelson Bradley Carlton Fields Dechert

Dinsmore & Shohl Foley & Lardner Fox Rothschild Fried Frank Goodwin Procter Holtzman Vogel Hunton Andrews Kurth Husch Blackwell Ice Miller Internal Revenue Service Jones Day Kilpatrick Townsend Knobbe Martens Olson & Bear Manatt Phelps & Phillips McDermott Will & Emery McGuireWoods

Nelson Mullins Riley & Scarborough

Norton Rose Fulbright O’Melveny & Myers Paul Hastings Perkins Coie Polsinelli Reed Smith Ropes & Gray Sheppard Mullin Richter & Hampton Simpson Thacher Steptoe & Johnson Venable Vinson & Elkins

FLORIDA Boca Raton

Nelson Mullins Riley & Scarborough

Fort Lauderdale Baker Donelson Nelson Mullins Riley & Scarborough Office of the Public Defender

Jacksonville Ansbacher Law Foley & Lardner Nelson Mullins Riley & Scarborough Office of the Public Defender

Miami Carlton Fields Foley & Lardner Fox Rothschild Hunton Andrews Kurth Jones Day Kirkland & Ellis McDermott Will & Emery Nelson Mullins Riley & Scarborough Polsinelli Reed Smith

Orlando Baker Donelson Foley & Lardner Nelson Mullins Riley & Scarborough

Tallahassee Baker Donelson Foley & Lardner Nelson Mullins Riley & Scarborough

Tampa Bradley Dinsmore & Shohl Foley & Lardner Hill Ward & Henderson

West Palm Beach Fox Rothschild

GEORGIA

Atlanta

Alston & Bird Arnall Golden Gregoru Arora Law Firm Baker Donelson Bryan Cave Burr & Forman Eversheds Sutherland Foley & Lardner Fox Rothschild Jones Day Kilpatrick Townsend King & Spalding McDermott Will & Emery McGuireWoods Merchant & Gould

Miller Martin Morris Manning & Martin

Nelson Mullins Riley & Scarborough Parker Hudson Polsinelli

Smith Gambrill & Russell Stites & Harbison

Troutman Pepper Hamilton Sanders U.S. Department of Labor

On-Campus and Virtual OCI by location of offices (continued):

Macon Baker Donelson

IDAHO Boise Perkins Coie

ILLINOIS Chicago Foley & Lardner Husch Blackwell Ice Miller Jones Day

McDermott Will & Emery McGuireWoods Paul Hastings Perkins Coie Polsinelli

INDIANA Evanston Dinsmore & Shohl

Indianapolis Dentons Dinsmore & Shohl Frost Brown Todd Ice Miller Stites & Harbison

KENTUCKY

Lexington Dickinson Wright Dinsmore & Shohl Frost Brown Todd Stites & Harbison

Louisville Dentons Dinsmore & Shohl Frost Brown Todd Stites & Harbison

LOUISIANA

Baton Rouge Baker Donelson

Mandeville Baker Donelson New Orleans Baker Donelson

MARYLAND Baltimore Baker Donelson McGuireWoods

Nelson Mullins Riley & Scarborough

MASSACHUSETTS

Boston Dechert Foley & Lardner Goodwin Procter Hunton Andrews Karth Husch Blackwell Jones Day Manatt Phelps & Phillips McDermott Will & Emery

Nelson Mullins Riley & Scarborough Ropes & Gray

MICHIGAN

Ann Arbor Dinsmore & Shohl Frost Brown Todd

Broomfield Hills Dickinson Wright Dinsmore & Shohl

Detroit Dickinson Wright Dinsmore & Shohl

Foley & Lardner Jones Day

MINNESOTA

Minneapolis Fox Rothschild Jones Day Merchant & Gould

MISSISSIPPI Jackson Baker Donelson Bradley

MISSOURI Kansas City Bryan Cave Leighton Paisner Husch Blackwell Polsinelli

Springfield Husch Blackwell St. Louis Bryan Cave Leighton Paisner Husch Blackwell Norton Rose Fulbright Polsinelli

NEBRASKA

Omaha Husch Blackwell

NEVADA Las Vegas Snell & Wilmer NEW JERSEY Atlantic City Fox Rothschild Morristown Fox Rothschild

Princeton Fox Rothschild NEW YORK Albany Phillips Lytle Bronx Office of the District Attorney Buffalo Phillips Lytle New York Alston & Bird Baker Botts Dechert

Foley & Lardner Fox Rothschild Hunton Andrews Kurth Jones Day Kilpatrick Townsend Knobbe Martens Olson & Bear Manatt Phelps & Phillips McDermott Will & Emery McGuireWoods Merchant & Gould Milbank

Nelson Mullins Riley & Scarborough Norton Rose Fulbright O’Melveny & Myers

Paul Hastings Phillips Lytle Reed Smith Ropes & Gray

Simpson Thacher Vinson & Elkins

Rochester Phillips Lytle

NORTH CAROLINA

Charlotte Alston & Bird Bradley

Cadwallader Wickersham & Taft Dechert

Fox Rothschild K&L Gates McGuireWoods Moore & Van Allen Nelson Mullins Riley & Scarborough Parker Poe Robinson Bradshaw & Hinson

Greensboro Fox Rothschild

Raleigh Baker Donelson Fox Rothschild Kilpatrick Townsend McGuireWoods Nelson Mullins Riley & Scarborough Parker Poe

Winston-Salem Kilpatrick Townsend Nelson Mullins Riley & Scarborough

OHIO Akron Vorys Sater Sey More & Pease

Cincinnati Dinsmore & Shohl Frost Brown Todd Thompson Hine Vorys Sater Seymore & Pease

Cleveland Benesch Friedlander Caplan & Aronoff Dinsmore & Shohl Frost Brown Todd Jones Day Thompson Hine Vorys Sater Seymore & Pease

Columbus Benesch Friedlander Caplan & Aronoff Dickinson Wright Dinsmore & Shohl Frost Brown Todd Ice Miller Jones Day Thompson Hine Vorys Sater Seymore & Pease

Dayton Dinsmore & Shohl Thompson Hine West Chester Frost Brown Todd

OREGON Portland Perkins Coie

PENNSYLVANIA

Blue Bell Fox Rothschild

Exton Fox Rothschild Philadelphia Dechert Fox Rothschild

SOUTH CAROLINA

Charleston

Nelson Mullins Riley & Scarborough

Columbia Baker Donelson Burr & Forman

Nelson Mullins Riley & Scarborough

Greenville Burr & Forman Fox Rothschild

Nelson Mullins Riley & Scarborough

Myrtle Beach Nelson Mullins Riley & Scarborough

TENNESSEE Chattanooga Baker Donelson Husch Blackwell Miller Martin

Franklin Baker Donelson

Johnson City Thompson Burton Knoxville Baker Donelson Merchant & Gould

Memphis Baker Donelson Bass Berry & Sims Martin Tate Morrow & Marston

Nashville Adams and Reese Baker Donelson Bass Berry & Sims Bradley Brewer Krause Burr & Forman Butler Snow Burr & Forman Dickinson Wright

Frost Brown Todd

Gideon Essary Tardio & Carter

K&L Gates

Lieff Cabreser Maynard Cooper & Gale Neal & Harwell

Nelson Mullins Riley & Scarborough

Polsinelli

Riley Warnock & Jacobson

Sherrard Roe Voigt & Harbison Sims Funk Stites & Harbison

Swafford Law

Tennessee Attorney General Waller

TEXAS

Austin Baker Botts

Foley & Lardner

Gjerset & Lorenz Husch Blackwell K&L Gates Kirkland & Ellis

Norton Rose Fulbright

O’Melveny & Myers

Perkins Coie Reed Smith Vinson & Elkins Waller

Dallas

Akin Gump Alston & Bird Baker & McKenzie Baker Botts Bradley Foley & Lardner Frost Brown Todd

Hunton Andrews Kurth Husch Blackwell Jones Day Kirkland & Ellis Locke Lord McDermott Will & Emery McGuireWoods

Norton Rose Fulbright O’Melveny & Myers Perkins Coie Polsinelli Sidley Austin Thompson & Knight Weil Gotshal

Houston Akin Gump Baker & McKenzie Baker Botts Baker Donelson Bradley Foley & Lardner Frost Brown Todd Hunton Andrews Kurth Husch Blackwell Jones Day Kirkland & Ellis Locke Lord

McGuireWoods

Norton Rose Fulbright Paul Hastings Reed Smith

Schiffer Hicks Johnson Thompson & Knight Vorys Sater Seymore & Pease

San Antonio Norton Rose Fulbright

UTAH Salt Lake City Snell & Wilmer

VIRGINIA Alexandria Merchant & Gould

Richmond Hunton Andrews Kurth McGuireWoods

WASHINGTON Seattle

Fox Rothschild Kilpatrick Townsend Knobbe Martens Olson & Bear Perkins Coie

WEST VIRGINIA Charleston Dinsmore & Shohl Frost Brown Todd Huntington Dinsmore & Shohl Nelson Mullins Riley & Scarborough

Morgantown Dinsmore & Shohl

WISCONSIN Madison Foley & Lardner Husch Blackwell Milwaukee Foley & Lardner Husch Blackwell

Vanderbilt students have opportunities to interview virtually each year with global law firms in New York, Chicago, Dallas, Houston, Washington, D.C., and other major markets.

KYLE BRINKER | Class of 2022

2022–23 Clerk, Judge Gregory Van Tatenhove, U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Kentucky

I found my 2L summer associate position through Vanderbilt’s OCI program. I could find a VLS student or graduate who worked at many firms

I interviewed with who could tell me about their experiences and offer advice.

Meet Legal Employers at 1L Career Fairs

Career Services launched a new career fair program in fall 2022 for 1Ls seeking summer employment. More than 80 percent of 1Ls attended the 2022 Fall Firm Mingle, and Career Services will host career fairs where first-year students can connect with summer employers each fall and spring semester going forward.

2022 1L Fall Firm Mingle Employers

Alston & Bird

Arnall Golden Gregory

Baker Botts

Baker Donelson

Balch & Bingham

Bass Berry & Sims

Benesch

Bradley Burr & Forman

Butler Snow

Chambliss

Foley & Lardner

Fox Rothschild

Frost Brown Todd

Haynes Boone

Husch Blackwell

Jackson Walker

Jones Day

K&L Gates

Katten

Kilpatrick Townsend Stockton

King & Spalding

Kirkland & Ellis

Locke Lord Maynard Cooper

McGuireWoods

Neal & Harwell

Norton Rose Fulbright

Sherrard Roe Voigt & Harbison

Sidley

Simpson Thacher Starnes Davis Florie

Troutman Pepper

Venable Vinson & Elkins Waller

Williams & Connolly Winston & Strawn

SAMANTHA FURMAN | Class of 2021 Associate, Venable, New York

Samantha worked as a paralegal at Venable in Washington, D.C., before law school. She was selected by Venable as a Leadership Council on Diversity Scholar as a 1L and worked for the firm’s New York office for both summers during law school.

Public and Government Service Virtual Recruiting Program

Vanderbilt hosts a virtual recruiting program each fall that allows students to interview with a broad array of government and public interest legal employers. These legal employers interviewed students in 2021 and 2022:

Participating employers included:

• Arts & Business Council of Greater Nashville

• Bronx Legal Services, New York

• Bureau of TennCare, Nashville

• Choosing Justice Initiative, Nashville

• Federal Public Defender, Middle District of Tennessee

• Fulton County Public Defender’s Office, Georgia

• Harpeth Conservancy, Nashville

• Kentucky Department of Public Advocacy

• Knox County Public Defender’s Community Law Office, Tennessee

• Legal Aid Society of Middle Tennessee and the Cumberlands

• Miami-Dade State Attorney’s Office, Florida

• Missouri State Public Defender System

• Nashville Defenders

• Nashville Office of the District Attorney

• Office of the Public Defender, Fourth Judicial Circuit of Florida

• Office of the Public Defender, Ninth Judicial Circuit of Florida

• Office of the State Attorney, Fourth Judicial Circuit of Florida

• Philadelphia District Attorney’s Office

• Queens District Attorney, New York

• Shelby County Public Defender, Tennessee

• Southern Environmental Law Center, offices throughout the Southeast

• Southern Migrant Legal Services, Nashville

• Tennessee Department of Children’s Services

• Tennessee Department of Commerce and Insurance

• Tennessee District Public Defenders Conference – Appellate Division

• Tennessee Justice Center, Nashville

• Tennessee Office of the Attorney General and Reporter, Nashville

• Tennessee Office of the Post-Conviction Defender, Nashville

• U.S. Air Force JAG

EMILY

• U.S. Army Corps of Engineers

• U.S. Army JAG

• U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Tennessee

• U.S. Department of State, Washington, D.C.

• U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Nashville

• U.S. Marine Corps JAG

• Youth Law Center, Nashville

Public

Interest Job Fairs

Students may participate in the Equal Just Works Conference and Career Fair, held virtually each year, and in diversity-oriented job fairs nationwide.

Working with the Legal Aid Society was a really great opportunity to build upon the pro bono programs offered to students at VLS and to connect with our small but mighty community of students pursuing public interest work.

BURGESS | Class of 2022 2022–24 Clerk, Judge Travis McDonough ’92, U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Tennessee

I was impressed with Vanderbilt’s job placement numbers. Its strong national reputation and ability to place students in coveted positions was a significant factor in my decision to come here.

Luke realized he wanted to focus on corporate law when he took Corporations as an elective in his spring semester as a 1L and then applied for Vanderbilt’s J.D./Master of Science in Finance program, which allows students to earn both degrees in three years.

LUKE KESSEL | JD/MSF Class of 2022 Associate, K&L Gates, Charlotte, North Carolina

Gain Valuable Experience Across the Nation and Around the World

Vanderbilt law students can gain valuable experience through summer externships and summer stipend opportunities in a variety of practice settings anywhere in the world. In externships, students receive academic credit for supervised field work at faculty-approved placements, while summer stipends provide financial support for gaining pro bono experience (unpaid work with no academic credit). In recent years, Vanderbilt has expanded its array of externships to include work in

Career Services masterfully guided me through the recruiting process where I had numerous callback interviews and received an offer from my top choice firm, which I accepted.

SUGARMAN | Class of 2021 Law and Business Certificate Associate, Gibson Dunn & Crutcher, New York

corporate legal departments and also increased funding for summer stipends. During the academic year, students can also complete externships in Nashville for course credit, and academic programs sponsor semester externships in Washington, D.C., and other locations.

Vanderbilt also offers two public service summer fellowships. The Environmental Fellowship provides financial support for summer work with environmental agencies or

NGOs, and the Regulatory Fellowship provides funds for summer work with government or nonprofit organizations involved in regulatory matters. The Branstetter Litigation and Dispute Resolution Program also provides summer stipends for students to intern in judicial chambers, the offices of public prosecutors and defenders, and other litigation-related settings.

I secured my first summer position by applying for a Keith Wetmore Fellowship with Morrison & Foerster. My Career Services adviser helped me revise my resume, read many revisions of my cover letters, and always was available to answer quick questions I had through a call, meeting or email. I worked for the same firm for 2L summer and accepted an offer to work in their San Francisco office after graduation.

JOLINE DESRUISSEAUX | Class of 2020 Associate, Morrison & Foerster, San Francisco 2022–23 Clerk, Judge William H. Alsup, U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California

ALON

During summer 2022, 75 Vanderbilt Law students worked for legal employers in 15 states, Washington, D.C., and in The Hague, Netherlands, receiving either stipend support or course credit for their work.

International

• Global Rights Compliance, The Hague, Netherlands

• USAID Justice for All Activity, Ukraine

Federal Agencies

• Federal Aviation Administration, Washington, D.C.

• Federal Trade Commission, Bureau of Consumer Protection, Atlanta, Georgia

• Federal Trade Commission, Washington, D.C.

• National Labor Relations Board, Washington, D.C.

• National Wildlife Federation Great Lakes Regional Center, Ann Arbor, Michigan

• U.S. Department of Energy, Office of the General Counsel, Washington, D.C.

• U.S. Department of Homeland Security, Human Rights Violator Law Division, Washington, D.C.

• U.S. Department of Justice, Environment and Natural Resource Division, Environmental Defense Section, Washington, D.C.

• U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Office of Enforcement and Compliance Assurance, Washington, D.C.

Judicial Chambers Federal Courts

• Judge Charlene Honeywell, U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Florida, Tampa

• Judge Chip Frensley, U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Tennessee, Nashville (3)

• Judge Cynthia Wyrick, U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Tennessee, Greenville

• Judge Elayna T. Youchah, U.S. District Court for the District of Nevada, Las Vegas

• Judge Elizabeth S. Strong, U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Eastern District of New York, Brooklyn

• Judge James C. Mahan ‘73, U.S. District Court for the District of Nevada, Las Vegas

• Judge Katherine Crytzer, U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Tennessee, Knoxville

• Judge Laura Taylor Swain, U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York, New York

• Judge Thomas L. Parker, U.S. District Court for the Western District of Tennessee, Memphis

• Judge Karen Gren Scholer, U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas, Dallas

• Judge Steven Grimberg, U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Georgia, Atlanta

• Judge Waverly D. Crenshaw ’81 (BA’78), U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Tennessee, Nashville

• Judge Eli Richardson ‘92, U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Tennessee, Nashville

• U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Tennessee, Nashville

State Courts

• Judge Irma Raker, Maryland Court of Appeals

• Judge Sheila Calloway, Juvenile Court of Nashville, Tennessee (2)

• State of Florida Fifth Judicial Circuit, Tavares

State Public Defenders’ Offices

• Mecklenburg County Public Defender’s Office, Charlotte, North Carolina

• Nashville Defenders, Tennessee (2)

• Office of the Post-Conviction Defender, Nashville, Tennessee

• Office of the Public Defender, City of Atlanta, Georgia

• Public Defender Association, Seattle, Washington

• Regional Public Defender of Capital Cases, Lubbock, Texas

• Tennessee District Public Defenders Conference, Nashville

• The Bronx Defenders, New York

Federal Public Defenders

• Office of the Federal Public Defender for the District of Columbia, Washington

• Office of the Federal Public Defender for the Middle District of Tennessee, Nashville

State Agencies

• Colorado Department of Law, Denver

• Massachusetts Commission Against Discrimination, Boston

• Metro Government of Nashville Department of Law, Nashville

• State of Tennessee Governor’s Office, Office of General Counsel

U.S. Attorney’s Offices

• U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of New Jersey, Newark

• U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of New York, Brooklyn

• U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of North Carolina, Raleigh

• U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Tennessee, Nashville (3)

State Attorneys General

• Tennessee Attorney General’s Office, Nashville (3)

District Attorneys

• Fort Bend County District Attorney’s Office, Richmond, Texas

• Wayne County Prosecutor’s Office, Detroit, Michigan

• Davidson County District Attorney’s Office, Nashville, Tennessee (2)

• Office of the District Attorney, City of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

Advocacy and Nonprofit

• American Civil Liberties Union of Tennessee, Nashville

• Harpeth Conservancy, Brentwood, Tennessee (2)

• Her Justice, New York, New York

• Kids in Need of Defense, New York, New York

• Legal Aid Society of Middle Tennessee and the Cumberlands, Murfreesboro

• Rocky Mountain Children’s Law Center, Denver, Colorado

• Southern Migrant Legal Services, Nashville, Tennessee

• Southern Poverty Law Center, Economic Justice Project, Atlanta, Georgia

• Tennessee Innocence Project, Nashville

• The Exoneration Initiative, New York, New York

• The Legal Aid Society, Brooklyn, New York

• Virginia Legal Aid Justice Center, Richmond

Corporate and Nonprofit Law Offices

• CMG Worldwide, Nashville, Tennessee

• Institute of Museum and Library Services, Office of General Counsel, Washington, D.C.

• Vanderbilt University, Office of General Counsel, Nashville, Tennessee (3)

Fall 2022

• American Civil Liberties Union of Tennessee, Nashville (2)

• Choosing Justice Initiative, Nashville

• Clarity Value, New York

• Davidson County Eighth Circuit Court of Nashville, Judge Lynn Ingram

• Department of Justice, Antitrust Division, Washington, D.C.

• Disability Rights Tennessee, Nashville

• Earthjustice, Washington, D.C.

• Environmental Protection Agency, Washington, D.C.

• Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, Washington, D.C.

• Federal Public Defender, Middle District of Tennessee, Capital Habeas Unit

• Federal Public Defender, Middle District of Tennessee, Nashville

• Global Labor Justice, Washington, D.C.

• Immigration Equality, Brooklyn, New York

• Legal Aid Society of Middle Tennessee and the Cumberlands, Murfreesboro (2)

• Nashville Defenders

• Nashville Predators, Nashville (2)

• National Center for Youth Law, Oakland, California

• Superior Court of New Jersey, Appellate Division, Newark, Judge Lisa Firko

• Tennessee Innocence Project, Nashville

• Tennessee Justice for Our Neighbors, Nashville

• Tennessee Supreme Court, Justice Sarah K. Campbell

• United Soccer League, Tampa, Florida

• U.S. Attorney’s Office, Middle District of Tennessee, Judge Eli Richardson ‘92

• U.S. District Court, Middle District of Tennessee, Magistrate Judge Chip Frensley (2)

• U.S. District Court, Middle District of Tennessee, Nashville

• Vanderbilt Office of General Counsel, Nashville

Spring 2022

• Choosing Justice Initiative, Nashville

• Civil Rights Education and Enforcement Center, Nashville

• Davidson County District Attorney’s Office, Nashville (2)

• Department of Homeland Security, Human Rights Violator Law Division, Washington, D.C

• Environmental Defense Center, Santa Barbara, California

• Environmental Law Institute, Washington, D.C.

• Federal Public Defender, Middle District of Tennessee

• FLOW (For Love of Water), Traverse City, Michigan

• Illinois Prison Project, Chicago

• Nashville Defenders (5)

• National Aeronautics and Space Administration, Washington, D.C.

• Office of the Post-Conviction Defender, Nashville

• Office of Staff Judge Advocate, 101st Airborne Division, Fort Campbell, Kentucky

• Southern Center for Human Rights, Atlanta

• Special Olympics International, Washington, D.C

• Tennessee Public Charter School Commission, Nashville

• Tennessee Supreme Court, Justice Sarah K. Campbell

• U.S. Attorney, Middle District of Tennessee, Nashville (4)

• U.S. District Court, Middle District of Tennessee, Magistrate Judge Chip Frensley

• U.S. District Court, Middle District of Tennessee, Judge Eli Richardson

• Vanderbilt Athletics Compliance, Nashville

• Vanderbilt Office of General Counsel (2)

Fall 2021

• American Civil Liberties Union of Tennessee, Nashville (3)

• American Civil Liberties Union, Racial Justice Program, New York

• American Civil Liberties Union, Washington, D.C.

• Davidson County District Attorney’s Office, Nashville (2)

• Department of Homeland Security, Human Rights Violator Law Division, Washington, D.C.

• Department of Justice, Environment and Natural Resources Division, Washington, D.C.

• Disabilities Rights Tennessee, Nashville

• Federal Public Defender, Middle District of Tennessee

• Federal Public Defender, Capital Habeas Unit, Nashville (2)

• Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Washington, D.C.

• Insight Partners, New York

• Jacksonville Public Defender’s Office, Juvenile Division, Florida

• Legal Aid Society of Middle Tennessee and the Cumberlands, Murfreesboro (2)

• Nashville Defenders (3)

• New Jersey Attorney General’s Office, Division of Civil Rights, Newark

• Office of Staff Judge Advocate, 101st Airborne Division, Fort Campbell, Kentucky

• Sixth Amendment Center, Boston

• Southern Environmental Law Center, Nashville (2)

• Tennessee Coalition to End Domestic Violence, Nashville

• U.S. Attorney, Middle District of Tennessee, Nashville (3)

• Vanderbilt Office of General Counsel, Nashville (2)

• Viacom CBS Paramount Pictures, Hollywood, California

Full-Semester Externships

VLS students served full-time externships with these legal employers for course credit in 2021 and 2022:

• City Bar Justice Center, New York (Spring 2022)

• Global Rights Compliance, The Hague, Netherlands (Fall 2022)

• Indiana Department of Education, Indianapolis (Spring 2022)

• Kosovo Specialist Chambers, The Hague, Netherlands (Fall 2022)

• U.S. Department of Justice, Environment and Natural Resource Division, Washington, D.C. (Fall 2021)

Vanderbilt Law students used stipends funded by the law school to support their volunteer legal work during summer 2022 with government agencies; in the chambers of federal, state and municipal judges; with federal and state attorneys and public defenders; and with public interest and advocacy organizations in the U.S. and abroad. Students did pro bono legal work for legal offices and organizations in 15 states; Washington, D.C.; and The Hague, Netherlands. Each year stipends sponsored by the law school and the Vanderbilt Legal Aid Society help defray the travel and living expenses of students who serve in unpaid legal internships.

9TH

Best for Federal Clerkships, The Princeton Review, 2020

Accelerate Your Career with a Judicial Clerkship

As first employment out of law school, a judicial clerkship typically accelerates a young lawyer’s career. A judicial clerkship provides an in-depth, contextual understanding of a wide range of legal issues as well as first-hand knowledge of how judges make decisions and how the judicial system works. As a result, experience as a judicial clerk is highly valued by subsequent legal employers in both the private and public sectors. In addition,

the judges with whom clerks serve often become lifelong mentors and advocates for their former clerks.

The career value of clerking makes these positions extremely competitive, particularly in the national employment market for federal clerkships.

Vanderbilt’s faculty takes an active leadership role in the judicial clerkship program, working closely and

individually with interested students. Professor Michael Bressman heads the program, providing valuable expertise, guidance and support throughout law school and the clerkship application process.

In recent years, Vanderbilt Law graduates have clerked for the U.S. Supreme Court, for each of the U.S. Courts of Appeals, and for a variety of U.S. District Courts across the nation.

VLS Graduates Taking Federal Clerkships, 2017–21

The ABA does not rank schools based on employment outcomes. We have determined Vanderbilt’s rank based on public ABA data available at www.abarequireddisclosures.org/EmploymentOutcomes.aspx.

Rank Among

VLS Class Total Graduates % Federal Clerks U.S. Law Schools

2021 192 8.9% 13th 2020 180 16.1% 5th 2019 209 7.7% 17th 2018 176 9.5% 10th 2017 188 9.6% 10th

When I applied for my clerkship and got an interview, the clerkship office gave me the contact information for Vanderbilt Law grads who had clerked for the judge. Talking to these former clerks helped me get the position.

CAMERON NORRIS | Class of 2014 Partner, Consovoy McCarthy Park 2017–18 Clerk, Justice Clarence Thomas, U.S. Supreme Court

I can’t imagine a better transition from student to lawyer than a clerkship. Helping my judge resolve actual cases brought everything I learned in law school to life and gave me invaluable insight into how cases get decided and what it takes to persuade judges— my target audience in the next phase of my career.

KYLE BRINKER | Class of 2022

2022–23 Clerk, Judge Gregory Van Tatenhove, U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Kentucky

Consider a Judicial Clerkship

Recent Vanderbilt Law graduates have clerked for the following U.S. Supreme Court justices:

Justice Sonia Sotomayor (2018–19) Justice Clarence Thomas (2017–18)

Members of the classes of 2020, 2021 and 2022 have already served, are currently serving or plan to serve clerkships with the following judges:

Class of 2020

Federal Appellate Courts

• Judge Joseph A. Greenaway Jr., Third Circuit

• Judge Kurt D. Engelhardt, Fifth Circuit

• Judge Andrew S. Oldham, Fifth Circuit

• Judge Priscilla R. Owen, Fifth Circuit

• Judge James E. Graves Jr., Fifth Circuit

• Judge John K. Bush, Sixth Circuit

• Judge Joan L. Larsen, Sixth Circuit

• Judge John B. Nalbandian, Sixth Circuit

• Judge Eugene E. Siler Jr. Sixth Circuit

• Judge Amul R. Thapar, Sixth Circuit

• Judge Duane Benton, Eighth Circuit

• Judge Andrew L. Brasher, Eleventh Circuit

• Judge Adalberto J. Jordan, Eleventh Circuit

Federal District Courts

• Judge Richard J. Leon, District of Columbia

• Judge Emily Coody Marks, Middle District of Alabama

• Judge Jerome T. Kearney ’81, Eastern District of Arkansas

• Judge Brian S. Miller ’95, Eastern District of Arkansas

• Judge William H. Alsup, Northern District of California

• Judge Edward M. Chen, Northern District of California

• Judge John A. Houston, Southern District of California

• Judge Paul G. Bryon, Middle District of Florida

• Judge William F. Jung, Middle District of Florida

• Judge Thomas W. Thrash Jr., Northern District of Georgia

• Judge Danny C. Reeves, Eastern District of Kentucky

• Judge Gregory F. Van Tatenhove, Eastern District of Kentucky

• Judge Benjamin J. Beaton, Western District of Kentucky

• Judge Joseph H. McKinley Jr., Western District of Kentucky

• Judge Eldon E. Fallon, Eastern District of Louisiana

• Judge S. Maurice Hicks Jr., Western District of Louisiana

• Judge Paul D. Borman, Eastern District of Michigan

• Judge James C. Mahan ’73, District of Nevada

• Judge Gabriel W. Gorenstein, Southern District of New York

• Judge David L. Russell, Western District of Oklahoma

• Judge Eduardo C. Robreno, Eastern District of Pennsylvania

• Judge Eli J. Richardson ’92, Middle District of Tennessee

• Judge Jane J. Boyle, Northern District of Texas

• Judge Mark T. Pittman, Northern District of Texas

• Judge David A. Ezra, District of Hawaii (sitting in the Western District of Texas)

Federal Bankruptcy Courts

• Judge Stacey G. C. Jernigan, Northern District of Texas

State Courts

• Vice Chancellor Joseph R. Slights III, Delaware Court of Chancery

• Vice Chancellor Morgan T. Zurn, Delaware Court of Chancery

• Master in Chancery Patricia W. Griffin, Delaware Court of Chancery

• Judges John R. Grise and Steve A. Wilson, Warren County Circuit Court, Kentucky

• Judge J. Steven Stafford, Tennessee Court of Appeals

• Judge Thomas W. Brothers ’77, Tennessee Circuit Court, 20th District

Class of 2021

Federal Appellate Courts

• Judge Karen LeCraft Henderson, D.C. Circuit (2)

• Judge Douglas H. Ginsburg, D.C. Circuit

• Judge Richard A. Hertling, Federal Circuit

• Judge Todd Hughes, Federal Circuit

• Judge Kent A. Jordan, Third Circuit

• Judge A. Marvin Quattlebaum, Fourth Circuit

• Judge Julia Smith Gibbons, Sixth Circuit

• Judge Joan L. Larson, Sixth Circuit

• Judge Elizabeth Branch, Eleventh Circuit

Federal District Courts

• Judge Paul G. Byron, Middle District of Florida

• Judge Claria Horn Boom ’94, Eastern and Western Districts of Kentucky

• Judge Danny Reeves, Eastern District of Kentucky

• Judge David J. Hale, Western District of Kentucky

• Judge James C. Mahan ’73, District of Nevada

• Judge Bridget M. Brennan, Northern District of Ohio

• Judge Edmund A. Sargus Jr., Southern District of Ohio

• Judge Gene E.K. Pratter, Eastern District of Pennsylvania

• Judge Charles E. Atchley Jr., Eastern District of Tennessee

• Judge Travis R. McDonough ’97, Eastern District of Tennessee

Federal Bankruptcy Courts

• Judge Neil W. Bason, Central District of California

• Judge Jacqueline P. Cox, Northern District of Illinois

• Judge Russ Kendig, North District of Ohio

• Judge Louis A. Scarcella, Eastern District of New York

State Courts

• Justice Michel P. Boggs, Georgia Supreme Court

Class of 2022

Federal Appellate Courts

• Judge Karen LeCraft Henderson, D.C. Circuit

• Judge Justin R. Walker, D.C. Circuit

• Judge Kent A. Jordan, Third Circuit

• Judge Julius N. Richardson, Fourth Circuit

• Judge Jennifer Walker Elrod, Fifth Circuit

• Judge Andrew S. Oldham, Fifth Circuit

• Judge Julia Smith Gibbons, Sixth Circuit

• Judge Chad A. Readler, Sixth Circuit

• Judge Jay Bybee, Ninth Circuit

• Judge Elizabeth L. Branch, Eleventh Circuit (2)

Federal District Courts

• Judge R. David Proctor, Northern District of Alabama

• Judge Lee P. Rudofsky, Eastern District of Arkansas

• Judge Andre Birotte Jr., Central District of California

• Judge Paul G. Byron, Middle District of Florida

• Judge Gregory Van Tatenhove, Eastern District of Kentucky

• Judge Benjamin J. Beaton, Western District of Kentucky

• Judge Joseph H. McKinley Jr., Western District of Kentucky

• Judge Lance M. Africk, Eastern District of Louisiana

• Judge Keith Starrett, Southern District of Mississippi

• Judge James C. Mahan ’73, District of Nevada (2)

• Judge Travis R. McDonough ’97, Eastern District of Tennessee

• Judge David J. Novak, Eastern District of Virginia (2)

State Courts

• Judge Alan O. Forst, Florida Fourth District Court of Appeals

• Judge Barry R. Tidwell, Tennessee Circuit Court, 16th District

Career Services helped me throughout my job search by looking over my cover letters and resumés and giving me advice on how to communicate with firms.

JOEY BLAKE | Class of 2020 Sports Litigation and Trademark Prosecution Associate, Winston & Strawn, Houston 2019-20 President, Vanderbilt Bar Association

Prepare for Work in the Public Interest

Vanderbilt provides extensive resources to prepare for and launch a public interest law career in government service, criminal defense, nonprofit advocacy, legal aid, NGOs or your own brand of public interest entrepreneurship. The Public Interest Office coordinates pro bono service opportunities and facilitates law careers for students and recent graduates seeking to work in the public interest, and Vanderbilt’s George Barrett Social Justice Program offers comprehensive, hands-on training and mentoring specifically designed to prepare graduates for work in the public interest.

Curricular Offerings

• Upper-level classes and seminars. Take advantage of a robust curriculum addressing a wide range of public interest law topics, including equality, access to justice and human rights.

• Social Justice and Criminal Justice Programs. Both programs offer an array of courses, research opportunities and access to faculty and alumni mentors.

Practice Opportunities

• Clinics. Learn the theory and practice of law in context, under the guidance of expert attorneys, through our extensive array of clinical legal courses.

• Externships. Gain valuable professional experience for academic credit by engaging in our individualized Externship Program placements in Nashville, across the nation or abroad.

• Vanderbilt Legal Aid Society. Participate in pro bono legal projects or community legal education programs during the academic year through the student-run Legal Aid Society.

• Summer stipends. Engage in pro bono legal work over the summer with the support of a public interest stipend. (Students cannot earn academic credit for positions for which they receive financial support.)

• Legal Aid Society of Middle Tennessee and the Cumberlands. Volunteer at community legal clinics hosted by Middle Tennessee’s Legal Aid Society.

• Pro Bono Pledge. Commit to work 75 pro bono legal service hours over the course of your three years in law school.

• Law Students for Social Justice. Join a student organization that sponsors speakers, events and pro bono service opportunities.

Supplemental Scholarships and Stipends First-year students committed to social justice and public interest legal careers may apply in the spring semester for Garrison Social Justice Scholar awards, which provide supplemental scholarships for the second and third years of law school and summer support stipends to allow students to accept unpaid summer internships with legal nonprofits and public defender’s offices. Academic programs also provide summer stipend support for unpaid work with government law offices and legal nonprofits.

Specialized Career Advising Our assistant dean for public interest works one-on-one with students seeking public interest careers. The annual Government and Public Interest Day allows students to network with government and nonprofit employers. Students may also attend the annual Equal Justice Works Conference and Career Fair with support from Vanderbilt.

Vanderbilt students who want to work in the public interest have some terrific role models in the Vanderbilt community, and these attorneys have found their callings in many different ways. One of my goals is to create networking opportunities for our students and show them the many different paths to public interest legal work.

SPRING MILLER | Assistant Dean and Martha Craig Daughtrey Director for Public Interest

Learn more about Vanderbilt’s Public Interest Office.

Learn more about George Barrett Social Justice Program.

Support for Launching Public Interest Careers

Launching a public interest career is challenging, particularly for new law school graduates entering the legal employment market. Many public interest employers do not have the resources to do significant entry-level hiring. By starting early and taking full advantage of the resources offered by the Public Interest and Career Services offices, students can position themselves as effectively as possible to land an entry-level job and embark on a satisfying public interest career.

Fellowships

Post-graduation fellowships are timelimited employment opportunities that provide pathways into the public interest legal sector for new law graduates. Some fellowships include funding for innovative legal advocacy projects; others are essentially

endowed entry-level attorney positions at nonprofit organizations. All fellowships accelerate new lawyers’ careers by providing valuable professional experience, access to professional networks and the distinction of having secured a coveted opportunity to work in the public interest.

Vanderbilt Law School’s endowed George Barrett Social Justice Fellowship is awarded by competitive application to a graduating student to carry out a one-year public interest project under the supervision and sponsorship of a host organization. Vanderbilt participates in the Gideon’s Promise Law School Partnership, which provides financial support and training to graduates committed to indigent defense careers. After an initial fellowship period, the graduates transition to full-time public defender positions in participating offices. And in recent years, a number of VLS graduates have secured external fellowships, including highly coveted Skadden and Equal Justice Works fellowships.

VLS Public Service Pathways

Vanderbilt’s Public Service Pathways program enables new VLS graduates to gain valuable public-sector work experience by supporting them as they pursue permanent employment in a location of their choice.

Graduating students secure volunteer legal internships with government agencies, in judicial chambers, with public defenders’ or prosecutors’ offices, or with nonprofit advocacy organizations, which are funded by VLS stipends after graduation. Some graduates have garnered permanent positions at the organizations they first joined as interns; others have secured full-time legal employment elsewhere. The program currently provides financial assistance for bar preparation and stipend support for up to six months.

VLS Loan Repayment Assistance

This program pays from 20 percent to 50 percent of annual loan repayment obligations for up to 10 years for eligible graduates in qualifying public service positions.

More information is available in “Launching Your Public Interest Career: A Vanderbilt Student’s Guide to Fellowships” on the VLS website.

More information is available on the VLS website.

Where Do You Go From Here?

With more than 80 percent of each graduating class taking employment out of state, Vanderbilt Law graduates enjoy geographic mobility nationally, supported by the school’s global alumni network and longstanding relationships with legal employers coast to coast.

Average number of states in which new Vanderbilt Law graduates have taken employment each year, 2017–21.

WA4 OR3 NV5 CA43

MT1

NE7 KS3 CO7 TX101

UT1 AZ3 NM1 AK1

MN4 MO6 IL30 IN4 OH22

OK3

MOST POPULAR DESTINATIONS CLASSES 2017–21

ME1 NH1 NY143 PA22 AR5 LA6 MS4 AL21 GA69 SC6 NC22 VA3

MI7 WI1 FL33

MA4 CT1 DC83 MD4 WV1 DE7 NJ12

TN139 KY20

International: 13 Bahrain (1) Belgium (1) China (9) Nepal (1) United Kingdom (1) U.S. Military JAG: 19

New York 16% Tennessee 16% Texas 12% Washington, D.C. 9% Georgia 7% California 5% Florida 4% Illinois 3%

The remaining 28% took employment across another 34 states and internationally.

DOMESTIC GRADUATES AT A GLANCE

Class: 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 Total New York 30 30 26 23 34 143 Tennessee 25 29 34 23 28 139 Texas 19 15 19 29 19 101 Washington, D.C. 18 13 22 5 25 83 Georgia 15 15 9 14 16 69 California 7 5 16 10 5 43 Florida 4 5 13 3 8 33 Illinois 5 8 3 8 6 30 Kentucky 5 6 3 5 4 23 North Carolina 6 5 4 3 4 22 Ohio 3 4 4 6 5 22 Alabama 3 7 2 5 3 20 Pennsylvania 3 2 8 4 3 20 New Jersey 2 3 4 1 2 12 Colorado 1 2 2 2 7 Delaware 1 1 2 3 7 Michigan 2 1 1 2 1 7

Nebraska 1 2 1 1 2 7 Louisiana 1 2 3 6 Missouri 2 2 1 1 6 South Carolina 1 3 - 2 6

Arkansas 2 1 2 5 Nevada 2 1 1 1 5 Maryland 2 1 1 4 Massachusetts 2 2 4 Minnesota 2 2 4 Mississippi 2 1 1 4 Washington 1 2 1 4 Arizona 1 1 1 – 3 Kansas 1 1 1 3 Oklahoma 1 1 1 3 Oregon 1 1 1 3 Indiana 1 1 – 2 Virginia 1 1 2 Alaska 1 1 Connecticut 1 1 Maine 1 1

Montana 1 1 New Hampshire 1 1 New Mexico 1 1 Utah 1 1 West Virginia 1 1 Wisconsin 1 1

INTERNATIONAL / U.S. MILITARY WORLDWIDE / U.S. TERRITORIES GRADUATES AT A GLANCE

2017 2018 2018 2020 2021

China (2) China (2) Bahrain (1) China (2) China (3) U.S. Army JAG (4) U.S. Air Force JAG (1) Nepal (1) U.S. Army JAG (3) Belgium (1) U.S. Air Force JAG (2) U.S. Army JAG (1) U.S. Army JAG (2) London, U.K. (1) U.S. Navy JAG (1) U.S. Navy JAG (1) U.S. Army JAG (3) U.S. Air Force (1)

National reach. National presence. National impact.

Vanderbilt Law School attracts highly qualified students and faculty from throughout the U.S. and abroad because it prepares them to have a national impact. Vanderbilt Law graduates are represented in the judiciary and in almost every branch of the federal government, as U.S. attorneys and federal defenders, in Congress and state legislatures and government agencies, as managing partners of major international law firms, as corporate officers and counsel, on law faculties, in the Judge Advocate General Corps, heading influential advocacy groups, and in law offices in all 50 states and Washington, D.C.

Vanderbilt owes its national stature to the outstanding career accomplishments of its alumni and its faculty. Its reputation for producing skilled attorneys who are team players has been gained over decades as members of graduating classes have gone to legal jobs throughout the nation. Vanderbilt’s extensive alumni network and the global professional networks of its faculty combine to help Vanderbilt students secure coveted summer externships, fellowships and employment with federal and state judicial chambers and agencies, government attorneys’ offices, law firms and advocacy programs.

Vanderbilt Law alumni are founding or managing partners at a number of leading national firms.

Matthew R. Burnstein, Class of 1996 Chairman, Waller Lansden Dortch & Davis

Michael Daneker, Class of 1992 Co-Managing Partner, Arnold & Porter

Richard Hays, Class of 1986 Managing Partner, Alston & Bird

Robert Hays, Class of 1983 Chairman & Managing Partner, King & Spalding

Timothy Lupinacci, Class of 1991 Chairman & CEO, Baker Donelson

Stephen C. Mahon, Class of 1989

Executive Leadership Group, Squire Patton Boggs Darren Robbins, Class of 1993 Founding Partner, Robbins Geller Rudman & Dowd Mark Ruehlmann, Class of 1997 Chairman & Global CEO, Squire Patton Boggs Guilford F. Thornton Jr., Class of 1990 Managing Partner, Adams and Reese

The work I did in my Antitrust for Big Tech class with Professor [Rebecca] Allensworth turned out to be directly applicable to the work I did as an extern for the DOJ’s Antitrust Division, and the externship functioned as an extended job interview. My two classes in Antitrust Law at Vanderbilt helped me get the externship and prepared me to hit the ground running.

CHASE PRITCHETT | Class of 2022 2022 Honors Program, Antitrust Division, U.S. Department of Justice

Chase secured a full-semester externship with the Department of Justice’s Antitrust Division in fall 2021, supporting a new team focused on Big Tech monopolies, and he accepted an offer to join the department’s permanent legal staff through its prestigious Honors Program after graduation.

Vanderbilt Law alumni worldwide 82

Percent of graduating Vanderbilt Law students have taken employment out of state during the five-year period from 2017 to 2021 across 40 states, D.C., and internationally.

I wanted to return to D.C. to practice. When I talked to attorneys in Washington, they specifically told me that they recruited at Vanderbilt and looked favorably upon Vanderbilt Law graduates.

That was a huge selling point for me.

NICK PRENDERGAST | Class of 2022 Associate, Simpson Thacher & Bartlett, Washington, D.C.

Nick worked for Simpson Thacher & Bartlett in summer 2021 and joined the firm after graduation. “This is exactly where I wanted to end up,” he said.

11TH

In percentage of 2021 graduates employed in full-time, long-term, bar-passage-required positions in law firms with more than 100 attorneys, based on ABA data.

Class of 2021 Employers by State

ALABAMA (3)

Birmingham Bradley

Maynard Cooper & Gale

Mobile Starnes Davis Florie

ALASKA (1) Fairbanks U.S. Army JAG Corps

CALIFORNIA (5)

Los Angeles Gilson Daub Kirkland & Ellis Reed Smith

Sheppard Mullin Richter & Hampton

Newport Beach O’Melveny & Myers

COLORADO (2)

Denver

Faegre Drinker Biddle & Reath Sherman & Howard

WASHINGTON, D.C. (24)

Amis Patel & Brewer Baker & McKenzie Baker Botts Covington & Burling Dechert

Federal Energy Regulatory Commission Fish & Richardson Gibson Dunn & Crutcher

Hogan Lovells US Latham & Watkins

Magliaccio Rathod Norris George & Ostrow Sidley Austin Thompson Coburn

U.S. Agency for International Development

U.S. Court of Appeals, D.C. Circuit (2) U.S. Court of Federal Claims

United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees

Venable (3) Wiley Rein WilmerHale

FLORIDA (8)

Fort Lauderdale Kelley Kronenberg

Fort Myers

Public Defender’s Office, 20th Judicial District

Jacksonville Federal Public Defender, Fourth Judicial Circuit

Orlando

U.S. District Court, Middle District of Florida

Pointe Vedra Beach RezLegal

Tampa Bradley Morgan & Morgan West Palm Beach Jones Foster

GEORGIA (16)

Atlanta

Alston & Bird (2) Arnall Golden Gregory Baker Hostetler Bryan Cave Leighton Paisner

Freeman Mathis & Gary (2)

Georgia Supreme Court Kilpatrick Townsend & Stockton

Nelson Mullins Riley & Scarborough

Troutman Pepper Hamilton Sanders (4)

U.S. Court of Appeals, Eleventh Circuit

Gainesville Fox Chandler Homans Hicks & McKinnon

ILLINOIS (6) Chicago Baker & McKenzie Clyde & Co. Kirkland & Ellis Mayer Brown Reed Smith

U.S. Bankruptcy Court, Northern District of Illinois

KENTUCKY (6)

Fort Campbell U.S. Army JAG Corps (2)

Lexington

U.S. District Court, Eastern District of Kentucky U.S. District Court, Eastern and Western Districts of Kentucky

Louisville Stoll Keenon Ogden U.S. District Court, Western District of Kentucky

MICHIGAN (1)

Farmington Hills Antone Casagrande & Adwers

MISSISSIPPI (1) Jackson

State of Mississippi Judiciary, Administrative Office of the Courts

NEBRASKA (2) Omaha Fidelity National Title Group (2)

NEVADA (1) Las Vegas

U.S. District Court for the District of Nevada

NEW HAMPSHIRE (1) Concord Conservation Law Foundation

NEW JERSEY (2) Somerset Rotor Clip Co., Inc. Trenton U.S. District Court, District of New Jersey

NEW YORK (35) Buffalo Phillips Lytle Hempstead Legal Aid Society of Nassau County

New York Allen & Overy Davis Polk & Wardwell (2) Debevoise & Plimpton Dechert (2) Fox Rothschild Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer Gibson Dunn & Crutcher Kirkland & Ellis (6) Milbank Norton Rose Fulbright Paul Weiss Proskauer Rose Ropes & Gray Sidley Austin (2) Simpson Thacher & Bartlett Skadden Sullivan & Cromwell (2) U.S. Bankruptcy Court, Eastern District of New York Vedder Price Venable Weil Gotshal & Manges White & Case Willkie Farr & Gallagher Winston & Strawn

NORTH CAROLINA (4) Charlotte Alston & Bird McGuireWoods Moore & Van Allen (2)

OHIO (5)

Canton

U.S. Bankruptcy Court, Northern District of Ohio

Cincinnati

U.S. Court of Appeals, Sixth Circuit

Cleveland Jones Day

Columbus

Porter Wright Morris & Arthur

U.S. District Court, Southern District of Ohio

OKLAHOMA (2)

Altus Air Force Base U.S. Air Force JAG

Tulsa Still She Rises, Tulsa

PENNSYLVANIA (3)

Philadelphia Blank Rome

Duane Morris

Pittsburgh K&L Gates

SOUTH CAROLINA (2)

Charleston U.S. Army Corps of Engineers

Greenville

Nelson Mullins Riley & Scarborough

TENNESSEE (27)

Brentwood

Moore Ingram Johnson & Steele

Chattanooga

Chambliss Bahner & Stophel (2)

U.S. District Court, Eastern District of Tennessee (2)

Memphis Butler Snow

Nashville Baker Donelson

Bass Berry & Sims (6) Dickenson Wright (2)

Federal Public Defender, Middle District of Tennessee

Frost Brown Todd

Gideon Essary Tardio & Carter

Nashville Defenders Stites & Harbison

Tennessee Attorney General’s Office (2)

Tennessee Department of Energy and Conservation, Office of Policy and Sustainable Practices

Tennessee Justice for Our Neighbors Waller (3) Wiseman Ashworth

TEXAS (18) Austin Gjerset & Lorenz

Dallas Haynes & Boone Holland & Knight O’Melveny & Myers Sidley Austin Weil Gotshal & Manges

2021 Employment by Geographic Region: Vanderbilt versus All ABA Graduates

Houston Akin Gump Baker Botts Baker Donelson Bracewell Bradley Brown Sims Haynes and Boone Heim Payne & Chorush Locke Lord Shearman & Sterling Sidley Austin Vinson & Elkins

VIRGINIA (1) Fort Belvoir U.S. Army JAG Corps

WASHINGTON (1) Tacoma

Washington State Office of the Attorney General

JAG CORPS (4) Army JAG Corps (3) Air Force JAG Corps (1)

INTERNATIONAL (5)

Ghent, Belgium Ghent University

Beijing, China Global Law Firm Paul Weiss Zhong Law Firm

London, United Kingdom Latham & Watkins

Region Number % of NALP 2021 Reported Reported % of Reported

New England CT, ME, MA, NH, RI, VT 1 0.6% 5.2%

Mid-Atlantic NJ, NY, PA 39 17.2% 20.5%

East North Central IL, IN, MI, OH, WI 12 9.8% 11.1%

West North Central IA, KS, MN, MO, NE, ND, SD 2 1.8% 4.8%

South Atlantic DE, DC, FL, GA, MD, NC, SC, VA, WV 56 17.8% 22.9%

East South Central AL, KY, MS, TN 38 20.9% 3.6%

West South Central AR, LA, OK, TX 21 21.5% 9.8%

Mountain AZ, CO, ID, MT, NV, NM, UT, WY 3 2.5% 5.8%

Pacific AK, CA, HI, OR, WA 7 6.7% 15.0%

Non-U.S. locations 5 1.2% 1.3%

Total 184 100.0% 100.0%

Prepare to Thrive in an Evolving Legal Profession

The way lawyers practice law is changing at a pace far greater than ever before. Legal clients increasingly demand more efficiency, lower costs and better results. Technological advancements in data computation have disrupted settled ways of managing legal practices and cases. And law itself is evolving rapidly. Now, more than ever, lawyers must also be innovators.

Vanderbilt’s Program on Law and Innovation offers courses—including Law 2050, Legal Project Management, Information Governance, and Technology in Legal Practice—and an array of extracurricular opportunities specifically designed to train the next generation of lawyers to succeed in today’s legal environment by anticipating the opportunities arising from changes in law and legal practice.

Chris Giancarlo, Class of 1984, a former chairman of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, discussed financial regulation and the future of virtual currency at Vanderbilt Law School in November 2021. Giancarlo is the author of CryptoDad: The Fight for the Future of Money (Wiley, 2021) and a senior counsel at Willkie Farr & Gallagher.

Today’s lawyers will need to be innovators throughout their careers. Our goal is to equip Vanderbilt graduates to navigate these changes and, more importantly, to influence the directions in which they take law and the legal industry.

J.B. RUHL | David Daniels Allen Distinguished Professor of Law Director, Program on Law and Innovation

ELIZABETH WORKMAN | Assistant Dean for Career Services

64.1%

of 2021 VLS graduates took employment in firms of more than 100 attorneys.

Wherever we travel, employers tell us how highly they regard Vanderbilt graduates. They’re well-educated lawyers who are also good people.

Vanderbilt J.D. Class of 2021 Employment Summary

The American Bar Association requires each ABA-approved law school to disclose employment information in a standard format ABA Employment Summary Report. To facilitate comparison of Vanderbilt and other law schools’ employment outcomes, we provide below Vanderbilt’s Class of 2021 Summary Report, to which we have added benchmark statistics describing employment outcomes for 2021 graduates of all ABA-approved law schools nationally.

ABA Standard 509(b) Employment Summary for 2021 Graduates with the Addition of Benchmark Percentages for All 2021 ABA Graduates

Employment Summary for 2021 Graduates

Employment Status

Employed - Bar Passage Required 173 0 0 0 173 90.1% 75.6%

Employed - JD Advantage 5 0 0 0 5 2.6% 10.4%

Employed - Professional Position 0 0 0 0 0 0.0% na

Employed - Law School / University Funded 2 4 0 0 6 3.1% 1.2%

Employed -Other Position 0 0 0 0 0 0.0% 0.7%

Employed - Undeterminable 0 0 0 0 0 0.0% 0.1%

Enrolled in Graduate Studies 0 0.0% 1.2%

Employed - Start Date Deferred 0 0.0% 0.6%

Unemployed - Not Seeking 1 0.5% 1.1%

Unemployed - Seeking 7 3.6% 5.3%

Employment Status Unknown 0 0.0% na

Total Graduates 192 100.0%

Employment Type

Law Firms

Full Time Full Time Part Time Part Time

Long Term Short Term Long Term Short Term Number

Solo 0 0 0 0 0 0.0%

1 - 10 5 0 0 0 5 2.6%

11 - 25 5 0 0 0 5 2.6% 26 - 50 1 0 0 0 1 0.5% 51 - 100 6 0 0 0 6 3.1%

101 - 250 7 0 0 0 7 3.6% 251 - 500 24 0 0 0 24 12.5% 501+ 92 0 0 0 92 47.9%

Unknown Size 0 0 0 0 0 0.0%

Business & Industry 2 0 0 0 2 1.0% Government 12 0 0 0 12 6.3%

Public Interest 8 2 0 0 10 5.2%

Clerkships - Federal 16 1 0 0 17 8.9%

Clerkships - State, Local and Territorial 1 1 0 0 2 1.0%

Clerkships - Tribal 0 0 0 0 0 0.0%

Clerkships - International 0 0 0 0 0 0.0% Education 1 0 0 0 1 0.5%

Employer Type Unknown 0 0 0 0 0 0.0%

Total Employed 180 4 0 0 184 95.8%

Employed - Bar Passage Required 1 4 0 0 5 2.6%

Employed - J.D. Advantage 1 0 0 0 1 0.5%

Employed - Professional Position 0 0 0 0 0 0.0%

Employed - Non-Professional Position 0 0 0 0 0 0.0%

Total Employed by Law School/University 2 4 0 0 6 3.1%

Employment Location

State Number

State - Largest Employment New York 34 17.7%

State - 2nd Largest Employment Tennessee 28 14.6%

State - 3rd Largest Employment District of Columbia 25 13.0%

Employed in Foreign Countries 5 2.6%

Vanderbilt’s Class of 2021 Employment Summary Report: law.vanderbilt.edu/2021-EmploymentSummary-Updated.pdf

Class of 2021 Salaries

Employment by Sector

Private Sector

# of Jobs % of Jobs # With 25th

Reported Reported Salary Percentile

75th

Median Percentile Mean

Vanderbilt 142 77.2% 130 $ 142,000 $ 190,000 $ 215,000 $ 172,492 National 21,578 67.9% 13,789 $ 75,000 $ 115,000 $ 200,000 $ 132,984

Public Sector

Vanderbilt 42 22.8% 31 $ 55,756 $ 65,056 $ 70,000 $ 65,154 National 10,133 31.9% 6,909 $ 52,605 $ 61,143 $ 70,000 $ 62,605

Vanderbilt Salaries by

# of Jobs % of Jobs # With 25th 75th Employment Categories Reported Reported Salary Percentile Median Percentile Mean

Education 1 0.5% Business 2 1.1% Judicial Clerk 19 10.3% 14 $ 64,000 $ 67,066 $ 72,000 $ 66,770 Private Practice 140 76.1% 130 $ 142,000 $ 190,000 $ 215,000 $ 172,492 Government 12 6.5% 8 $ 64,825 $ 66,000 $ 71,375 $ 69,550 Public Interest 10 5.4% 8 $ 45,000 $ 54,500 $ 67,800 $ 62,450 184 100.0%

More information on Vanderbilt Class of 2021 salaries is available from the Vanderbilt Law School Class of 2021 NALP Summary Report on our website: law.vanderbilt.edu/NALP_Class_of_2021_PDF.pdf

Employed – Bar Passage Required. The position in fact requires or, from the perspective of the employer does or will require, the graduate to pass a bar exam or be authorized to practice law in one or more jurisdictions. Positions that require a graduate to pass a bar exam or be authorized to practice law in a jurisdiction after beginning employment in order to retain the position are included in this category. Examples of positions presumed to be Bar Passage Required include public defender, district attorney, judge advocate general (JAG), judicial law clerk, lawyer/ attorney and associate attorney.

Employed – J.D. Advantage. The position is one in which the possession of a J.D. by the graduate was sought by the employer, required by the employer, or provided a demonstrable advantage in either obtaining or performing the duties of the position from the perspective of the employer. The duties of the position do not require bar exam passage or authorization to practice law or involve practicing law. Examples of positions presumed to be J.D. Advantage include landman, tax associate, regulatory analyst, patent agent, FBI agent, paralegal/legal assistant and compliance manager/specialist.

Employed – Professional Position. The position requires professional skills or training, managerial or supervisory responsibilities,

or the regular use of professional judgment from the perspective of the employer. The possession of a J.D. was neither required nor a demonstrable advantage in obtaining or performing the role from the perspective of the employer. Examples of positions presumed to be Professional Position include bailiff, police officer, nurse, doctor, teacher, or probation officer.

Employed – Other Position. The position does not require any special professional skills or training from the perspective of the employer. Examples of positions presumed to be Other Position include barista, receptionist/ administrative assistant/secretary, restaurant server, and retail salesperson.

Employed – Law School/University-Funded. The position has a salary that is funded directly or indirectly by the school or its parent institution; in whole or in part by the school or its parent institution; or through donations solicited by or on behalf of the school or its parent institution. Any position meeting this definition is included in this category; the position is not counted in any of the other categories.

Note: A Law School/University-Funded position is not counted as such if the following sets of requirements apply: 1) From the perspective of the law school or university, the position is expected to last

for a term of one calendar year or more; 2) the salary the graduate receives is equal to or exceeds $40,000 per year; and 3) the position and its funding are open to qualified graduates from all ABA-approved law schools; or 1) the graduate was employed by the law school or parent institution before starting law school; and 2) the graduate continues to be employed in the same or a similar position as of the Graduate Employment Status Date.

Long-Term vs. Short-Term. The position is long-term if, from the perspective of the employer, it is expected to last for one calendar year or more from the start date. The position is short-term if, from the perspective of the employer, it has a definite term of less than one calendar year from the start date or an indefinite length, and the employer does not reasonably expect that the position will last for one calendar year or more from the start date.

Full-Time vs. Part-Time. The position is full-time if it is one in which the graduate typically works a minimum of 35 hours per week. The position is part-time if it is one in which the graduate typically works less than 35 hours per week.

When you get in the real world and practice at a law firm, you work together in groups representing clients. Vanderbilt does a good job of preparing people to work together.

J. FRAHN

2022 Above the Law ranking of the Top 50 law schools based on employment outcomes, cost and student debt.

Percentage of 2021 graduates who took “elite” full-time, long-term, bar-passage-required jobs, either federal clerkships or associates at firms of 100 or more attorneys (72.4%, based on ABA data)

HARRISON

IV | Class of 1996 Partner, Simpson Thacher & Bartlett, Palo Alto, California

CHRIS GUTHRIE | Dean | John Wade–Kent Syverud Professor of Law

Vanderbilt’s Career Services office is now located in a newly renovated Student Services suite made possible by a $10 million dollar gift from Justin Ishbia, Class of 2004, a private-equity entrepreneur.

Vanderbilt stands apart not only for the quality of the legal training we deliver, but also for the support you’ll receive from one of the nation’s best career services departments.

Class of 2022 10-month Employment Report

ALABAMA (2)

Birmingham Bradley

U.S. District Court, Northern District of Alabama

ALASKA (1)

Anchorage Holland & Hart

CALIFORNIA (9)

Irvine K&L Gates Payne & Fears

Los Angeles Morrison Foerster O’Melveny & Myers Seyforth Shaw

Palo Alto Gibson Dunn & Crutcher San Diego Latham & Watkins

San Francisco Knobbe Martens Ropes & Gray

COLORADO (8)

Brighton Adam County District Attorney’s Office

Centennial District Attorney’s Office, 18th Judicial District

Denver Colorado Center on Law and Policy Colorado State Public Defender (4) Powell Project

WASHINGTON, D.C. (18)

Arnold & Porter Kaye Scholer Campaign Legal Center Cooley

Fisch Sigler

Foley & Lardner

Fried Frank Harris Shriver & Jacobson Latham & Watkins

Mooney Green Saindon Murphy & Welch Pension Benefit Guaranty Corp.

Sidley Austin

Simpson Thacher & Bartlett (2)

Sterne Kessler Goldstein & Fox

U.S. Court of Appeals, D.C. Circuit

U.S. Department of Homeland Security, Office of the General Counsel

U.S. Department of Justice, Antitrust Division Wiley Rein

FLORIDA (3)

Miami Akerman Senterfitt

Orlando

U.S. District Court, Middle District of Florida West Palm Beach Florida Fourth District Court of Appeals

GEORGIA (11)

Atlanta

Alston & Bird (2) Ballard Spahr Freeman Mathis & Gary Jones Day King & Spalding Nelson Mullins Riley & Scarborough Troutman Pepper Hamilton Sanders (2) U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit

Fort Benning U.S. Army JAG Corps

ILLINOIS (5) Chicago King & Spalding Kirkland & Ellis (2) Mayer Brown Winston & Strawn

KENTUCKY (3) Lexington U.S. District Court, Eastern District of Kentucky

Louisville Dentons Bingham Geenebaum U.S. District Court, Western District of Kentucky

LOUISIANA (1) New Orleans U.S. District Court, Eastern District of Louisiana

MASSACHUSETTS (3) Boston Goodwin Proctor Mintz Levin Cohn Ferris Glovsky and Popeo Ropes & Gray

MICHIGAN (1) Grand Rapids Varnum Riddering Schmidt & Howlett

MINNESOTA (1) Minneapolis Jones Day

MISSISSIPPI (1) Hattiesburg U.S. District Court, Southern District of Mississippi

MISSOURI (4) St. Louis Bryan Cave (2)

NEVADA (3) Las Vegas U.S. Court of Appeals, Ninth Circuit U.S. District Court, District of Nevada (2)

NEW YORK (33) Bronx Bronx County District Attorney’s Office

New York Alston & Bird (2)

Cahill Gordon & Reindel Chaffetz Lindsey Davis Polk & Wardwell Fox Rothschild (2)

Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer (3) Hunton Andrews Karth (3)

Katten Muchin Rosenman Kirkland & Ellis (3)

Latham & Watkins Milbank (4)

Paul Weiss (2)

Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan Ropes & Gray

Shearman & Sterling (2)

Simpson Thacher & Bartlett Skadden White & Case

Queens Queens District Attorney’s Office

NORTH CAROLINA (2) Charlotte K&L Gates Moore & Van Allen

OHIO (2) Cincinnati U.S. Court of Appeals, Sixth Circuit Cleveland Jones Day

OREGON (1) Beaverton Nike

PENNSYLVANIA (2)

Pittsburgh Cohen & Grigsby McGuireWoods

TENNESSEE (14) Chattanooga U.S. District Court, Eastern District of Tennessee (2) Franklin Swafford Law Firm

Memphis

Baker Donelson

Black McLaren Jones Ryland & Griffee DeWitt Law

Nashville Baker Donelson (2) Bass Berry & Sims (2)

Legal Aid Society of Middle Tennessee and the Cumberlands Neal & Harwell (2) Robbins Geller Rudman & Dowd

TEXAS (14)

Dallas Akin Gump Baker Botts

Bradley Norton Rose Fulbright Reed Smith Sidley Austin Vinson & Elkins (2)

Houston Haynes and Boone Locke Lord (3)

U.S. Court of Appeals, Fifth Circuit Vinson & Elkins

UTAH (2) Brigham City Box Elder County Attorney’s Office

Salt Lake City Kirkland & Ellis

VIRGINIA (5) Fort Belvoir U.S. Army JAG Corps (2)

Richmond

U.S. Court of Appeals, Fourth Circuit U.S. District Court, Eastern District of Virginia (2)

WASHINGTON (2)

Seattle Keller Rohrback King County Department of Public Defense

JAG Corps Army JAG Corps (2)

INTERNATIONAL (1) Geneva, Switzerland World Intellectual Property Organization

Career Services hosts many lunch talks with lawyers from big law firms. I found these very informative, and they influenced my decision to work for a big firm.

LUKE KESSEL | Class of 2020 K&L Gates, Charlotte, North Carolina

JEFF TURNER | Class of 2020

Associate, Bush Seyferth, Troy, Michigan

2020–21 Clerk, Judge Joseph H. McKinley, U.S. District Court for the Western District of Kentucky

Jeff coached Division I lacrosse at the University of Detroit Mercy, where he earned an MBA, before entering law school. He chose Vanderbilt because, he said, “I’d spent my life in team sports, and I looked for a school with that same team environment.”

Vanderbilt’s Career Services office is a terrific resource. Dean Workman was incredibly helpful as I set up interviews outside the OCI process, and she gave me honest assessments of my strengths and weaknesses as a job candidate throughout my job search.

Standard of Living: Sometimes Less Is More

Salaries vary by location, as does the cost of living, but the two do not always go hand in hand. For example, suppose that in the same year, two new law graduates take jobs that pay $180,000, one in Chicago, the other in San Francisco. Although these might appear to be equal financial outcomes, a $180,000 salary in Chicago offers about 59 percent more buying power than the same salary in San Francisco due to the relative costs of living in these cities.

Sometimes less is more. A new law graduate taking employment in Nashville with a salary of $120,000 may appear to have done less well than a graduate making $190,000 in New York. But, although the Nashville salary is about 63 percent of the New York salary, it provides about 58% more buying power.

The source of the information above is an article, “Class of 2018 Buying Power Index,” posted on the National Association for Law Placement website at nalp.org. The article includes a table that shows a calculated Buying Power Index for 92 cities for which at least 10 law firm salaries were reported for law graduates in the Class of 2018 and for which cost-of-living information was available.

To read the NALP article, scan the QR code at the left with your smartphone or visit: nalp.org/class_of_2018_buying_power_index

Career Services guided me through the 2L OCI process to find my 2L summer job, which led to an offer for a full-time position. Everyone in Career Services works extremely hard to find opportunities for every student and ensure students are well-prepared for interviews and understand the interview process.

CHANDLER

Judge Elizabeth L. Branch, U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit

Vanderbilt Law School

131 21st Ave. S. Nashville, Tennessee 37203 615-322-6452 615-322-1531 fax admissions@law.vanderbilt.edu

Hours: Monday through Friday 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Central time (except VU holidays)

Location: Beasley Admissions Suite

VISIT OUR WEBSITE:

law.vanderbilt.edu

NONDISCRIMINATION STATEMENT

In compliance with federal law, including the provisions of Title VI and Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, Title IX of the Education Amendment of 1972, Sections 503 and 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) of 1990,the ADA Amendments Act of 2008, Executive Order 11246, the Vietnam Era Veterans Readjustment Assistance Act of 1974 as amended by the Jobs for Veterans Act, and the Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act, as amended, and the Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act of 2008, Vanderbilt University does not discriminate against individuals on the basis of their race, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, religion, color, national or ethnic origin, age, disability, military service, covered veterans status, or genetic information in its administration of educational policies, programs, or activities; admissions policies; scholarship and loan programs; athletic or other university-administered programs; or employment. In addition, the university does not discriminate against individuals on the basis of their gender expression. Requests for information, inquiries or complaints should be directed to these offices: Equal Opportunity and Access Office, eoa@vanderbilt.edu, telephone 615-343-9336; Title IX Office, Title IX Coordinator, titleix@vanderbilt.edu, telephone 615-343-9004, 2100 West End Ave., Suite 700, Nashville, TN 37203; Student Access Office, studentaccess@ vanderbilt.edu, telephone 615-343-9727.

Vanderbilt University is committed to principles of equal opportunity and affirmative action. Vanderbilt® and the Vanderbilt logos are registered trademarks of The Vanderbilt University. © 2022 Vanderbilt University. All rights reserved. Updated 11/22