Study: Gender gap in law students' goals
Kaplan found more men plan to enter politics than women after law school.
Kyla Segala
Issue date: 2/20/08 Section: News
More men than women who apply to law schools nationwide intend to run for political office, according to a December survey conducted by Kaplan Test Prep.
Forty-two percent of surveyed students reported they would "definitely" or "probably" run for political office in the future.
Fifty-two percent of men surveyed gave this response compared to 34 percent of women.
Despite the disparity in political aspirations, almost equal numbers of men and women attend law school.
The results are based on the responses of 1,949 students studying for the LSAT with Kaplan.
Surveys such as this one are conducted regularly throughout the year in order to give students insight into what their peers are thinking about law school admissions and the legal profession, said Glen Stohr, director of pre-law programs for Kaplan.
"Part of the reason that you see these numbers still lower overall is just because of history," Stohr said.
The profession of politics has traditionally been male-only, later becoming male-dominated when women won the right to vote in 1920, Stohr explained.
"This number comes on the heels of a historic presidential election featuring the first viable female candidate and a record number of females in Congress - 16 percent - and governorships across the country," said Russell Schaffer, the senior communications manager at Kaplan, in an e-mail.
Although the gender gap may seem large, it is actually quite small when considered in a historical context.
"Sixteen percent of Congress is female. It shows that trend may very well be continuing for a higher and higher number of women in politics," Stohr said. "If you go back just a few years it is an overwhelmingly male-dominated profession. I think we forget how recent a lot of these things are."
Many politicians have backgrounds in law. Twenty-five of the 43 U.S. presidents were lawyers and there is a skill set required for politicians that can be acquired in law school, Schaffer said.
Forty-two percent of surveyed students reported they would "definitely" or "probably" run for political office in the future.
Fifty-two percent of men surveyed gave this response compared to 34 percent of women.
Despite the disparity in political aspirations, almost equal numbers of men and women attend law school.
The results are based on the responses of 1,949 students studying for the LSAT with Kaplan.
Surveys such as this one are conducted regularly throughout the year in order to give students insight into what their peers are thinking about law school admissions and the legal profession, said Glen Stohr, director of pre-law programs for Kaplan.
"Part of the reason that you see these numbers still lower overall is just because of history," Stohr said.
The profession of politics has traditionally been male-only, later becoming male-dominated when women won the right to vote in 1920, Stohr explained.
"This number comes on the heels of a historic presidential election featuring the first viable female candidate and a record number of females in Congress - 16 percent - and governorships across the country," said Russell Schaffer, the senior communications manager at Kaplan, in an e-mail.
Although the gender gap may seem large, it is actually quite small when considered in a historical context.
"Sixteen percent of Congress is female. It shows that trend may very well be continuing for a higher and higher number of women in politics," Stohr said. "If you go back just a few years it is an overwhelmingly male-dominated profession. I think we forget how recent a lot of these things are."
Many politicians have backgrounds in law. Twenty-five of the 43 U.S. presidents were lawyers and there is a skill set required for politicians that can be acquired in law school, Schaffer said.
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