Trending Toward Tenure-Track

A quick analysis of the advertised 2009-2010 clinical faculty positions indicates the academy is trending toward offering clinicians employment on a tenure-track basis. According to my calculations, approximately 62% of the advertised positions are tenure-track. Specifically, 21 of the 34 faculty positions are listed as tenure-track. The remaining faculty positions include:

2 clinical track,
6 contract attorney positions (2 Multi-Year Renewable, 1 Long-Term, 1 Renewable, 1 Contract Clinical Faculty, 1 Look-See Visiting Appointment)
3 do not specify employment status, and
2 are listed as non-tenure track.

Moreover, if the 2 clinical track positions hold true to the commonly accepted “Clinical Track” definition as being substantially similar to tenure pursuant to ABA Standard 405(c), affording "full-time clinical faculty members a form of security reasonably similar to tenure," that raises the percentage to about 71%. This same argument applies to the 2 multi-year renewable contract positions, which then raises the percentage of tenure-track, or reasonably similar to tenure, positions to just about 73.5%.

Thus, the 4 that do not specify employment status, 4 of the 6 contract positions, and the 2 non-tenure track schools will find they are competing in a market overwhelmingly offering tenure-track or "reasonably similar to tenure" employment.

It is also possible the schools that do not specify employment status may in fact offer tenure-track employment, or otherwise comply with 405(c). Similarly, the contract attorney positions may in fact all be long-term or multi-year renewable contracts. In any event, the trend is clear. -jl