Galen Trial, PhD, Director
School of Law
Annette Clark, MD, JD, Dean
John Eason, JD, LL.M, Associate Dean for Academic Affairs
Donna Claxton Deming, JD, Associate Dean for Student Affairs
Participants in the JD/MSAL Joint Degree Program must spend their first year in the School of Law. Once the student has completed the required first year courses in the School of Law, he or she may then take courses in both the JD and MSAL programs. Because the School of Law operates on a semester system and the rest of the university operates on a quarter system, joint program participants must carefully coordinate their schedules with the Associate Dean for Students in the School of Law and the Director of the MSAL program in the College of Arts and Sciences.
Admission Requirements for the Joint Degree Program
Students are required to be admitted separately to both the School of Law and the College of Arts and Sciences and should consult the Graduate Catalog for the specific admissions requirements for each school. Students may be admitted to both schools before starting in the joint program; alternatively, students may seek admission to the MSAL program during their first year of law school. In any case, students will be expected to meet the respective school’s admissions deadlines for the coming year.
Length of Program
The length of time required to complete the joint degree program is between 3 and 4 years for full-time students. The length of time required for completion of the joint degree program may be longer if the student is part-time.
Credit Requirements
Students in the joint program are required to complete 90 semester credits for the JD degree and 48 quarter credits for the MSAL degree. In the joint degree program, students can satisfy the requirements for each degree by using a specified number of crossover credits to be chosen from a list of approved courses in each school. This allows the student, whether full-time or part-time, to complete the two degrees in a shorter period of time than if the student sought to obtain the JD and MSAL degrees independently. Of the 90 semester credits required for the JD degree, 10 semester credits can be satisfied by 15 quarter credits chosen from a list of specified courses from the MSAL program (listed below). Of the 48 quarter credits required for the MSAL degree, a student enrolled in the joint degree program may satisfy up to 12 of the quarter credits with 8 semester credits earned in the law school from a list of approved courses (listed below). Joint degree students will be required to take Sports Law in the School of Law. One quarter credit is the equivalent of .67 semester credits. So, for example, a 3 quarter credit crossover MSAL course could be used to satisfy 2 semester credits for the JD degree.
Joint JD/MSAL Degree Summary
- Students must be admitted to both programs under the programs’ standard requirements.
- Students may be admitted to the joint degree program before beginning any studies. Alternatively, first year students in the School of Law may apply for admission to the joint degree program during the fall semester.
- Joint JD/MSAL students must complete their first year in the School of Law before taking MSAL courses.
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