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The differences between attorneys general and legal externs can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 2-4 years to become both an attorney general and a legal extern. Additionally, an attorney general has an average salary of $101,302, which is higher than the $47,238 average annual salary of a legal extern.
The top three skills for an attorney general include legal advice, litigation and appeals. The most important skills for a legal extern are litigation, legal intern, and legal issues.
| Attorney General | Legal Extern | |
| Yearly salary | $101,302 | $47,238 |
| Hourly rate | $48.70 | $22.71 |
| Growth rate | 10% | 10% |
| Number of jobs | 47,813 | 10,986 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 56% | Bachelor's Degree, 68% |
| Average age | 46 | 46 |
| Years of experience | 4 | 4 |
Attorney generals are one of the most important legal advisers for their government, state, or country. They provide legal advice and may be called on to advise ordinary citizens who may or may not be within the country's jurisdiction. Their power varies depending on the laws of the state or country. Most of them have special executive power related to the enforcement of laws. Attorney Generals also provide legal services to state departments and agencies.
Legal externs are law students who took the opportunity to do on-the-job training at a law firm. Instead of monetary compensation, they receive academic credits. Legal externs primarily engage in job shadowing. They are usually assigned mentors in the law firm, and they would shadow their mentors in their daily routines. Legal externs are exposed to the actual work done by lawyers. Legal externs are involved in cases, providing insights while building a solid case for their client, giving advice to clients, and representing clients under the supervision of the actual lawyers in the firm. They are usually not given administrative or clerical tasks since they are expected to do more tasks directly related to being a lawyer.
Attorneys general and legal externs have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Attorney General | Legal Extern | |
| Average salary | $101,302 | $47,238 |
| Salary range | Between $65,000 And $157,000 | Between $23,000 And $93,000 |
| Highest paying City | San Francisco, CA | Washington, DC |
| Highest paying state | California | New York |
| Best paying company | Lewis Brisbois Bisgaard & Smith | Jones Day |
| Best paying industry | Government | Professional |
There are a few differences between an attorney general and a legal extern in terms of educational background:
| Attorney General | Legal Extern | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 56% | Bachelor's Degree, 68% |
| Most common major | Law | Law |
| Most common college | Stanford University | Stanford University |
Here are the differences between attorneys general' and legal externs' demographics:
| Attorney General | Legal Extern | |
| Average age | 46 | 46 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 51.6% Female, 48.4% | Male, 46.0% Female, 54.0% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 5.6% Unknown, 4.4% Hispanic or Latino, 7.9% Asian, 6.5% White, 75.4% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.3% | Black or African American, 5.6% Unknown, 4.4% Hispanic or Latino, 7.8% Asian, 6.4% White, 75.6% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.3% |
| LGBT Percentage | 10% | 10% |