The beauty of law is that it is a career path open to all undergraduate fields of study. Unlike medical school where you need to satisfy certain prerequisite classes or business school where you must demonstrate relevant postgraduate experience, the only criteria for applying to the majority of law schools is a bachelor’s degree and a strong LSAT score.
Law schools that have started accepting the GRE in lieu of the LSAT credit their decision, in part, to wanting to attract more science, technology, engineering and math — or STEM — majors to diversify the legal field.
[Learn to plan for law school as an undergraduate.]
Here’s how four different categories of undergraduate study give you essential lawyering skills and ways to draw that out in your law school applications.
— Social sciences: Social science majors tend to focus on the regulation of human beings, which, of course, is what laws are designed to oversee.
By far, the most common major among 2015-2016 law school applicants was political science, according to Law School Admission Council data. But history, public health, education, sociology, anthropology and international relations, among other related majors, are all forms of academic inquiry that aspire to not only understand human behavior but potentially improve the human condition.
Law, with its similar focus and lofty ambitions, tends to emerge organically from these fields. Your coursework will expose you to injustices or disadvantages and teach analytical approaches to address these problems.
Critical reading, writing and editing, and research are likely skills you will be required to draw upon in these courses, and law schools are looking for candidates who have honed these skills.
The challenge for social science majors is distinguishing yourself from your peers. Your studies will undoubtedly help you develop some strong qualifications, but every other aspiring J.D. who majored in political science will share these skills.
When you begin applying for law school, consider how you have been able to apply what you learned in the classroom in real-world contexts that are particular to you. Discuss the kind of impact you want to make with a law degree, and explore unique extracurricular and leadership opportunities to set yourself apart from your peers.
[Focus on three college courses that can strengthen legal skills.]
— Business: Finance-oriented majors are often attracted to the corporate sector, which requires legal oversight.
Economics was another very popular major among 2015-2016 law school applicants. Business administration and management, accounting, hospitality and real estate are all majors that fall in this category.
Organization and management, collaboration, as well as problem-solving are useful lawyering skills you will gain from your undergraduate studies.
While issues like corporate governance, fiduciary duty and insider trading directly relate to legal practice, you do not have to limit yourself to a career in corporate law based on your major.
However, in your law school applications, be sure to clarify for yourself and the admissions committee why you are interested in pursuing a career in law. Discuss how your business and management studies have inspired and prepared you for legal practice.
Find ways to humanize any mention of your coursework. A dry discussion of economic trends will not capture a reader’s attention in the same way that exploring how an assignment to launch your own entrepreneurial venture gave you insights into the myriad ways law and business intersect.
— Arts and humanities: Arts and humanities majors tend to be interested in human expression, which is good, since the practice of law is, at its core, the art of communication.
English majors were among the top five most common majors among law school applicants in 2015-2016, according to LSAC data. But foreign language majors gain invaluable international communication skills that are coveted among legal employers in this increasingly globalized world.
And while theater, film and fine arts majors are less common among law school applicants, an obvious connection to law lies in copyright or entertainment. If those particular practice areas do not interest you, highlight communication, since oral communication and listening skills are important to any legal practice.
I worked with a theater major who wrote her personal statement about her performance in a play about racial profiling as a way to discuss her passion for social justice. I also advised a documentary-maker who focused her work on giving a voice to marginalized communities.
Avoid coming across as too artsy in your application materials — you want admissions committees to take you seriously as an intellectual and future advocate.
[Know how to promote your major on law school applications.]
— Nature and technology: Engineers, biologists, mathematicians, physicists and chemists are interested in the laws of nature and the physical world. In contrast, computer science majors like software engineers, programmers and web designers are interested in the world behind the screen.
Through your coursework, you will gain strong logical reasoning skills, which will serve you well on the LSAT, particularly the games section, although you’ll need to practice your critical reading skills for the exam. Logical reasoning and a systematic approach to problem-solving are also useful when approaching law school exams, which will require a step-by-step analysis of issues, rules, application and conclusion.
It will be easier to distinguish yourself among other applicants because students who study the laws of science tend to shy away from the laws of civilization, which are often less precise and predictable than STEM courses of study. Laws are subject to change, difficult to enforce and open to interpretation.
Admissions committees are excited by STEM majors, but that doesn’t give you a free pass. Use your application materials to give insight into your motives for studying law. The connections you make between your undergraduate studies and career goals are likely to be fresh, because they are less obvious than the career path of other majors. But that also means there’s more room for skepticism.
Interested in learning how to leverage your major in your law school applications? You can reach me at lawadmissionslowdown@usnews.com.
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Leverage College Majors for Law School Admission originally appeared on usnews.com
