Finishing Law School in Two Years

Graduate School Law School
1

<p>These are some exerpts from an article in the National Law Journal:</p>

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Northwestern University School of Law plans to launch a two-year juris doctor program in 2009, becoming the first among top law schools to offer an accelerated course of study. </p>

<p>Starting in May, the law school expects 40 students to begin the program, which will enable them to obtain a law degree in five semesters within two calendar years, instead of the usual three-year, six-semester program. </p>

<p>The accelerated program is part of Northwestern's larger initiative, Plan 2008, which calls for an increased focus on core competencies for practicing law in addition to traditional case law analysis.

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No other highly ranked law school offers a five-semester, two-year program. In 2005, the University of Dayton School of Law announced its plan a few months after the American Bar Association changed the rule that required students to take six semesters of instruction to graduate with a juris doctor degree. At least one other school, Southwestern University School of Law in Los Angeles, offers a six-semester, two-calendar year J.D. program. </p>

<p>Under Northwestern's two-year plan, students would participate in on-campus interviews for summer associate jobs after just one semester of courses, compared with three-year students who interview for those jobs after their first year of classes.

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Some 95 percent of Northwestern's three-year students have at least one year of post-college work experience prior to attending law school. All of the students in the two-year program would have at least two years of full-time work experience before they begin. </p>

<p>The law school's larger initiative calls for students in the accelerated program and eventually those in the traditional program to take two new courses. One course would cover quantitative analysis, such as accounting, finance and statistics, and would focus on practice dynamics, including project management. The other course would address decision-making designed to improve students' ability to understand the clients' strategies.

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2

<p>It is clear to all of us that the third year of law school is worthless anyway. Barbri will teach you more about the practice of law than 2l and 3l combined. When I heard about this my reaction was "hmmm I hope the other top 14 follow NWs example. " It just makes more sense. 3l is totally useless in everyway.</p>

3

<p>I disagree that having a 3rd yr is useless. The 3rd year gives law students an opportunity to take a wider variety of classes, either focusing on a field of interest (advanced family law, Tax 2, moot court competitions, etc.) or to sample classes in a wider variety of legal specialties. When considering hiring a new graduate, we look very closely at what year 3 tells us about their interests. More students also pick up part-time jobs in 3L, some of which can lead to employment for students who aren't in the top of the class. </p>

<p>Condensing the law school experience may be approaching law school as only being a ticket to the bar exam. I'd be more impressed if NW added more opportunities to the 3L year, than by elimination of it altogether. I do think the Client Strategies program sounds intriguing. I've always said that you can't teach common sense, when dealing with lawyers who have no concept of the business reasons behind litigation or contracting strategies. Hmmm, maybe NW is going to actually find a way to teach common sense!!!</p>

<p>I hope they surveyed their alumni and others before taking this step, since I suspect it will be viewed with suspicion by many prospective employers.</p>

4

<p>this program will require the same number of credits, just condense the time period for taking them. its specifically for students with a couple of years of work experience prior to starting law school. In</a> the News - Full Article, In the News, News and Events, School of Law, Northwestern University</p>

<p>From this article, it sounds like they will end up charging the same for the two years as for 3 -- it refers to the key economic advantage as starting to earn a salary sooner, not saving on tuition costs.</p>

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I'd be more impressed if NW added more opportunities to the 3L year

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according to the article i cite, they are doing that as well:</p>

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For students in the traditional three-year program, Northwestern is also introducing new options, especially in the third year. Several programs will allow students to spend up to a semester in full-time “experiential” programs, such as working in a legal clinic, working as an apprentice in a law firm outside the United States, or for those considering academic careers, various research options.

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5

<p>I think that the biggest disadvantage will of participating in this program will come in the hiring process. How is a first semester 1L, with no grades yet and very little actual law school experience, going to compete with a 2L who has a whole year of grades under his or her belt and who may already have made law review or another journal? Work experience prior to law school is helpful, but I don't know that it will make up for this disadvantage. Years down the road, I'm not so sure that there will be differences in career opportunities, but I feel confident that there will be differences out of the starting gate.</p>

6

<p>caught the announcement on Friday as the info was linked on the top law school site.</p>

<p>I've already sent it over to my daughter as she will be starting her job in a few weeks. Her plan is to stay 2 to 3 years. (what a coincidence)
Needless to say, we'll be monitoring these developments at Northwestern closely. </p>

<p>my guess is- NW will look for applicants with strong work experience who may already have ties to the "business" community due to their job experience.
also- Northwestern seems to have alot of "sponsorship"/pull with the Chicago legal and business community. I have to admit, I have spent time on their website, as NW might be a school my kid would seriously consider with or without the 2 year accelerated plan. So somehow, I think the Chicago legal community may embrace this program even if UChicago is dismissive of it. But I don't know if the accelerated track will play as well in NYC or LA (at least during the first few years). For all you old time NY'rs- it kinda sounds like the 2 year SP. </p>

<p>I'm sure there will be lots of stuff written about this "experiment" at Northwestern.
Maybe - I will be sticking around these boards for another year or two afterall.</p>