The Dickinson School of Law (DSL) and the College Student Affairs Program (CSA) offer a joint degree program leading to a Juris Doctor (J.D.), and Master of Education (M.Ed.) in College Student Affairs.
Admissions Requirements
The number of openings in the joint degree J.D./M.Ed. program will be limited to students with an outstanding academic record who have successfully completed the first-year curriculum with the law school. Applicants to the joint degree program:
- must have been admitted to The Dickinson School
of Law
- should have successfully completed the first-year
curriculum at The Dickinson School of Law
with a grade point average of 3.0
- must submit two letters of recommendations from
The Dickinson School of Law faculty
- must submit a career statement
Note: students are eligible to start taking courses in the CSA program after successfully completing the first-year curriculum with the law school.
College Specific Admissions Requirements
DSL: We consider each application in its entirety, including academic transcripts, leadership activities, community activities, work experience, personal background, letters of recommendation, personal statement(s), LSAT score(s) and LSAT writing sample. Through consideration, the admissions committee seeks to identify candidates for law study who are academically prepared for the study of law and who will contribute to the promotion of diversity and excellence in the student body and the legal profession. The committee has no computational methods for making decisions. An applicant should have acquired significant oral and written communication skills before entering law school. The following are required of applicants: a completed electronic or paper application form for DSL; the $60 application fee (credit card payment acceptable) or the fee waiver application; the Law School Admissions Service (LSAC) Report, which should include the results from the Law School Admissions Test(s) (LSAT), transcripts from every undergraduate school attended, and letters of recommendation (academic references preferred) submitted via the LSAC LOR service; and finally, a current and complete resume, and the personal statement(s) which may be submitted as attachments with your electronic application or paper application.
CSA: The following are required of all applicants: a completed Graduate School application; submission of the results of the Graduate Record Examination (GRE), Miller Analogies Test (MAT), or LSAT; an official undergraduate transcript or transcripts; a personal statement; employment records since high school; and three letters of recommendation.
An applicant must have received from an accredited institution, a baccalaureate degree earned under residence and credit conditions substantially equivalent to those required by Penn State . The individual's junior-senior grade-point-average (GPA) must be at least 3.0 on a 4.0 system. The individual's overall GPA must be at least 2.75 on a 4.0 system. Individuals who do not meet this requirement may request special consideration by submitting a letter indicating why they feel they deserve consideration.
If an individual has completed graduate course work prior to applying to the CSA program, his or her GPA for this course work must be at least a 3.0 on a 4.0 system.
Application Process
Students must complete the following Penn State applications, along with any other requirements in the College Specific Admissions Requirements section above. These applications may be completed simultaneously.
- Select: Apply Now or Continue Application in Progress
- Select: I am applying to, have been admitted to, or am currently enrolled in, the Penn State Dickinson School of Law and wish to apply to an approved joint degree program.
- Print and complete this application and mail it to the address indicated on the last page of the application.
International Applicants
All international applicants whose first language is not English or who have not received baccalaureate or master's degrees from an institution in which the language of instruction is English must take the Test of English as a Second Language (TOEFL) and submit the results of that test with the application for admission. A TOEFL score of 550 on the paper test or a score of 213 on the computer-based test, or 80 points on the new Internet-based test with a minimum of 23 points on the new speaking portion; or the International English Language Testing System (IELTS) with a minimum composite score of 6.5 is required for admission.
Residency
Students will normally spend four semesters in residence at DSL and as many additional semesters in residence as needed to complete the M.Ed. requirements for the CSA degree.
College Liaisons
The department and faculty liaisons for DSL shall be the Associate Dean for Academic Affairs and the student advisor shall be the Associate Dean for Academic Affairs or such other faculty member(s) as may be designated by the Dean. The liaison for CSA shall be the Professor-in-Charge (PIC) or such faculty member(s) as may be designated by the PIC.
College Prescribed Curriculum
DSL: All students in the J.D. program are required to take the first-year curriculum in DSL. In the second or third year, students must take CORE 934 (Professional Responsibility).
CSA:
All students in the CSA M.Ed. program must take the following courses:
College Student Affairs: CSA 501 (3), CSA 502 (3), CSA 503 (3), CSA 504 (3), CSA 505 (2), Campus Environments (3), Social Justice (3); plus CSA 595 Internship (student must take two 3-credit internships) (1-9) and CSA 596 Culminating Experience, Learning Portfolio (1-9)
Counselor Education: CN ED 501 (3), CN ED 506 (3)
Higher Education: HI ED 545 (3), HI ED 556 (3)
Plus two three (3) credit ElectivesInter-program Transfer of Credits
DSL: A maximum of twelve (12) credits of CSA course work may be transferred for credit toward the J.D. degree at DSL. Students must obtain a grade satisfactory to DSL for the course work to be credited toward the J.D. degree.
The following courses offered by CSA may qualify for credit in DSL: CSA 501 (3), CSA 502 (3),
CSA 503 (3), CSA 504 (3)
CSA: What courses may be credited will be determined by the student's degree program. Normally a maximum of nine (9) credits of DSL course work will be counted for credit for the minimum requirements for a master's degree, subject to approval by the Professor-in-Charge.
Sequence of Study
The sequence of courses will be determined by the student and their advisors. Students must successfully complete the first-year curriculum with the law school before beginning the CSA program. CSA courses completed prior to the successful completion of the law school first-year-curriculum will not be permitted to count toward the J.D. degree.
Recommended Program of Study and Advising
All students in the program will have two advisors, one from DSL and one from CSA. Periodic interaction between the two advisors will be encouraged. A program of study will be developed for each student, taking into account the fact that some courses are offered on a rotating or intermittent basis. Many courses are offered every year but some are offered every two or three years. The standard committee structure will apply to the CSA programs.
Tuition
Students will be charged the applicable DSL tuition to cover the J.D. program and the applicable graduate tuition to cover the CSA degree program. DSL tuition will be paid for the semesters in which the student is registered for DSL courses, and graduate tuition will be paid for the semesters in which the student is registered for graduate courses in the CSA program. A student may take up to one course (3 credit hours) per semester in the program where the student is not primarily registered without any change in tuition, but must pay additional tuition to the program that the student is not primarily registered if he or she wishes to take additional course work pursuant to that program during the semester.
Financial Aid and Assistantships
Decisions on financial aid and assistantships will be made by each school according to that school's procedures.
College Student Affairs (CSA) course list
Counselor Education (CN ED) course list
Higher Education (HI ED) course list
Dickinson School of Law (DSL) course list
