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Assistant Dean Kenny Tatum sees some bright spots in employment report


A report released by the National Association for Law Placement, Inc. (NALP) indicated that the overall number of jobs obtained by law school graduates from the class of 2012 increased over the number of jobs obtained by graduates from the previous year. However, the class size was larger so the overall employment rate was 84.7% versus 85.6% the previous year.  "One of the things Penn State has emphasized in this challenging economy is keeping class sizes smaller so we can focus on helping our students find higher quality placement," said Assistant Dean of the Career Planning & Development Office (CPDO) Kenny Tatum.

Dean Tatum also pointed out that in addition to the higher overall number of jobs reported obtained by graduates, more jobs were found in private practice which is consistent with trends among Penn State Law graduates. "We have seen an increase in our graduates going to small firm practice jobs for the last several years," he said. Dean Tatum emphasized that CPDO is focusing on expanding opportunities for graduates at large firms. He cited the Philadelphia Recruiting Program as one example. 

The NALP report also indicated a modest increase in starting salaries. NALP's Executive Director said he continued to believe the job market for law graduates bottomed out with the class of 2011. Still Tatum said for students it's important to emphasize the basics. "CPDO offers recruitment programs, panel discussions with alumni in every sector, a website with more than 2,000 job postings per year, and  a wide array of one-on-one services. The work of finding the career that you want and are best suited for begins on day one of law school," he added.

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