If you are thinking about going to Law School you may wonder how long does it take to get a Law Degree? Well, that all depends on how long do you want to be in Law School. Joking aside, here are the details.
Bachelor what?
First things first, you must obtain a bachelor degree. Granted this is a criminal justice blog, the bachelor degree program doesn’t have to be in criminal justice. But in the end, you must have one. The degree can take anywhere from 2 and 1/2 years to 4, or more. Read my post on how long does it take to complete a degree (it applies to all degree types – not only Criminal Justice, Homeland Security, Political Science, or Public Safety degrees).
Thus far, you have a minimum of 2.5 years of education, and the national average of 4 years, before you can even dream of being in Law School.
Now onto Law School
Generally, a law degree takes 3 years. Three years of your life which you will have to devote entirely to school. No girlfriends, no boyfriends, no social life, no liberties, nothing. You don’t believe me? You will!
Law schools are adamant that you complete your degree in a timely manner and rarely do they allow you to take longer to complete your Juris Doctor. Some individuals may take four years to complete a JD degree, but that is usually with prior permission from the college or university granting the Law Degree.
So a law school degree can take anywhere from 5 and 1/2 years to 7 years – from scratch. Well, you know by now that the graduate level program takes 3 years by itself. This applies for nearly all law school programs, including the ones from: Harvard, Yale, Stanford, Columbia, and other elite law schools.
Some Useful Advice… You’ll need it!
So if you are just graduating from high school or are beginning your quest of obtaining a bachelor degree you have the best odds. Why? Because if you have your BA or BS completed and your GPA is not high enough than your chances of becoming a Lawyer may dwindle. Therefore, you better have a high GPA, amongst other factors, if you want to make it through the Law School application process.
Here are some points you should take to heart before you go to Law School:
- High GPA in your undergraduate studies – try to keep it 3.5 or above if you want to compete for a place in the best Law Schools in the country <– critical!
- Make relationships with your professors while taking your undergrad classes. You’ll need them when the time comes for letters of recommendation <–critical!
- Try, if you can, to participate in extracurricular activities, like: sports teams or academic groups while earning your BA or BS degree. This will look good on your resume.
- Study for the LSAT, also known as the Law School Admission Test. Use multiple study guides, books, or prep courses. When you take this aptitude test you will need to get the highest score possible, as usual <– critical!
- Write an original personal statement; one that is based on your core values and is written with an eloquent tongue. <– critical!
- Don’t complete your degree online. The handful of the Law degree programs on the Internet are not regionally accredited and ABA accredited. This probably will change in the future, but for now, don’t waste your time and money!
If you have seen this: <– critical!… that means it is a core component of the law school application and should be given an extreme level of attention. I am not kidding!!
If your GPA or LSAT are not high enough you may still have a chance of getting into the top 10 law schools (if you want). Your personal statement essay and letters of recommendation may be the true deciding factor (that depends on the school). Realistically, chances of getting into top law school programs are very slim, even with a perfect application. So I highly recommend applying to Tier 2 Law Schools, besides the Tier 1 or the Top Ten. That said, I wish you good luck in your future endeavors!
You might also like:
- High School Classes Needed for a Criminal Justice College
- Should I Major in Criminal Justice before Law School?
- How Long Does it Take to get a Degree in Criminal Justice
- How Long Does it Take to get a Degree in Forensic Science
- How Long Does it Take to get a Homeland Security Degree?
- How Many Criminal Justice Classes Do I Take at One Time
- Verbal Advantage is the Best Vocabulary Builder, Bar None
{ 8 comments… read them below or add one }
I have a MBA in Business Management. GPA is 3.00. How long do I have to go to law school.
Unfortunately, even if you had a PhD in something other than Law you would have to spend 3 years in law school. Some find it unfortunate, while others consider law school to be a highly specialized prep for practicing law. The MBA in Business Management can help you, however. It is a testament to your continual effort to educate yourself and bring yourself to the forefront of occupational demand. Your GPA is not wonderful, but it’s not bad either. As you may know, even Tier 2 law schools may be competitive enough to accept favorable applicants with GPA’s higher than yours. But if you read this post, you know what to do to offset any GPA fiasco.
How was your undergrad GPA? All ABA accredited law schools look for any and all college transcripts you had – even from those schools where you didn’t complete your degree or transferred from. If you had a great GPA don’t worry, but if you had a lower than 3.2 I would include a small addendum to state your case. Good luck on your quest and I hope that you will make a sagacious decision when the right time comes.
I’m in 8th grade, and i’m deeply passionate in law, criminal justice, and journalism. I hope to one day get a degree in both, and start a news paper or small business. Then if that dream doesn’t work, fall back on a law degree.
The colleges I am looking at are: University of Phoenix, St. Thomas University -MN, Metropolitan State College of Denver, and Western International University -Phoenix, AZ.
I go to Wayzata schools (Minnesota) and their teaching is very high, do you think that because I go to Wayzata my chances of getting into a good college or any of these Colleges are pretty good?
My mom always says that I work too hard and that I shouldn’t be looking at colleges in 8th grade, but I don’t listen to her because anything is possible if there are footprints on the moon.
Hi Thesi,
I’m glad you are so passionate about your college and career goals. Some of the colleges you are considering are OK while others are great. I could write an e-book about these colleges, so I will give you two resources you should check out.
1. -www.usnews.com – go to the Education section and research these and other schools – Superb tool for college research.
2. -www.princetonreview.com – go to the college search / research section – I also use this tool to research schools.
These two sites will give you a perspective on the colleges you want to attend. My usual criteria for colleges and universities are:
Your chances of getting into a great college or university depend mostly on the grades, GPA, and extracurricular activities you participate in while in high school. See my post on high school classes you may need to get into a criminal justice college (type in: “high school” in the search feature).
Good luck with everything and let us know how everything goes.
Hey, I’ve got a question on online school. What if you get a bachelor’s degree from an accredited online school, and then move on to your law degree? How long would that take? I’m a sophomore in high school, with a 4.0 GPA for the past 2 years.
All scenarios should be covered above. The time it takes you to complete your undergrad depends on your school and the pace you want to keep. Four years is the norm, but it is common to finish an online degree in as little as 2.5 years. You can count on law school taking no less than 3 years and no more than 4 years (the latter usually requires permission). Majority of law school grads take exactly 3 years to complete their JD. hope this helps and I wish you all the best in your educational pursuits.
P.S. when picking an online or traditional college or university I highly recommend a regionally accredited school vs. a nationally accredited one. Despite the names given to the type of accreditation, it is the regional accreditation that is the better standard. You can read more about it here by running a search for “accreditation.” Make sure to put this in your notes when you start searching.
Hi i am in the 8th grade i love criminal justice I get along with people good and i have always been with everything i do i never give up! Even my mom says so i always get my stuff done i looked at some schools and i dont really know whats right for me can you tell me what schools are good for me.
My advice: Enjoy high school first. There are plenty of great criminal justice colleges and universities, but getting into them will depend a lot on what grades you’ll produce in high school. Most high school students don’t start planning their college events until their junior year. I recommend starting earlier, but junior years is usually a safe bet to start thinking about your college plans. Good luck!