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Juris Doctor/Master of Business Administration ruler
Why pursue a Law Degree and an MBA?

     The worlds of policy and management have become inextricably intertwined since the advent of increased government regulation of business, as well as the burgeoning international trade market. In a global economy, the role of the attorney in the day-to-day management of businesses has become paramount, as the modern business manager needs immediate access to legal advice.

What are the advantages of pursuing them through a joint degree program?

     The joint JD/MBA program strives to improve the effectiveness of managers, policy, and legal advisors to business by training individuals to understand the importance of the issues, skills, and methods in both law and business. Graduates of the program will have the tools to pursue careers in the legal and business professions, especially where those areas overlap such as investment and commercial banking, management consulting, government regulation, and business policy analysis.

What are the degree requirements?

     JD/MBA students must complete the full four-year joint program, including all separate course requirements for both the JD and MBA degrees. The program requires completion of 124* credit hours, 76* hours in law courses and 48 hours in MBA courses. The program requirements are summarized below.

Degrees/certificates awarded Degree Requirements
  • J.D.
  • MBA
  • Joint Program Certificate
  • 4 year program
  • 124* credit hours (76* in law, 48 in MBA courses)
  • satisfactory completion of the upperclass legal writing requirement
  • course in Professional Responsibility
Typical Credit Distribution
Curriculum/Course Requirements
First Year 31* JD
Second Year 30 MBA
Third Year 23 JD
9 MBA
Fourth Year 22 JD
9 MBA
31* hrs in required first year law curriculum.
27 hrs of required and 3 hours of elective MBA courses taken in the second year. Required courses include: Business and Government, Business Ethics, Finance I and II, Financial Accounting I and II, Microeconomics, Macro Economics, Management Accounting, Management Communication, Marketing I and Marketing Selective, Organizational Behavior, Operations Management, Quantitative Methods I and II, Strategic Management, and Introduction to Business Planning;

The MBA requirements include both traditional functional courses and 3 integrated experiences. These are intensive team-based experiences lasting approximately one week that focus on a critical business issue that incorporates various functional topics and tools.

3 hrs of selective MBA courses taken in the spring of the third or fourth year of the program. Selective courses, Global Experience and the Decision Support Systems, are required but students may select from several versions of these courses;
13.5 hrs of MBA electives in third or fourth year. Students are encouraged to focus their elective course work in a particular functional area;
21-27 hrs in upperclass law electives, including the required course in Professional Responsibility and satisfactory completion of the legal writing requirements. Credit requirements in this area will vary depending upon the student's choice of courses within his/her area of concentration.
Corporate Law Focus: must also complete
12 hrs of required business-related law courses taken in the 3rd and 4th years, which include: Corporations, Taxation I & II; and
6 hrsof business-related law courses in addition to those listed above.

Public Policy Focus: must also complete
18 hrs in required public-policy-related law courses taken in the 3rd and 4th years, which include: Administrative Law, Constitutional Law II, Corporations, Legislation and Statutory Interpretation, and Taxation I; and
6 hrsof required public-policy-related law courses in addition to those listed above.

*NOTE: 1 fewer credit is required for students who completed the first year law curriculum prior to 2007-2008.

Revised May 22, 2007 (VW)