Summary: Law schools throughout the state of North Carolina have begun changing their curriculum in order to keep pace with the changing job market for lawyers.
Campbell University’s law school, located in Raleigh, decided to open classes to part-time students who can study for six years to finish a law degree, according to NewsObserver.
For the fall, 18 students enrolled in the new program, which is called Campbell Flex.
Along the same line, Elon University’s law school, in Greensboro, announced that it had redesigned its entire program. Beginning in the fall of 2015, students at Elon will be able to complete law school in just 2.5 years.
The students at Elon will take part in residencies, acquiring contacts and experience in the professional world while still in school. The students will also spend less on their law degree, about $14,000 less.
According to Economic Modeling Specialists, through 2015 there will be some 500 job openings per year in North Carolina, but double that number in people who pass the bar exam.
Luke Bierman, the dean of the Elon law school, said, “We really need to focus on analysis, that judgment – how to use the law, how to counsel people. We think the best way to get students prepared to do that is to give them experience doing it.”
The law school at Elon was created in 2006 with 115 first-year students. In 2012, the school had 898 applications, which was a high for them. Those numbers dropped to 604 this year. The new class at Elon is just 112 students and the goal is for 125-140 students per class, according to Bierman.
With a half-year taken off the books, Elon law students can take the bar in February instead of during the summer.
During their first year at law school, students will learn the basics and then take part in a residency with a lawyer, prosecutor or judge in their second year.
The final half-year will be bridge courses that help them prepare for the job market.
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Image credit: Elon