India has long had an affinity for the profession of law. During the early 1900s, leaders like Mahatma Gandhi, Dr. Rajendra Prasad and Dr. B.R Ambedkar had popularized law as a profession. They inspired subsequent generations to follow in their footsteps. While law has tremendous potential to flourish in India, there is a dearth of available knowledge about law schools which hinders the youth from taking a considered decision. In order to fill this gap, Corporate Citizen commissioned an exclusive survey, conducted by leading market research consultancy firm i3RC Insights Pvt ltd, so that aspiring law students can use this information and take a plunge into one of the noblest professions in the world
In the last decade or so, there is a renewed interest in law as a profession. Today, there are about 1500 Law colleges approved by Bar Council of India. However, the quality of education imparted at various colleges vary.
The National Law School of India University, based in Bengaluru, has emerged as the best college for law education in India. It is followed by 'The National Law University' and the 'Campus Law Centre', both in Delhi. The top 10 colleges are based in Bengaluru, Delhi, Hyderabad, Pune, Bhopal, Kolkata and Jodhpur. While the quality of education in the top 50 colleges in India is good and can match global standards, there are a large number of sub-par colleges in India which impacts the overall quality of law education. The dropout rate amongst students is also very high.
While there are many challenges, there is also a tremendous opportunity and a bright future for law in India.
India is a young country. Over 50% of the population is below the age of 25 and 65% is below the age of 35. The present and the future of the country are going to be guided by the Indian youth. However, they must be well-equipped in order to make India a better place to live in. Understanding of the law is a must for that to happen. In recent times, the law has reinstated its image amongst the youth as an aspiring and change-bringing profession and the striking off of Section 377 is a testimony to that. However, there is still a lack of information about the state of law education in India. It was important to bridge this gap in order to encourage more students to take up law as a profession.
A structured fact sheet was developed and shared with all targeted Law colleges. Over 700 law colleges were sent the factual data questionnaire and then rigorously followed up through different modes such as telephone, and email.
A total of over 1000 interviews were conducted with various stakeholders across 14 cities viz Delhi-NCR, Mumbai, Chennai, Kolkata, Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Ahmedabad, Chandigarh, Pune, Bhopal, Lucknow, Bhubaneswar, Raipur and Guwahati. Respondents were chosen from recruiters, law college faculties, aspiring and current students, their parents and alumni. Law colleges too were asked to fill in detailed and structured fact sheets. These included questions regarding teaching methods, faculty, infrastructure and many other aspects that are important for a law college to groom good lawyers.
The research study had four major modules i.e. Desk Research, Factual survey (Participatory Survey), Perceptual survey and Expert Interviews.
However, since it is not possible to get a completely exhaustive list of colleges and include them in the survey, an option was provided for any new colleges to get covered in the survey if their name was mentioned by the respondents.
More than 700 law colleges were sent the factual data questionnaire and then rigorously followed up through different modes such as telephone, email and even face-to-face if required.
A perceptual survey was conducted with different stakeholders, i.e. law students, Law faculty, Law practitioners and aspiring law students. A structural questionnaire was developed and administered to respondents to gauge their perceptions about various law institutions in India. The sample selection was done using convenience sampling method though the sample was spread out geographically to get better representation.
A sample survey of 1000 was conducted across 14 cities viz Delhi-NCR, Mumbai, Chennai, Kolkata, Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Ahmedabad, Chandigarh, Pune, Bhopal, Lucknow, Bhubaneswar, Raipur and Guwahati. The geographical spread of the sample was ensured by selecting multiple starting points spread across the cities.
The collected data was then used to arrive at an index score for each college. This was the Experiential Survey, the recruiters of corporate and law firms, young lawyers and experts like judges, established lawyers and law college faculties.
The other type of respondents in the surveys were aspiring and existing law students, their parents and faculties of law institutes. This was the Perceptual survey.
Two groups of respondents were interviewed to show both sides of the coin. This was instrumental in reaching a more holistic conclusion rather than a biased one and to mediate a balanced answer, taking into consideration both party’s opinions.
The law colleges that were surveyed and questioned are affiliated with the Bar Council of India and some were affiliated with the State Governments.
The law colleges surveyed were evaluated on multiple parameters. This was done so that an overall and fair evaluation was conducted of the college. On the basis of these parameters, all the colleges were divided into three major categories - Good, Average and Below Par. The percentage of Below Par colleges was nearly equal to the cumulative percentages of Good and Average colleges.
Law Colleges in Central India excel in basic teaching practices and East Indian colleges in value added practices, while North India lags behind in the delivery of exclusive teaching practices
CLAT and own admission tests are the two most accepted mediums for selection of students. These entrance tests are then further followed by personal interviews and group discussions in certain colleges.
Good COLLEGES: Good colleges either accept CLAT scores or have their own admission tests. The cut-offs for these CLAT scores are very high so that the colleges can find those students who are strong in academics and are serious towards the pursuit of law profession. Some colleges even conduct personal interviews and group discussion rounds, or either one of them.
Average COLLEGES: Most average colleges accept CLAT scores while a few conduct their own admission tests. The cut offs in these colleges for their own admission tests are much lower than those of good colleges. Quite a lot of average colleges conduct personal interview and group discussion rounds, the cut-offs for which are low.
Below Par COLLEGES: Below Par colleges have low CLAT and admission tests cut off scores. There is a certain emphasis on personal interviews wherein the selection process is more subjective.
If seen in terms of regions, majority of the law colleges in North India conduct their own admission tests while those in Eastern India have shown preference for personal interviews. Most of the law colleges in West and South India are alike in their acceptance of CLAT scores.
There are two types in law courses — 3 year courses and 5 year courses. There is drastic difference in the dropout rates of each. Three year courses have more dropout rates while 5 year courses have lesser dropout rates.
There are three logical factors behind the reason for dropout:
Lesser serious students might have opted for 3 year courses and if they were unhappy with the curriculum or the faculty, they might have dropped out.
Law education needs a major boost in quality. Barring the top few colleges, the rest of the law colleges in India need infrastructural and academic makeovers so that they are at par with global law colleges. There is a drastic gap between the best law colleges and the rest of them
The respondents of the survey have cumulatively considered Teaching Quality, Faculty and Academic Excellence as the most important parameters when evaluating a law college. Law education in India is still driven by basic pay-offs. Colleges focus more on imparting basic textbook knowledge; parameters like Global Exposure and Industry Interactions still have to pave a way to be considered in the same vicinity as teaching and academics.
When it comes to syllabus, most colleges have admitted that they do not update their syllabus every 5 years. While a good percentage of colleges update their syllabus regularly, the majority of law students are being given taught outdated and irrelevant information.
On discussion with experts and on the basis of information gathered, teaching practices were divided into three portions:
Good colleges put the maximum amount of effort when it comes to basic teaching practices like classroom teaching, court visits and interactions with District Court judges and advocates, and value added practices like role plays, quizzes, virtual classroom teaching and interactions with High Court advocates and judges. The effort is more spread across all these practices which ensure the overall development of students. Only the best of the best colleges are able to provide exclusive experiences like live projects and interactions with Supreme Court judges and advocates.
Average colleges put in lesser hours in overall teaching effort. The basic teaching practices by them upto mark but they lack in providing value added practices.
Below Par Colleges put in the least amount of teaching effort as they struggle to give good quality of basic teaching practices. Their main focus is on classroom teaching and their ability to provide exposure to other types of practices is minimal.
Regionally, law colleges in Central India excel in basic teaching practices and East Indian colleges in value added practices, while North India lags behind in the delivery of exclusive teaching practices.
Overall, the basic teaching practices promised by law colleges are mostly delivered but there is an astronomical difference in the promise and delivery of value added and exclusive practices.
There are various other academic and extra-curricular practices which cannot be included in the mainstream teaching practices. These have been divided into two parts: Value Added and Alumni based.
Activities like seminars, panels, workshops and exchange programmed are considered value added while alumni meets, alumni magazines come under alumni based.
Most of the law colleges practice these but the satisfaction derived is very less as compared to the frequency they are carried out.
Focus on research is minimal currently. The average number of research papers published by law college faculties is only 16. The average amount of expenditure for these purposes is less too.
Faculties across all colleges have a majority of teachers and professors with Master’s degree. A few percentages have LLBS while a meagre 11% have PhDs. Apart from the best law colleges, the teachers in the rest of the colleges do not have expertise in the knowledge that they teach and are only able to impart basic knowledge to students. The number of students-per-faculty ratio is 27 i.e. for every 27 students, there is one professor.
Majority of the colleges have their Alumni limited to District Court and Local courts with very less of them making it to High Court or Supreme Court. It is also observed that corporate firms and law firms take students only from top colleges. Good colleges keep better track of their alumni as compared to smaller colleges.
Technology and education create a powerful combination which when applied in the right manner, can retrieve wondrous results. Indian law colleges have come a long way in terms of infrastructure but when compared to the global scenario, they still need a lot of improvement. Internet connections and online facilities like e-books are not easily available in Indian law colleges.
There are many pros in choosing to study law in India. Some of them are
India still has to improve on the following parameters vis a vis law education.
Law education needs a major boost in quality. Barring the top few colleges, the rest of the law colleges in India need infrastructural and academic makeovers so that they are at par with global law colleges. There is a drastic gap between the best law colleges and the rest of them.
These need gaps are the major reasons behind the mediocrity of the majority of law colleges. Faculties in most colleges do not have specialized knowledge in their subjects and they do not take extra efforts to impart good education to their students. They just take their lectures and leave. The fee structure in colleges is very high as compared to the quality of education offered to them. There is emphasis on only textbook knowledge and practical opportunities are less.
All is not dark and gloomy; there are positive aspects to the current scenario too. Students are using the ubiquity of information and hence are more updated with current happenings in the law field. Students are getting more exposure in terms of internships and interactions.
India has tremendous potential for the legal profession to flourish. With some efforts, bright young minds can be attracted and nurtured in the legal field and India as a whole can benefit from their judicious contributions to law and order.
By neeraj.varty
