Prelegal Education
Approximately a quarter of the students who major in political science at Ohio University consider the profession of law to be their ultimate career goal. The relationship between government and politics on the one hand and law on the other is close and substantial. It should be recognized that law schools do not prescribe any rigid undergraduate curriculum. A very substantial number of prelaw students do, however, choose political science as theri major field for the baccalaureate degree.
The following statement from the Pre-Law Handbook published by the Association of American Law Schools and the Law School Admission Council is of particular relevance:
The interaction of law and social science is something with which the law student will want more than a passing familiarity.... Law is a social science. The social sciences are vital to law, since law is preoccupied with human behavior and its implications. Law is, in a sense, the action arm of social science.Law schools strongly urge students to incorporate into their undergraduate program courses that will provide:
The Department of Political Science is prepared to assist prelaw students in a number of ways:
A number of courses offered within the curriculum of political science are particularly appropriate
for students wishing to enhance their knowledge of law. Among them are the following:
A law degree is effective preparation for many kinds of careers. In addition to the actual practice of law, many lawyers follow careers in government service, business, education, and other fields. Few professions offer as many diverse career prospects as does law.
The Pre-Law Handbook contains the following statement:
Lawyers perform an immense variety of services. A significant segment of enterprise management in this country is trained in the law, and the majority of legislators, administrators, and executives, both state and national, continue to be lawyers. Further, thousands of lawyers exert an enormous influence upon government policy by drafting and promoting proposals for legislative change and representing before the courts clients whose causes have a significance for society at large. In the last two decades economic, social, and political questions crucial to all levels of society have been increasingly framed as legal questions to be resolved by the courts.Particular note should be taken of the dramatic increase in the number of women and minorities entering the profession of law in recent years as career opportunities have enlarged.
Among the members of the Department of Political Science faculty, the following have particular interest in various aspects of prelegal studies. In addition to teaching and research in law-related areas, they are available for consultation with students regarding their career goals and interests:
- David D. Dabelko, Ph.D., University of Illinois
- John R. Gilliom, Ph.D., University of Washington
- J. Franklin Henderson, Ph.D., University of Missouri
- Sung Ho Kim, Ph.D., Columbia University
Please contact:
Prelaw Advisor
Department of Political Science
Bentley Hall
Ohio University
Athens, Ohio 45701
Tel. 740/593-4373
FAX 740/593-0394
Email polsdept@ohiou.edu
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