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What was your major before law school?

Did your major prepare you for what you studied at law school? Looking back, would you have chosen something else?

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Jimmy’s Answer

I was also a Political Science major, however, I have friends who also applied and got into some top Law Schools with an Art and East Asian Studies major. I also knew someone who had was an Economics major and got into Law School. The reality is that there are many fields of law that complement a business - e.g., Banking Law, Entertainment Law, Environmental Law... so don't worry too much about what you study in undergrad.

The only time what you study in undergrad matters for Law School or for being an Attorney is someone who wants to be a Patent Attorney. Patent Attorneys help people patent their inventions. Patents basically protect the inventor from people who want to copy their invention and make money from their copy. To be able to take the Patent Bar you must have proper education or training in science or engineering. So if you majored in Mechanical Engineering, Chemistry, Physics, etc... and get into Law School, you could take the Patent Bar and become a Patent Attorney. However, if you are a Political Science major and also went to Law School, you would not be able to take the Patent Bar exam to become a Patent Attorney because you do not have the requisite "hard science" or engineering degree.

For the most part getting into Law School depends on your GPA and how well you did on the LSAT. My advice is keep your grades up and take as many actual practice LSAT exams as you can before the actual exam, just don't burn yourself out. I am not sure what the policy is now, but when I took the LSAT exam, if you took the LSAT multiple times the Law Schools would average out your LSAT exam results instead of taking the highest one.
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Meghan’s Answer

I majored in dance and English literature and wouldn’t have changed anything. Any major requiring discipline and critical thinking prepares you well for law school, and that’s pretty much all of them if you take your undergrad studies seriously. The pre-law students, the Econ, Political Science and business majors, did not perform any better. Major in something that excites you. They’ll teach you everything you need to know in law school if you end up choosing that path. Enjoy and good luck!
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Mary’s Answer

Unless you want to pursue criminal law, your undergraduate degree doesn't really matter. I had a business management undergrad degree and am now an intellectual property attorney.
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Teresa’s Answer

When I was at UC Berkeley majoring in political science, everyone used to ask me --"Oh, you're going into law?" and the reason was because that is the typical prelaw major. According to https://www.law.buffalo.edu/blog/10_Best_Prelaw_Majors.html - -the best prelaw majors include poli sci and psychology. I know rhetoric is a great subject as well because it is the study of argumentation. It's a lot of fun, too, you get to learn some neat sounding Latin terms like

Synecdoche: Pronounced "sin-eck-duh-key". (Gk. “understanding one thing in terms of another”; L. intellectio, pars pro toto; Eng. “the Figure of Quick Conceit” [Putt.]). Substitution of part for whole, species for genus, or vice versa: “Take thy face hence” (Macbeth 5.3.18).

That one was fun!

Good luck!
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