Northwestern University, one of the nation's top law schools, offers an accelerated J.D. program as part of its law curriculum. According to "U.S. News & World Report," the Northwestern law school ranked number 11 among all programs nationwide in the 2010-2011 academic school year. The accelerated J.D. program allows students to complete the law degree in just two years of study instead through the traditional three years. The program begins in May, which means that students take an entire semester of summer courses before completing the two regular academic years of studies. They also attend school during their second summer in the program. Students take a number of predetermined courses as a part of this program, but also have opportunities to pursue a variety of elective courses.
As part of a collaborative effort, Lewis University and John Marshall Law School offer an opportunity to earn both the bachelor's degree and the J.D. in just six years of full-time study. Students receive credit for some of their undergraduate coursework that counts toward degree requirements for the law program. The undergraduate program at Lewis University does not require any specific courses for entry into the law degree program, but students are advised to take courses in areas like Philosophy of Law, Introduction for Criminal Justice, Argumentation and Debate and Elements of Criminal Law. Students apply for admission to the John Marshall Law School at the end of their junior year of studies.
The University of Pittsburgh's law program offers an Accelerated Law Admissions Program (ALAP) that allows students to complete their undergraduate education in three years and their law degree program in another three. Student finish both programs in a total of six years instead of seven. Requirements for the program mandate that students have 102 credit hours completed by the end of their junior year of studies before they can be accepted to ALAP. The University of Pittsburgh's law school has a number of preset first-year courses that all law students take. These include studies in areas like Civil Procedure, Constitutional Law, Contracts, Criminal Procedure, Criminal Law, Legal Analysis and Writing, Property, Torts and the Legal Process.