Law Teaching

Yale Law School is the most successful institution in the world for educating future law professors. During their time at YLS, students have many opportunities to explore legal academia and scholarship. Our Law Teaching Program provides outstanding training, resources, and support for JD students, post-graduate fellows, and alumni interested in pursuing a career in law teaching including both academic and clinical positions.

The Law Teaching Series, held throughout the academic year, invites YLS professors and alumni to discuss a wide range of topics, including the advantages and disadvantages of pursuing an academic career, the publication of legal scholarship, pathways to clinical teaching, and the nuts and bolts of the law teaching market. The Works in Progress series gives student authors a chance to present their work to the Law School community with commentary by professors.

After students graduate, Yale Law School continues to support those interested in law teaching. A “moot camp” helps YLS alumni prepare their job talks, and a Law Teaching Placement Committee mentors and guides YLS alumni through the hiring process—from drafting application materials and conducting telephone moots of interviews and job presentations to negotiating offers and everything in between.

Explore Law Teaching

Preparing for a Career in Law Teaching

Explore the many paths to a career in academia

Transitioning to Academia

Learn about fellowships, advanced degrees and nontraditional ways to entering academia

Legal Scholarship

Find out about the legal scholarship needed to enter academia

Practice

Discover the amount and type of practice necessary for a career in academia
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At heart, Yale Law School is about a distinctive culture of intellectual curiosity about the law. We think good ideas matter. Our faculty and, most of all, our students live this idea every day.”

John Fabian Witt

Allen H. Duffy Class of 1960 Professor of Law; Class of 1999