2 year law school

Ok, so maybe I am moving away from online law school after I found out their is a 2 year law school in chicago called northwestern. But im in Ca , anyone know of any 2 year law schools similar to northwestern 2 year accelerated law degree in california?

Thanks.

 

Here you go..

Course Descriptions - Master of Laws and Master of Science of Law - Thomas Jefferson School of Law

 

All ABA-accredited JD programs require 3 years worth of coursework.

It's true that Northwestern has a 2-year "accelerated JD" program -- but it requires the same amount of coursework as a normal 3-year JD. They just cram it into 2 calendar years by requiring lots of classes during the summer. The total tuition for the 2-year JD is exactly the same as for the 3-year JD.

To my knowledge, the only JD program like this in California is the SCALE program at the ABA-accredited Southwestern Law School (in Los Angeles). Again, this program crams 3 years of coursework into 2 calendar years through summer study.

California also allows non-ABA accredited JD programs, but almost all of them are designed for 4 years of part-time study. There are a few B&M CalBar-accredited JD programs that can be completed in 3 or 3.5 years. But California Bar rules require unaccredited programs, including all DL programs, to be 4 years.

 

Sure, you can get a Master's degree from a California law school in only 1-2 years -- but it won't be a JD degree, and it won't allow you to practice law. For example, Thomas Jefferson School of Law states the following about the degrees mentioned above:

 

Thank you. I have heard of the southwestern law program, thats the one I may try to get into. Anyone know or have attended this school?

 

As with any private, ABA-accredited law school, it's kind of expensive.

It looks like first-year tuition in the SCALE JD program is currently $58,965
The tuition for the second year of the SCALE JD is currently $55,708

Of course, this does not include the cost of living in Los Angeles for two years.

 

Not California, but:

Thomas M. Cooley Law School (Lansing, MI): 24-Months (year-round) accelerated JD
Prospective Students | Students | Incoming Students

P.S. I have a cousin who completed his JD at Cooley a few years back via the accelerated option.

 

Empire College School of Law
http://www.empcol.edu/school-of-law

DETC
4 year program (which takes only 2 years)
Located in northern California an hour north of San Francisco.

 

Empire says:

This is typical for non-ABA law schools in California. I don't see any indication that the program can be completed in less time. Furthermore, I am skeptical that CalBar would allow a candidate to take the Bar Exam after only two years of study at an unaccredited law school.

 

This school has a very low graduation rate. It's very easy to get into, but they work you to death once you're there. A lot of kids go then transfer into another school as a 2L, a lot fail out. They have a relatively low graduation rate because of this. My uncle did his first year there then transfered to Wash U in St. Louis.

 

Empire College is NA, but thru:
Accrediting Council for Independent Colleges and Schools (ACICS)
School of Business | California | Accreditation | Empire College


Empire College School of Law is accredited thru:
Committee of Bar Examiners of the State Bar of California
School of Law | California | Accreditation | Empire College

 

That was my cousin’s experience (e.g., "...but they work you to death once you're there."); but he did complete his JD in 2-years. I suppose the school was credible since he’s subsequently taken /passed several State Bar exams.

 

Oh I think the school is beyond credible. If you look at the schools some of the students there transfer to it's apparent that other programs respect the rigor and quality of the school.

 

You're right. Empire College is not approved by ABA, but it does have approval from CalBar. I mistakenly thought it was in the third category, for unaccredited schools (where "unaccredited" means lacking accreditation for legal education specifically, like from ABA or CalBar).

CalBar schools typically offer 4-year part-time JD programs. I believe some CalBar schools do have full-time 3-year programs; however, I've never heard of a 2-year CalBar program. The Empire website doesn't seem to offer any options beyond the usual 4-year part-time program.

 

My meaning as regards “credible” is that Cooley is certainly not considered a top-tier law school (e.g., 4th-tier Third Tier and Fourth Tier Law Schools), and as you mention, isn’t too difficult to gain admission (acceptance rate of nearly 80%) and is the largest law school in the United States in terms of total enrollment Thomas Cooley School of Law . However, Cooley still offers a plausible opportunity to succeed in obtaining a JD even within 2-years.

 

Not in most law school rankings -- with one exception.

The 12th edition of Judging the Law Schools recently ranked Cooley as the #2 law school nationwide, behind only Harvard.

Some people are a bit skeptical of this particular ranking, though-- since Judging the Law Schools is published by Cooley itself.

 

The notorious "12th edition of Judging the Law Schools." We (the students) bombarded the administration on that one . All jokes aside, what AUTiger and major56 said is directly on point. I started out on the 2 year program when I first came to Cooley. It's brutal...definitely doable...but totally brutal. I was elected Student Bar Association President and decided that I didn't want to graduate in Sept. and then wait 6 months to take the Bar Exam so I pushed my graduation to December.

With that said, there was a total of 15 of us that started off on the 2 year program. Four, maybe five will be graduating this September. Most are still here, they just slowed their pace down. Of the 15, 10-13 of us had absolutely no life. At the time we started we were all single, with no kids, and no job. Pretty much lived, slept, and ate school 24/7. If you have any questions then feel free to ask.

 

Agreed. This is the college that gave me such a biased view of DETC schools. I know a few people who attended this college, and after they graduated, they were in debt like you wouldn't believe (30K) on average; none of them got jobs and nobody would accept their credits when they tried to transfer. But if your looking a law school you can blow through in about 2 years, they are the only college I know of where you can go and get this done.

Around my area, anybody who admits to graduating from this school, people just roll their eyes and think your retarded.

 

I am confused, isn't Thomas M Cooley ABA accredited? By the way, I take offense to the "retarded" comment. I have someone close to me that is mentally disabled.