Training to be a lawyer entails earning a bachelor's degree followed by a Juris Doctor (J.D.) degree from an ABA-accredited law school. Lawyers must also obtain licensure in their practicing state by taking and passing a state bar exam. Prior to admission to law school, an applicant typically must take the Law School Admissions Test (LSAT).
Top 8 Majors for Future Law Students
Many unrepresented parties cannot afford a lawyer to provide full-time legal assistance for their case.
What are the Professional Requirements for Becoming a Lawyer?
With that in mind, certain majors do seem somewhat common among pre-law students including Political Science, History, Philosophy and Business. If one is interested in a particular aspect of law (which you stated you are but did not specify which aspect) then they may find related courses helpful.
If you are skilled in these areas, you may succeed well. Law practice is highly competitive, and success tends to be merit-based and also somewhat "political.". You may also wish to think seriously about what it means to you to envy or admire "top" performers.
A: An accounting degree is really a good background for almost any type of law practice. Any type of corporate or securities law and tax law are definitely good choices. Also, large accounting firms hire lawyers with accounting backgrounds, and often send them back to school while they are working to get an LLM in tax. I would add, however, that you don't necessarily have to use your accounting background if you don't want to--all areas of practice should be open to you at this early point in your career. So, check them all out while you are a student-try different internships and summer jobs, and talk to graduates about how they like their jobs. I do think that an accounting background combined with a law degree is a great combination and will look good on your resume.
Though initially it is an advantage to graduate from a highly-rated law school, it is not essential to do so. Many " top" lawyers at "top" firms graduated from less highly rated schools, but they excelled in the skills of practicing law and of marketing their skills to clients. If you are skilled in these areas, you may succeed well. Law practice is highly competitive, and success tends to be merit-based and also somewhat "political."
International law coursework will inevitably be a relatively small proportion of your curriculum in law school. Upon graduating, your career prospects will probably not be greatly enhanced by your language skills, but instead will have much more to do with the quality of the law school you attended and your class rank.
Furthermore, a law degree is not highly transportable or useful overseas . There are limited numbers of U.S.-trained lawyers practicing in overseas branch offices of U.S.-based firms. International agencies (such as the various organs of the United Nations) do hire some lawyers, though strict nationality quotas in several international agencies make it difficult to hire U.S.-trained lawyers. I would encourage you to attend law school with an open mind and no fixed plan for what you will do with your law degree after graduation. Legal education provides a rigorous assimilation experience, and your professional and personal goals are likely to change significantly as you go along.
Choose a major or take electives that are heavy on research and writing. As mentioned earlier, those are the critical skills that will help you most in law school.
Political Science. Of all majors, this may be the closest to a "law school" curriculum as you can get. In this major, you'll study political systems, public policy, international relations and the relationship between government, the law, and individual rights, among other things.
Philosophy majors delve deep into the study of logic, ethics, and morality —areas of thought that also happen to be the cornerstones of law. You'll debate with classmates, present arguments and do a lot of research to support your case, which is not all that different from what lawyers do to prepare for court.
Not only are economics majors trained to think logically and analytically, but economic policies and procedures, as well as how resources are distributed and managed, are topics closely connected to the legal issues you'll encounter as a lawyer.
From a practical standpoint, history majors are also tasked with lots of research and writing and must learn to draw conclusions based on historical documents, a great precursor to the work you'll do in law school.
From a practical standpoint, history majors are also tasked with lots of research and writing and must learn to draw conclusions based on historical documents, a great precursor to the work you'll do in law school.
The path to becoming a lawyer is as varied as the specialties within the profession itself. If you have your heart set on landing a legal gig, it's important to know that it doesn't necessarily matter what you study as an undergraduate. This is truly a profession suited to those coming from vast educational backgrounds.
The English major is a very popular major for law school because of its immediately obvious benefits: advanced reading comprehension and persuasive writing skills. Students of the English major study dense and complex literature and are then required to process the information, make connections and create organized analytical arguments and defend positions. In this light, the critical thinking skills required of English majors mirror the skills required by law students. Strong reading and writing skills are required by all lawyers, so the English major is a no-brainer when it comes to selecting a major for law school.
Law schools look for candidates with abstract thinking skills, the ability to interpret written texts, and high reading comprehension. They want candidates that have fine reasoning abilities, the ability to think logically.
The English major is a very popular major for law school because of its immediately obvious benefits: advanced reading comprehension and persuasive writing skills. Students of the English major study dense and complex literature and are then required to process the information, make connections and create organized analytical arguments and defend positions. In this light, the critical thinking skills required of English majors mirror the skills required by law students. Strong reading and writing skills are required by all lawyers, so the English major is a no-brainer when it comes to selecting a major for law school.
Students with a passion for writing, public speaking, or negotiation often gravitate to the communications major. This major focuses on team building, organizational communication, and conflict management as well as developing critical thinking skills. These are all transferable skills when it comes to transitioning into law studies. Communication majors are often required to stay abreast of current events and report on them in classes. This habit lends itself well to law school because it allows students to understand different trends and political climates.
The most popular major of law school candidates is political science . There’s a reason why many successful politicians are lawyers—the link between law and political theory is very strong. Political science is the study of government systems, political behavior, and how the judicial system works. This is where a political science degree shows its advantage in law school. Students in this field often have a better understanding of how laws are created and executed as well as the history behind them. Political Science courses often cover foreign political and legal systems, as well as historical cases. These programs emphasize developing reading comprehension and writing skills in addition to public speaking skills.
This is because many laws are enacted to adjust and correct economic behavior by businesses and individuals in the marketplace. Legal studies focus on topics that are rooted in economic analysis—torts, contracts, property rights, antitrust, business organizations, and regulations. In short, a study of economics is a study in the financial impact of the law. Because of this, economics is a great area of specialization for many potential law students because it remains a great area of focus after law school as well.
A significant part of being a lawyer is understanding past precedent on different legal cases in the past. Is it any surprise then that history is a great major for law students? History students not only study the events of the past, but also study the way different legal systems have evolved, court rulings, treaties, and other legal agreements. Through the course work of a history major, students gain experience in writing research papers and learn how to draw on history to establish logical, concise, and clear arguments. They analyze diverse writings and conduct research into many dense, and difficult to comprehend texts—skills that are essential in law school.
Close reading and reasoning. Lawyers often need to quickly familiarize themselves with relatively large passages of previously unknown text, so classes that involve reading literature very important for developing these skills.
Lawyers generally need to have extensive knowledge of any subject that can describe and influence society, such as economics, history, politics, government affairs and other similar ones. Taking a social studies class can help you understand concepts like how laws and regulations are made, how legal procedures and precedents work and other similar concepts that are vital for successfully practicing law.
Their exact duties and responsibilities are: 1 Providing expert advice to clients regarding potential legal issues that they may expose themselves to or ongoing litigations 2 Analyzing all documents involved in a legal case against their clients, such as witness accounts, police reports, accident reports and other official documents 3 Using their knowledge of the law to find passages and precedents that may then be used in the defense of their clients 4 Working with their clients to develop the most appropriate strategy for each situation, based on the particularities of each legal case 5 Preparing various civil legal documents, such as wills, deeds and contracts 6 Appearing in court before a judge and using legal rhetoric to defend their clients' interests
Using their knowledge of the law to find passages and precedents that may then be used in the defense of their clients
Therefore, mathematics is an important aspect of the job, as the skills you acquire when learning how to solve math problems are usually transferrable to several aspects of the law.
By learning about science, future lawyers can develop the skills they need to understand various pieces of evidence, use them to investigate cases and connect all the available information to come up with a reasonable conclusion. 5. Mathematics.
Lawyers, also called attorneys, are tasked with advising their clients and representing them in civil and criminal cases. Their responsibilities span from simply offering legal advice to preparing legal documents on behalf of the client and ultimately representing the client in front of a court of law.
So much of politics is high-quality legislation that it is no wonder this field tops our list of most popular majors for law school students. Political Science offers an invaluable framework for the laws you will be studying in graduate school. If you know you want to be a lawyer but are still deciding which major to choose, you cannot go wrong with Political Science.
For industry-related law, take classes on your industry. Patent lawyers require a firm grasp of the natural sciences in order to practice. Similarly, entertainment and international law rely on an extensive understanding of media and current affairs, respectively. Use your undergraduate years as an opportunity to strengthen your foundation in the industry in which you hope to practice law.
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.
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.
Beyond taking these steps, there is no single best major for law school. You can major in absolutely anything and apply to law school. However, there are schools and programs that do a better job of preparing you for graduate study.
Graduates go on to be judges, prosecutors, professors, legislators, mediators, and so much more. But getting into law school is no easy matter.
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. The same skills directly improve a lawyer’s ability to do their job well.
It takes about seven years of full-time study to become a lawyer once you’ve graduated from high school. This includes four years of undergraduate study followed by three years at a law school.
However, some of the most common undergraduate majors include criminal justice, English, economics, philosophy and political science. Spend your undergraduate time taking classes related to the area of law you think you would like to practice.
The last step in becoming a lawyer is passing the bar examination. You will need to pass the bar exam for whichever states you would like to practice law in. For example, if you want to practice law in New York, you will need to pass the New York State Bar Exam.
Lawyers help individuals or businesses throughout legal processes. They prepare legal documents, build cases, attend hearings and try cases. Additional duties include working with legal and criminal justice professionals, taking depositions, settling cases and sending legal correspondence. They often specialize in different types of law, such as tax or family law. Lawyers work in a wide range of fields, such as: 1 Real estate 2 Business 3 Criminal justice 4 Healthcare 5 Politics
Preparing for the bar exam requires a lot of studying. You should create a study schedule that takes place over several months. You’ll also want to find a quality bar exam test preparation course and materials to help, and focus your attention on topics that appear frequently.
Average lawyer salary. The average salary for a lawyer in the United States is $70,336 per year, though some salaries range from $14,000 to $201,000 per year. Salaries may depend on experience level, field of legal practice and a lawyer's location.
On average, you can expect to spend about $45,000 per year. For the top law schools in the country, the tuition is closer to $65,000 per year. The cost will also depend on whether you're paying in-state or out-of-state tuition, and attending a public or private school.
The time when lawyers settled into a groove and stayed there for forty years is gone. To be versatile, you’ll need a methodology for learning new skills and information quickly. Literacy and analytical thinking, technological expertise and ways to find a mentor are not college majors but the skills you should learn while in school -- that’s what’s important.
Your grade point average and Law School Admission Test score are the most important parts of your law school application. Major in something you love, other than baseball, so that you have the incentive to get that 4.0. Your LSAT score comes in a close second. The four scored sections of the LSAT are analytical reasoning, logical reasoning, reading comprehension, and a writing sample. Any liberal arts discipline that teaches you critical reading, analysis, research and writing will help.