criminology, law and society major

Graduate School Law School
1

<p>currently a poli sci, but i am thinking of changing to "criminology, law and society" in the school of social ecology @ uc irvine. the primary reason why i picked poli sci was because of my desire to specialize in the subfield "public law" under that major and take a bunch of upper division public law classes to which is so interesting and enjoyable me; i have no interest in political theory, or international relations. is it bad to major in poli sci and selectively take only classes that have to do with law? </p>

<p>i've been investigating into the criminology major for quite some time now and have come to the conclusion that i would enjoy it at least 3x more majoring in it than poli sci. does this "criminology, law and society" major fall under the "pre-law majors" that pre-law students should not major in? furthermore, which major holds a more promising array of possible career or grad school options if i decide to not go to law school?</p>

<p>and also, would a b.a. in a "criminology, law and society" major from the ONLY school of social ecology in the nation be something that can work against me in the law school admission process?</p>

2

<p>There are numerous threads that talk to what is the "best major" for law school. </p>

<p>The short answer is that you can major in anything you want because the main thing is to study what you are passionate about to increase your chances of doing well. At the same time there is a general concensus to stay away fro "pre-law" and "pre-law related" programs.</p>

<p>Anna Ivey- former Dean of Admissions at U of Chicago Law school and now private consultant, and author of The Ivey Guide to Law School Admissions: Straight Advice on Essays, Resumes, Interviews, and More
has an Ask Anna Column on Vault.com. </p>

<p>In her column, she answered the question this way:</p>

<p>Question: I am a freshman in college who is interested in going to law school after college. My question is, is there a particular major that impresses law school admissions officers? Some people have told me that Political Science is the best. I am particularly interested in an English major but will choose whichever major is most appealing to law schools. Thank you! </p>

<p>Anna's Answer: Good for you for starting to plan ahead so early! Make sure to keep an open mind, though, because you don't want to lock yourself into a particular career goal too early. It's tough trying to make career-related decisions as a freshman. You wouldn't start law school for another four years at the earliest, and who know what you'll want out of life at that time? Think back to four years ago, when you were about fourteen, and think about how much you've changed since then, your priorities, your outlook, your maturity. Your personal development proceeds at lightening speed during your high school and college years. You'll need those first couple of years in college to try out different subjects and disciplines and to think about different career paths. </p>

<p>Once you're a junior and ready to pick a major, go with your heart. That will be the best outcome for you personally, and it will be the best outcome for you in terms of law school admissions (if that's still what you want down the road) for two reasons: </p>

<p>First, while it's true that the most popular majors for law school applicants are Political Science, History, and Economics, that phenomenon just reflects the popularity of those majors among people who end up applying to law school; it does not reflect a preference on the part of law school admissions officers. You absolutely do not have to pursue one of those majors to be a successful law school applicant; if anything, you might have a harder time distinguishing yourself from the pack as a Poli Sci major.</p>

<p><a href="http://www.vault.com/nr/newsmain.jsp?nr_page=3&ch_id=351&article_id=19222221&cat_id=2711%5B/url%5D"&gt;http://www.vault.com/nr/newsmain.jsp?nr_page=3&ch_id=351&article_id=19222221&cat_id=2711&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p>

3

<p>I am a CLS major at UC Irvine. I have not applied to law school yet, but I know many people from the major who have been admitted to great law schools (they also had the stats .. but were not penalized for being CLS). Example would be Stanfard .. 3.9 GPA, 170 LSAT. </p>

<p>I love the CLS department. We have many notable professors such as Elliot Currie, Gilbert Geis, Kitty Calavita, who are known around the world. True their are only around 30 schools that offer CLS, but of those we rank 2nd or 3rd. </p>

<p>I understand why people (especially on this board) suggest not to major in a pre-law area. I say that if you enjoy the classes on crime theory, social justice, etc. then major in what you want. If you end up not going to law school or drop out for some reason you have not spent your 4 years at college taking classes you do not like.</p>