In the debate about professional postgraduate programs, there are always references to their differentiation in relation to those with an academic nature. In the case of academic programs, it is stated that students expect an eminently theoretical education, qualifying them for teaching occupations, to be developed in the future, within educational institutions. In parallel, in the case of professional programs, it is stated that students expect not only theoretical education, but also applied and practical education, aimed at occupations they have already developed, in the most diverse institutions in the labour market. The problem is that there is little empirical evidence to support all these statements, especially with regard to academic and professional postgraduate programs in the Law area. And this is the gap filled by this article, which presents several pieces of evidence about the work profile of students, who seek academic and professional postgraduate programs in the Law area. What will be seen is that, to a large extent, this evidence supports the premises that, historically, justified the efforts of CAPES/MEC to stimulate the creation of professional programs in the Law area in Brazil.