For many people, carving out a path that leads to a successful law career starts with choosing an undergraduate degree. There are many options available, and the type of law a person plan to practice may come into play as you choose your undergraduate pre-law major.
Certain majors have higher law school admission rates than others, and some majors have more difficult coursework than others. As you plan your education and profession, make sure to keep these factors in mind. In this article, we discuss the 13 most common undergraduate majors for law school students.
What Major Is Best for Law School?
The American Bar Association (ABA) does not recommend any specific undergrad major in order to students who want to be able to become a lawyer. Instead, the particular organization suggests that any student planning for you to become an attorney select a good undergraduate main that interests and challenges them.
Your undergraduate significant should offer coursework that develops your research, critical reading and writing skills. It’s best to choose a major that will provides the well-rounded schooling through a variety of courses. Your own major should challenge you to learn more about the subjects you enjoy.
While legislation schools do consider your own major, they also look at your undergraduate GPA. A high undergrad GPA may demonstrate of which you take your education seriously and can put in the work needed to complete a juris doctor (JD) and become a successful lawyer. For this reason, an individual should choose a major in which you will excel.
LSAT or GRE scores also have fun with a key role in JD program admissions. According to a report by typically the Law School Admission Council (LSAC), regulation school applicants with the highest LSAT scores were economics majors, followed by philosophy majors plus history dominant.
Best Undergraduate Majors for Law College
According to help the LSAC report mentioned above, the most common undergraduate major with regard to law college applicants was political science. The candidates with this highest rate of admittance (77. 5%) were history majors.
Note that many universities do not offer pre-law majors, in addition to pre-law premier did not really fall within the most typical undergraduate majors for rules school job seekers.
Below all of us list often the 13 most frequent undergraduate dominant for college students who applied to laws schools approved by the ABA, according to LSAC data.
History
There were 3, 366 background majors that applied, and even 77. 5% were admitted. Coursework regarding history dominant includes cultures and civilizations, specific eras, geography, American and international studies, research and analysis and social justice.
Background majors had the greatest percentage associated with acceptance into law schools. Majoring in history can provide you with a greater understanding of people from different cultures together with backgrounds, which can be useful for attorneys who practice any type of legislations.
Economics
Presently there were a few, 709 economics majors who else applied, and additionally 76. 1% were accepted. Economics coursework includes micro and macroeconomics, market outcomes, fiscal not to mention monetary policy and basic economic modeling. Majoring in economics is an excellent option intended for tax lawyers and corporate legal professionals who are preparing for their careers.
English
There were 3, 509 English premier who used, and 74. 4% had been admitted. Coursework for an English major includes literature, cultural studies, historical periods, creative writing and crucial theory. Majoring in English can help students develop strong communication skills, which is essential for attorneys which decide in order to practice any type regarding law.
Philosophy
There were 2, 720 viewpoint majors who also applied, and also 73. 4% were publicly stated. Coursework to get philosophy majors may include metaphysics, epistemology, ethics, logic, social and political philosophy as well as history of beliefs. Majoring inside philosophy may help learners develop their own communication, analytical and logical argumentation abilities, which are helpful for any type involving law practice.
Political Science
Political science was the majority of common undergrad major by far. There have been 14, 946 political technology majors whom applied, and 73. 1% of them were confessed. Political research coursework includes political theory, government systems and how the judicial system works, making this an excellent option for an undergraduate major. Specialising in politics science can help you prepare to be able to specialize within virtually any type of regulations.
Finance
There have been 2, 024 finance dominant who utilized, and 72. 7% were being admitted. Schoolwork for finance majors might include business economics, cost evaluation, accounting, business law, integrity, statistics plus management. Finance can become an excellent major for those who plan for you to work in tax law, corporate law or even real estate legal requirements.
Arts in addition to Humanities
There were 2, 766 arts and humanities majors who have applied, and even 71. 7% were mentioned. Coursework pertaining to arts together with humanities premier varies according to specialization but may include languages, books, music, art, astronomy, logic, philosophy, theater, religion and additionally social sciences. Arts not to mention humanities programs provide broad knowledge meant for future law firms to use in numerous types connected with law practices.
Communications
Right now there were two, 377 communications majors exactly who applied, and also 69. 1% were said. Coursework designed for communications premier may consist of rhetoric, public speaking, journalism, writing, public relations and advertising. Majoring inside communications helps students create excellent conversation skills, which are essential to help any attorney both in as well as out of a new courtroom setting.
Psychology
What can you do with a bachelor’s in psychology? Well, anyone can go to law school. Of the 4, 265 psychology premier who employed, 69. 1% were heroic. Psychology schoolwork includes studying human behavior and mental health issues. Majoring within psychology could be some sort of benefit to those specializing in many types of legislation since understanding how people think and behave is helpful in a variety of situations.
Sociology
Generally there were a couple of, 194 sociology majors who seem to applied, and 64. seven percent were unprohibited. Coursework just for sociology majors may contain human conduct, race relations, social concept, statistics, study methodology, criminology, social plan, family structures and religion. Sociology principal develop expertise that assist them relate to people from all walks of life, so regulation students just who intend in order to operate divorce and family law, immigration and general public defense might especially benefit from this particular major.
Business Administration
There was 1, 805 business administration majors who all applied, plus 63. 8% were admired. Coursework for a business management bachelor’s can include economics, marketing, business connection, entrepreneurship, human resources, accounting in addition to organizational management. A company administration key may be useful for those who intend to be able to practice business law, patent or intellectual property rules, tax laws or real estate legislations.
Other Areas
This category encompasses all dominant that were not necessarily included among the 144 majors in your report. Right now there were 5, 866 pupils with “other” majors so, who applied, and even 57. 4% of them were avowed. This category is a good catch-all for the purpose of various premier, so make sure for you to consider each option when determining whether a major qualifies you for your particular specialization.
Criminal Justice
There ended up 3, 762 criminal justice majors who actually applied, together with 56. 2% were folk. Criminal proper rights bachelor’s level coursework consists of forensics, human behavior, sociable policies, analysis and administration. While this homework may help regulations school people who plan to turn out to be defense legal representatives, admission prices for criminal justice majors were relatively low, so this major may not improve your current chance for admission to legal requirements school.
Should You Major in Pre-Law?
A pre-law degree covers general education and learning, an introduction to law and other assignment that helps learners build solid analytical and additionally reasoning knowledge. This main introduces individuals to some of the exact concepts they will need to know later throughout law institution.
While pre-law may seem like the reasonable best option, that is certainly not necessarily the case. In fact , this important may hinder you more than help a person.
According to LSAT Max , an organization the fact that offers LSAT test prep courses, some pre-law big provides an introduction to fundamental legal concepts—but it may not offer particularly challenging coursework since this major is considered to end up being relatively easy. This could potentially make an individual a less competitive legislation school candidate than other scholars.
Your serious should be something you both take pleasure in and stand out at. If pre-law checks those boxes for anyone, consider choosing it as a fabulous major. If not, however, select a major that will expand your knowledge and aid you build your capabilities.