Interested in LAW? – JD program in USA for international students

A Juris Doctor degree (JD) is the highest law degree in the United States and was originally a replacement to the Bachelor of Laws degree.

The J.D. degree is a program in US law, enabling a graduate to become a practicing lawyer in the US. To practice in the United States, one must first pass the bar exam for a particular state after JD.

For admission to a JD program you need to have the following:

An undergraduate degree in any stream of education with a high-Grade Point Average (GPA) score.

You also need a good Law School Admission Test (LSAT) score. They range across law schools from 120 to 180, with an average LSAT score of 150. For the most part, a top-draw law school like Yale doesn’t see very many applicants who got a 140 on the LSAT.

The Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) test scores are required for most foreign students including students from India and the rest of South Asia.

Typically, most foreign students pursue an LL.M. degree in the US which is a nine month long graduate program designed primarily for foreign lawyers. LL.M. students generally take classes alongside their JD counterparts. For most foreign students, including those from India, the LL.M. degree is also a license to take the bar exam in order to practice law in the US.

At least two American states mention the JD or LL.B. specifically as requirements for admission to the bar. It is worth keeping in mind that New York and California are the only two states that allow foreign students to take the bar exam after the successful completion of an LL.M. degree from an accredited American Bar Association law school. Thereafter foreign students may become eligible to take the bar exam or waive into a few other state bars.

Requirements for Law school entry in the U.S. after completing LLB in India:

To apply for law school in the US, you will need:

• Bachelor’s degree in LAW. -LLB is equivalent to JD
• To register for the Credential Assembly Service (CAS)
• Nearly all ABA (American Bar Association) -approved law schools (and some non-ABA-approved schools) require that their applicants register for and complete their applications through the CAS
• Relevant teacher or professional recommendations
• Statement of purpose
• Your TOEFL score if English is not your native language
• Competitive University ask for GRE as well
• Financial documents showing proof of funds for the academic year (only if you are applying for an F1 visa).

To utilize the international JD degree earned from USA and to be employable in your home country one should find the universities that are enlisted or recognised by your own country’s Bar Council. Choosing the right law school in the US is an important process

Bar council of India recognized Law degrees of the U.S.

UNITED STATES OF AMERICA

1. CORNELL LAW SCHOOL (J. D.)
2. GEORGE TOWN UNIVERSITY (J. D.)
3. SOUTH WESTERN UNIVERSITY (J. D.)
4. UNIVERSITY OF MICHIGAN (J. D.)
5. UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS (J. D.)
6. MARSHALL THE SCHOOL OF LAW OF THE COLLEGE OF WILLIAM AND MARY, VIRGINIA, USA (J. D.)
7. SYRACUSE UNIVERSITY COLLEGE OF LAW, NEW YORK (J. D.)
8. WIDENER UNIVERSITY SCHOOL OF LAW, WILMINGTON (J. D.)
9. CLEVELAND-MARSHALL COLLEGE OF LAW, CLEVELAND STATE UNIVESITY (J. D.)
10. UNIVESITY OF PENNSYLVANIA LAW SCHOOL, PHILADELPHIA (J. D.)
11. UNIVERSITY OF WISCONSIN (J. D.)
12. UNIVESITY OF CALIFORNIA, BERKELEY (J. D.)
13. FORDHAM UNIVERSITY, NEW YORK (J. D.)
14. SCHOOL OF LAW, LOYOLA UNIVERSTIY (J. D.)