CLAT Scope in Future - Placements, Salary, Career Opportunities

CLAT Scope in Future - Placements, Salary, Career Opportunities

Ongoing Event

CLAT Application Date:01 Aug' 25 - 31 Oct' 25

Sumeet SudarshanUpdated on 01 Dec 2024, 12:59 PM IST

Rising interest in law as a career among students directly translates to immense CLAT scope in future. This is because the Common Law Admission Test is one of the top law entrance exams in India and the gateway to elite law schools such as NLSIU Bengaluru and NALSAR Hyderabad, among others. CLAT scope in India can be gauged by the number of candidates appearing for the exam, and also the placement figures of top NLUs. While a graduation in law in itself opens many career opportunities, obtaining a law degree from one of the top NLUs makes CLAT a good career option that provides the initial thrust for a great future ahead. With the rise of legal fields such as technology and environmental law, the scope of CLAT in future is expanding.

This Story also Contains

  1. CLAT Exam Scope: Exam Statistics
  2. CLAT NLUs Rankings in India
  3. CLAT Scope in Future: NLUs Placements
  4. CLAT Scope and Career Opportunities
CLAT Scope in Future - Placements, Salary, Career Opportunities
CLAT Scope in Future (Image by KamranAydinov on Freepik)

At present 24 NLUs are participating in CLAT with over 3200+ and 1350+ CLAT seats on offer in 5-year LLB and LLM programmes respectively. Read on to gain insights on CLAT scope in the future, and whether CLAT is a good career option to go for.

CLAT Exam Scope: Exam Statistics

Given below are some figures on the CLAT seats on offer and the number of candidates appearing for CLAT over the last few years. The statistics show, an increasing number of students appearing for the exam, and also an increase in the number of seats. The rising numbers point to a good scope for CLAT in India. Last year close to 60000 candidates appeared for CLAT UG and over 10000 appeared for CLAT PG. The analysis of success rate in CLAT shows the success rate is around 5% in UG and 13% in CLAT PG when we compare the candidates with the available seats. This makes CLAT one of the most difficult and sought-after law entrance exams in India.

CLAT Exam Statistics

Particulars

2024

2023

20222021

Candidates appeared

58504 (UG)

10282 (PG)

42,766 (UG)

8,703 (PG)


56,472

53,532 (UG)


8,574 (PG)

Seats

3,200+ (UG)

1,300+ (PG)

2860+ (UG)

1160+ (PG)

2801 (UG)

1072 (PG)

2622 (UG)

808 (PG)


CLAT NLUs Rankings in India

As per the data from the HRD ministry, 10 NLUs that accept CLAT find a place in the NIRF law rankings 2023 among the top 30 law schools in the country. The high rankings of NLUs again reflect the importance of CLAT in the legal education landscape in India. The rankings are given in the table below.

CLAT NLUs NIRF Rankings 2023

CLAT Scope in Future: NLUs Placements

The scope of CLAT in future includes careers in various legal fields. Top NLUs regularly see visits by top companies and legal firms during their placement season. The after CLAT salary per month can vary widely based on the job and location. Given below are median salary figures for the top-ranked NLUs for UG and PG law programmes.

CLAT NLUs Placement Salary Data

NLU Name

Median Salary (UG) (in Rs.)Median Salary (PG) (in Rs.)

NLSIU Bengaluru

16 lakhs p.a.

8.25 lakhs p.a

NALSAR Hyderabad

16 lakhs p.a.

7 lakhs p.a.

WBNUJS Kolkata

16 lakhs p.a.

10 lakhs p.a.

GNLU Gandhinagar

15.40 lakhs p.a.

4.20 lakhs p.a.

NLIU Bhopal

18 lakhs p.a.

6 lakhs p.a

RGNUL Patiala

8.40 lakhs p.a.

6 lakhs p.a.

RMLNLU Lucknow

6.50 lakhs p.a.

5.50 lakhs p.a.

NUSRL Ranchi

10.07 lakhs p.a.

6 lakhs p.a.

NLUJA Assam

-

-

NLUO Cuttack

9 lakhs p.a.

6 lakhs p.a.

Note: An internship can help boost the after CLAT salary per month by providing valuable experience.

CLAT Scope and Career Opportunities

A law degree from a top law school can open up many career opportunities which makes CLAT a good career option. Some students aim for higher salary after CLAT by pursuing additional qualifications. Let’s understand the CLAT exam scope by looking at the job profiles available to students.

  • Legal Associate: Many top law firms recruit students from NLUs to be part of their legal team on attractive salaries. The average after CLAT salary per month increases with experience and specialization in law. These law firms have some top names as their clients and students get the opportunity to work on their cases.

  • PSU Recruitments through CLAT: Many Public Sector Undertakings (PSUs) also hire employees through the CLAT exam. The PSU recruitments through CLAT often see companies such as Power Grid Corporation, and National Thermal Power Corporation Limited (NTPC) among others recruit law officers through scores obtained in CLAT.

  • Corporate Lawyer: Other than law firms, top corporations and banks also have a legal team that supervises the company’s activities and regulatory compliance. Such lawyers working with companies are often referred to as corporate lawyers. They can work either as in-house corporate lawyers or as consultants.

  • Independent Practice: Many lawyers also choose to do independent practice. They fight cases on behalf of their clients in court. Such lawyers who represent clients in courts are known as advocates. To become an advocate in India, a law graduate has to clear the All India Bar Examination and obtain a Certificate of Practice (CoP)

  • Academics: Law students can also choose to pursue higher education such as PhD and enter the exciting field of academics where they teach budding lawyers and advocates at law school. Often this requires the students to have completed an LLM and possess other relevant qualifications.

  • Social Activism: Lawyers can also take up social activism or become part of an NGO to be associated with a social cause. Lawyers can fight for social rights by filing PIL or RTI queries to maintain accountability among public authorities.

UPES Integrated LLB Admissions 2026

Ranked #18 amongst Institutions in India by NIRF | Ranked #1 in India for Academic Reputation by QS Rankings | 16 LPA Highest CTC

ICFAI-LAW School BA-LLB / BBA-LLB Admissions 2025

Ranked 1 st among Top Law Schools of super Excellence in India - GHRDC | NAAC A+ Accredited | #36 by NIRF

Note: Networking during law school can help secure a higher salary after CLAT.

You may also check:

CLAT Sample Paper 2026 with Answer Key- Careers360
Download the CLAT Sample Paper 2026 PDF featuring the latest exam pattern with descriptive-type questions for effective preparation.
Download EBook

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

Q: Can I get a job after CLAT?
A:

Yes, you can get a job after CLAT as there are PSU recruitments conducted through the CLAT exam for the post of law officers.

Q: What is the salary at top NLUs?
A:

The median salary offered at top NLUs is often in the range of Rs 8-16 lakhs p.a.

Q: What is the scope of CLAT career?
A:

CLAT offers scope for a good career as students can gain admission into top law schools and later get placed in top law firms.

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Questions related to CLAT

On Question asked by student community

Have a question related to CLAT ?

Hello,

No, you are not elligible to appear for the CLAT exam while in Class 11, as the elligiblity criteria require you to be in or have completed Class 12 . However, you can start preparing for the exam now.

  • Understand the CLAT Exam pattern.
  • Analyze your performance by taking practice tests.
  • Develop a study schedule that balances your schoolwork and CLAT preparation.

You can get the CLAT Exam practice tests by following this link:

https://law.careers360.com/articles/free-clat-practice-test

Hello,

Yes, if a student is from Telangana, they can apply for a reserved seat in CLAT only if they belong to a reserved category such as SC, ST, OBC, EWS, or PwD, as per the rules of CLAT and the participating National Law Universities (NLUs).

However, please note:

  • CLAT does not have a separate “Telangana state quota.”

  • Reservation is given based on category , not on the state, except in some NLUs that offer domicile (state) reservation for their own state students.

So, if you are from Telangana, you can:

  • Apply under your category reservation (like SC/ST/OBC/EWS) .

  • And you may get Telangana domicile reservation only in those NLUs that are located in Telangana (for example, NALSAR University of Law, Hyderabad ).

Hope it helps !

Hello,

For CLAT PG 2026 application :

Photograph: JPEG/JPG, 200x230 pixels, 20–50 KB, white/light background, recent passport-size photo.

Signature: JPEG/JPG, 140x60 pixels, 10–20 KB, sign on white paper with black ink, must match exam documents.

Hope it helps !

Hi dear candidate,

On our official website, you can find various study material EBooks and Sample Papers that can help you prepare better that you can download for free.

Kindly refer to the link attached below:

CLAT E-books and Sample Papers

CLAT Study Material 2026 PDF - Books, Mock Test, Question Papers

BEST REGARDS


Hello,

While NLUs are costly, you can still pursue government-funded law education through state-funded universities and their affiliated colleges that accept CLAT scores, such as institutes like Banaras Hindu University and Aligarh Muslim University.

I hope it will clear your query!!