Accelerated JD program

In United States legal education, an accelerated JD Program may refer to one of the following:

• A "3+3 JD program" or "BA to JD program" is a program in which students combine certain requirements of a bachelor's degree (usually a BA) with the requirements of the Juris Doctor degree. Students thus usually receive their bachelor's degree after completing the first year of law school. Typically, students complete the two degrees in six years rather than the usual seven. The undergraduate college and law school may either be independent institutions, or part of a single large university. Accelerated JD programs differ from most dual degree programs in that the degrees are of different levels, and are obtained sequentially rather than concurrently. Requirements for admission of undergraduates to such programs are typically higher than for general enrollment. Some programs further restrict enrollment to students in a specific prelaw major.
• A "2-year JD program" is a Juris Doctor degree that is offered independently of a bachelor's degree. Typically, students are required to complete the same number of credit hours as traditional three-year JD students, but in a more condensed period.

U.S. News & World Report stated that as a result of student concerns about the time and cost (both in terms of tuition and the opportunity cost associated with foregoing a salary for three years) required to complete a law degree, there has been an emerging trend to develop accelerated JD programs.

List of 3+3 accelerated JD programs

State	Undergraduate college	Undergraduate degree and major	Law school	Link	Remarks
Arizona	University of Arizona	BA in Law	James E. Rogers College of Law	[1]
California	University of California, Santa Cruz	BA/BS	University of California, Hastings College of the Law	[2]
Connecticut	Quinnipiac University	BA/BS	Quinnipiac University School of Law	[3]
Florida	Jacksonville University	BA/BS/BBA	Florida Coastal School of Law	[4]
Georgia	Georgia State University	BA	Georgia State University College of Law	[5]
Illinois	Shimer College	BA (any)	Chicago-Kent College of Law	[6]
Iowa	University of Iowa	BA/BS	University of Iowa College of Law	[7]
Iowa	Drake University	BA/BS	Drake University Law School	[8]
Kansas	University of Kansas	BA/BS (any)	University of Kansas Law School	[9]
Louisiana	Newcomb-Tulane College	BA/BS (any)	Tulane Law School	[10]
Massachusetts	[Western New England University]	Colleges of Arts & Sciences, Business and Engineering	Western New England University School of Law	[11]
Minnesota	Hamline University College of Liberal Arts	BA in American Law and Legal Systems	Hamline University School of Law	[12]
Minnesota	University of St. Thomas	BA	University of St. Thomas School of Law	[13]	Restricted to certain majors.
Nebraska	Creighton University College of Business	BA (business)	Creighton University School of Law	[14]
New Jersey	New Jersey Institute of Technology, Albert Dorman Honors College	BS	Seton Hall Law School	[15]
New Jersey	Rutgers–Camden	BA (any)	Rutgers School of Law–Camden	[16]
New York	Adelphi University	BA, BS	Albany Law School	[17]
New York	Albany College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences	BS	Albany Law School	[18]
New York	College of Saint Rose	BA (any)	Albany Law School	[19]
New York	Columbia University	BA	Columbia Law School	[20]	Students do not receive BA until they have completed law school
New York	Fordham University College of Business Administration	BS (business)	Fordham University School of Law	[21]
New York	Hartwick College		Albany Law School	[22]
New York	Hofstra University	BA (many majors)	Maurice A. Deane School of Law at Hofstra University, Hofstra Law School	[23]
New York	Pace University	BA, BS	Pace Law School	[24]
New York	Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute	BS in Management or Science, Technology and Society	Albany Law School, Columbia Law School	[25], [26]
New York	Russell Sage College	BA (any)	Albany Law School	[27]
New York	SUNY Cobleskill		Albany Law School	[28]
New York	Union College	BA in Law and Public Policy	Albany Law School	[29]
New York	University at Albany, SUNY	BA, BS	Albany Law School	[30][31]
New York	University of Central Florida	BA (any)	Touro Law Center	[32]
Oregon	Willamette University College of Liberal Arts	BA	Willamette University College of Law	[33]
Oregon	Oregon State University College of Liberal Arts	BA, BS (various majors)	Willamette University College of Law	[34]
Pennsylvania	Arcadia University	BA	Earle Mack School of Law at Drexel University	[35]
Pennsylvania	Drexel University	BA, BS	Earle Mack School of Law at Drexel University	[36]
Pennsylvania	Elizabethtown College	BA, BS	Earle Mack School of Law at Drexel University	[37]
Pennsylvania	University of Pennsylvania School of Arts and Sciences	BA	University of Pennsylvania Law School	[38]
Rhode Island	Roger Williams University	BA	Roger Williams University School of Law	[39]
Tennessee	University of Tennessee College of Arts and Sciences	BS, BA (various majors)	University of Tennessee College of Law	[33]

List of 2-year accelerated JD programs

Unless otherwise indicated, all students enter the accelerated JD program at the start of the school's summer term. At Southwestern Law, the summer term starts in June; at the other listed schools, the summer term starts in May.

The May/June start of most accelerated programs is compatible with the bar examination schedule of all U.S. jurisdictions. Bar exams throughout the U.S. take place during the week containing the last Wednesday in July; almost all jurisdictions also offer an exam during the week containing the last Wednesday in February. Washburn's January starting date is compatible with February examinations, but those who start in August will not be able to sit for most July examinations, since most jurisdictions require candidates to have graduated from law school. One exception is Washburn's home state of Kansas, which allows current law students to sit for the bar if they will graduate within 30 days of the exam.

State	Law school	Link	Remarks
Arizona	James E. Rogers College of Law	[40]	"The Advanced JD Program for non-US lawyers is for those who have studied law outside the US, but now wish to expand their professional opportunities by earning a US law degree."
Arizona	Sandra Day O'Connor College of Law	[41]	"Allows individuals to earn their J.D. in 24 months."
California	Southwestern Law School	[42]	The first accelerated 2-year program in the U.S., operating since 1974.
California	Pepperdine University School of Law	[43]	"After an initial summer session beginning in May, the Accelerated Option students will enroll in the regular first year JD classes and continue to matriculate in the regular JD program."
Florida	Florida Coastal School of Law	[44]	"Only ABA fast-track program in state of Florida. May to May. Ranked Tier 4 by US News."
Illinois	Northwestern University School of Law	[45]	Northwestern Law was the first and only top tier law school to offer a 2-year accelerated JD program. This program has since been discontinued.
Kansas	Washburn University School of Law	[46]	Students can begin the program in either August or January.
Kansas	University of Kansas School of Law	[47]	Students begin the program in May. Can also still participate in a wide range of Study Abroad options in 2nd year.
Nebraska	Creighton University School of Law	[48]	"Students in the program can participate in summer study-abroad program "From Nuremberg to The Hague," in which students travel to Germany and The Netherlands to study international law, the impact of the Holocaust on the law, and the prosecution of war criminals and perpetrators of genocide and crimes against humanity."
New York	Albany Law School	[49]	Eliminates tuition costs for the third year. Students will have the option of starting in January or May, and after 24 months of intensive study will be ready to sit for the February or July bar exam, respectively.
New York	Brooklyn Law School	[50]	"Brooklyn Law School Creates the First Accelerated 2-Year J.D. Program in New York Metro Area"
New York	Touro Law Center	[51]	"Touro Law Center’s new accelerated degree program is an extraordinary opportunity for a select group of qualified applicants to complete all requirements for the Juris Doctor degree during a concentrated and rigorous 24-month period and to sit for a Bar Examination only 26 months after they begin their law school studies."
Ohio	University of Dayton School of Law	[52]
Pennsylvania	Earle Mack School of Law at Drexel University	[53]	Program starts in May 2014; allows students to complete a co-op semester.
Virginia	Regent University School of Law	[54]	Program starts May 2013.
Vermont	Vermont Law School	[55]
Washington	Gonzaga University School of Law		Program started June 2014; however, Gonzaga has removed information about the program from its site and is no longer accepting accelerated JD applications.

See also

• Prelaw
• Academic acceleration
• Legal education