Law-Forums.org

[aenedleah10]

I want to go to law school. Possibly do criminal law. Right now I'm majoring in U.S. History. Is that a good degree to help me get in to law school successfully?

[donough]

Sorry to hear you are flushing your money down the toilet getting an expensive degree in History. I mean seriously, what can you do with a history degree other than teach? And guess what, the legal field is in terrible shape, worse than most industries. So what happens if, like many law grads, you can't get a legal job after law school? That's right, you'll have to fall back on your undergrad degree.

My advice, switch majors as soon as possible. Law schools don't care what your undergrad was in. They only care about your GPA and LSAT score. Therefore, get an undergrad in something that you can fall back on in case law doesn't work out. Try getting a degree in Business, Technology, or Healthcare. All 3 fields are doing well and pay well for folks with just a bachelor's degree.

My second advice, skip law school. Unless you attend a Top 14 law school (Google "T14 law school") you pretty much are screwed.

[anson34]

Hey Jimmy,

Any major is acceptable as far as law school admissions go. They might prefer some slightly to others (they don't like Criminal Justice or Pre-Law, paradoxically, for instance), but between most other majors, they just like to see high grades.

As far as preparation for law school goes, history is a good one. You'll have experience doing research and writing analyses of trends. Both of those skills will help you in law school. You'll also probably end up with at least one professor who likes historical analysis of the legal system; you'll be able to understand the context in which he's speaking.

Good luck!

[thom]

Yes, that is a great major to take up if you plan to go to Law School because it helps you to know how to look up facts/research; to memorize important information, and to think logically. As long as you keep your GPA up and do well on the LSAT, you should have little problems in getting accepted.

[cinnard]

Law school doesn't require any degree in particular - technically, you could go in as anything, just as long as you have a degree, and you pass the bar exam.

[zadok]

Yes. That's actually a good preparation for law school.

[morcan]

Yes. That's actually a good preparation for law school.

Yes.