Law school faculty hiring

[Anonymous]

I am a biglaw associate with the credentials to eventually make me competitive for a law school faculty job. First I’d need to do a visiting assistant professor job, and was planning to apply next year. I’m just concerned about all these cutbacks and hiring freezes at universities due to the NIH and NSF cuts. How much will that affect law schools, which don’t rely on research funding. I don’t want to ditch biglaw only to find that no law schools are hiring.

[Anonymous]

Perhaps you've done your research but here is a summary of the typical paths to teaching law: https://www.law.uchicago.edu/careerservices/pathstolawteaching

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Perhaps you've done your research but here is a summary of the typical paths to teaching law: https://www.law.uchicago.edu/careerservices/pathstolawteaching

Yup, I have. I’m on a pretty good path but need to do a visiting gig first because I don’t have a PhD. Just wondering whether to go down this path if the job market will be so bleak.

[Anonymous]

PP's article is very good. It shows that just being BigLaw (and especially just being a BigLaw associate) doesn't come close to qualifying for being a professor.

Without clerking for the SC or a high level Federal judge, or getting an LLM, then you really need to start publishing.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I am a biglaw associate with the credentials to eventually make me competitive for a law school faculty job. First I’d need to do a visiting assistant professor job, and was planning to apply next year. I’m just concerned about all these cutbacks and hiring freezes at universities due to the NIH and NSF cuts. How much will that affect law schools, which don’t rely on research funding. I don’t want to ditch biglaw only to find that no law schools are hiring.

I'm in a non science dept of a local university (not in the law school). The cutting of grant funding is affecting the entire university. Effectively a hiring freeze across the board unless the school can demonstrate huge need for the position. The university is losing a ton of money which means the university needs to save money overall, and it can't all come from the science depts.

If a university has a big teaching need, they'll still hire. But first they're doing what they can to hire as little as possible (larger classes, use of adjuncts rather than newly hired FT faculty, etc.)

[Anonymous]

Becoming a professor is already a long shot. Get your ducks in a row while working, then decide. Who knows where the state of funding will be by the time you have the credentials to get a job.

[Anonymous]

With respect, you are not plausibly competitive, because if you were, you wouldn't be asking the question here. You'd be talking to your PhD advisor or a law school prof mentor or your judge or justice or his clerks a few years older.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:With respect, you are not plausibly competitive, because if you were, you wouldn't be asking the question here. You'd be talking to your PhD advisor or a law school prof mentor or your judge or justice or his clerks a few years older.

Yes, judges have their fingers on the pulse of law school budget offices.

[Anonymous]

What are your credentials that would make you competitive? Have you taught or published?

I have a few friends who are now tenured or tenure tracked professors and did so coming from years of legal practice. They published regularly and taught at least one class a season before they got their first tenure track job. I’m assuming you have a similar background?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:What are your credentials that would make you competitive? Have you taught or published?

I have a few friends who are now tenured or tenure tracked professors and did so coming from years of legal practice. They published regularly and taught at least one class a season before they got their first tenure track job. I’m assuming you have a similar background?

OP here. Without getting too specific, I have clerkships that make me competitive. I’ve also published two articles in good law reviews while practicing. I definitely need to do a VAP before going on the tenure track market because I lack a PhD. Just wondering if the whole gambit is worth it if law schools will stop hiring for the next four years.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:What are your credentials that would make you competitive? Have you taught or published?

I have a few friends who are now tenured or tenure tracked professors and did so coming from years of legal practice. They published regularly and taught at least one class a season before they got their first tenure track job. I’m assuming you have a similar background?

OP here. Without getting too specific, I have clerkships that make me competitive. I’ve also published two articles in good law reviews while practicing. I definitely need to do a VAP before going on the tenure track market because I lack a PhD. Just wondering if the whole gambit is worth it if law schools will stop hiring for the next four years.

I’m the PP above, u don’t need a VAP, just publish more and teach a class already. Financially that makes more sense than doing a VAP which pay very little. Try to jump in immediately into a tenure track position. Neither my professor friends had a PhD. Just a lot of practical, prestigious work experience, published articles and teaching a course. Go ahead and jump into the market and if ur getting bites ask them the questions u have. U can always turn down an offer if u realize it’s not for u.

FWIW, I am also considering pivoting to full time academia without some of the things that make you competitive but I’m already teaching and in the academic world so I can see a lot of the positions opening up before they are advertised publicly. So far there are no changes yet but I don’t doubt that there are but it would be hard to know that now.

Good luck!

[Anonymous]

Big law associates are a dime a dozen. Schools such as AU WCL and Catholic may be interested in hiring you as an untenured adjunct legal writing instructor. However, it will be difficult for you to get hired as a tenure track law professor. You need to stand out somehow.

[Anonymous]

Publish more, OP. Do an adjunct gig or two teaching a class per semester. If you aren’t speaking at conferences, do that as well.

[Anonymous]

Do you have a high ranking law school degree? Other degrees? Also, are you currently near a high ranking law school where you could start teaching some glasses as an adjunct?

I have a friend who started by teaching (non law) a class at NYU in addition to holding down a job. The class was popular so they re-upped her. She has grown her visibility this way.

It's also good that you are publishing. Speaking, as someone else said, is also another area to help you stand out.

I think if you keep "adding to the pile" of your accomplishments, that will write your viability more than funding.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Big law associates are a dime a dozen. Schools such as AU WCL and Catholic may be interested in hiring you as an untenured adjunct legal writing instructor. However, it will be difficult for you to get hired as a tenure track law professor. You need to stand out somehow.

They will hire alumni before they hire a random person.