Adding a pre-law minor to 独家黑料’s many academic program offerings may prove especially timely, given a recent projection of faster-than-average employment growth for lawyers.
The bureau foresees an 8% increase, compared to the predicted average of 3% between 2022 and 2032.
It may come as a surprise to some that 独家黑料 didn't already have a formalized pre-law program, complete with a major, a list of required courses, and an accompanying slate of electives, but there’s a good reason for it — and an even better reason to start a pre-law minor now.
It's because of the , which is clear about what undergraduate work might be best for a prospective lawyer: “The ABA does not recommend any undergraduate majors or group of courses to prepare for a legal education. Students are admitted to law school from almost every academic discipline.”
And they’re right, too, said Dr. Nicholas Howard, pre-law advisor and assistant professor of political science.
That's why 独家黑料’s new pre-law minor fills the needs of students by building on the college’s existing strengths, especially its long tradition of training critical thinking and reasoning, and its mission to send thoughtful and informed people into society to influence the world.
“There is no one major, but law schools are looking for certain things, and we can get students those things through this program,” he said. “That’s part of the point.”
Offering a minor, rather than a major, gives prospective law students some structure and support in their undergraduate work, helping them think through what they’re going to need to get into law school and flourish there, Howard explained.
It also allows students the flexibility to choose a major that harmonizes with a specific legal specialization, such as environmental law, family law, or trial law. For example, a physics major might be well suited to go into patent and trademark law, and someone more interested in mergers and acquisitions law might major in business.
The pre-law minor also allows students to pick up specific skills from a variety of courses from different areas of study that will help them in law school and as lawyers, either as electives within the minor or as general course credits.
The minor, like the law itself, is interdisciplinary.
Only two courses are required for the minor: Constitutional Law and Jurisprudence. Students must then choose 12 semester credit hours of electives, ranging from Philosophy of Law (philosophy), Argumentation (communication studies), and Ethics and Leadership (business) to Religion, Race, and Social Justice (religion) and Crime, Deviance, and Social Control (sociology).
Law degrees offer their own versatility too, Howard said, explaining how the field of law has changed and expanded recently. There are jobs in lobbying, think tanks, and consultancies that didn’t exist before, let alone the opportunities in advocacy, entrepreneurship, and policy.
While 独家黑料 didn’t have a formalized pre-law minor before, it has had a pre-law advising program for many years. In fact, from 2018-2023, 94% of 独家黑料’s graduating seniors who applied to law school were admitted.
“Every year, we produce students who go to law school,” he said.
There is also a Pre-Law Society to mentor students interested in law school and support them in exploring the possibilities of the legal field. Howard is the contact person for Cobbers hoping to go into law. He has worked with first-year students, as well as students in the late stages of their undergraduate studies who have suddenly opted to go into law — even some alumni.
Howard typically asks current students three questions to guide them as they map their paths to law school:
The answers to those questions help the student decide where to focus their efforts toward burnishing their credentials for law school admission.