Unranked New England Law School's Dean Has An Outrageous Salary

The Boston Globe reports that New England Law School's longtime dean, John F. O'Brien, may be among the highest paid law school deans in America at more than $867,000 a year in salary and benefits.

O'Brien makes more than three times the median salary of law school deans nationally, according to the Globe, which cited a study by the College and University Professional Association for Human Resources.

"Indeed, New England Law could not name a single law school dean in the country who makes more than O'Brien," the Globe reported.

The school has faced sharp criticism for paying its dean so handsomely while hiking up tuition. In the last eight years, the school's tuition has nearly doubled, from $22,475 in 2004 to $40,984 in 2011, according to the Globe.

Critics have begun to question whether New England is worth its price tag, especially considering only 34 percent of its 2011 graduates were able to find jobs requiring a law degree within nine months of graduating compared to 68 percent at Boston Law School, the Globe reports.

"There is no relationship between cost and benefit," Paul F. Campos, author of the blog "Inside the Law School Scam," told the Globe.

Martin C. Foster, chairman of the school's board of trustees, defends O'Brien's salary by pointing to the percentage of graduates who pass the bar exam and a recent increase in the number of full-time faculty.

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