Law and Engineering Dual Degree | Process of Getting Both At a Time

Disclaimer

The contents of this web page are for informational and educational purposes only, and nothing you read is intended to be legal advice. Please review our disclaimer before taking action based upon anything you read or see.

It’s not necessary to graduate in the law field to become a lawyer. Science or other art students can also get admission to law school after graduation. Instead, engineers can evaluate any situation better than the simple arts or law students. Just like they use different techniques and formulas in mathematics, they can evaluate a certain situation in legal cases. Also, the engineering students are not mean or average in their intelligence. In this guide, I will share how to get a law and engineering dual degree.

Rather they are very intellectual and wise. They can handle any situation effectively. Moreover, they can manage to study both to get dual degrees. Law and engineering; dual degree is possible if a person can manage it effectively.

However, some hurdles may stop an engineer from entering the law field. As engineering students have less writing work and more practical skills, their writing skills may stop them from entering the law field. Similarly, they think logically, while the law field requires analytical thinking.

If someone manages these things, he can be a lawyer besides being an engineer. This article will be discussing all the engineering and law degrees.

How are Joint degrees in Law and Engineering?

Some students want to start their careers with both law and engineering. They want to benefit the law field with the ideas and concepts of modern technology from engineering. Certain engineering colleges offer the opportunity to the students to pursue their careers in law and engineering. Here is a way to start your career with law and engineering jointly.

Finalize Your Interest

A student can earn an engineering degree from the recognized institutes by applying for any concerned colleges or school programs. However, try to opt for such a subject that is not simply failing and passing. Rather choose one that contains a frequent thesis and other writing activities. This will increase your writing practice, which is one of the essential things in the law field.

Your basic purpose should be to gain knowledge. Earning an engineering degree from abroad will surely increase the knowledge that will benefit you in the law field. Also, you’ll have a grip on foreign languages.

If you have any opportunity to write a thesis, do that. This will increase your research capability. Such research methods will be a base for your future as a lawyer. So, choose any of the engineering fields wisely that will prove beneficial for your lawyer career. You can choose any of the following engineering programs.

Civil engineering
Chemical engineering
Bio-engineering
Electrical engineering
I.T. engineering
General engineering
Energy engineering
Mechanical engineering
Industrial Engineering

Appear in LSAT

When you’re in engineering school, you can apply for law school. LSAT is necessary for getting admission to a law school. Most engineering students start their careers as a lawyer in the final or senior year. However, a few also start from junior year. This depends upon the capabilities and interests of the students.

Passing the Law School Admission Test (LSAT) is necessary for getting admission to law school. So, appear and pass the LSAT. It will take a lot of your time to prepare for the LSAT. Summer before the LSAT is the best time for a senior engineering student to prepare for the LSAT.

This test will consist of the following type of questions.

Comprehension reading
Analytical thinking approach
Capability of reasoning
Experimental section

All these sections will check whether you’re eligible or not for a law school. Keep in mind that an engineering degree is an essential requirement for admission. However, the students with incomplete degrees will have to fulfill the perquisites in engineering.

Apply for the Law Schools

It’s good to apply for more than one law school after appearing in the LSAT. Being an engineering student, your chances of admission to most law schools will be high.

After you have decided on the law schools of your interest, submit your application form in all of them. After you have filled out the application, you shall have to submit it to the campus or electronically, as per the demands of the concerned law school. Fill out all the credentials carefully. If any of them are left unfilled, you may be rejected.

A letter of recommendation is an additional thing that may help you get admission to a law school. Get the letter from any faculty members and fill it out. You’ll have to fill out the following areas.

Intellectual capability
How strong is your writing skill?
Who motivated you?
Academic record

Such a letter will be helpful for you in the interview. Also, it will be a good impression on the faculty members.

Apply for a Scholarship

The joint degree may prove expensive for you. However, you may aid your funds by applying for the scholarship of the law school. However, it will only be for the law degree, not for engineering.

Consider Joining any Interdisciplinary Program

Juris Doctor (JD) Degree: You’ll have to apply for the interdisciplinary degree after completing your tenure at the law school. Usually, 89 credit hours are necessary to apply for a Juris Doctor degree. However, an engineering student may also add the 12 credit hours he completed at the engineering school. Your credits out of the engineering and law degree must be at least 3 or better. After qualifying the credits requirements, apply for the J.D. degree.

Engineering Degree: The 12 credit hours you completed at the law school can be considered in the engineering degree requirements. Just like a law degree, you should earn at least 2 credits from the engineering school.

Get the Degree

Completing the credit hours and educational activities for both degrees, i.e., engineering and law is essential to earn a joint degree in law and Engineering. If you skipped any engineering or law schools, you’d receive only a degree in that field where you remained regular. So, after completing your tenure in the engineering and law combined field, you’ll receive a joint degree.

Tips for Engineering Students Entering in the Law Field

Here are some basic things that an engineering student must learn before he enters the law field.

Building the Creative Thinking

Mostly, the engineering and other science students think logically. They try to find the logic or reason behind everything happening. But this practice is not valid in the law field. A student of law must think critically. So, the engineering students entering the law field must build their critical thinking skills.

Building the Evaluating Skills

Engineers may apply their knowledge of mathematics and other sciences in the law field too. Just like they evaluate mathematics, they may use the same formulas or tactics to solve tax or payment issues in the law field. So, quantitative evaluation skills of the engineering students will help them figure out the facts in the numbers.

Sharpen the Reading and Writing Habit

Mostly, the science students face practical work. They are not used to studying, writing, or reading. But in the law field, extensive reading and writing are necessary to gain maximum knowledge. So, an engineer should build his reading and writing skills when he enters the law field.

Practice for Communicating Effectively

Effective communication is the key to success in the law field. As you know, the lawyer has to defend his client’s arguments in court that needs strong communication skills. But engineers usually don’t have strong enough communication skills to defend their wills in court. So, to be a professional, an engineer must build his communication skills.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can you go to law school with an engineering degree?

Yes, it’s possible to enter the law field while having an engineering degree. Many law schools welcome such students who have completed or are about to complete their law degrees. However, engineers must build their creative thinking, reading, writing, and evaluation skills before entering the law field.

What is an engineering dual degree?

Moving on with a liberal science and Engineering in B.S programs is called engineering dual degree. Many universities offer such programs.

Are our joint law degrees worth it?

Yes, earning a joint degree in law and engineering is beneficial as it enhances the students’ creative learning. In this way, they perform well in the law field.

Who earns more as an engineer or lawyer?

Both lawyer and engineering are high-paying professions. However, a lawyer earns far more than an engineer.

Is law the hardest degree?

Yes, a law degree is the hardest to earn as it needs extensive study and thorough practice in the law field.

Conclusion

Earning a joint degree in law and engineering is possible as many law and engineering schools offer such programs. If you’re interested in earning such a degree, you can earn it by following the above-mentioned admission method.

References

BISHAL BHADRA

I’m a driven and accomplished law graduate and post-graduate, passionate about sharing my legal expertise via my blog. I hold a Bachelor’s degree in Law from the University of London (UK) and a Master’s in Law from the University of Derby (UK). Both gave me the foundational knowledge and skills to excel in my chosen career path.
Throughout my academic journey, I have gained extensive knowledge in various fields of Law, including Corporate and Business Law in the USA, Criminal Law, International Law, US Copyright law, and most importantly, American Constitutional law.

Find more about me.