PAD can help guide students through the law school application process, and help you build connections. Some of the best pre-law schools are known for being "feeder schools" for top law schools. If your goal is to go to a top-ranked law school , you definitely want to look into the big feeder schools, even if they don't have a pre-law major.
Even if it's not a feeder school, there are a lot of schools with amazing reputations and great track record for getting students into law school.
Cost is a huge factor for many college students. While it's exciting to consider going to a top university and it may help your law school application, you may want to think about saving money now so you can attend a more expensive school later. A state school in your state, or one where you can commute if that's possible, can help lower the cost of your undergrad tuition. A lot of students find it helpful to work hard at a state or local university for undergrad and do well on their LSATs, so they save money and still attend a top ranked law school.
If your university offers a pre-law major, you'll study the legal and criminal justice system, legal philosophy, writing, legal history, and more. You'll gain a thorough understanding of the law, and will develop critical thinking skills. If you major in pre-law, you will have a better understanding of how law school works, and you may also have an advantage on the LSAT.
Being a pre-law major can also help you determine if the law path is right for you before making the commitment to go to law school. Being a pre-law major can also show your dedication to becoming a lawyer, and can help you make connections and get recommendations. However, pre-law is not a common major for law students, and it's sometimes even seen as an "easy" major, if it's considered a viable major at all. Many of the best pre-law schools don't offer pre-law as a major.
It's important that if you do major in pre-law, you do so at an academically rigorous college or university with strong connections to law schools. Many law schools want a well-rounded class of people from across majors , but your education will be more specialized, and you may have trouble establishing yourself in a different field if you choose not to go to law school.
Having a major other than pre-law can help you specialize or pick an area of interest for your law career. Generally, most academic advisors do not recommend majoring in pre-law. Now it's time to take a look at our top picks for the best pre-law schools in the United States. This unscientific ranking of the best pre-law schools is based on gathering schools from a few different law school rankings list, and lists of top schools for undergraduate studies, particularly ones that are strong in humanities.
I also considered whether the school has an exceptional pre-law major or is academically strong overall. I also tried to make sure this list had some variety, since not everyone is just looking to get into a top law school. Keep in mind that while there are schools who offer pre-law degrees on this list, they may not be top schools overall since the major is fairly uncommon.
You still need to carefully consider whether or not you should actually major in pre-law, and what your goals are for law school. A traditional feeder school, a Harvard education will undoubtedly give you an advantage in your law school applications, especially with the right grades and LSAT scores. You'll also be able to take advantage of Harvard's alumni network at top schools and law firms.
Yale is considered the top law school in the country, and is the 5th best university overall according to US News and World Report. Though Yale does not have a pre-law major, the school does offer an interdisciplinary track that allows students to create their own major that can give them the skills that law schools seek.
The Yale Law School Admission Council also provides undergraduates with pre-law counseling and events throughout the year.
Northwestern is known for academic rigor, and a big school means lots of resources, including their own law school. Northwestern's Legal Studies track can be completed as a major or a minor, and differs from pre-law programs in that it has an interdisciplinary focus and aims to teach students to think critically about the relationship between law and society, and includes everything from psychology to literature to religious studies.
It's a well-rounded degree, and the added advantage of being in Chicago means more opportunities for internships. The University of Maryland has a department dedicated to advising pre-law students , which also connects students with resources and mentors, and works closely with the university's law school.
College Park is also close to Washington D. Georgetown's pre-law advising center offers resources on all things law school, including one-on-one advising, help with applications, and workshops. Additionally, Georgetown's record of academics in the humanities make it a great place to learn the skills necessary to excel in law school, and its Washington D.
NYU is in the middle of one of the biggest cities in the world, and certainly offers a ton of opportunities for internships both in the legal industry and beyond. The school's academics are rigorous overall, and has a strong record in the humanities, particularly English. Michigan State offers a pre-law major that is also considered a liberal arts degree. The pre-law major aims to introduce students to legal studies while also teaching critical thinking and analytical skills so that pre-law majors are prepared to work in law enforcement, become paralegals, or go into a career in government.
Perhaps 'irresponsibility' is too severe; after all, most people need to be taught how to teach themselves, just as they need to be taught how to write and think, and if you weren't taught it before you came here, perhaps the blame rests more with your past teachers than with you.
But wherever the blame lies, if you haven't learned by now, you must take the consequences. All Rights Reserved. Please enter a valid email address. Thanks for subscribing! To receive great letters, it is important to cultivate strong relationships with your instructors. Small class sizes make it easier for your professor to get to know you.
If you want to major in a subject with large lectures, that is okay too. Simply make a point of attending office hours regularly to foster relationships with your professors and teaching assistants. Use undergrad to build your foundation in an industry of interest. Your undergraduate years are a great time to build a foundation in the field in which you hope to practice law.
Similarly, if you want to support a particular population, now is a great time to learn a foreign language that will be useful when you practice.
While there are no objective best majors for law school, certain courses of study do prepare you for that next step better than others. Below, you can find a ranked list of the ten most popular majors for law students.
We put together this list based on 2 important main types of data: the number of students admitted to law school with a certain major, and the average LSAT score of the students with that major. Students admitted to law school from this major last year: 1, Average LSAT score of admitted students out of : Sociology majors have to be comfortable scrutinizing data and writing long papers.
Both the critical thinking and writing skills that this major cultivates can be leveraged in law school. Consider this major if the social dynamics of groups interest you, and you enjoy both quantitative and qualitative reasoning. This group of majors tends to be fairly writing-heavy and attracts students with the focus to spend hours reading. Traditionally, philosophy is considered the ultimate pre-law major.
In this field, you wrestle deeply with logic and reasoning as you consider questions about knowledge, existence, and other fundamental concepts. If you love to be hands-on with the justice system, this may be the major for you. No field of study gives you more exposure to law prior to law school. That said, notice how much lower the average LSAT score is relative to other majors.
It is not considered as academically rigorous as theoretical disciplines. If you want to set yourself apart at a highly competitive law school, this may not be the major for you. Economics offers the perfect blend of quantitative and qualitative experience. Additionally, this field prepares you to be an effective lawmaker and advocate for sound monetary policy. Understanding capital is vital for understanding large portions of tax law and federal regulation.
English is another famous choice for pre-law students, since so much reading and writing is required to perform well in this field. Learning to synthesize a lot of content and becoming sensitive to careful word choice will make you a stronger applicant and a better lawyer. Understanding the past is critical for interpreting law for two reasons. First, it establishes precedent, and knowing how legal cases have been resolved in the past is central to our understanding of how to decide current cases.
Second, a grounding in the past helps you zoom out and understand the broader social context for a piece of legislation. This is a great major for students eager to pursue a legal career. This category is a catch-all for niche majors not commonly represented among law school applicants. The fact that this category has the third highest number of students accepted shows that you can successfully apply to law school from any major.
0コメント