JD Program
The JD program at Duke is a full-time, three-year program
which requires eighty-four semester hours of course work for graduation.
Three hours of credit toward the JD degree (six with special permission
of the Administrative Committee), may be earned in courses taken
at Duke outside the Law School in the Graduate School, in upper-level
undergraduate courses, or in courses in foreign languages. Two semesters
of law study undertaken at another accredited American law school
may be counted toward the required total if the final two semesters
(exclusive of a summer session) and at least fifty-four semester
hours of law study are completed at Duke.
LLM and SJD Programs
International lawyers seeking information about Duke’s SJD and one-year LLM in American Law programs should visit the website for International Programs.
Joint-Degree Programs
Duke Law School's focus on interdisciplinary studies and programs
extends across the Duke campus and around the world. In fact, 25
percent of our students are in joint-degree programs — more
than any other top law school.
Duke is the only elite law school in the country that allows students
to earn both a law degree and a master's degree in three years.
Students pursuing a JD/MA, JD/MS or JD/LLM enroll in June and begin
their first-year curriculum prior to the JD students, who enroll
in August. For academic joint-degree programs, students need not
apply separately to the Graduate School or take the Graduate Record
Exam (GRE). Instead, they include a statement of interest with their
Law School applications, and the Law School admissions department
will work with the graduate department to make the admissions decision.
Another advantage of Duke’s joint degree
program is that students do not pay separately for Graduate
School courses. Students simply pay for three years of law school
and one summer session.
To learn more about the JD/MA-MS curriculum, please visit these departmental web sites:
In addition to its academic joint-degree programs, the Law School
also offers several professional joint-degree programs through formal
agreements with the Duke
Divinity School, Fuqua
School of Business, the Medical
School, the Nicholas School
of the Environment and Earth Sciences and the Terry
Sanford Institute for Public Policy, several of which are located
in close proximity to one another. Students in the four-year joint-degree
professional programs usually spend their first year at the Law
School, and then their second year in the non-legal program of study.
During the third and fourth years, students take courses at both
schools. Students must apply separately to each school to qualify
for a professional joint-degree program.
JD/MTS
The Law School and Divinity
School have established a combined four-year program in law
and theological studies. Acceptance into this program requires
applying separately for admission to each school. The students
in the JD/MTS program may enroll the first year in either the
Divinity School or the Law School. If the student begins in the
former, the first-year curriculum is the same as that of other
Divinity School students; if the student begins in the latter,
the first-year curriculum is the same as that of other law students.
The student’s second year consists of the full first-year
program of the other school. In the third and fourth years of
the program, the student takes courses in both schools. Approximately
two-thirds of these courses are taken in the Law School.
JD/MBA
The Law School and Fuqua School of Business
have established a combined four-year program in law and graduate level business
administration. Acceptance into this program requires applying separately for
admission to each school. The students in the JD/MBA program may enroll the
first year in either the Fuqua School of Business or the Law School. If the
student begins in the former, the first-year curriculum is the same as that
of other Fuqua students; if the student begins in the latter, the first-year
curriculum is the same as that of other law students. The student’s second year
consists of the full first-year program of the other school. In the third and
fourth years of the program, the student takes courses in both schools. Approximately
two-thirds of these courses are taken in the Law School. For additional information
and student contacts, contact the JD/MBA
Club.
JD/MD
The Law School and Medical
School have established a combined six-year program in legal
and medical education. Acceptance into this program requires applying
separately for admission to each school. The student in the JD/MD
program begins the six-year course of study in the School of Medicine.
As in the regular MD program, the first year is devoted to the
basic medical sciences, and the second year is devoted to the
basic clinical disciplines. After those two years, the student
enrolls in the Law School, taking the prescribed first-year courses.
After completing seventy-two credits in the Law School, the student
returns to the Medical School for elective clinical work tailored
to the student’s specialized interests. The student will
complete eighteen additional semester hours (two summer sessions)
of basic science work.
JD/MEM
The Law School and Nicholas
School of the Environment have established a combined four-year
program in law and graduate level environmental management. Acceptance
into this program requires applying separately for admission to
each school. The students in the JD/MEM program may enroll the
first year in either the Nicholas School of the Environment or
the Law School. If the student begins in the former, the first-year
curriculum is the same as that of other Nicholas School students;
if the student begins in the latter, the first-year curriculum
is the same as that of other law students. The student’s
second year consists of the full first-year program of the other
school. In the third and fourth years of the program, the student
takes courses in both schools. Approximately two-thirds of these
courses are taken in the Law School.
JD/MPP
The Law School and Sanford
Institute of Public Policy have established a combined four-year
program in law and graduate level policy studies. Acceptance into
this program requires applying separately for admission to each
school. The students in the JD/MPP program may enroll the first
year in either the Sanford Institute of Public Policy or the Law
School. If the student begins in the former, the first-year curriculum
is the same as that of other Sanford Institute students; if the
student begins in the latter, the first-year curriculum is the
same as that of other law students. The student’s second
year consists of the full first-year program of the other school.
In the third and fourth years of the program, the student takes
courses in both schools. Approximately two-thirds of these courses
are taken in the Law School.
JD/LLM
The Law School has pioneered a distinctive three-year, joint-degree
program that makes it possible for students to concurrently earn
a JD and a Master of Laws in International and Comparative Law.
Students matriculate in June and take a portion of their first-year
curriculum during that summer. During the first half of the following
summer, students attend one of Duke’s Institutes of Transnational
Law. The remainder of their curriculum is completed during three
years of fall and spring semesters. Summer Institutes are located
in Geneva
and Hong Kong.
