Pepperdine #10 in Nation for "Practical Training" --National Jurist

March 22, 2016 -- Professor Jeff Baker, Director of Clinical Programs, and Professor Jeremy Rosen, Director of the Ninth Circuit Appellate Advocacy Clinic, were quoted extensively in The National Jurist's annual rankings for "Best Law Schools for Practical Training." The National Jurist awarded Pepperdine an "A+" score, sufficient for a #10 ranking in the country and #2 in California after UC Irvine. The rankings are based on opportunities such as clinics, externships, simulation courses, and interschool competitions.

In the article, Baker, Rosen, and one of their former students, Sarah Gerdes, describe how practical training transforms students.

"The drop in law school enrollment has one silver lining, said. The students coming to law school today are 'coming very deliberately. ... They are not coming because it's a fallback plan or because they're seeking a ticket to a middle-class lifestyle.'" He goes on, "There's a shift. ... They realize they are working for a client and not their GPA. They realize someone's life is in their hands.'"

While recounting recent award-winning work with the Ninth Circuit Appellate Advocacy Clinic, Rosen -- a partner at Horvitz & Levy, the largest civil appellate firm in the country -- observed: "I see students become lawyers in front of my own eyes."

The article can be read on nxtbook.com. Baker and Rosen's comments begin on page 27.