A new initiative from the University of Iowa College of Law will allow undergraduate students in the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences at both UI and Iowa State University to earn their bachelor’s and law degrees in six years.

The new 3+3 program will allow qualified undergraduates from UI and ISU admission to the College of Law after the conclusion of their junior year, and the credits earned during their first year of law school will also apply to their undergraduate degree.

Gail Agrawal, dean of the College of Law, says the program will allow qualified Iowa college students the opportunity to receive their bachelor’s and JD degrees after six years instead of seven, saving a year of tuition and other costs. It also gives those students a one year head start on their law career.

“This is not a program for every student, but for the right student,” says Agrawal. “In the three years following their matriculation in law school in what would have been their senior year, an undergraduate student can earn a bachelors and a JD, and possibly a dual JD and other masters degree.”

Agrawal says the law school is currently in discussions with other undergraduate institutions in Iowa and expects to come to similar agreements with other schools soon.

The program will allow students in each school’s College of Liberal Arts and Sciences to apply to the UI law school at the start of their junior year, instead of their senior year. If they are accepted, they would begin attending law school during what would have been their senior year, and those first year law credits would also apply to their undergraduate record.

“Students who might be a good fit for the program include those who are highly motivated and certain that law is the path for them,” says Agrawal. “For instance, nontraditional students who might have begun undergraduate studies after the military, or those who have worked for awhile and are certain that a legal education is consistent with their long term career goals would be good candidates for the 3+3 program.”