JD/MBA

Description

The School of Law and the College of Business Administration at University of Detroit Mercy offer a unified program leading to the JD and MBA degrees. The JD/MBA program offers graduates the opportunity to increase their opportunities in both business and legal markets. The program provides students with an understanding of legal concepts, regulatory frameworks, and business management principles, and it enables students to develop a versatile skill set that is valued by legal, corporate, and nonprofit employers.

Students enrolled in the joint degree program earn both degrees in significantly less time than would be required for the degrees if they were pursued separately. The integrated course of studies allows students to connect business and legal concepts, such as accounting practices with tax law, labor management relations with labor law, organizational planning with corporation law, and corporate financing with banking and securities law. This integration of studies provides students with career flexibility by providing graduates with a skill set that can move between the legal and business worlds.

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    Course of Study

    If students enter the program as a law student, they will devote their first year to the standard first-year law school curriculum. After the first year, most students pursue an integrated course of study in both colleges. Some prefer to devote most of the second year to the MBA portion of the program. Students who enter the joint degree program after beginning the MBA program will spend the next academic year completing the first-year law curriculum.

    The joint JD/MBA program requires approximately three and one-half to four years of full-time study, depending on the number of courses required for the MBA. For part-time students, the first-year law curriculum will require two academic years to complete. For the JD degree, 78 School of Law credit hours are required.

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    Admission

    Students are admitted to the joint program only after enrolling in either the MBA program or the School of Law. Applicants must be admitted to both the School of Law (requiring LSAT) and the Business School (requiring GMAT). Applicants currently enrolled in law school need not file another complete application; they should fill out the joint degree program application and submit it to the Law School Registrar. Due to law school accreditation requirements, we must ask MBA students to complete a full application for the School of Law; however, the application fee is waived. Students presently enrolled in the MBA program may begin the process by submitting the joint degree program application to the MBA office, or may contact the School of Law admissions office for a law school application. For admission to the joint degree program, applicants must successfully complete the first year JD curriculum (30 credit hours) with a grade point average (GPA) of 2.8 or better and no single course grade below 2.2. The School of Law posts first-year grades in July following the first year of law school; admission to the joint program is conditional until these grades are posted.

    JD/MBA admitted students must maintain a cumulative 2.8 GPA in law courses and a 3.0 GPA in business courses to remain in the joint degree program and to receive the two degrees. Requirements for both degrees must be completed before either is awarded. Students who do not maintain these eligibility requirements may remain in both programs, but must complete the normal requirements for each degree.

    Application

    To obtain an application for the School of Law, contact the Admissions Office at (313) 596-0264 or lawadmissions@udmercy.edu.  Contact the Graduate Business Programs Office at (313) 993-1202 to obtain an application to the MBA program. Prospective JD/MBA students can request an application for the joint program from the School of Law Admissions Office or the College of Business Administration using the contact information above.

    The University charges JD/MBA program students tuition and fees at the rate in effect for the School of Law. Information on financial aid, loans, grants, scholarships, and awards is included in each school's application materials.

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    JD/MBA Degree Requirements

    For the JD, 78 School of Law credit hours, including all required courses:

    Foundation Courses:

    • LAW 1060 Introduction to Legal Research & Communication (2 credits)
    • LAW 1080 Applied Legal Theory & Analysis I (3 credits)
    • LAW 1110 Contracts I* (3 credits)
    • LAW 1111 Contracts II* (3 credits)
    • LAW 1120 Property I* (3 credits)
    • LAW 1121 Property II* (3 credits)
    • LAW 1130 Torts* (4 credits)
    • LAW 1140 Criminal Law* (3 credits)
    • LAW 1150 Civil Procedure I* (3 credits)
    • LAW 1151 Civil Procedure II* (3 credits)

    Core Courses:

    • LAW 1081 Applied Legal Theory & Analysis II (3 credits)
    • LAW 2060 Constitutional Law* (4 credits)
    • LAW 2220 Evidence* (4 credits)
    • LAW 2470 Professional Responsibility (3 credits)
    • Upper Level Writing Requirement^ (2-3 credits)
    • Clinic^ (2-4 credits)
    • Law Firm Program^** (2-3 credits)
    • Global Law^ (1-3 credits)
    • Electives (credits vary)

    * A minimum grade of 2.2 is required for course to meet graduation requirements.

    ^ Attributes of Upper Level Writing Requirement, Clinic, Law Firm Program, or Global Law course requirements will be listed on applicable courses in the Class Schedule.

    ** You must take at least three credits in Law Firm Program courses for graduation requirements.

    Under the JD/MBA program, the typical JD elective credits are satisfied with MBA coursework, leaving the student to only complete the remaining 78 required Law credits.

    For the MBA, students must complete courses in several categories as outlined below.

    Foundation Courses

    Foundation courses may be waived by the College of Business Administration if the applicant has taken equivalent undergraduate courses. Absent such waiver, the following foundational courses are required:

    • ACC 5100 Corporate Financial Accounting
    • MBA 5120 Data Analysis for Decision Making
    • MBA 5180 Fundamentals of Financial Management

    Core Required Courses

    Core required classes in the College of Business Administration include the following:

    • ACC 5200 Managerial Accounting
    • MBA 5200 Modeling, Analytics, and Operations Decisions
    • MBA 5210 Personal Development, Ethics, and Social Responsibility
    • MBA 5220 Strategic Financial Management
    • MBA 5240 Marketing Management & Planning
    • MBA 5250 Teamwork and Shared Leadership: Enhancing the Creative Process in Organizations
    • MBA 5260 Systems & Technology
    • MBA 5900 Strategic Management and Innovation in a Global Economy

    Electives

    Students complete nine hours of electives specifically approved as part of a cognate area concentration. These electives may be either law or business courses. Law courses considered as business electives also may be counted toward the 78 hours required for the JD. The JD/MBA faculty advisor in the Law School must approve the cognate concentration.

    Additional Academic Policies

    JD/MBA students must maintain a 2.8 GPA in law courses and a 3.0 in business courses to remain in the joint degree program and to receive the two degrees. Requirements for both degrees must be completed before either is awarded. Thus, a JD/MBA program student who has completed the law requirements but not the business requirements is not eligible to sit for the bar exam. Students who do not maintain these eligibility requirements may remain in both programs, but must complete the normal requirements for each degree.

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    Student Handbook

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    Contact Information

    University of Detroit Mercy School of Law
    651 East Jefferson Ave.
    Detroit, MI 48226
    Telephone: 313-596-0200
    Fax: 313-596-0280
    Email: lawinfo@udmercy.edu
    Website


    Dean: Phyllis L. Crocker
    Telephone: 313-596-0210
    Fax: 313-596-0280
    Email: crockepl@udmercy.edu


    Associate Dean for Enrollment Management and Communications: Jennifer Rumschlag
    Telephone: 313-596-9407 or toll-free: 1-866-428-1610
    Fax: 313-596-0280
    Email: rumschjl@udmercy.edu