Pre-Law Emphasis
Many students interested in going to law school choose to study philosophy. This is sensible given that philosophy provides students with a number of valuable skills. Philosophy courses emphasize the critical reasoning skills required of students in law school. Such courses also help students improve their writing skills needed for practicing law. That philosophy provides excellent training in this regard is related to the fact that philosophy majors have some of the highest scores on the law school LSAT exam. Recent studies have shown that philosophy majors nationally scored the second highest on the exam overall, and had higher scores than all other humanities majors. This means philosophy majors perform very well among the pre-law majors which students enroll in. For more information about the value of studying philosophy, see the list of LSAT scores and the links on the Resources page.
There is no separate major or minor in the department for students interested in applying to law school. Students should satisfy the requirements described for the relevant program and take a variety of courses. It should be noted that there are several courses that may be useful to pre-law students which are listed below, though these are not required. It should also be noted that the major is more beneficial than the minor and should be taken if possible, since this gives one a stronger foundation for entrance to law school. Students interested in the program should consult with the chair of the department for advice in selecting courses.
| PHIL 1101 | Introduction to Philosophy |
| PHIL 1104 | Logic |
| PHIL 1105 | Ethics |
| PHIL 1204 | Symbolic Logic |
| PHIL 2140 | Political Philosophy |
| PHIL 2150 | Philosophy of Law |
| PHIL 2250 | Moral Theories |