FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
CARDOZO SCHOOL OF LAW’S RESIDENT ASSOCIATE MENTOR PROGRAM CREATES JOB OPPORTUNITIES FOR RECENT GRADUATES
January 21, 2016 -- NEW YORK, NY -- Cardozo School of Law’s innovative Resident Associate Mentor Program (RAMP) continues to build on its success, providing recent graduates with access to full-time associate jobs at small- and medium-sized law firms and corporate legal departments that do not typically hire new lawyers.
RAMP jobs offered to recent graduates have increased almost four-fold since 2013, when the program was created. In 2015, 130 employers partnered with Cardozo Law to offer jobs through RAMP, and to date, 33 students from the class of 2015 secured jobs through the program.
RAMP opens a market for recent graduates willing to work for fellowship salaries for one year. In exchange, they gain valuable experience that propels them into their next job. Resident associates perform the equivalent of associate work, building essential practice skills and working directly with clients while under the supervision of experienced practitioners.
Ariel Tacher graduated in 2014 and accepted a RAMP job with leading fashion company G-III Apparel Group. After she completed six months as a resident associate, she was offered a position as associate corporate counsel. Like Ariel, many graduates who enter RAMP accept jobs with that employer, and others have leveraged their experience to make a lateral move to other firms. Those who have “lateraled” have ended up at firms such as Fried Frank, Holland & Night, Steptoe & Johnson, Societe General and Blackstone.
In addition, many RAMP participants have seen a significant increase in their salary after their first year, with those graduates moving on to bigger firms earning $170,000 per year or more.
The success of the RAMP program can be seen in the below statistics:
RAMP Job Openings:
2013: 34
2014: 50
2015: 130
Placements of Recent Cardozo Grads:
Class of 2013: 20
Class of 2014: 24
Class of 2015: 33 to date
For information contact:
John DeNatale
Assistant Dean of Communications
212.790.0237