Here I would be giving you 5 Types of Law Degrees. Getting a Law degree is the first thing that comes to heart when people want to take significant steps toward their dreams of becoming legal practitioners.
Most times, these people are often naïve to the fact that there are stages, specifications, and various dimensions to this path, this article will outline the 5 types of law degrees you can get in 2022.
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5 Types of Law Degrees
What is law? The dictionary meaning of law portrays it as a system of rules which a particular country, community, or region recognizes as regulating the actions of its members and which may be enforced by the imposition of penalties.
Law comes in contact with almost every aspect of human life or endeavor. Law is a field that touches all sectors, from business to, economics, politics, the environment, human rights, international relations, and trade.
As a law student, you will learn how to tackle some very trivial issues., even issues that are often irresolvable, including conflicts and issues in modern society.
A Law degree is very useful not only to prepare you for a career in the legal field but also to broaden your professional roles and for life generally.
Law Degree Types
This article will explain the five different types of law degrees. To most people, becoming a lawyer requires years of college to earn a law degree, but so many people do not realize that there are diversities to these degrees. The type of law degree an individual pursues depends on what type of legal career they want to have.
every type of law degree prepares its student for a particular type of job, but each of these degrees also has its specific type and amount of training.
Explained below are the five different types of law degrees.
Juris Doctor
This degree is possessed by most lawyers in the United States of America. This is the most recognized law degree in the United States, it is usually the first to be gotten. This degree is also offered by non-ABA-approved schools and by Canadian law schools according to Law School Admission Council.
To enroll in law school to earn the JD, all applicants must go through the process of having a bachelor’s degree and passing the Law School Admission Test (LSAT). To get this degree, you will have to go through a full-time program for three years.
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Law Degree Masters
Unlike the JD law degree, this degree is a one-year (full-time) or two-year (part-time) program for students who already have a law degree.
There may be more than one type of curriculum for this program depending on the area of specialization the student may choose. examples of the curriculum for this type of program include American law, international law, the United States legal system, the Canadian legal system, and comparative Law.
Continuously, LLM students attending this program may be able to choose from subfields like intellectual property, taxation, international environmental law, or human rights law. You do not need an LSAT to enroll in the LLM program in the United States.
Doctor of Judicial Science
The Doctor of Judicial science is considered the highest level of a law degree in the United States. The Doctor of Judicial Science (SJD) is a two-year program for lawyers who have earned the JD or LLM and wish to advance their legal education.
The Doctor of Judicial Science is a doctoral degree that is made for legal education, legal scientists, law professors, and similar law scholars who want a career in legal research. Instead of offering typical legal courses, the SJD requires students to participate in seminars and conduct one-on-one legal research with certified professors in the field of law.
There is a strict admission policy to this program that requires, a JD or LLM degree, a personal statement, a resume, letters of recommendation, a research proposal, and personal interviews.
Master of Legal Studies
The Master of Legal Studies also known as MLS is for people desiring knowledge in the field of law but do not want to be practicing lawyers.
This is mostly preferred by candidates who deal with legal cases regularly. Holders of this degree may work in law enforcement, human resources, regulatory agencies, or the business sector.
To get this degree, applicants must have a bachelor’s degree and must provide letters of recommendation, personal statement, resume, and personal interview.
The duration of this program is between 16 to 28 months to finish and may include courses in administrative law, contracts, negotiation theory, and regulatory compliance.
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Master of Dispute Resolution
The MDR degree as it is popularly called is a degree for individuals who want to work in organizations where they can provide resolution and negotiation skills needed to solve difficult situations.
It takes about two years to complete this program and it includes courses in dispute resolution, mediation, negotiation, arbitration practice, identifying workplace issues, and conflict management.
To get this degree, you must have a bachelor’s degree and must provide letters of recommendation, resumes, and a personal statement.
Law Degree Online
Have you been wondering if you can get an online law degree?
Here’s your answer. You can get all of the degrees listed above online except the Juris Doctorate (J.D.), which cannot be obtained online. Although, it is possible to obtain the JD online the process of becoming a licensed attorney is much more complicated.
The major barrier to getting a Juris Doctorate law degree online is the American Bar Association (ABA). The ABA has refused to accredit any JD program that includes more than 15 hours of distance or online education.
To get a license to practice law, all the students in 49 states will have to graduate from an ABA-accredited program. One state, However, California, allows individuals to sit for the bar exam after they have graduated from a non-accredited program.
If they can pass the bar exam in California, they can practice law in California or some cases, only in federal court. All the students that are interested in attending an online JD program to become an attorney, must check with their state to determine the particular requirements before spending any money on an online JD degree.
What To Expect from Law Degrees
If you want to get a law degree, note that most academic degrees will require you to start with compulsory courses. At this stage, it will be best to choose law courses that will be of great use to you in the future.
During your law program, you will attend a combination of classes and seminars, group work, presentations, class debates, and mooting sessions.
To help students master important legal skills such as research and analysis, public speaking, and argument formation, students will have to practice law training in courtroom settings.
In some institutions, most students will be allowed to study abroad for a year if they are combining law with certain foreign languages. Some institutions may provide students with the chance to work voluntarily to gain experience to help them apply for legal positions later.
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Common skills gained from a Law Degree
The skills that can be gained from getting a law degree are;
- Thorough knowledge of legal matters, policy, theories, and case studies
- Total understanding of contemporary business, politics, sociology, and ethics/morality
- The best expertise in law, including command of the technical language of the legal field.
- The Ability to understand complex issues from multiple perspectives to “see the bigger picture of everything”
- It will give you the ability to construct and defend an argument persuasively
- Getting a law degree will give you excellent professional communication skills, spoken and written, including presentation skills
- It will help you get the skills of self-management, including planning and meeting deadlines
- You will have general IT skills
- General skills in researching
- General numerical skills
- Relational skills like Interpersonal and teamwork skills
- Skills in analysis and reasoning
- Skills in legal researching
- Problem-solving skills
- Foreign language.
How to Get a Law Degree
Although this may not be the major focus of this write-up. It will be very necessary to outline a summary of the process of getting a law degree.
- To start the process, you will have to get a bachelor’s degree, preferably in law, and come out with very good grades.
- The next step is to pass the law school admission test
- After that, Identify Law Schools and Complete Applications
- After getting through the above process, you can proceed to earn a Juris Doctor degree.
- Pass the bar examination
Frequently Asked Questions
What Does a Lawyer Do?
The major duty of a lawyer is to advise and represent clients in courts before government agencies and in private matters. They communicate with their clients, colleagues, judges, and other people involved in a case
What is the Average Annual Salary of Lawyers?
The average annual salary of lawyers ranges from $126,000 to $208,000 per year. This is just an average value as the price for different places, qualifications and positions may be different from this range.
What Should 1st-Year Law Students Do?
As an advocate, there are two major things to do. These things are drafting and Pleading. The drafting part originates from legal writing. Therefore, as a first-year student, if you want to get quality work in your internships and learn to draft the various documents required in a case, you need to advance your writing skills.
What Personality Traits Are Needed to Be a Lawyer?
Written below are five traits that every law student must possess to become successful in the field;
- Passion for their Job.
- Compassion.
- Excellent Communication Skills.
- Good Listening skills.
- Adequate knowledge of the Law
Is Studying Law Difficult?
it is just as interesting but also challenging as other fields. Each student has to prepare for his/her exams. Apart from this, students will also have to pay attention to their writing skills. A Law student should be able to write efficiently and effectively.
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