What it’s about:

This major examines the law and legal issues from the perspectives of the social sciences and the humanities. Taking a theoretical rather than a practical approach, students explore in the origins, evolution, function, students explore the effects of the law as a social phenomenon. Legal studies is not a prelaw program, and this major will not quality you to take the bar examination or to work as a lawyer. If your goal is to become an attorney, you must attend law school after college.

What the study of this major is like:

Shortly after the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, President George W. Bush signed the Patriot Act. This law made it easier for the government to guard against terrorist activity by allowing such tactics as searches without notice. But many people believe that the measure endangers the civil rights and civil liberties of both citizens and immigrants.

Does it make sense to trade in some civil rights for greater protection against terrorism? Will the government’s greater access to our private lives make us safer? As a legal studies major, you’ll take an in-depth look at these and other important issues.

While legal studies is not a prelaw program, it is a good major for prelaw students because it will help you to develop your ability to think clearly and to analyze arguments critically. It is also an excellent major if you are learning toward a career in public service or planning to study business or the social sciences in grad school.

The major is academically rigorous. It requires excellent reading comprehension skills and sharp analytical ability. Reading and writing assignments can be substantial. You should be ready to engage in intense discussion of thorny legal problems, study actual court cases, do computer research using legal databases, and write a senior thesis.

Course work, which is usually interdisciplinary, focuses on the legal process, legal institutions, and how they operate in society. For example, you might examine crime and punishment from the viewpoint of psychology, philosophy, and anthropology, or use legal doctrines to study international business models in a globalized economy. A course in comparative law will expose you to systems that differ from those in the United States, such as European civil law or Islamic Sharia. Legal studies is based on the idea that an understanding of the foundations of law and justice requires the application of a broad range of academic disciplines, as well as a critical analysis of human behaviour and institutions.

In most programs you will have a chance to participate in moot courts (arguing an artificial appeal), mock trials (playing a role in an artificial trial) and to serve internships with judges, private lawyers, prosecutors, defense attorneys, or in government offices. This aspect of the major can give you a close perspective on a legal career prior to deciding on law school.

At some colleges this major emphasizes training for the paralegal and legal assistant professions. These programs, which may be available at the two-year, or associate degree, level, often provide practice-oriented courses in specific areas of law, such as real estate or contracts. Generally, four-year colleges that house the major prepare students for law school, for graduate school, or for careers in government and business. These programs offer courses in a variety of disciplines, and are usually more rigorous academically and more theoretical.

Career options and trends:

Lawyer*; government official*; paralegal; public interest advocate; business executive; law enforcement officer; journalist.

To practice law, you must go to law school, pass a bar exam, and be certified by the bar of the state in which you will practice.

As a liberal arts program, legal studies can prepare you for a variety of careers in business and public service, as well as in the law. The major will also qualify you to apply to graduate school in the humanities and social sciences, or to professional school in teaching, public policy, business and health administration, and social work.

Source: CollegeBoard 2012 Book of Majors