Curriculum
The student is required to meet all of the requirements set by the respective Schools for the award of both the J.D. and M.A. degrees. In the School of Law, this means that the student must complete the required curriculum, meet minimum academic standards, and earn a minimum of 86 credits and six residency semesters in the School of Law. In the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences, minimum requirements for the M.A. degree include 24 credits in an approved program, and completion of a six-credit thesis under the supervision of a faculty advisor. (It is also possible to complete the M.A. degree by earning 30 credits in an approved program without a thesis.)
With the approval of a Law School representative on the Program Committee, a student may receive up to 12 of the 86 credits required for his or her J.D. degree in appropriate graduate level work in the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences. Similarly, with the approval of a Graduate School representative on the Program Committee, a student may receive up to 18 of the credits required for the M.A. Degree in appropriate work in the School of Law. No student, however, may have more than 15 credits applied toward both degrees.
The joint J.D.-M.A. program normally takes three and one-half years to complete and requires a minimum of 95 credits and an approved thesis (or a minimum of 101 credits without a thesis). In effect, the program consists of the complete first-year program at the School of Law and at least two and one-half years of courses taken from the curricula of the two schools and, when appropriate, from other graduate offerings at the University. However it is possible for an enterprising student to complete both degrees by taking a heavier course load and devoting one or two summers to the program.