Vocational Index

Career

Law teachers, postsecondary

Teach law to future lawyers.

$128,500
Median pay
+2.6%
Job growth, 2025–35
1,800
Openings a year
Doctoral or professional degree
Typical education
7–8 years
Typical time after high school

Here's what you actually need to know.

The work

What people in this job do

  • Initiate, facilitate, and moderate classroom discussions.
  • Prepare course materials, such as syllabi, homework assignments, and handouts.
  • Compile, administer, and grade examinations, or assign this work to others.
  • Evaluate and grade students' class work, assignments, papers, and oral presentations.
  • Conduct research in a particular field of knowledge and publish findings in professional journals, books, or electronic media.

The outlook

How the forecast changed this year

2024–34 edition+2.2%2025–35 edition+2.6%
Projected 10-year growth in last year's and this year's BLS projections. 2,200 → 1,800 openings a year.

The deeper question

What kind of person does this path ask you to become?

What this work centers on

People & care
6.5
Ideas & analysis
5.3
Information & systems
3.7
Persuasion & leadership
3.5
Creation & expression
3.4
Objects & tools
2.4

O*NET interest profile, scored 1–7.

The work

Do you want most of your days spent on people & care, then ideas & analysis?

Responsibility

Are you willing to be the one responsible for this?

“Initiate, facilitate, and moderate classroom discussions.”

Development

What would you need to build over the next 5–10 years?

Speaking, Active Listening, Reading Comprehension, Learning Strategies.

Trade-offs

What does it ask of you in exchange?

7–8 years of education after high school (doctoral or professional degree), for a median of $128,500 a year and 1,800 openings nationally each year.

Paths in

Degrees that lead here

  • Human ResourcesSee the degree →
  • LawCIP 22.0101
  • Advanced Legal Research/Studies, GeneralCIP 22.0201
  • American/U.S. Law/Legal Studies/JurisprudenceCIP 22.0203
  • Canadian Law/Legal Studies/JurisprudenceCIP 22.0204
  • Banking, Corporate, Finance, and Securities LawCIP 22.0205

Paths across

Careers that use similar skills

Ask anything about this career.

“Would this make sense if I don't want to sit at a desk all day?” Answers will come from the sources on this page, with citations. Coming soon.

Not sure this fits who you are? Start with Vocational Finder →

Sources

  1. BLS Employment Projections, 2025–35, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Retrieved 2026-10-01.
  2. BLS Employment Projections, 2024–34 (archived), U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Retrieved 2026-10-01.
  3. O*NET 31.0 Database (August 2026), National Center for O*NET Development / U.S. Department of Labor. Retrieved 2026-10-01.
  4. CIP 2020 to SOC 2018 Crosswalk, NCES and BLS. Retrieved 2026-10-01.