Welcome back to Trivia Tuesday, where we at Clear Admit shed some light on the ins-and-outs of a leading law school’s program. Today, we’re turning our attention to the University of Virginia School of Law and the opportunities students there have to concentrate their final two years of law school on a particular area of law practice that interests them.
Virginia Law offers 18 curricular concentrations covering a wide array of legal fields, including Constitutional Law, Health Law, Legal History and Tax Law. Each concentration program offers students a list of lecture courses, seminars, short courses, and Principles & Practice offerings that they can take to fulfill the concentration requirements, as well as a suggested sample curriculum to guide their studies during their time at Virginia Law. The programs are also designed to inform students of related co-curricular opportunities, including clinics, through which they can deepen their knowledge of their chosen field, as well as providing a list of relevant extracurricular events to attend. Because these concentrations are an elective-based program of study, not an official separate track or degree program, students do not receive a certificate or any designation on their diploma that they have completed a concentration.
One of the most popular concentrations at Virginia is Tax Law, which is organized by the school’s Law & Business program. Students who pursue this course of study tend to primarily be interested in corporate law, and therefore take courses that focus on accounting, taxation and corporate partnerships, giving them a strong legal foundation in business transactions.
Virginia Law also offers concentrations for students who want to work in the public sector. The Human Rights and Civil Liberties concentration, for example, allows students to delve into the field of human rights advocacy through the school’s International Human Rights Clinic, First Amendment Clinic and Immigration Law Clinic. Students can complement this hands-on experience through courses such as International Human Rights Law, Rights of Indigenous Peoples, and Refugee Law and Policy.
For more information about academic specializations available at other leading U.S. law schools, be sure to check out the Clear Admit Law School Guides!
