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Judges, Magistrate Judges, & Magistrates

What do they do?

Arbitrate, advise, adjudicate, or administer justice in a court of law. May sentence defendant in criminal cases according to government statutes or sentencing guidelines. May determine liability of defendant in civil cases. May perform wedding ceremonies.

Education Required

Most of these occupations require graduate school. For example, they may require a master's degree, and some require a Ph.D., M.D., or J.D. (law degree).

Employees may need some on-the-job training, but most of these occupations assume that the person will already have the required skills, knowledge, work-related experience, and/or training.

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What Does This Job Pay?
Tennessee Average Salary: $86,000-$175,000
Median Annual Salary: $148,910
Median Hourly Salary: $75
Salary distribution bell curve graph
$45,950
$148,910
$210,890
One out of ten earn less than $45,950
The median salary is $148,910
One out of ten earn more than $210,890
Top Skills For This Job
  • Basic Skills
  • listening to others, not interrupting, and asking good questions
  • thinking about the pros and cons of different ways to solve a problem
  • Problem Solving
  • noticing a problem and figuring out the best way to solve it
  • People and Technology Systems
  • thinking about the pros and cons of different options and picking the best one
  • figuring out how a system should work and how changes in the future will affect it
Will There Be Jobs?
Jobs more likely

New job opportunities are likely in the future.

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Are You On Track?
Typical education needed: Doctoral degree
Doctoral degree
Professional degree
Post-doctoral training
66%
23%
10%
Typical Daily Tasks
  • Sentence defendants in criminal cases, on conviction by jury, according to applicable government statutes.
  • Monitor proceedings to ensure that all applicable rules and procedures are followed.
  • Instruct juries on applicable laws, direct juries to deduce the facts from the evidence presented, and hear their verdicts.