Pursuing an MBA while already attending law school Forum

[irenic]

Can you pursue a JD/MBA dual degree if you're already in law school as a 1L and still finish the program in the normal 4 years? If you are allowed to, do you have to go through the application process in the same manner that all other applicants have to who aren't in law school (take the GMAT, etc.)? Thanks for the info (and if there is a thread for this please link it for me bc I was unable to spot it).

[CanadianWolf]

This will vary by school. Each university will have its own rules & guidelines, but many law schools allow one to take a limited number of credits in other graduate schools within that university. Duke Law School makes dual graduate degree programs easy to take, for example.

[irenic]

This will vary by school.

Any info on schools in Texas?

[CanadianWolf]

I don't have any specific information on schools in Texas, but information should be easily obtained by contacting any law school that you are considering attending. It may also depend on whether or not you have taken core courses for the MBA while an undergraduate (e.g., accounting, marketing, management, etc.).

[fatduck]

Many schools will allow you to apply to "switch over" to JD/MBA as a 1L. If you check the schools' websites it should state this clearly somewhere in the application instructions.

[irenic]

Many schools will allow you to apply to "switch over" to JD/MBA as a 1L. If you check the schools' websites it should state this clearly somewhere in the application instructions.

Do you know if most of these schools require taking the GMAT or not? Thanks

[fatduck]

Many schools will allow you to apply to "switch over" to JD/MBA as a 1L. If you check the schools' websites it should state this clearly somewhere in the application instructions.

Do you know if most of these schools require taking the GMAT or not? Thanks

At all the schools I've looked at (just Penn and Northwestern), the application process is exactly the same. So yea, you'd need the GMAT. I think some JD/MBA programs will accept students with just an LSAT, though, so I'd double-check.

[irenic]

Many schools will allow you to apply to "switch over" to JD/MBA as a 1L. If you check the schools' websites it should state this clearly somewhere in the application instructions.

Do you know if most of these schools require taking the GMAT or not? Thanks

At all the schools I've looked at (just Penn and Northwestern), the application process is exactly the same. So yea, you'd need the GMAT. I think some JD/MBA programs will accept students with just an LSAT, though, so I'd double-check.

Okay gotcha. Ugh prepping for the GMAT on top of law school as a 1L sounds awful.

[fatduck]

Many schools will allow you to apply to "switch over" to JD/MBA as a 1L. If you check the schools' websites it should state this clearly somewhere in the application instructions.

Do you know if most of these schools require taking the GMAT or not? Thanks

At all the schools I've looked at (just Penn and Northwestern), the application process is exactly the same. So yea, you'd need the GMAT. I think some JD/MBA programs will accept students with just an LSAT, though, so I'd double-check.

Okay gotcha. Ugh prepping for the GMAT on top of law school as a 1L sounds awful.

The GMAT doesn't really require much prepping. I took one practice test (the free one you can dl from the gmat website), brushed up on a couple obscure geometry rules, and got a 750. It's really similar to the SAT.

[robotclubmember]

yeah, if you prepped nicely for the lsat, the verbal section is nothing. my first diagnostic was rough in quant but verbal was a joke, got every answer correct with tons of time to spare.

the gmat is designed for professionals who don't have 200 hours to sink into test prep time. it's not like the lsat and doesn't take as long to prep into the higher percentiles. i would say that whatever amount of time you spent prepping for the lsat, about 30%~40% of that is all you should need to prep in the equivalent %ile for the gmat. it's rare to take the gmat with nothing going on i think, and you prepping for it during 1L is the same as most other candidates prepping while working.

[fatduck]

as an added bonus you can take the gmat whenever the hell you want, and you get your score instantly

[Alex-Trof]

IMHO, MBA requires a lot of good (progression in a career ladder, making money) relatively lengthy experience before being accepted. You will be interviewed and your reasons for pursuing it will be weight as heavily as your numbers. Being a student without a full-time job at a moment may put you at a disadvantage because the AdComm will wonder if there is a sound reason for an MBA or you're just trying to add value to your J.D. for prospective employers.