Creating an academic plan and choosing second- and third-year courses are important and sometimes difficult processes. There is no single ‘correct’ strategy or philosophy for selecting courses. Factors to consider include: BU Law’s academic requirements; state bar exam requirements; whether you have an affinity for experiential (“hands on”) learning; whether you prefer smaller seminars with more class discussion and writing assignments; your substantive legal interests; and your career goals. This site provides information about several such factors.
This site and the links listed here may answer many of your questions about how to select courses and otherwise design your academic program.
Advising starts with our faculty.
If you have more specific questions or would like advice about issues not covered here, faculty members can talk to you about any such matters, especially in their areas of specialty. Feel free to consult your assigned first-year faculty contact, and don't be shy about also approaching other professors to ask questions.
To see profiles of our full-time faculty, click here.
We also have a team of several BU Law administrators who volunteer to serve as informal advisors to help with general questions. They all have J.D. degrees and legal practice experience. For information about them, click here.
- Academic Requirements Checklist
- Courses and Seminars, Clinical Programs, Semester-in-Practice, Externships, Legislative Programs, and Study Abroad
- New! Credit/No Credit/Honors Option
- Course and Teacher Evaluations
- Full-Time Faculty by Subject Matter
- Faculty Course Selection Advice and Guides
- Advice from the Assistant Dean for Career Development and Public Service
- State Bar Admission Requirements and Bar Exam Information
- Concentrations and Dual-Degree Programs
- Student Advisor Course Selection Panel
Academic Requirements Checklist
- 84 credits required for graduation
- Must take at least 12 credits but no more than 16 credits each semester after first year
- Must take at least 26 credits but no more than 32 credits each academic year after first year
- Must satisfy the Professional Responsibility requirement
- Must Satisfy the Upper-class Writing requirement
- Must satisfy the Professional Skills requirement
- Maximum of 16 non-graded credits may be applied to the J.D. degree (non-graded credits include: journal credits; study abroad credits; non-law graduate course credits applied for JD credit; credits for courses taken at other law schools; field work components of externships and semester-in-practice program).
- Must maintain a GPA of 2.0 in second-year courses and seminars and a cumulative GPA of 2.3 at the end of second year. Must earn a final average of at least 2.3 to graduate.
- May not fail more than five credits after first year.
Please review the Law Student Handbook and the Academic & Disciplinary Regulations for all requirements and policies.
Courses and Seminars, Clinical Programs, Semester-in-Practice, Externships, Legislative Programs, and Study Abroad
There are many courses and seminars to choose from and many opportunities to learn outside of a traditional classroom setting. When planning your course work after first year, consider available opportunities, graduation requirements, your areas of interest, and career goals.
1. Courses and Seminars
JD and LL.M. Courses and Seminars
The upperclass JD program offers both courses and seminars; seminars have 25 or fewer students and typically (though not always) require a final paper or series of papers, and may require comments on readings. Although courses and seminars can change, a good place to start is to look at our current course and seminar offerings.
JD students also may take LL.M. (Master’s of Law) courses for JD credit and at no additional charge in our two graduate programs: Banking and Financial Law and Taxation. Examples of LL.M. courses that JD students have taken include Microfinance, International Tax, Banking Structure and Regulation, and International Project Finance.
Banking and Financial Law courses
Graduate Tax courses
(Note that the Tax program website reference to required programs applies only to the LL.M. program).
Boston University Graduate Courses for JD Credit
Any JD student may apply to the JD degree up to 12 credits (typically 4 courses) of non-law, graduate-level work at Boston University after first year. Thus, e.g., students might take one or more graduate courses in management, history, international relations, philosophy, English, public health, and other areas. Note that the number of law credits received for a non-law course may differ from what the other school offers due to ABA accreditation requirements. Please check credits with our Law Registrar's Office.
Courses and Seminars by Subject Matter
You may find it helpful to see current course and seminar offerings grouped by general subject matter. Note that many courses fall into more than one category. **Also, not all listed courses and seminars are offered each year.**
2. Clinical Programs
Our clinical programs provide students with opportunities to work with real clients on actual cases under close faculty supervision. Clinics offer opportunities in diverse areas of civil litigation or criminal law (prosecutor or defender).
3. Semester-in-Practice
In the Semester-in-Practice Program, students spend a semester working at a placement outside of Boston, and also write a research paper with a BU Law faculty member. Current established placements include government lawyering in Washington, D.C., death penalty work in Atlanta, Georgia, and human rights work in Geneva, Switzerland. Students also can submit proposals for other placements for approval.
4. Externships
Externships consist of a part-time field placement in the Boston area and a weekly seminar. Current externships include the Legal Externship Program, (in which students work at public interest, government, or in-house counsel positions); the Health Law Externship; the Judicial Externship; the Government Lawyering Externship; and Community Courts.
5. Legislative Programs
The Legislative Programs afford students opportunities to learn about how law is made and to work on legislation. Work may involve a range of issues in areas such as intellectual property, health law, environmental law, and civil rights. Students' work in one program supports the African Parliamentary Knowledge Network.
6. Study Abroad
BU Law offers several Study Abroad Programs. In most programs, students spend the semester at foreign schools. Some programs have a language requirement, though most offer classes in English. Students earn 12 credits, which meets our minimum semester credit requirement.
We also offer two year-long, dual-degree study abroad programs: the JD/LL.M. in European Law program in Paris, France; and the JD/LL.M. in Asian Legal Studies in Singapore.
Credit/No Credit/Honors Option
Starting in the fall of 2012, upperclass students may enroll in up to 8 credits total of course or seminar work on a Credit/No Credit/Honors (CR/NC/H) basis. The course descriptions will indicate if the class is NOT offered for CR/NC/H, or if the only option for the class is CR/NC/H. For information on how this new option works, click here.
Course and Teacher Evaluations
You might also consider how prior students evaluated courses and professors. You can view course and seminar evaluations online by clicking here. (You must insert your BU login and kerberos password).
Faculty Course Selection Advice and Guides
Our Associate Dean for Academic Affairs, who puts together the upperclass curriculum each year, has general course selection advice.
Also, several faculty members collaborated on memos that offer advice to students who wish to pursue any of the following legal specialties: Business (“Corporate”) Law; Constitutional Law; Criminal Law; Health Law; Intellectual Property Law; International Law.
Advice from the Assistant Dean for Career Development and Public Service
Maura Kelly, Assistant Dean for Career Development and Public Service, also has some advice on course selection related to career goals.
State Bar Admission Requirements and Bar Exam Information
Be sure to check the bar admission requirements of the state in which you intend to practice. Some state bars have course or credit requirements. For example, some states limit the number of semester hours for courses related to legal training or clinical courses. The National Conference of Bar Examiners Web site has links to all state bar authorities (under "Bar Admission Offices"). Each state will have links to its bar application and admission rules, and the format of its bar exam.
Concentrations and Dual-Degree Programs
Concentrations
The Law School’s five concentrations provide a structured, systematic way to focus one’s study on a particular area of law through course requirements and a substantial paper. The concentrations are: Business Organizations and Finance; Health Law; Intellectual Property; International Law; and Litigation and Dispute Resolution. The required concentration paper also may be used to satisfy the Upperclass Writing Requirement.
Dual-Degree Programs
BU Law has fourteen dual-degree programs. In nine of those programs, students earn a JD and a master’s degree from another Boston University School or Department in less time than it would take to pursue the two degrees independently. (Two new programs are a JD/MA in English and a JD/MA in History).
Unlike the concentrations, which focus on law, the dual-degree programs allow students to supplement their law studies with course work in other disciplines that informs their study of law and provides a broader background. For example, in the JD/MS in Mass Communication program, students interested in law practice in the rapidly changing communication field learn about new communication technologies, which will help them understand clients’ businesses. Students in the JD/Master’s in Public Health program learn about concepts such as epidemiology and health policy and management.
We also offer two seven-semester programs with the BU Law graduate programs in Banking and Financial Law and in Taxation. Students may earn a JD degree and and LL.M. (Masters of Law) degree in less time than it would take to pursue both degrees independently.
Students also may apply through our study abroad programs for a JD/LL.M. in European Law with Université Panthéon-Assas in Paris, France; a JD/LL.M. in Asian Legal Studies with the National University of Singapore; or a JD/LLM in International and European Business Law with the Universidad Pontificia Comillas de Madrid in Spain.. (These are year-long programs open to third-year students only).
Student Advisor Course Selection Panel
In the spring semester, upperclass student advisors coordinate a panel for 1Ls on upperclass courses and professors. The Student Affairs Office will notify students about the details.