Class of 2009

For more information on the Class of 2009 salary distribution curve, see Salary Distribution Curve for the Class of 2009 Shows Relatively Few Salaries Were Close to the Mean

Distribution of Reported Full-Time Salaries — Class of 2009

Note: The graph is based on 19,513 salaries. A few salaries above $200,000 are excluded for clarity. The left-hand peaks of the graph reflect salaries of $40,000 to $65,000, which collectively accounted for 34% of reported salaries.The right-hand peak shows that salaries of $160,000 accounted for 25% of reported salaries. However, more complete salary coverage for jobs at large law firms heightens this peak and diminishes the left-hand peaks — and shows that the unadjusted mean overstates the average starting salary by about 10%. Nonetheless, as both the arithmetic mean and the adjusted mean show, relatively few salaries are close to either mean figure. For purposes of this graph, all reported salaries were rounded to the nearest $5,000.

Class of 2008

For more information on the Class of 2008 salary distribution curve, see Starting Salary Distribution for Class of 2008 More Dramatic than Previous Years. 

Distribution of Full-Time Salaries — Class of 2008

Note: Graph is based on 22,305 salaries; a few salaries about $200,000 are excluded for clarity. Collectively, salaries of $40,000 - $65,000 accounted for 42% of reported salaries.

Class of 2007

For more information on the Class of 2007 salary distribution curve, see Another Picture Worth 1,000 Words.

Source:Jobs & JD's, Class of 2007

Note: The graph is based on 23,337 salaries. A few salaries above $200,000 are excluded for clarity. 

Class of 2006

For more information on the Class of 2006 salary distribution curve, see A Picture Worth 1,000 Words.

 

Source:Jobs & JD's, Class of 2006. For the purposes of the Jobs and JD's report, the curve was smoothed to more clearly illustrate the bimodal nature of the curve, and thus does not appear identical to the curve shown for the Class of 2006 in the January 2008 Bulletin column here. The curve presented in the January 2008 Bulletin article is also shown on a different scale for ease of comparison with previous years.
Note: The graph is based on 22,665 salaries. A few salaries above $200,000 are excluded for clarity. The first peak in this graph reflects salaries of both $40,000 and $50,000 (each about 11% of reported salaries). The second peak reflects salaries of $135,000 (10% of reported salaries) and $145,000 (7% of reported salaries).