NEW!!! - The Department of Political Science Announces the Dual M.A.-J.D. Program

The Tennessee Board of Regents has officially approved the Dual M.A.-J.D. Program offered by the Department of Political Science and the Cecil C. Humphreys School of Law at The University of Memphis. Over the years, both undergraduate and graduate students at the University of Memphis have requested a dual program for the Law J.D. and the Political Science M.A. degree programs. The advantage of such a program is that credit towards degrees in these career-related disciplines can be earned simultaneously if admissions and curricula are carefully structured. Many reputable institutions elsewhere, such as Yale, Duke, Syracuse, Tulane, and Cincinnati, have such programs. None of them, however, is close to Memphis, so adding the program provides a competitive advantage in the Mid-South.

Below are the requirements for the program. Basically, students may begin the M.A. in Political Science and then, pending separate admission, attend Law School where they may apply 16 credit hours (see below) to finish the M.A. Alternatively, they may first begin Law School and, pending separate admission, follow with the M.A. degree and similarly apply 16 hours of Law School credit to the M.A.

This is a wonderful opportunity for students that will go into effect this Fall 2006. If you have any questions, please contact Dr. Doug Imig (dimig@memphis.edu), POLS Graduate Coordinator or Dr. Shannon L. Blanton, (sblanton@memphis.edu), Department Chair.

Dual MA-JD Program

• A. Program Admission
  Admission to the dual program will require separate admission to each program. However, for applications to the joint program, the Political Science Department will accept LSAT scores in lieu of the GRE. Students are admitted into each program separately; completion of one degree is not contingent upon completion of both.
• B. Program Requirements
  

  1. Dual Credit

   Students may earn up to a maximum of sixteen hours of dual credit for law courses taken at the law school. The remaining hours toward the M.A. in Political Science must be taken in Political Science. The following courses will qualify for both the J.D. and M.A. in Political Science:

• Law Courses Required at Law School

  Constitutional Law 4 hours, Criminal Law 3 hours, Criminal Procedure I 3 hours

  Law School Electives

  Administrative Law 3 hours, Criminal Procedure II 2 hours, Federal Courts A 2 hours, Federal Courts B 2 hours, Civil Rights 3 hours, Constitutional Law Seminar 2 hours, Tennessee Con Law 2 hours, Jurisprudence 2 hours, International Law 3 hours, Comparative Law 3 hours, Immigration Law 3 hours, Environmental Law 3 hours

  2. Other Requirements

  For students in the dual program, their first year of law school must include only classes that are part of the J.D. program.

  With the above exceptions, all the normal requirements for admission and graduation for a J.D. and for an M.A. in Political Science apply.