The Legal Studies major is an adjunct major, which means that it does not replace any other major or major requirements; it complements other majors, and may be taken only in conjunction with a department major. The major and minor are not situated in any one school, but are open to students in all schools. Because demand for the required Advanced Research Seminar may exceed the enrollment limits, admission to the major is by application only. Eleven quarter-courses are required for the major. Students are required to have taken two "law related" courses (one of which could be "in progress") before they apply for the major. A "law-related" course is any class that is listed on this website as a Legal Studies elective.

Two of the courses are the Advanced Research Seminar. The seminar is typically taken in the junior year, after acceptance into the Legal Studies major. Seven courses are electives, chosen from a list of approved courses that is posted on the web.

Students are required to take at least one course from each of five categories of electives:

1) Theory/Philosophy (Jurisprudence)

2) Global/Comparative Perspectives

3) Institutions/Organizations/Economics

4) Law and Inequality

5) Legal Argument/Communications

Each quarter, the Center will post on the web what courses will meet area requirements. Two of the electives may be double counted toward other majors. (Additional courses may be counted as "related courses" as required in some majors).

The Director may approve a course offered in a particular year as a substitution for an elective course when the syllabus demonstrates a legal studies emphasis. If you know of a course that does not currently count as a Legal Studies elective but may be a good addition to the program please download and complete the Petition for Legal Studies credit form.

In certain cases, students who are combining a major in Legal Studies with a major in another field that also requires a senior research seminar may arrange to fulfill their Advanced Research Seminar requirement in a combined, but expanded, project. Students who achieve a grade point average of 3.5 in Legal Studies courses and write a research seminar thesis of distinction will be awarded Departmental Honors.

Students interested in the adjunct major in Legal Studies should consult with the Program Assistant for Legal Studies, Magaly Cordero, at 847-467-2207, or email legalstudies@northwestern.edu

Application Process

Please click here for a copy of the Legal Studies major application. Applications will be due at noon April 20th, 2009. Please return them to the Legal Studies Program Office, Crowe 1-107.

Departmental Honors Guidelines

The Center for Legal Studies Departmental Honors Committee will nominate students for Departmental Honors according to the following guidelines and in accordance with Weinberg College of Arts and Sciences requirements.

All decisions regarding nomination for Departmental Honors shall be made by the Center for Legal Studies Departmental Honors Committee. The Departmental Honors Committee will be composed of the professors of the Advanced Research Seminar in a given year and the Director of the Center for Legal Studies. The Director of the Center will also serve as departmental honors coordinator.

For 2008-2009 The Legal Studies Departmental Honors Committee consists of:

Laura Beth Nielsen, Director, Center for Legal Studies
Robert Nelson, Member, Legal Studies Faculty Advisory Board
Traci Burch, Member, Legal Studies Faculty Advisory Board

I. Students must have previously completed or be expected to complete the Legal Studies Advanced Research Seminar sequence (Legal Studies 398-1 and 398-2) by the end of the school year.

II. Students are required to have attained a Legal Studies GPA of 3.5 or higher, computed from courses listed in the University catalog under Legal Studies and those courses which are eligible for Legal Studies elective credit (complete list may be found at http://www.northwestern.edu/legalstudies/undergraduate/elective-department.htm).

III. All students in the Advanced Research Seminar are required to complete a thesis of thirty to fifty pages in length. Throughout the seminar, students work closely with faculty and teaching assistants to develop their theses. Faculty and teaching assistants will provide feedback, advice, and constructive criticism of students’ theses to help each student complete his or her project.

IV. For those seniors who have already completed the Advanced Research Seminar, completion of thesis that has been deemed worthy of distinction is required for honors nomination. The theses of those seniors currently enrolled in the seminar will be evaluated prior to the honors submission deadline.

V. A Thesis of Distinction will be determined by the faculty and teaching assistants of the Advanced Research Seminar, as well as the director of the Legal Studies Program. To achieve distinction, a thesis must present original ideas supported by thorough research of legal and/or empirical materials.