History Major: Law 3+3 Option (B.A.)

The Law 3+3 option offers highly motivated UNH undergraduates the opportunity to complete their bachelor's degree (B.A.) with a history major and their law degree (J.D.) at UNH in six years, rather than the usual seven years. It promises significant savings in both time and money. Students apply to the UNH Law School in their junior year (by Jan. 1), following the approved process below, and after taking the LSAT exam. If admitted, undergraduates begin their first year of law school in their senior year. The credits earned upon successful completion of the law school courses will be applied to both the J.D. degree and as elective courses for the B.A. degree. After four years, students receive a B.A. with a history major. After six years, students, having completed all law school requirements successfully, will receive their J.D.

Eligibility and Admission Process

1) Phase I: applying to the Law 3+3 option. Students apply to the program either when they submit their applications to UNH by selecting the History/J.D. option on the online application, or after they are admitted, applying directly to the History Department's History/Law 3+3 Committee. In both cases, undergraduate applicants must fulfill the general requirements for admission to the History major.

a. Students applying at time of admission to UNH will typically present the following high school (HS) credentials:

• a 3.5 GPA in HS
• a rigorous HS curriculum defined as the following:
  • 4 years of college prep (CP) or higher English
  • 4 years of CP or higher mathematics
  • 4 years of CP or higher social studies/history
  • Completed at least level 3 of a foreign language
  • 3 or more years of CP or higher laboratory sciences
• a score of 1200 or better (combined Math and Verbal) on the SAT or a 29 on the ACT)

b. Currently enrolled UNH students applying to the program must:

• have a 3.5 GPA in college courses at time of application.
• The History/Law 3+3 Committee governing admission to the program will also consider past SAT scores, maturity, and ability to complete a highly demanding program of study based on performance thus far.

For both groups, it is important to note that satisfying these requirements does not guarantee admission to this program. The review process is holistic (meaning all parts of the application carry weight and influence the final decision) and other components of the application will influence any admission decisions. Available space will also influence who is admitted to the program and how many students can be accepted.

2) Phase 2: applying to UNH Law School. To be eligible, students must:

• Complete all Discovery and major requirements, and accrue at least 98 credits before beginning law school in their senior year
• Maintain at least a 3.5 grade point average (including transfer credits) at time of application to law school, and at end of junior year
• Take the LSAT no later than December of the final undergraduate year (i.e. the junior year) and have a score of 155 or above
• Submit the law school application through the Law School Admissions Council by March 15 of the calendar year in which the student wishes to enroll in law school
• If, for some reason, students are not admitted to UNH Law, they will complete their final, fourth year at UNH, following the typical undergraduate program.

Undergraduate Courses

Below is a suggested course outline. There might be other possible plans.

NOTE: Students should plan early and work closely with their advisors if they want to pursue the fast track program. It may be possible to include study abroad and other programs, if desired, but only with careful planning. They are also strongly encouraged to consult with the pre-law advisor on campus (Paula DiNardo, paula.dinardo@unh.edu, 603-862-2064.)

TOTAL UNDERGRADUATE CREDITS REQUIRED - 98 cr.
40 total Discovery Program credits; 40 history credits; 4-8 foreign language credits; 8-12 elective credits; and two 1-credit courses OR one 2-credit course¹. In addition to fulfilling the Discovery Program and history major requirements, students need to fulfill the Bachelor of Arts foreign language requirement and take four (4) writing intensive courses. HIST 500 Introduction to Historical Thinking and HIST 797 Colloquium fulfill two (2) WI courses.

¹

Clarification: to earn 98 credits in 3 years, students will need to take one (1) 2-credit course or two (2) 1-credit courses. The 2-credit course, LAW 475 Getting Ready to Succeed in Law School, is recommended and is best taken in the spring semester of sophomore year or the fall semester of the junior year as it will include LSAT prep. Other 2-credit options include JUST 550 Mock Trial and JUST 551 Mock Trial. For other possible 1-2 credit courses, see the Time & Room Schedule. The 1-2 credit courses can be completed at any point in your first 3 years at UNH-Durham. You can also complete them during the January term [see, e.g., THDA 531 The London Experience: Discovery, a 2-credit study abroad program] or in the summer.

Law School Course Outline

Fourth Year/First Year Law (31 credits)

History students can:

Build historical knowledge.

• Gather and contextualize information in order to convey both the particularity of past lives and the scale of human experience.
• Recognize how humans in the past shaped their own unique historical moments and were shaped by those moments.
• Develop a body of historical knowledge with breadth of time and place—as well as depth of detail—in order to discern context.
• Distinguish the past from our very different present.

Develop historical methods.

• Recognize history as an interpretive account of the human past—one that historians create in the present from surviving evidence.
• Collect, sift, organize, question, synthesize, and interpret complex material.
• Practice ethical historical inquiry that makes use of and acknowledges sources from the past as well as the scholars who have interpreted that past.
• Develop empathy toward people in the context of their distinctive historical moments.

Recognize the provisional nature of knowledge, the disciplinary preference for complexity, and the comfort with ambiguity that history requires.

• Welcome contradictory perspectives and data, which enable us to provide more accurate accounts and construct stronger arguments.
• Describe past events from multiple perspectives.
• Explain and justify multiple causes of complex events and phenomena using conflicting sources.
• Identify, summarize, appraise, and synthesize other scholars’ historical arguments.

Apply the range of skills it takes to decode the historical record because of its incomplete, complex, and contradictory nature.

• Consider a variety of historical sources for credibility, position, perspective, and relevance.
• Evaluate historical arguments, explaining how they were constructed and might be improved.
• Revise analyses and narratives when new evidence requires it.

Create historical arguments and narratives.

• Generate substantive, open-ended questions about the past and develop research strategies to answer them.
• Craft well-supported historical narratives, arguments, and reports of research findings in a variety of media for a variety of audiences.

Use historical perspective as central to active citizenship.

• Apply historical knowledge and historical thinking to contemporary issues.
• Develop positions that reflect deliberation, cooperation, and diverse perspectives.