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Home Communication & Film Undergraduate BA in Communication Studies/JD joint program

 

Communication (Communication Studies)/Juris Doctor, (B.A./J.D.)

 

We are excited to launch our partnership with the University of Memphis’s Cecil C. Humphreys School of Law in Downtown Memphis. This program creates a path for undergraduate Communication Studies majors to earn an accelerated Bachelor of Arts degree in conjunction with their juris doctor degree eliminating a full year of course work and saving eligible students time and money!

The 3+3 Accelerated BA/JD program allows students to complete their Bachelor of Arts (BA) degree in Communication Studies and juris doctor (JD) degree in six years instead of the typical seven. Upon acceptance into the program, students begin taking law school classes in the final year of their undergraduate degree, with law classes counting as credit toward completing both the BA and JD. Undergraduate scholarships will apply to the senior year of the BA/first year of the JD program.

Eligibility:

  • Students complete three years of undergraduate work in the Department of Communication & Film. This program requires a minimum of 90 hours of undergraduate work prior to admittance to 3+3. For example, students on a four-year plan taking 15 hours per semester would apply for 3+3 during their third year and enter the program in their fourth year.
  • During the semester in which the students are enrolled in their 90th hour of coursework, they will apply to the School of Law according to its deadlines and procedures. The deadline to apply is typically around April 1—including official submission of LSAT scores, meaning LSAT must be completed prior to application.
  • Students apply to the School of Law separately from their admission into the 3+3 program as there is no guarantee of admission to 3+3.
  • Admitted students must be in the top quartile of applicants in terms of both undergraduate GPA and LSAT score as compared to current first-year law students.
  • Prior to the start of the second year of legal study at the School of Law, a BA degree is required. That is, students must successfully pass their classes in the first year of 3+3 and fulfill all other requirements to complete their undergraduate degree or they will not be allowed to proceed in the program.

 
COMM as Preparation for Law School:

Communication Studies prepares students to study law by focusing on the art of persuasion, technical and analytic writing, oral communication, research methods, civic engagement, and interpersonal communication. It prepares students to engage with diverse groups and shape arguments to fit both the situation and the audience at hand. We teach students to understand context and communicate ethically and with confidence.

Communication Studies Classes Developing Students for Law School (among others):

  • Argumentation and Advocacy
  • Political Communication
  • Interpersonal Communication
  • Rhetoric and Civic Controversy
  • Communication and Leadership
  • Dialogue
  • Small Group Communication
  • Communication and Conflict
  • Rhetoric of Social Movements
  • Place, Community, and Communication
  • The Internet and New Media
  • Advanced Public Speaking
  • Communication in Organizations
  • Intercultural Communication
  • Listening

 

 

For more information, contact:
Matt Farmer
Undergraduate Coordinator
Department of Communication and Film
mkfarmer@memphis.edu
901-678-2465
ACB 217

 

Law School Admissions:
Memphis.edu/law/admissions
lawadmissions@memphis.edu
901-678-5403
Cecil C. Humphreys School of Law
1 North Front St
Memphis, TN 38103

 

The joint Communication B.A./J.D. program is designed to give students an opportunity to combine a focus on human communication and persuasion with a specialized study of the law. Students will complete most of the standard requirements for the Communication (Communication Studies) B.A., replacing some major requirements with law courses. The Communication B.A. can be completed in 3 years and students begin their 1L courses in their senior year, creating the 3+3 structure (3 years for the Communication B.A. and 3 years for the J.D.).

Specifically, students enrolled in the Comm B.A/J.D. program would:

  • be required to take electives from only 2 of the 3 focus areas (applied communication and rhetoric, excluding media courses). Rather than taking 2 courses from each of those sections, these students would be required to take 3 classes from applied communication and 3 from rhetoric;
  • be exempted from taking the senior level capstone course, replacing the course with a first-year law required course;
  • replace the final required 6 hours of upper-division Communication electives with first year law required courses;
  • complete all other university, college, and department requirements for graduation.

In particular, students in this program will:

  • demonstrate competence in producing messages through various channels for different purposes, audiences, and contexts, in preparation for expectations of legal communication, including a focus on translating nuanced technical and procedural information into understandable arguments for inexperienced audiences;
  • critically analyze, interpret, and evaluate messages across various forms and contexts, including legal communication that calls for a dissection of arguments to component parts and forming rebuttals;
  • understand and apply communication theories and methods as appropriate to the situation and context in order to adapt to legal argumentation, with an emphasis on persuasion and argumentation, rhetorical theory, listening, and interpersonal communication;
  • articulate ethical principles and apply them in diverse communication contexts, recognizing and appreciating individual and cultural similarities and differences;
  • understand and implement communication in their personal and public lives to respond to local, national, global, and legal issues by emphasizing urgency and relevance to audiences and adapting to their needs.

University General Education Program (41 hours)

See University General Education Program for the General Education requirements.

College and Degree (B.A.) Requirements (6-9 hours)

The College and Bachelor of Arts requirements are in addition to the University General Education Program requirements that are listed above.

The Major (30 hours)

Major Core (6 hours)

All students must take

Communication Studies (24 hours)

First Year Law Classes (30 hours)

Legal Methods I/II, Torts I/II, Civil Procedure I/II, Property I/II, Contracts I/II, Criminal Law.

Electives (8 - 11 hours)

Completion of courses to bring the total to 120 semester hours.

Honors Program

To be eligible for admission to the Communication Honors program a student must meet the following requirements: (1) declare a major in Communication, (2) have completed 12 hours of Communication coursework, (3) have Department of Communication faculty member as an adviser, and (4) make an honors application to the adviser. Applications may be obtained from the director of the honors program or from the department office.

To be awarded departmental honors at graduation with the designation “With Honors in Communication,” a student must fulfill the following requirements: (1) maintain a 3.5 GPA in communication coursework, (2) maintain a 3.5 GPA overall, (3) complete all Department of Communication major requirements, (4) complete an independent thesis or an independent film/video project sponsored by a Department of Communication faculty member consisting of six hours over two semesters: three hours in research preparation (COMM 3330, COMM 4381, or COMM 4891 ), and three hours in completing the thesis project (COMM 4999), and (5) successful defense of the thesis.

Typical 4-Year Communication Studies Concentration Sequence