Undergraduate Study
Pre-law Option
Most contemporary law schools encourage a standard academic major from their applicants so that anyone who decides not to attend law school after all, will still have a degree in some scholastic discipline. Thus, there is no longer a formal Pre-law major at Michigan Tech. Instead, students intending to apply to law school after graduation take a designated series of preparatory electives (taken in addition to their major) aimed at enhancing their aptitude in the area of law. Prior to graduating, prospective law students then take the LSAT (Law School Admission Test) and apply to law schools.
Since Pre-law at Michigan Tech is simply a curriculum choice, rather than a degree, minor, or certificate, no admissions procedure is required. Any enrolled student in any major may take the suggested courses to help prepare him or her for a career in law. Nevertheless, it's highly recommended that a student intending to take the Pre-law electives contact one of the Pre-law advisors and identify their interest in the area. The advisors can offer valuable counsel on coursework, help with questions about the LSAT and the law school admissions process, and generally keep you informed of important Pre-law activities, such as the visits of law school recruiters to the Michigan Tech campus.
While the recommended Prelaw electives will give you a useful background and preparation for law school, your degree from Michigan Tech will make you a more likely candidate for certain areas of law than others. The three legal fields which complement a Michigan Tech degree are patent, environmental and corporate law. Tech's environmental or forestry degrees provide students with excellent background knowledge for studies in environmental law while Michigan Tech's business program is a useful prelude to study in the corporate law arena. Since the patent attorney must have a thorough understanding of the patents he is defending, any of the engineering degree programs here at Tech would help prepare you for a career in patent law.