Law school in the United States

A law school in the United States is an educational institution where students obtain a professional education in law after first obtaining an undergraduate degree.

Law schools in the U.S. confer the degree of Juris Doctor (J.D.), which is a professional doctorate.^[1] It is the degree usually required to practice law in the United States, and the final degree obtained by most practitioners in the field. Juris Doctor programs at law schools are usually three-year programs if done full-time, or four-year programs if done via evening classes. Some U.S. law schools include an Accelerated JD program.

Other degrees that are awarded include the Master of Laws (LL.M.) and the Doctor of Juridical Science (J.S.D. or S.J.D.) degrees, which can be more international in scope. Most law schools are colleges, schools or other units within a larger post-secondary institution, such as a university. Legal education is very different in the United States than in many other parts of the world.

^ Association of American Universities Data Exchange. "Glossary of Terms for Graduate Education". Archived from the original on 2009-03-04. Retrieved 2008-05-26.
- National Science Foundation (2006). "Time to Degree of U.S. Research Doctorate Recipients". InfoBrief, Science Resource Statistics. NSF 06-312: 7. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2016-03-08. Under "Data notes" this article mentions that the J.D. is a professional doctorate
- San Diego County Bar Association (1969). "Ethics Opinion 1969–5". Archived from the original on 2003-04-11. Retrieved 2008-05-26.. Under "other references", this discusses differences between academic and professional doctorates, and contains a statement that the J.D. is a professional doctorate
- University of Utah (2006). "University of Utah – The Graduate School – Graduate Handbook". Archived from the original on 2008-06-26. Retrieved 2008-05-28.
- German Federal Ministry of Education. "U.S. Higher Education / Evaluation of the Almanac Chronicle of Higher Education" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on April 13, 2008. Retrieved 2008-05-26. Report by the German Federal Ministry of Education analysing the Chronicle of Higher Education from the U.S. and stating that the J.D. is a professional doctorate
- Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. 3. 2002. p. 962:1a.

[1] Association of American Universities Data Exchange. "Glossary of Terms for Graduate Education". Archived from the original on 2009-03-04. Retrieved 2008-05-26.
- National Science Foundation (2006). "Time to Degree of U.S. Research Doctorate Recipients". InfoBrief, Science Resource Statistics. NSF 06-312: 7. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2016-03-08. Under "Data notes" this article mentions that the J.D. is a professional doctorate
- San Diego County Bar Association (1969). "Ethics Opinion 1969–5". Archived from the original on 2003-04-11. Retrieved 2008-05-26.. Under "other references", this discusses differences between academic and professional doctorates, and contains a statement that the J.D. is a professional doctorate
- University of Utah (2006). "University of Utah – The Graduate School – Graduate Handbook". Archived from the original on 2008-06-26. Retrieved 2008-05-28.
- German Federal Ministry of Education. "U.S. Higher Education / Evaluation of the Almanac Chronicle of Higher Education" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on April 13, 2008. Retrieved 2008-05-26. Report by the German Federal Ministry of Education analysing the Chronicle of Higher Education from the U.S. and stating that the J.D. is a professional doctorate
- Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. 3. 2002. p. 962:1a.

[1]