Requirements for the Doctor of Law (J.D.) Degree

No student in the day division may take fewer than 12 hours or more than 16 hours per semester without special permission. No student in the evening division may take fewer than 8 hours per semester, or more than 12 hours per semester, without permission. In each case, permission may be granted by the Dean or the Dean's delegate [in this instance, the Associate Dean for Academic Affairs] or the Registrar. To graduate, students must receive residence credit for 6 full time semesters or 8 part time semesters, or the equivalent. To receive residence credit, full time students must pass at least 10 hours of courses per semester; part time students must pass at least 8 hours of courses per semester. Additional credits earned in one academic year or summer session will not permit a student to take fewer than the minimum credit hours per semester thereafter.

Full time students must schedule classes principally between the hours of eight a.m. and six p.m. Classes for first year day students meet over five days a week. The New York State Court of Appeals requires that all full time students must schedule their classes a minimum of four days per calendar week during one of the upper-class semesters. A student who schedules classes in at least one of the upper class semesters on four days a week will satisfy the Court's requirement regarding class scheduling for a full time program, so long as the student schedules classes at least three days a week in the remaining upper class semesters. Under no circumstances should a student be taking classes fewer than three days per calendar week. For residency purposes scheduled classes do not include journal and moot court activities (even where academic credit is given), independent studies, field placements in clinics, and externships. However, regularly scheduled meetings with clinic faculty that are communicated to the Registrar by the end of the add/drop period shall satisfy the residency requirement. If you have any questions about these rules, please stop by the Office of the Registrar.

The American Bar Association requires that the course of study for the J.D. degree be completed no later than 84 months after a student has commenced law study at the law school or a law school from which the school has accepted transfer credit. Our requirements are designed to meet or exceed the requirements of the New York Court of Appeals, the American Bar Association, and the Association of American Law Schools. Thus any student seeking a waiver of the Law School's requirements should realize that such a waiver might violate one or more of the accreditors' rules. This could mean that the student would not be eligible for admission to practice. Students are responsible for a thorough knowledge of the requirements for eligibility for practice in each jurisdiction in which they plan to apply for admission.