There are a few ways to improve your lotion’s competitiveness if you want to apply to law school with a biota degree on August 26, 2021TwitterLinkedInFacebookEmail Although many law students hold degrees in the humanities or social sciences, graduates of the biological sciences have particular abilities that can help them in their legal studies. Your chances of getting into a school may increase if you learn how to develop all-around abilities and highlight your best qualities in your application. This article provides some career options for those interested in law and science and explains how to enter law school with a biology degree.
How to get into law school with a biology degree
If you have a biology degree, follow these recommendations and instructions to help you enroll in law school:
1. Take coursework in the humanities
Consider enrolling in courses that will give you plenty of opportunities to practice your reading and writing if you are still a college student. Many law students have humanities degrees and major in fields like English, history, or philosophy. These courses require a lot of reading and writing, which helps future attorneys by enhancing their comprehension of what they are reading and their capacity for persuasive writing. To help you develop well-rounded skills, think about majoring in two of these fields or minoring in one of them, if you can. Another option is to take these classes as electives.
2. Emphasize rigor and diversity of knowledge
Law schools frequently consider a student’s GPA to assess their commitment to academic success, but because of the difficulty of their coursework, STEM majors may have a lower average GPA than majors in other fields. Emphasize your ability to take on academic challenges to make up for a lower GPA. Choosing to study challenging subjects like physics, organic chemistry, and advanced math can show that you want to push yourself as a student. It demonstrates your commitment to academic improvement and your capacity to persevere in the face of difficulties, which can enhance your application.
Additionally, you could contribute a unique viewpoint from students who have humanities degrees. Your expertise in the sciences may enable you to share your unique perspective on subjects and equip you with knowledge and abilities that students from other backgrounds might lack. For instance, you might need to work with large amounts of data to write science reports for your degree in biology. For a lawyer, being able to analyze data and compose reports with calculations to back up your claims can be an invaluable skill.
3. Gain relevant experience and highlight transferrable skills
If at all possible, look into opportunities to gain practical experience in the legal industry. A legal internship can be a great way to learn about the profession, develop professional skills, and connect with others in the industry. Having experience in the field can help your application when seeking admission to law school, even though law internships can be competitive. Students of biology benefit from fieldwork by developing a broad range of skills that are applicable to both the legal profession and STEM fields.
Another choice is to emphasize your transferrable skills in your application to law school. Think about the abilities and experiences you already have and how you can use those to your law studies if pursuing a law internship or other opportunity to work in law isn’t possible. For example, biology majors often have good research skills. If you have experience working in a lab or conducting research for a class, you can demonstrate the relevance of your skills by outlining these experiences and how you can use your research skills as a lawyer. Additionally, biology majors may use the following abilities in law:
4. Find a niche
Finding a specialty to specialize in during law school can be facilitated by learning about careers that combine law and science. You can choose the area of law you want to study and locate the law school that best suits your area of interest by researching career opportunities in law that depend on having a background in science. For instance, studying forensics or environmental law can be excellent choices for biology graduates.
In addition, fewer candidates may apply for these specialized fields than for more popular ones like family law or civil rights law. Your background in science may give your law school application a competitive edge over others if you indicate an interest in researching a specialized subject. You might also find a smaller professional community if you’re interested in a specific area of law, which would make it simpler to network with people in your field.
5. Use your personal statement effectively
Last but not least, the majority of law programs require applicants to include a personal statement in their application materials. Usually one page long, a personal statement explains your motivation for applying and outlines how you intend to use your knowledge and experiences to succeed in the program and achieve your career objectives. Others are open-ended, allowing you to write about your career goals and how being accepted into the law program can help you achieve them, while some schools may provide a prompt for your essay.
There are several reasons why it’s crucial to write a strong personal statement for law school. First, a strong personal statement demonstrates your capacity for professional and persuasive writing, which is a crucial skill for lawyers. It also enables you to emphasize your strongest qualities and use your most pertinent experiences and skills to further your career goals. The admissions counselor can determine whether you’re a good fit by seeing how you can relate your current skills to your objectives and expectations for success in the program. For biology graduates, this is an excellent chance to discuss how their transferrable skills relate to the program.
Career fields in law and science
One of the following career paths might be chosen by those who want to combine their interests in law and science:
Environmental law
Working on legal issues pertaining to the environment, such as air and water quality, hazardous waste disposal, land and species preservation, agriculture, biodiversity, sustainability, climate change, and alternative energy sources, is a part of environmental law. Environmental lawyers frequently research the laws governing environmental protection and offer guidance to decision-makers and business owners. For instance, an environmental attorney might collaborate with the management of a business that creates facilities for alternative energy sources. They can give the business advice on what steps to take to ensure that their facility complies with environmental law standards, assisting them in making important business decisions.
Forensic law
A career in forensic law may be well suited for those with a background in biology. In forensic science law, crime scenes are investigated, and biological samples are frequently collected, tested, and presented as evidence in court. Lawyers in this field can benefit from having a background in the natural sciences by better understanding biological processes and laboratory testing procedures used to analyze tissue and fluid samples. For instance, a forensic science attorney might use their knowledge to put together a case to demonstrate the client’s innocence based on the biological evidence gathered at a crime scene.
Occupational health and safety
The goal of occupational health and safety law is to safeguard employees’ health, safety, and well-being at work. Workers in this field of law craft, enact, and uphold regulations that govern workplace safety standards. For instance, a business owner may consult with an occupational health and safety attorney to assist in developing policies that adhere to all applicable legal requirements for occupational safety. They might also represent a worker who has been hurt on the job in order to ascertain their legal options and, if necessary, advance a lawsuit.
Because of their understanding of human anatomy and physiology, biology majors might make good candidates for this area of law. A biology graduate may have knowledge of the effects of physical injury and disability when presenting a case related to an injury claim. They can represent their clients using their experience to help them resolve their claims.
Intellectual property law
The important field of copyright and intellectual property law works to protect the concepts and patents created by people or organizations. This area of law is directly relevant to the science and technology industry, where engineers and scientists develop new tools, processes, and treatments to enhance people’s quality of life. An intellectual property attorney makes sure the people who come up with these innovations keep the financial and legal rights to their work. A degree in biology or another related STEM field can be useful for these lawyers because this branch of the law frequently applies in science and technology.
Research ethics and policy
The goal of research ethics and policy law is to uphold the rights of people who take part as research subjects. It encourages the humane treatment of people and animals used in scientific research, for instance by developing guidelines for how to care for lab mice or how to debrief human participants in a study. For instance, rules for how many lab mice a research facility may house at once could be made by a research ethics and policy lawyer. Because they frequently have research and laboratory experience, biology graduates may make good candidates for this type of law.
Best Undergrad Major For Law School (and College Degree)
FAQ
Is a biology degree good for law school?
A “hard science” major like Chemistry or Biology can impress law schools and add some diversity to your resume (especially if you have a high GPA). However, if you plan to major in a hard science, be sure to enroll in some classes that will help you improve your reading, writing, and critical-thinking skills.
What is a good GPA to get into law school?
The likelihood of being taken into consideration by the Law School Admission Council increases with higher LSAT scores. Many applicants to law schools who received admissions offers submitted applications with median LSAT scores of 163 and GPAs of 3. 5 and higher.
Do law schools favor STEM majors?
Law schools appreciate applicants from science and technology fields. Feb. 14, 2022, at 9:15 a. m. Law school admissions favor candidates with backgrounds in STEM fields (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics).
Can a CS major go to law school?
Law schools can determine that candidates with a science, technology, engineering, or math degree are well-prepared for rigor, even if their GPA is low.
