Academic Careers

While there are many paths to legal academia, the following broad guidelines reflect the key factors that typically determine success in the tenure-track research-focused legal academic market (for clinical teaching, see below). The most significant factor in securing a tenure-track position is the quality of the candidate’s academic writing. Increasingly, candidates for academic positions have written multiple papers by the time they enter the job market and may already have one or more publications on their resume. Therefore, finding opportunities to conduct research—whether as a student, post-graduate fellow, or as part of an advanced degree (such as a PhD)—is crucial.

Many candidates pursue a fellowship or a visiting assistant professorship before entering the job market to write research papers and gain teaching experience. In addition, PhD students with legal training have been increasingly successful in the legal academic market in recent years. Practical experience, when relevant to the candidate’s scholarly and teaching interests, can also be an important factor. Additional considerations include teaching experience, law journal positions, clerkships, and academic performance.

As you begin your journey into legal research, the most important step is to develop relationships with faculty who share your academic interests, whether through writing a substantial research paper, working as a research assistant, or other collaborations. These mentors are vital resources in a candidate’s academic trajectory, as they provide critical feedback on scholarly writing and serve as recommenders during the hiring process. Strong support from academic mentors is crucial for obtaining an academic position.

Job Market Materials

The key job market materials each candidate has to produce are: 

• Job Market Paper: The central research paper a candidate presents when applying for academic positions, showcasing their original contribution to the field.
• FAR form: The primary hiring form for the Association of American Law Schools (AALS), used by law schools to identify candidates. Applicant information, including candidates’ teaching interest, is collected and organized into a standardized format, then released to all law school hiring committees.
• CV listing a candidate’s academic positions, degrees, publications, working papers, and other relevant academic accomplishments.
• Research Agenda: A document outlining a candidate’s current research interests, future projects, and broader academic goals.
• Diversity Statement: A personal statement detailing a candidate’s commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion, with examples of how they have or plan to promote these values in their academic work and environment.

Law Teaching Timeline

Instead of applying directly to schools for entry-level teaching positions, candidates interested in law teaching register with the Association of American Law Schools (AALS) and complete the Faculty Appointment Register form on the AALS website by the required deadline (typically early August). This form is circulated to all law schools, which then contact candidates they wish to interview for a screening.

Hiring timelines vary each year, but with the widespread use of Zoom, schools have increasingly tended to contact candidates early in the academic year, with screening interviews beginning as early as September (or even late August). By this time, candidates should have their full set of job market materials prepared, including their job market paper. Ideally, they should also be ready to present their job market paper in an academic workshop and to answer questions about it. Candidates should also be able to specify their teaching interests, including core classes they wish to teach (such as constitutional law, torts, or business associations) and seminars on specific topics. These teaching interests, which closely relate to the candidate’s research areas, are typically listed in both the candidate’s CV and FAR form.

It is recommended that candidates contact the Academic Placement Committee (academicplacementcommittee@law.berkeley.edu) in the spring or summer before the year they plan to enter the job market, allowing the Committee ample time to organize mock interviews and practice job talks.

Below is a typical timeline for the academic job market:

• By Early August (check FAR submission deadline)
  Register for the Faculty Appointment Register (FAR). The FAR form is distributed to all hiring committees at U.S. law schools.
• September
  Screening interviews begin; schools often start scheduling within a week of FAR distribution dates, though some higher-ranked law schools may wait longer to screen candidates.
• October and onward
  Screening interviews continue; callback interviews and offers also begin.

The path to a career in clinical legal teaching combines practical legal experience with a commitment to education and mentorship. Most clinical professors begin as practicing attorneys, developing expertise in a specific area—such as criminal defense, immigration, or environmental law—that they will later bring into the classroom. This professional background is essential for guiding students through real-world legal scenarios and providing insights grounded in practice. Many aspiring clinical professors start by supervising students in legal clinics or externship programs, gaining hands-on experience in clinical pedagogy.

Unlike tenure-track research faculty positions, clinical teaching roles vary widely across law schools in structure, contract type, and expectations. Some clinical faculty are hired on short-term contracts that may be renewable, while others hold long-term or even tenure-track positions. Certain schools also require clinical professors to engage in scholarship, often with a focus on practical or policy-oriented work rather than theoretical research. 

There is no centralized hiring process for clinical faculty, so candidates must apply directly to individual law schools as positions become available. Information about these roles, including contract types and school-specific requirements, is often shared by the Association of American Law Schools (AALS) and the Clinical Legal Education Association (CLEA) through their events, workshops, and resources.

• Becoming a Law Teacher — Association of American Law Schools resource
• The Faculty Lounge — hiring announcements blog
• Brian Leiter’s Law School Reports — academia data and commentary
  • The new timetable of the law school hiring market (Sept. 24, 2024)
• PrawfsBlawg — academia data and commentary
  • Entry Level Hiring Report (May 14, 2024)

Berkeley Law Alumni Faculty Directory

Videos of Academic Placement Committee Programs

The above resources are password-protected and can be accessed using the same password as other CDO pages.