Aspiring lawyers attending New York Law School can now step up to the bar in record time. With the launch of its honors program, New York Law students can receive a degree in two years instead of the typical three and pay two-thirds of the $147,720 they would normally pay for a three-year degree program.

Since the recession, as jobs in the industry dried up, law school critics have been advocating for shorter degree programs. Even President Barack Obama in August 2013 suggested that law school should be cut to two years.New York Law School is one of a growing number of schools to answer the call and offer accelerated J.D. programs. Last May, Brooklyn Law School also condensed three years of law school into two.And some students are finding these programs attractive because when it comes to earning a degree, time is money.But not all two-year programs are cheaper. "Many students assume that going to school for two instead of three means that they save a year's worth of tuition, but that's not always the case," said David Lat, managing editor of Above The Law, a publication that covers legal issues.Because many schools charge students by the credits rather than the time spent in school, a two-year degree can easily cost as much as a three-year degree in some cases, according to Mr. Lat.In fact, at Brooklyn Law the two-year degree isn't cheaper because students still need to pay the same amount for 85 credits to graduate, making the cost of the degree $152,575.The inaugural class of New York Law School's honors program, however, will pay less, with a $50,000 scholarship and additional financial aid that applies to their $98,480 two-year bill, according to Dean Anthony Crowell."About 166 students applied, and only 23 were admitted," said Mr. Crowell. "Because of the small class size, students are able to enjoy more intimate learning experiences."

On Jan. 5, students started the new two-year program at the New York Law School. The program lasts 24 months and requires students to take courses in the summer because accreditation requirements make it impossible to cut some courses throughout the curriculum.

Because the program comes with a heavy course load, it may not be for everyone, especially students who look forward to working in the summer."There's a concern of not gaining enough practical work experience, and knowing more theory than practice does put students at a disadvantage of getting a job," said Shawn O'Connor, CEO of Stratus Prep, a law school admissions counseling company.But Mr. Crowell said students will still gain plenty of clinical and practical experience and expects to grow the program to admit 30 students in the coming year."We want to bridge practice into hires by offering our honors graduates a paid postgraduate fellowship opportunity that places students to work at law firms, government agencies and other areas that interest them," said Mr. Crowell. "We even have employers telling us that they will value graduates of this rigorous program because of the high work ethic required to complete it."It's still debatable as to whether employers find accelerated-degree graduates more desirable than other applicants, especially since employment decisions hinge on a variety of factors besides the duration of time in school."Two-year programs are definitely here to stay, and as bigger schools join the bandwagon, I think we will have a better sense of how effective they actually are," said Mr. O'Connor.