Legal Professions and Studies graduates earn $57,149 four years out. The middle 50% of earners fall between $38,638 and $78,857. Where you land depends on specialization, employer, and how far you advance in the field.
This page covers Legal Professions and Studies as a course of study: what it costs, where it is taught, and what graduates go on to earn. It sits inside the wider field of Legal Studies and how it pays overall, which is the better comparison if you are still choosing between subjects.
Legal Professions and Studies is a focused area of study within Legal Studies. Pick this and you can expect to earn around $57,149 four years out, a solid return for a focused credential. You will not have trouble finding it: 92 colleges offer this program, from community colleges to research universities. About 2,229 students complete it each year, most walking away with a master's. The curriculum blends analytical and applied coursework aimed at the workplace.
Four years after finishing Legal Professions and Studies, a typical graduate earns $57,149, near the national median for college graduates. Half of earners land somewhere between $38,638 and $78,857, so where you end up depends on the job and the employer. Do not judge the field on a starting paycheck alone: pay tends to jump in the first few years, climbing from $37,766 at one year out to $57,149 by year four. Source: College Scorecard.
What that figure means in practice depends on what the degree cost to get, which is a matter of lifetime earnings against total outlay.
Starting salaries only. Earnings in this field grow substantially in the first 3 to 5 years.
Near the national median for college graduates.
Median of per-school medians. Each reporting college counts equally, regardless of size.
Not every Legal Professions and Studies graduate ends up in the same place. Earnings spread out widely, so know what pushes people to one end or the other. Industry and seniority explain most of the spread. Finance, consulting, and strategy roles pull the top end up; operations and administrative roles sit at the bottom.
Solid ROI. At median 4-year earnings of $57,149 and an estimated $108,104 four-year net cost, the typical graduate reaches earnings breakeven in roughly 4.0 years.
Based on outcomes from 36 schools. Colleges with fewer than 30 graduates are excluded from national averages.
Of the 2,229 students who complete Legal Professions and Studies programs each year, the majority (49%) earn a master's degree. The breakdown below shows the full credential distribution.
This degree does not lock you into one job. Legal Professions and Studies graduates show up in 8 different occupations, and Lawyer pays the most at $159,670/yr median. Expand any card below to see daily responsibilities, in-demand skills, and 10-year growth projections.
The best-paid of these is what a Lawyer earns and how fast the role is growing, though entry requirements vary across the list.
Not sure where to study Legal Professions and Studies? These 20 colleges graduate the most students in it each year. Scroll right to compare acceptance rate, net price, and median earnings side by side.
Ranked by score, that list starts with the cost and outcomes at University of Southern California, and the rest follow the same measures.
| # | College | Graduates | Acceptance | Net Price/yr | Earnings 10yr |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | University of Southern California Los Angeles, CA · Nonprofit | 307 | 9.8% | $32,740 | $92,498 |
| 2 | University of Arizona Tucson, AZ · Public | 200 | 86.1% | $16,674 | $59,979 |
| 3 | Regent University Virginia Beach, VA · Nonprofit | 172 | 38.1% | $19,923 | $44,498 |
| 4 | Northwestern University Evanston, IL · Nonprofit | 107 | 7.7% | $29,167 | $89,363 |
| 5 | Fordham University Bronx, NY · Nonprofit | 80 | 59.3% | $44,338 | $85,569 |
| 6 | Tulane University of Louisiana New Orleans, LA · Nonprofit | 79 | 14% | $39,949 | $63,268 |
| 7 | St. Thomas University Miami Gardens, FL · Nonprofit | 77 | 97.9% | $26,312 | $54,272 |
| 8 | University of Kansas Lawrence, KS · Public | 51 | 93.5% | $18,059 | $61,945 |
| 9 | University of Pennsylvania Philadelphia, PA · Nonprofit | 48 | 5.4% | $28,699 | $111,371 |
| 10 | Roger Williams University Bristol, RI · Nonprofit | 48 | 87.7% | $37,999 | $70,266 |
| 11 | Montclair State University Montclair, NJ · Public | 41 | 87.9% | $15,566 | $61,415 |
| 12 | Arizona State University Campus Immersion Tempe, AZ · Public | 40 | 89.9% | $14,967 | $62,668 |
| 13 | University of California-Los Angeles Los Angeles, CA · Public | 40 | 9% | $12,548 | $82,511 |
| 14 | Loyola University Chicago Chicago, IL · Nonprofit | 36 | 81.6% | $36,079 | $71,530 |
| 15 | Pennsylvania Western University California, PA · Public | 33 | 94.3% | $18,256 | $47,295 |
| 16 | Ball State University Muncie, IN · Public | 31 | 85.5% | $14,940 | $51,833 |
| 17 | New York University New York, NY · Nonprofit | 29 | 9.2% | $37,050 | $82,509 |
| 18 | Temple University Philadelphia, PA · Public | 28 | 80.4% | $28,198 | $63,727 |
| 19 | Yeshiva University New York, NY · Nonprofit | 28 | 55.6% | $49,965 | $71,353 |
| 20 | William & Mary Williamsburg, VA · Public | 26 | 34.1% | $19,096 | $73,490 |
Ranked by Legal Professions and Studies graduate volume. Scroll right to compare key stats. Read our methodology →
Decide with data, not guesswork. These tools turn the numbers on this page into a personal plan. Estimate the real cost of a Legal Professions and Studies program, compare colleges side-by-side, weigh the long-term payoff, and find schools that match your profile.
See if a Legal Professions and Studies degree pays off. Weighs each college's cost against the earnings its graduates actually see.
Enter a budget and see the colleges whose net price fits, with the out-of-pocket cost and likely loan load for each.
Put any 2–4 colleges side-by-side. Admissions, cost, outcomes, and earnings, all on one screen, no tab-hopping.
Answer six quick questions and see your best-fit colleges ranked by budget, field of study, and what matters most to you.
The data on Legal Professions and Studies shows 3 measurable strengths and 2 real trade-offs. All points are sourced from College Scorecard earnings, BLS projections, and IPEDS graduate counts.
The highest-earning college major out-pays the lowest by a factor of two and a half. The full ranking of all 38 fields by median graduate earnings, with job growth alongside.
A popular claim holds that the applied engineering-tech degree pays more than the theoretical one. Across every program, engineering wins by about $10,000.
Across 88 STEM programs the top one out-earns the bottom by $65,000 a year. Operations research pays $122,531; environmental design pays $57,461.
Browse our full directory: every college, major, program, and career we track, all built from verified government data.
Scout uses AI and can make mistakes. Verify important numbers on the page.
