Offered jointly with DePaul’s Kellstadt Graduate School of Business, the JD/MBA integrates legal education with graduate-level study in business administration and allows students to complete a professional and graduate degree concurrently in less time than it would take to complete each program separately.
The MBA program recognizes the growing complexity of business organizations and the increasing interaction of management and the law. It is accredited by the Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business (AACSB), and the curriculum offers 16 concentrations, with the option to pursue multiple concentrations.
Students should consult the Kellstadt Graduate School of Business catalog page for complete program requirements.
| Program Requirements | Quarter Hours |
|---|---|
| MBA Core Requirements (9 -11 courses) | 32 - 40 |
| Concentration and Elective Course Requirements (5 courses) | 20 |
| Total hours required | 52-60 |
| Program Requirements | Semester Hours |
|---|---|
| JD Requirements | 76 |
| Total hours required | 76 |
Learning Outcomes
MBA Students will be able to:
- Use analytical and problem-solving skills in decision-making.
- Apply knowledge about the differences among global economies, institutions, and cultures to understand the implications these have on global management.
- Recognize and analyze ethical and legal problems within applied business situations, choose a resolution, and justify that ethical choice.
- Effectively contribute to the performance of a group as the group addresses practical business situations, and assume a leadership role as appropriate.
- Produce a coherent written statement and oral presentation of the analysis of a complex business issue.
- Acquire broad-based knowledge and skills necessary to fulfill their professional goals
JD Students will be able to:
- Solve legal problems by applying foundational knowledge of civil procedure, constitutional law, contracts, criminal law, property law, and torts.
- Solve legal problems by applying foundational knowledge of the rules regulating the legal profession.
- Identify and apply relevant legal authority.
- Communicate clearly in speech and writing.
- Demonstrate the fundamental professional lawyering skills for competent and ethical participation as a member of the legal profession.
- Demonstrate an understanding of the importance of cross-cultural competence in the legal profession and the obligation of lawyers to promote a justice system that provides equal access and eliminates bias and all forms of invidious discrimination, including racism, in the law.
Degree Requirements
Admission
Students seeking a joint degree with a college outside of the College of Law must independently apply and be admitted to the other graduate degree program. Full-time law students typically apply to the other graduate program in the summer prior to their second year of law school. Part-time JD students typically apply to the other graduate degree program in the spring semester of their second year.
After admission to the other graduate program, joint degree applicants should submit a copy of the acceptance letter and law school transcript to the Assistant Dean for Student Affairs at the College of Law. The transcript and acceptance letter must be accompanied by a cover letter from the student requesting that the student's program be changed from the JD to the appropriate joint degree. The letter must include the student's full name, student identification number, mailing address, email address and phone number. The joint degree candidate should also schedule a meeting with the appropriate adviser in the graduate program to discuss the curriculum.
Credit Hour Requirements
Full-time students must complete the regular first-year JD program with a minimum GPA of 3.0 before being admitted to the joint degree. Part-time students must complete at least the first three semesters of the JD program with a minimum GPA of 3.0 before being admitted to the joint degree program.
Traditional JD students must complete 86 credit hours to graduate from the College of Law. Under the joint degree program, students complete a minimum of 76 JD credit hours. The College of Law applies up to 10 credit hours completed in the Kellstadt Graduate School of Business toward the JD degree.
Traditional MBA students must complete 60 credit hours to receive the degree. Under the joint degree program, students complete a minimum of 52 MBA credit hours. The Kellstadt Graduate School of Business will accept up to 8 credit hours completed in the College of Law.
Joint degree students may not receive credit for courses that create redundancy in coursework, and they cannot substitute graduate credit hours for required courses in the College of Law, such as Legal Profession.
Full-time joint degree students generally complete the program in four years. Part-time joint degree students generally complete the program in five years. Students may accelerate the program by taking classes in the summer or by increasing course loads during the academic year.
Tuition
Once enrolled in the joint degree program, students no longer pay the College of Law package tuition. Instead, joint degree students pay tuition by the credit hour for law courses and graduate courses.
Academic Standards
Students must meet the grading standards of both the College of Law and the graduate program to remain in good standing. Grades are recorded on the transcript under the college in which the courses are taken, and the combined degree is recorded after graduation.
Students dismissed from either program may be permitted to continue in the other program but must satisfy the normal program requirements of that school. No double counting of credits is permitted after dismissal from one college.
Leaves of Absence/Withdrawal
Students must receive permission from both colleges to take a leave of absence from the joint degree program or to withdraw from the joint degree program. A leave of absence is granted for a maximum of one year. If a student does not enroll in classes after one year, he or she will be permanently withdrawn from both programs and only may re-enroll by applying to the admission offices of both colleges as a new student.
Graduation
To receive the joint degree, a student must graduate from both schools on the same date, in the same semester or quarter and in the same year. Double counting of credits occurs only after concurrent completion of both programs.
For a December graduation, all requirements must be completed at the end of the fall semester and fall quarter. For a spring graduation, all non-law requirements must be completed no later than the end of the spring quarter and all law requirements no later than the end of the spring semester.
Students who complete non-law requirements in the spring that they expect to graduate may not have their degrees granted in time to be certified for the July bar exam. A student will not be eligible to graduate, cannot be certified for admission to the Bar, and cannot sit for a bar examination until all requirements are met for both degree programs.