Pre-Law Program
| “The academic rigor and open-door policy of the professors provided me with the skills needed to be accepted and succeed at University of Virginia Law.” – Britney Maddux (’09), University of Virginia School of Law |
Are you considering a career in law? The nation’s top law schools seek applicants who have received a well-rounded undergraduate education — one like the liberal arts and sciences curriculum Christopher Newport University offers. Regardless of your undergraduate field of study, our Pre-Law Program will help prepare you for law school.
While no specific courses are required for law school admission, courses in constitutional law, logic and legal reasoning are helpful toward preparing for the Law School Admission Test (LSAT) and the rigors of law school. Both the Constitutional Studies Concentration in American Studies and the Philosophy of Law Minor at CNU offer courses particularly relevant to such preparation.
In addition to prerequisite coursework, CNU offers various resources to help you gain admission to your law school of choice:
- Academic and career advising
- Mentoring
- Internships
- Workshops, seminars and guest lectures
- Networking opportunities
- Phi Delta Alpha professional pre-law fraternity
Pre-Law Crew
Every freshman at CNU enrolls in a Learning Community of 20 to 30 students. You will take at least three courses with your fellow classmates. Beginning in the fall, you may participate in the Pre-Law Crew that will connect you with other pre-law students and set you on the path to academic success.
| "As a result of the courses I took at CNU, I entered law school able to dissect, organize and coherently argue complex material." - Bonnie Brown ('09), College of William and Mary Law School |
Law School Admission Test (LSAT)
Plan to take the LSAT during your junior year at CNU. We encourage you to consult the following as you prepare for the test: Law School Admission Test
LSAT Prep Course
The Christopher Newport University Educational Foundation and Kaplan offer a LSAT prep course on campus during the Spring Semester. Students receive a discount from Kaplan's normal rates. Students should take the course during their junior year. Please contact Dr. Jonathan White to register for the course.
As you apply to law school, explore these online resources, some of which will help you to assess your potential for success:
Law Schools
Dr. Jonathan W. White:
Dr. Jonathan W. White is assistant professor of American Studies at Christopher Newport University and is a fellow in CNU's Center for American Studies. He holds a Ph.D. in U.S. History from the University of Maryland at College Park. Prior to joining the faculty at CNU, he worked for the Federal Judicial Center, in Washington, D.C.
Dr. White has published widely in the fields of legal, constitutional, and political history. His most recent book, Abraham Lincoln and Treason in the Civil War: The Trials of John Merryman, was published by Louisiana State University Press in 2011. He has also published articles in the Journal of Supreme Court History, the Bulletin of the Supreme Court Historical Society, Civil War History, the National Archives' journal Prologue, American Nineteenth Century History, the Pennsylvania Magazine of History and Biography, Ohio Valley History, New Jersey Monthly, Dickinson Magazine, Pennsylvania Heritage, Pennsylvania Legacies, and the Maryland Historical Magazine, among others, and he has an article on the Supreme Court forthcoming in the Journal of the Civil War Era.
Dr. White has won several prizes for his work. His dissertation, which was a study of the law of treason in the North during the American Civil War, was awarded the 2010 Hay-Nicolay Dissertation Prize by the Abraham Lincoln Institute and the Abraham Lincoln Association, as well as the 2008 E.B. and Jean Smith Prize in Political History by the Department of History at the University of Maryland. More recently, his Guide to Research in Federal Judicial History (Federal Judicial Center, 2010) won the 2012 Thomas Jefferson Prize of the Society for History in the Federal Government.
In February 2012 C-SPAN came to CNU and filmed Dr. White teaching his AMST 330 class on "Treason in America." The class can be viewed here.
Students interested in discussing their preparation for law school should contact Dr. White to set up an appointment. He can be reached by email jonathan.white@cnu.edu or by phone at 594-7995. Dr. White's office is located at 329 BTC.
- Curriculum Vitae (May 2013)
