Majors & Coursework

Law schools do not prefer any particular major or concentration of study. As the American Bar Association has explained:

“Students are admitted to law school from almost every academic discipline. You may choose to major in subjects that are considered to be traditional preparation for law schools, such as history, English, philosophy, political science, economics or business, or you may focus your undergraduate studies in areas as diverse as art, music, science and mathematics, computer science, engineering, nursing or education. Whatever major you select, you are encouraged to pursue an area of study that interests and challenges you, while taking advantage of opportunities to develop your research and writing skills. Taking a broad range of difficult courses from demanding instructors is excellent preparation for legal education” (emphasis added).

So rather than approaching your choice of major from the perspective of “what major do law schools prefer”, instead, take time to consider the range of majors that would best suit your individual strengths and interests. By choosing a major that is right for you, you are more likely to be engaged and to perform well academically. Law schools are looking for applicants who both challenged themselves and also succeeded academically. You will need to find the right balance for you.

Still exploring which majors/certificates or careers may be right for you? The Career Exploration Center (CEC) is a advising office on campus open to students from all schools and colleges, at any point in your undergraduate career. The advisors there specialize in helping you explore your options and provide resources to help you gain exposure to the fields you are interested in. Schedule an appointment with the CEC here.

Switching out of a major that you have discovered is not the right fit for you personally or academically will not hinder your application to law school in any way, and may help if your grades improve in your new major.

A great resource for students who are considering switching majors is the Cross College Advising Service (CCAS).  This is an advising office open to all students on campus, regardless of major or what School or College you are assigned to.  They specialize in providing academic advising for students who are undecided, undeclared, or navigating a major switch.  They are particularly helpful if you are thinking of switching to a major in a different school or college in the University, because they are familiar with that process.  You don’t have to be assigned to CCAS to meet with them, and you don’t have to be sure about switching majors.

Click here for information on CCAS or to make an appointment

Some students assume that the more majors and certificates they complete, the more likely they are to get into their top choice law school. This is not necessarily true. There are a variety of holistic factors that go into a law school application, including looking at a candidate’s transcripts, so having difficult courses or a rigorous schedule is one factor that law schools may consider. However, your cumulative undergraduate GPA is going to be weighed more heavily than the number of majors and certificates you complete. If you are double or triple majoring with the sole intent of impressing a law school, you risk overburdening yourself mentally and academically for little to no benefit. There are lots of great reasons to complete multiple majors and/or certificates, including your parallel plans to law school, or developing more knowledge and experience that will assist you in your intended legal field, but impressing a law school should not be the deciding factor. Your academic advisor(s) are a great resource for you in weighing which majors and certificates to pursue.

There are no specific classes that you need to take before applying to law school. However, the American Bar Association (ABA) does recommend using undergraduate coursework in combination with extracurricular experiences to acquire certain skills and knowledge that can help prepare you for law school.

Skills that can help you prepare:

• Analytical/Problem-Solving Skills

• Critical Reading/Critical Thinking Abilities  (Courses that assign judicial opinions such as Constitutional Law courses can help develop this skill)

• Writing Skills (Consider taking several courses that require you to produce a significant research paper)

Oral Communication and Listening Abilities (Classes with extensive classroom debate or argument and not just prepared speeches can help develop this skill. You could also look into trying out for an undergraduate Debate, Mock Trial or Moot Court Team.)

Once you choose a major that is right for you, you can follow the coursework for that major and look to supplement that coursework with electives that will help prepare you for a law career. Your academic advisor can help you with this, and many departments offer classes for undergraduates that specifically deal with law, including Economics, Gender & Women’s Studies, General Business, History, Legal Studies, Philosophy, Political Science, Psychology, Public Affairs, Sociology, and Social Work.

However, a course does not have to have the word law or legal in the title in order to help prepare you for law school. Picture yourself in a future law career. Where are you and what are you doing? Who are your clients? What background knowledge might be helpful? For example, someone who wants to practice corporate law may want to take courses about tax or mergers and acquisitions, but someone who wants to practice juvenile law might want to take courses about child development and child abuse. You absolutely do not need to know for sure what area of law you’d like to practice before applying to law school, but if you have some ideas of types of law you may be interested in, that can be a great place to start!

Many attorneys work with a wide variety of clientele. You may want to know more about race, gender, sexuality, disability, poverty, and mental health. While law school will prepare you for the legal rigors of a law job, there are many real world factors of working with a diverse set of clients that your undergraduate study can be best situated to prepare you for.

UW-Madison has two logic classes in the Philosophy Department that could help supplement your LSAT prep work: PHIL 210 and PHIL 211.

Both are challenging classes that could help you develop reasoning skills that would aid you on the LSAT. If you choose to take either or both, be sure not to take the courses too early. You should plan to take the course(s) relatively close in time to the LSAT.

All writing experience prior to law school is helpful. However, if you are looking for a class that includes writing practice specifically in a legal context, there are some courses that are listed as “Selected Topics in…” that may help build legal writing skills.  These can change from year to year, but often there are options here that would include legal writing.  For example, in Spring 2022 Poli Sci 401:”Legal Writing: From Counseling to Advocacy” was offered as an undergraduate legal writing course. These courses may not be offered every semester (ex. only offered in the spring). There have also been special topics courses related to the Supreme Court that have included drafting legal memos.  The best way to look for current course offerings is to search using keywords at enroll.wisc.edu.

Studying abroad can be a great experience for pre-law students.  There are a number of programs to explore that will fit a variety of interests. There may even be an opportunity to study law during a study abroad experience in a country where law school is an undergraduate degree (One example of this is Lancaster University in the UK).

We recommend that you keep in mind that some study abroad programs out there may be Non-Approved Programs, and you should understand and carefully consider the implications to you before participating in one of these programs.

The biggest hurdle that pre-law students who study abroad usually face is that second semester of junior year is when most study abroad programs tend to take place.  This is also the most common semester for pre-law students to prep for and take the LSAT (Law School Admission Test) or GRE (Graduate Record Examination). It is usually not advisable to plan to study for the exam during your study abroad experience (you don’t want to waste your limited time there on test prep!), so it’s helpful to consult a pre-law advisor to make an alternate plan for when to take the LSAT.  It is common for some students to prep for and take the LSAT before going abroad so that is out of the way and they can enjoy the experience.