Evan Blalock
Argument Paper
Pre-Law
My dream has always been to go to law school and become a business
lawyer. This of course requires going to law school and in order to do so you must
have a bachelor’s degree. Since UNC Charlotte does not offer a Pre-Law or Judicial
Studies major I was forced to major in the next best thing, this being Political
Science. I have talked with many fellow political science majors, who also wish to
become lawyers, who also think that UNC Charlotte should offer a Pre-Law major. I
think that UNC Charlotte should offer undergraduates a Pre-Law degree so students
don’t have to settle for the next best thing.
Law schools do not require a specific major for admission, but the more
relevance to law your major has the more prepared you will be for law school. The
University of California at Berkley developed their own pre-law program that
teaches future law students the basics they need to succeed in law school. UC
Berkley’s pre-law program was voted top ten in the country in 2009 by
collegeboard.org. Students that were enrolled in the program registered some of the
highest LSAT scores in the country. Developing a program like this at UNC Charlotte
would give future law students the best chance to succeed in law school.
I went to Campbell Law School in downtown Raleigh, since it’s right down
the road from my house, and asked 20 law students if they participated in some sort
of pre-law program in their undergrad career. Thirteen of the 20 people I asked said
they did indeed. I asked those that did what kind of advantages did it gave them; one
student named Julia DeRhodes stated, “It gave me a basic understanding of the law
and what it means to study law. It also prepared me for the types of thinking I would
be doing”.
Here at UNC Charlotte there is not even a law department. Since UNC
Charlotte does no have a law school there is no department that is focusing on
getting students into law schools. Schools that have some type of law program send
almost twice the students to law school than schools without one. The school should
be doing everything they can to help students go where they want in their future
and if going to school is what they desire then that’s what they should be doing.
Getting in to law school is just the first obstacle in becoming a lawyer.
Graduating and getting a job are equally, if not, more important than just getting in.
Law school requires good reading skills, writing, and logical/analytical thinking.
Pre-Law programs are designed to give students these skills that are crucial to being
successful in law school. Political science is considered a writing intensive major,
however it is not a reading intensive major nor is it analytical. Criminal Justice,
which is the other popular major for future law students, is the same way.
Establishing a pre-law program would equip students with these skills, and in
return produce more successful lawyers.
I believe that establishing a pre-law program would help grow the school as
well. A lawyer is a popular ambition for up and coming students; I personally went
to high school with a bunch of people who wanted to become lawyers, we even had
a club for it. Having no type of law program what so ever is a big deterrent for
students coming out of high school. If we set up a pre-law program that will bring in
Evan Blalock
Argument Paper
more students and more money that the school use to make UNC Charlotte the best
possible institution.
There is no better time than now to establish one, UNC Charlotte was named
one of the 10 fastest growing schools in the Nation by Forbes magazine. In a time
with so much expansion it seem that establishing some of law program would be a
no brainer. The schools owns huge chunks of land that have not yet been developed,
putting a building dedicated to pre-law and law wouldn’t happen overnight, but it is
definitely something worth exploring.
In conclusion, without a pre-law program we are robbing students with the
proper skills they need to succeed in law school. Setting up a pre law program
would help get kids into law school, help them succeed once they get there, and even
help grow the school. How much longer will UNC Charlotte go without a pre law
program? Well, if I have anything to do with it, it wont be long!