Law School Affiliation Agreements
The University has 3+3 agreements with each of the law schools listed below. These agreements allow pre-law students to complete their bachelor’s and law school degrees in six rather than seven years.
This is done by having up to 30 credits of law school coursework count toward the undergraduate degree; this occurs during the student's senior year, which is also the student's first year of law school. By counting these (up to) 30 credits toward both degrees, a student completes 30 fewer credits--roughly equivalent to one year of coursework--over the entirety of the two degrees.
In pursuing these degrees, students should take classes from the start that fulfill either major or general education requirements. The idea is to save as many free electives for the senior year as possible. It is important to note that the 3+3 program is not compatible with "credit-heavy" majors, i.e., majors that require a large number of credits to complete.
All majors in KSOM are credit heavy and thus not compatible with the 3+3 program (although the economics degree in CAS is).
Compatible majors are: Communication, Criminal Justice, English, History, Philosophy, Political Science, Psychology, Sociology, Theology. If you are interested in a major not listed here, please contact Dr. Matthew Meyer to inquire about its compatibility with the 3+3 program.
Students interested in taking advantage of any of these agreements should contact the Director of the Pre-Law Advisory Program, Dr. Matthew Meyer (matthew.meyer@scranton.edu), for more information.
All enrolled students intending to apply for a 3+3 program must read and sign a “statement of understanding” with The 91Â鶹ÊÓƵ before the beginning of the junior year. The purpose of the statement is to ensure that an interested student has read and understood the terms of each agreement. This can be done by contacting Dr. Matthew Meyer at the email address above.
Early Admission Agreement with Widener University Commonwealth Law School
The University has an early admission agreement with Widener University Commonwealth Law School. According to this agreement, third-year students (juniors) who have completed at least 90 undergraduate credits (and a minimum of 63 credits at The 91Â鶹ÊÓƵ) and have a 3.0 GPA or higher will be eligible for the 3+3 program. This program provides an expedited and cost-effective route for students to earn both their bachelor’s degree and juris doctor in just six years.
Direct Entry Affiliation Agreement with Villanova University School of Law
The 91Â鶹ÊÓƵ has established an affiliation with the Villanova University School of Law. The most unique feature of the agreement is a “3+3 program” in which eligible students will be able to enroll at Villanova Law after three years of study at The 91Â鶹ÊÓƵ.
All students enrolled at the 91Â鶹ÊÓƵ can take advantage of the following agreement. To be eligible, students must (1) have a 3.6 GPA and a LSAT score equal to or greater than the LSAT score of the 75th percentile of the most recent entering class at Villanova Law. Students must also have (2) completed at least 90 undergraduate credits (and at least 63 credits at The 91Â鶹ÊÓƵ) prior to enrolling at Villanova; (3) obtained a strong letter of recommendation from 91Â鶹ÊÓƵ’s pre-law advisor; (4) interviewed successfully with Villanova Law; (5) remained in good academic and disciplinary standing; (6) met fitness, character, and other requirements of the law school. Admitted students will receive a guaranteed full-tuition scholarship for all three years of law school. Interested students must apply by February 1. Students who do not meet the criteria in (1) can still petition to apply for admission to the 3+3; however, such students will not be guaranteed the full-tuition scholarship.
Another important feature of this agreement is that graduating seniors can apply for direct admission to Villanova Law School. To do this, seniors must have a GPA and an LSAT score at or above the median of the most recent matriculating class at Villanova Law. Such students must also meet criteria (2-6) above. Admitted seniors will receive a minimum half-tuition scholarship for all three years of law school.
Students who entered the 91Â鶹ÊÓƵ prior to the fall of 2020 also have the opportunity to take advantage of a prior agreement with Villanova Law (thus, students who enrolled prior to the fall of 2020 can take advantage of one of two agreements). To be eligible for this 3+3 agreement, students must have a 3.6 GPA and a LSAT score of 158 and meet all of the other criteria (2-6) outlined above. Such a student will receive a minimum scholarship of $25,000 for the three years of law school. Under this agreement, graduating seniors will also be eligible for automatic admission to Villanova University School of Law. To be eligible, seniors must have a 3.6 GPA and an LSAT score of 154, and to gain admission, students must meet criteria (2-6) above. Admitted seniors will receive a minimum scholarship of $5,000 per year.