Law school is exciting and challenging. Through its various courses, clinics, moot court programs, and lectures, it trains future lawyers. The law school program is a graduate, or professional, program. Therefore, a prospective student needs an undergraduate degree, in order to be eligible for admission.
Further, a prospective student must take the Law School Admission Test (LSAT) before applying to law school. Students with very high LSAT scores and grade point averages have a greater chance of being accepted to top law schools, like Harvard Law School, Columbia Law School, and Boalt Hall Law School. Admission to law school is very competitive, though, and sometimes the best students do not get into their first-choice schools.
Most students attend law school for three years to receive a Juris Doctor degree. Students enrolled in part-time or joint degree programs stay in school for four years or more. Some students choose to work toward higher degrees like the Master of Laws, Master of Legal Studies, and Doctor of Juridical Science. The majority of students, however, suffice with the Juris Doctor degree, which is one of the prerequisites to being admitted to the bar.
Passing the bar examination is another prerequisite to being admitted to the bar. Graduating from law school definitely does not signify the end of studying. It marks the beginning of a new and critical challenge: the state-administered bar examination, which is usually given over the course of two or three days. A passing score means starting a career as a lawyer, as long as all the other requirements are met.
Laws should be constructed so as to leave as little as possible to the decision of those who judge. - Aristotle