What skills do I need?
Attorneys and other people working in the field of law need to be well-trained in a number of skills. They need to be critical thinkers, excellent writers, and adept oral communicators. They need to synthesize, analyze and evaluate data, to be able to think out loud, work collegially with their colleagues, and solve problems quickly. A good solid liberal arts education will impart such skills through any of the courses of study proscribed in the list of majors below, and also through some or all of the courses in the pre-law program of study.
What should I major in?
Pre-law at Bluffton is officially designated as a program and not a major. This is because, as the American Bar Association recognizes there is no one recommended major as preparation for a legal education. When law schools assess possible candidates for admission, they are most interested in three matters: an applicant’s grades, letters of recommendation, and scores on the Law School Admissions Test (LSAT). Students preparing for legal careers should major in a subject they find most intellectually exciting, because it’s in such areas they are apt to perform at their academic best. Most commonly, Bluffton students heading for law school have majored in fields such as communications, criminal justice, economics, history or sociology. Sometimes they have combined these majors into a double-major program of study, or with a minor in areas like political science or peace and conflict resolution.
Randall Basinger talks to some students during "Law Night."
What more can I do to prepare myself for a legal career?
In addition to the course of study above, Bluffton students interested in law-related careers should participate in the ongoing slate of activities offered as part of the pre-law program. This academic year, for instance, Bluffton students will visit law schools, meet returning alums working in the field, spend a day observing at a courtroom, “job-shadow” attorneys and others in the field, and participate in a LSAT preparation workshop. Also students interested in legal careers should strengthen their candidacy for law school admissions by demonstrating leadership abilities in student government or in other of the university’s many campus clubs and extra-curricular activities.
For further information: please contact Dr. Perry Bush, Professor of History and Director, Bluffton Pre-law Program, at Bushp@Bluffton.edu.
