Pre-Law
Many undergraduates interested in becoming a lawyer begin by asking, "how do I get into law school?" -- yet, that is not the first question. The better initial question to ask is, "why do I want to be a lawyer?" At Berea College, this career-focused question begins a multi-year process for the student of seeking information and designing experiences aimed at understanding the legal profession. A student takes the first step in this process by visiting the website for the College's Pre-Law Pathway (PLP) at the following link: https://www.berea.edu/academics/majors-minors/pre-professional-programs/pre-law-pathway-timeline/ . The PLP begins in the sophomore year and includes attending small-group learning events, visiting law school campuses (including sitting in on classes), linking up with a mentor who practices law, participating in law-related internships, and other activities encouraged by the PLP program. Before joining the PLP in their sophomore year, first-year students are encouraged to focus on the new challenges they face at Berea, but any student always is welcome to schedule a meeting with the Campus Pre-Law Advisor, Dr. Daniel Huck, to begin a discussion about law as a professional career.
As a student progresses through each new milestone in the PLP, they move closer to deciding whether to become an attorney and how they might begin that career by attending law school after Berea. Law schools in the United States neither require nor recommend any particular major or undergraduate course of study as preparation for legal study after college. Instead, Berea College prepares students for law school by developing their analytical abilities, including their abilities to read, write, and reason well across a range of courses, especially as part of the College's general education curriculum. Also, Berea does not have a "Pre-Law Major" as such, but the College does offer a minor in Law, Ethics and Society that may serve some students in considering their long-term interest in the study of law. Students considering a legal career should choose an academic major at Berea that develops their abilities to read difficult texts, to write structured arguments, and to reason in depth. Whatever a student's academic major, strong preparation for law school also will require demonstrated excellence in a broad curriculum of study focused in the liberal arts.