All students considering attending law school must complete a four year undergraduate degree program. There is no required curriculum that students must follow in order to apply to law school. However, students often choose to study in related fields within the Liberal Arts, such as history, legal studies and political science. Upon graduating, in order to be eligible for law school admissions, students must take the Law School Admission Test (LSAT). Higher your test results, the better your chances are in being accepted to your school of choice. Prestigious Ivy League law schools accept students with higher LSAT scores and excellent undergraduate grade point averages (GPA).
Students are encouraged to apply to a credited law school as accredited by the American Bar Association. The Bureau of Labor Statistics states that there are only 200 law schools in the U.S. that are ABA accredited. Students who graduate from non-accredited law schools will not be licensed by the ABA to practice law, but may be licensed by their local state associations. Law schools do offer students the opportunities to have specialized ltraining through courses focused on a particular area of law such as intellectual property, environmental, employment or entertainment law. Students will complete three years of study and graduate with a juris doctor degree (JD).
Experience is important for law students. In the second or third year, law students should look for internships and clerkship opportunities. Internships within law firms, corporations and the government can provide beneficial hands-on legal experience. Court clerkships expand a student’s legal knowledge of the court system through many administrative tasks and assisting judges directly. Clerkships are a great training tool for those who aspire to become judges in the future.
Every state requires lawyers to complete a bar exam in order to practice law. Lawyers can be licensed by different state bar associations to practice law in more than one state. Test takers must study diligently before taking a bar exam. This exam will test a person’s comprehension of the law in various areas. Many states offer classes and practice test seminars to help you prepare for the exam. Contact your state’s bar association to see if preparation courses are available. In addition, most states require potential lawyers to present letters of recommendation, submit to a background check, pass an ethics test and take a Multistate Bar Exam (MBE) or a Multistate Professional Responsibility Exam (MPRE).
A lawyer’s education doesn’t stop once graduating from law school. Several states mandate that lawyers attend or even teach courses for continual legal education or CLE. These programs are geared to keeping lawyers updated on the recent developments in court rulings and their particular area of law. These courses are usually sponsored by the state or city’s bar association.