How Long Does Law School Take
How long does law school take?
People believe to get into law school it takes years and years. However in reality it is entirely up to the candidate and also depends on what type of law degree you seek, a Juris Doctor degree or a Master of Law degree. Law school requires you to be extremely dedicated and focused, and the more you are the faster you graduate, although for most three years is pretty standard.
First things first, you need a bachelor’s degree from an accredited college or university. The great thing about this first degree is that it can be in just about any subject. You can choose criminal justice or political science as well as many others. This degree normally can take anywhere from two years up to four years. The amount of time truly depends on the person and how focused and how much they intake the knowledge. Also, your GPA should be at least a 3.5 or above if you want to try to get into one of the best Law Schools in the Country, So depending on what school you want to attend this may also be a deciding factor in how long your schooling may take. Another thing that would determine the time is if the person is taking full time classes or part time. Also, in this time frame we are not calculating the time it will take you to study for the LSAT (Law School Admission Test) and we note that each person has different study habits.
Then it would be off to law school to start on your Juris Doctor (J.D) degree. This typically takes three years if you go full time with a full load course each semester. However, some schools may offer part time which usually takes about four years. Although some schools require students to earn more credits than others, you are still looking at an extremely full load of course work, regardless of where you go. Staying focused is going to be a must in law school as some states require that you complete your degree in a maximum time frame in order to qualify to take the bar exam. If you do decide that you want to also go for a Master of Law degree you are looking at another one to two years for that as well. People go for this degree primarily to become proficient in a specific area of law, although it is not a necessity.
From start to finish law school and undergraduate requirements can take approximately seven years. That is a standard time frame and does not take into account any breaks in semesters or part time or study time for the LSAT or the Bar exam. Each person is different with different studying types so you make take less time or even longer. Most law schools require about eighty to ninety credit hours to be completed to get your Juris Doctor degree and this means that you will definitely have a full load, and is why people state that you need to be prepared and focused. Law School can somewhat take as long as you make it take.
