Prevailing Wage for Law Teachers, Postsecondary
Prevailing wage for Law Teachers, Postsecondary (SOC 25-1112) is set by the DOL using regional Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics surveys. Whether your offer is for an Adjunct Professor, Assistant Professor, or Clinical Law Professor, the floor varies by city and by one of four experience levels DOL assigns to each sponsored position.
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Entry-level postsecondary law instructors with limited classroom experience, typically in their first sponsored academic appointment. DOL expects routine course delivery under close faculty supervision, with a narrow scope of independent research or curriculum authority.
The most common filing level for Law Teachers, Postsecondary. Covers qualified instructors with moderate independent teaching loads, some scholarly output, and recognized standing in a legal specialty area, but without senior faculty rank or department leadership.
Experienced associate or full professors with a sustained publication record, committee responsibilities, or clinical program oversight. DOL expects this level to reflect demonstrated expertise and meaningful independence in curriculum design or law clinic administration.
Fully competent senior faculty, typically tenured professors, endowed chair holders, or those directing a law school center or clinic. DOL assigns this level to positions requiring top-of-field expertise and carrying institution-wide academic or administrative authority.
Prevailing Wage for Law Teachers, Postsecondary by OES area
Each shape is a DOL OES area, the unit prevailing wage is published for.
What’s an OES area?
The Department of Labor publishes prevailing wages for geographic zones called OES areas. Every U.S. county belongs to exactly one, and the wage floor applies across the whole area. A worker in Oakland gets the San Francisco metro wage, not a separate Oakland wage.
Top 10 cities · Level 1
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See which U.S. employers are actively hiring for Law Teachers, Postsecondary and sponsoring H-1B, OPT, and green card visas at or above the prevailing wage.
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Confirm which law school rank your role maps to
Adjunct Professor and Visiting Instructor titles often get filed at Level 1 even when the position carries a full course load and research expectations closer to Level 2. Verify the filing level matches your actual duties before signing.
Watch for markets with unusually wide city spreads
The prevailing wage for law faculty swings sharply between metros. Knoxville and Houston post notably higher L1 floors than Cincinnati or Orlando, so a lateral move between law schools can shift your compliance threshold by tens of thousands of dollars.
Exclude summer stipends from base wage calculations
Law school summer research grants and course-overload stipends are typically discretionary and cannot be counted toward the prevailing wage floor. Only guaranteed base salary counts, so confirm how your offer letter structures these payments.
Use Migrate Mate to find law schools with sponsorship history
Law school sponsorship patterns vary widely by institution type. Migrate Mate shows which employers have sponsored Law Teachers, Postsecondary positions before, letting you focus on schools that have already navigated the H-1B or green card process for this role.
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Find Jobs for Law Teachers, PostsecondaryPrevailing Wage by Reported Job Title
DOL classifies these titles under SOC 25-1112.00 alongside Law Teachers, Postsecondary, so the same four-tier wage schedule applies to each. Tap a title to see the full breakdown.
Adjunct Professor Prevailing Wage
Adjunct Professor Prevailing Wage
Adjunct Professor positions fall under SOC 25-1112.00 (Law Teachers, Postsecondary). DOL OFLC publishes one four-tier prevailing wage schedule for the entire classification; employers filing H-1B, E-3, or PERM petitions for this title use the levels below.
Assistant Professor Prevailing Wage
Assistant Professor Prevailing Wage
When a U.S. employer sponsors a Assistant Professor for a work visa or green card, DOL applies the prevailing wage schedule for SOC 25-1112.00 (Law Teachers, Postsecondary). Wage level reflects the role's experience and responsibility, not the title itself.
Associate Professor Prevailing Wage
Associate Professor Prevailing Wage
Associate Professor is an O*NET-reported job title within SOC 25-1112.00 (Law Teachers, Postsecondary). All roles in this SOC share the same prevailing wage tiers. The level an employer files at depends on what the role requires, not which title is used.
Business Law Professor Prevailing Wage
Business Law Professor Prevailing Wage
Business Law Professor positions fall under SOC 25-1112.00 (Law Teachers, Postsecondary). DOL OFLC publishes one four-tier prevailing wage schedule for the entire classification; employers filing H-1B, E-3, or PERM petitions for this title use the levels below.
Clinical Law Professor Prevailing Wage
Clinical Law Professor Prevailing Wage
When a U.S. employer sponsors a Clinical Law Professor for a work visa or green card, DOL applies the prevailing wage schedule for SOC 25-1112.00 (Law Teachers, Postsecondary). Wage level reflects the role's experience and responsibility, not the title itself.
Instructor Prevailing Wage
Instructor Prevailing Wage
Instructor is an O*NET-reported job title within SOC 25-1112.00 (Law Teachers, Postsecondary). All roles in this SOC share the same prevailing wage tiers. The level an employer files at depends on what the role requires, not which title is used.
Law Instructor Prevailing Wage
Law Instructor Prevailing Wage
Law Instructor positions fall under SOC 25-1112.00 (Law Teachers, Postsecondary). DOL OFLC publishes one four-tier prevailing wage schedule for the entire classification; employers filing H-1B, E-3, or PERM petitions for this title use the levels below.
Law Professor Prevailing Wage
Law Professor Prevailing Wage
When a U.S. employer sponsors a Law Professor for a work visa or green card, DOL applies the prevailing wage schedule for SOC 25-1112.00 (Law Teachers, Postsecondary). Wage level reflects the role's experience and responsibility, not the title itself.
Legal Writing Professor Prevailing Wage
Legal Writing Professor Prevailing Wage
Legal Writing Professor is an O*NET-reported job title within SOC 25-1112.00 (Law Teachers, Postsecondary). All roles in this SOC share the same prevailing wage tiers. The level an employer files at depends on what the role requires, not which title is used.
Professor Prevailing Wage
Professor Prevailing Wage
Professor positions fall under SOC 25-1112.00 (Law Teachers, Postsecondary). DOL OFLC publishes one four-tier prevailing wage schedule for the entire classification; employers filing H-1B, E-3, or PERM petitions for this title use the levels below.
Frequently Asked Questions
How does DOL set the prevailing wage for Law Teachers, Postsecondary?
DOL uses Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics data collected by the Bureau of Labor Statistics across hundreds of metropolitan areas. For SOC 25-1112, it calculates four wage levels based on the distribution of wages reported for postsecondary law faculty in each region. Employers sponsoring a visa must request a prevailing wage determination from OFLC or use the OFLC Wage Search tool to identify the applicable floor before filing an LCA.
What do the four wage levels mean and how do I know which applies to me?
DOL ties each level to experience and job complexity. Level 1 covers entry-level instructors under supervision; Level 2 covers qualified faculty working independently, which is where most law school H-1B filings land; Level 3 covers experienced faculty with established records; Level 4 covers fully competent senior or tenured professors. The employer determines the level based on the actual duties and qualifications required for the specific position, not just the candidate's credentials.
Why does the prevailing wage for the same law faculty role vary so much by city?
DOL's wage floors are built from regional OES surveys, so they reflect local academic labor markets rather than a national average. The LCA rules require employers to use the wage for the metropolitan area where the faculty member will actually teach, not the school's main address. Markets with concentrated research universities and higher cost of living, such as Boston, tend to produce higher floors than smaller metro areas, which is why the gap between the highest and lowest-paying metros for this occupation is substantial.
What happens if my job offer is below the prevailing wage for a sponsored position?
An employer cannot legally certify an LCA to DOL if the offered wage is below the applicable prevailing wage. If USCIS or DOL discovers a wage violation after approval, the employer may face debarment, back-pay liability, and civil penalties. For the sponsored worker, a petition filed on an uncertified or miscertified LCA can be denied or revoked. The prevailing wage is a hard floor, not a benchmark to approximate.
How do I find and verify the prevailing wage for a specific Law Teachers, Postsecondary position in my target city?
The most direct method is the OFLC Wage Search tool, which lets you look up the current DOL wage by SOC code and metropolitan area. Select SOC 25-1112 and enter the worksite metro to see all four level wages. For sponsored positions, the employer's certified LCA also shows the wage level and offered wage. Migrate Mate can help you identify which employers have historically sponsored law faculty roles so you can focus your search on institutions already familiar with the process.
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