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只有6万6律师的行业，却有1万4千毕业生找工作。。。
以后法律不是最好的大学专业了吧！
Too many law graduates and not enough jobs
by Edmund Tadros Katie Walsh
The number of law graduates has reached a record high with 14,600 graduates entering a legal jobs market comprising just 66,000 solicitors.
The number of domestic bachelor and post-graduate law finishers in 2014 was up by more than 1200, or 9 per cent, year-on-year, The Australian Financial Review analysis of university course data shows. This outstripped the average 4 per cent growth in the number of practicing solicitors across the country.
The increase continues to be driven by the popularity of post-graduate law courses, where graduate numbers grew by almost 1000, or 14 per cent, year-on-year to more than 8200 in 2014. Bachelor law finishers grew annually by a more modest 239 graduates, or 4 per cent, to more than 6400 last year.
There are now an extraordinary 41 law schools in Australia with yet another, the Sydney City School of Law, set to begin admitting students in 2016.
The data does not specify the number of law graduates who finished with a formal LLB or Juris Doctor qualification and the percentage who actually want to go on to work as lawyers.
At the same time, the employment rate has hit an all-time low with almost one in four bachelor-degree law graduates not working full-time four months after finishing their course in 2013, according to the latest available data from Graduate Careers Australia. This is the lowest rate since the data was first collected in 1982. In one bright spot, the data does show law graduates continue to enjoy a better employment rate than the average bachelor-degree graduate.
600 APPLICATIONS FOR FOUR TO SIX CLERK POSITIONS
The problem of law graduate oversupply has led to extraordinary competition for summer clerk and graduate positions at law firms.
Global firm Clifford Chance received nearly 600 applicants when it advertised for four to six clerk local positions this summer.
This is up from about 200 applications the firm received when it first opened in Sydney and Perth in 2011, said Clifford Chance managing partner of Sydney Mark Pistilli, although he acknowledged it may in part be due to increased awareness of the firm in Australia.
Summer clerks, colloquially known as "Christmas beetles", work over summer and roll into the graduate program the following year.
"Law firms can't employ an unlimited number of graduates, and on the other side universities are making money by selling (a legal education)," Mr Pistilli said.
"The general consensus is that something needs to be done on the supply side unless people are of the view that law degrees are good humanities degrees."
While elements of a law degree were generally useful - such as knowledge of the Constitution - that didn't apply to all aspects, such as the intricacies of presenting a court case, he said.
"It's a very big investment [if it is considered] a humanities degree. Certain elements are good but I don't know if it's worth a four or five year commitment, both socially and on an individual level."
REALITY HITS HOME HALFWAY THROUGH STUDIES
The unprecedented competition for graduate law jobs does not really hit home until the students are half-way through their studies, according to Alexander Bell-Rowe, the vice-president of the Australian Law Students' Association.
"Most younger students, as well as most prospective students, are not aware of the sheer gravity of the issue until they start applying for graduate positions, or people in their direct network do," he said.
"There is still an expectation amongst students that graduating with a law degree assures one to a job as a lawyer."
LAW FIRMS HAVE THEIR PICK OF GRADUATES
He said that the level of competition means students have to go to extreme lengths to stand out when applying for positions.
"It is very difficult to get a graduate position, particularly in larger, corporate firms, without having something that stands out strongly about yourself, be it grades (or) extracurricular activities," he said.
"Many firms also require, or deeply favour, a level of legal employment experience, which can be extremely difficult to attain without contacts, as part-time or casual legal work is very rare.
Law student Neeharika Maddula, who is also editor of law student support site survivelaw.com, is more positive about her future prospects.
"It may well be that it's a difficult time to be a law student but I think it's also an exciting time," she said.
"We're seeing people use their law degrees and legal knowledge in new and interesting ways, disrupting the market and creating their own jobs."
The difficulty in finding legal work is compounding the stress of students and graduates and leading to the rise of extended unpaid internships.
In one highly-publicised case, Adelaide law firm Adlawgroup attempted to introduce a program that would see junior lawyers pay a fee of $22,000 for a work experience program before backing down in the face of pressure from industry bodies.
The employment rate data does not give a direct indication of what specific kind of job the graduate was working in and the percentage of students seeking work in a law firm that actually secured this type of work.
Email: ed.tadros@fairfaxmedia.com.au
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我乖乖的生日三餐:Waffle,Tortellini,Galbi-jjim,Budge-jjigae (2024-10-8) ayeeda 
发表于 2015-10-23 08:18
