Overview

The Stetson University Summer Pre-Law Institute is a rigorous, six-week course in which undergraduate students will be chosen to prepare for law school and a career in the legal field. Students enrolled in Stetson's unique program will spend four weeks on the DeLand campus, taking a critical thinking course designed for pre-law students, and two weeks at the College of Law in Gulfport/St. Petersburg in an immersion program designed to introduce students to the law school experience and the practice of law.

Pre-Law students, from a variety of majors, can develop their critical thinking, writing, problem solving, and interpretation skills, preparing them for the competitive law school admissions process and creating a vision for themselves as law students and lawyers.

Stetson University Summer Pre-Law Institute encourages all students, from any academic major, who have at least a 3.0 GPA and have completed at least two full years of university study, to apply. For students who are on track to enroll at Stetson University College of Law under the 3-3 Articulation Agreement, the Institute will be open to students who have completed one full year of university study.

Program Benefits

• Get a head start on preparing yourself for the competitive law school admissions process to become a law student and create a successful career.
• Gain credits towards your undergraduate program.
• Increase personal, pre-professional identity through interactions with current law students and practicing attorneys.
• Enhance your critical thinking, problem solving, argumentation and writing skills, which are among the "core skills and values" recommended to pre-law students by the American Bar Association.
• Participate in intense class discussions and activities that facilitate a sense of cohort.
• Learn which undergraduate courses are best as preparation for law school.

Course Descriptions

•IDSC 301: Critical Thinking and the Law,

May 16-June 8, 2012, DeLand Campus

Faculty: Joshua Rust, PhD, Philosophy,

1 Course Unit (4 Credit Hours)

Readings, discussions, and written assignments will focus on critically analyzing arguments, developing an argument, and presenting an argument in oral and written form. Text and case study analysis will be related to the field of law.

 

•IDSC 302: Introduction to Legal Study and the Practice of the Law,

June 11-22, 2012, Gulfport Campus

Faculty: Kirsten Davis, JD, Linda Anderson, JD, and Louis Virelli, JD, College of Law

1 Course Unit (4 Credit Hours)

During the two weeks students spend on the law school campus, students will be immersed in the law school experience. Students will take two classes: Introduction to the Law, Legal Analysis, and Legal Writing; and American Law in Focus, a customized course designed to introduce students to the study of law through exploration of a timely legal topic. In addition, students will engage in activities with lawyers, professors and law students; have experiences with lawyers in the field; and learn about getting ready for and admitted to law school.

 

Cost

The cost of the summer program is approximately $6,000.

Application

Complete the application and return to Dr. David Hill at dhill@stetson.edu or to the Department of Political Science in Elizabeth Hall.

For more information

Contact Dr. David Hill at dhill@stetson.edu, Dr. Joshua Rust at jrust@stetson.edu, Dr. Rebecca Watts at rwatts@stetson.edu, or Professor Kirsten Davis at kkdavis@law.stetson.edu