Legal Studies BA/Law JD - Program Requirements

Academic Requirements for the BA

Students must maintain a minimum GPA of 2.000 in the undergraduate major. All courses used in the major will be used in calculation of the major GPA. For example, if the curriculum requires a student to select two courses from a particular section and the student completes three courses from that section, all three courses would be used to calculate a student's major GPA.

Each course taken may be counted only once and applied toward only one requirement (e.g. PSC 303 may be applied to part A or part B of the advanced section but not to both)

All transfer courses officially articulated to UB courses used in the Legal Studies major will be accepted to meet major requirements. Students should consult with an academic advisor to determine how any non-articulated transfer or exam credit may be utilized in meeting general education, prerequisite, or major requirements.

HIS 161 United States History I or HIS 162 United States History II
PSC 101 Introduction to American Politics
Both prerequisite courses must be completed with a grade of C or better

Undergraduate Requirements

HIS 161 United States History I or HIS 162 United States History II
PSC 101 Introduction to American Politics
SOC 101 Introduction to Sociology

One introductory course from the following list:

• AAS 293 Race, Law and Society
• APY 262 Anthropology and Justice
• GGS 325 Violence in a Gendered World
• HIS 216 Crime and Punishment in America
• PHI 105 Contemporary Moral Problems
• PHI 162 Law, Morality and Authority
• PHI 238 Philosophy of Law
• PSC 215 Law and the Political Process
• PSC 225 Equality and Justice in the United States

One English course at the 200, 300 or 400 level. Course cannot be ENG 301, ENG 495, ENG 496, ENG 497, ENG 498, ENG 499.

One English course at the 300 or 400 level. Course cannot be ENG 301, ENG 495, ENG 496, ENG 497, ENG 498, ENG 499.

One Analytical Skills course from the following list:

• CEP 207 Introduction to Statistics and Computing
• PHI 115 Critical Thinking
• PSC 200 Empirical Political Science
• PSC 408 Basic Statistics for Social Science
• PSY 207 Psychological Statistics
• PSY 350 Scientific Inquiry in Psychology
• SOC 293 Social Research Methods
• SOC 294 Basic Statistics for Social Sciences
• SSC 213 Social Research Methods
• STA 119 Statistical Methods

Seven Advanced Courses

A. Choose one of the following advanced courses:

• PSC 301 Cases in Civil Liberties
• PSC 302 Protecting Civil Liberties
• PSC 303 Constitutional Law

B. Choose six of the following advanced courses**:

• GGS 353 Law Interprets Gender
• PHI 338 Law and Morality
• PHI 340 Law and Responsibility
• PSC 301 Cases in Civil Liberties (if not used in part A)
• PSC 302 Protecting Civil Liberties (if not used in part A)
• PSC 303 Constitutional Law (if not used in part A)
• PSC 304 Legislative Politics
• PSC 305 Judicial Politics
• PSC 339 International Law
• PSC 401 Advanced Civil Liberties
• PSC 406 Supreme Court Seminar
• PSC 430 Human Rights
• PSC 470 Legal Political Theory
• PSC 480 Advanced Constitutional Law
• SOC 307 Criminology
• SOC 311 Drugs and Society
• SOC 317 Criminal Justice Systems
• SOC 319 Juvenile Justice
• SOC 337 Sociology of Punishment
• SOC 343 Gender and Crime
• SOC 345 Sociology of Deviance
• SOC 357 Race, Crime and Criminal Justice
• SOC 366 Crime and Popular Culture
• SOC 373 Law and Society
• SSC 406 Law and the Environment
• SSC 428 Health Law
• SSC 443 Law, Legal Writing and Advocacy
• SSC 496 COM Community Internship (one semester only)

**Students must take courses from at least two different departments in the advanced courses sections. A course may be used to meet a requirement in only one section of the advanced courses.

JD Requirements

A student in the Legal Studies major is eligible for departmental honors based on her/his major grade point average (GPA). All courses completed in the major are used to calculate the major GPA. Honors levels are Distinction with a GPA of 3.250 to 3.490, High Distinction with a GPA of 3.500 to 3.740 and Highest Distinction with a GPA of 3.750 or higher. A minimum of 50% of credits for the major must be completed at UB to be eligible for department honors.

Students should consult with an academic advisor to determine how any transfer or exam credit might be utilized in meeting general education, prerequisite, or major requirements.

See Baccalaureate Degree Requirements for general education and remaining university requirements.

Total Credit Hours Required represents the minimum credits needed to complete this program, and may vary based on a number of circumstances. This chart should not be used for financial aid purposes.