If you know that you want to attend law school after college, your undergraduate grades, LSAT scores and extracurricular activities will all play a part in your application package. However, many students worry about choosing the right undergraduate major. The American Bar Association does not recommend any one course of study, so it is up to you to pick a major that you enjoy and can excel at. In fact, having a less traditional major can actually work to your advantage, as you will bring a different skill set to your law school class.
Instructions
1. Take a wide variety of classes your freshman year. If you have several majors you are considering, take a class or two in each of them to get a sense of what you enjoy the most.
2. Look for classes that will challenge your analytical and problem solving abilities. Classes that make you think outside the box and push you to think will best prepare you for law school.
3. Think about majors that require oral presentations or debates. Many 1L law students are intimidated by speaking in classes, which are run with the Socratic Method. At the very least, consider taking courses like this for your general education requirements.
4. Speak to counselors in your potential majors if you are still unsure what direction to go in. Too few college students take advantage of the resources on their campuses.
5. Talk to a law school admissions officer. Your university may have a law school on campus, or you can always schedule a time to speak to an admissions rep on the phone or at a law school forum.
6. Select a minor in your second-choice major. If your top two choices both have lower unit requirements, you can try to double major. Be careful of taking on too strenuous of a workload, if you think it will lower your overall GPA.
7. Chose a major that you love and feel you will have fun with. No one wants you to major in a subject you hate because you believe it will look good to law schools. Not only should you have fun in college, but you are more likely to score high grades in courses you enjoy.
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