Comments on: Crunch Time http://madisonian.net/2008/04/11/crunch-time/ a blog about law, tech, culture, and related things Thu, 10 May 2012 20:32:56 -0500 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.8.4 hourly 1 By: Mike Madison http://madisonian.net/2008/04/11/crunch-time/comment-page-1/#comment-247906 Mike Madison Tue, 15 Apr 2008 14:58:36 +0000 http://madisonian.net/?p=1380#comment-247906 Stephen, The reason that I wouldn't call it "pre-law" is that I resist the notion that undergraduates should be "tracked" into professional programs. It's likely that a set of courses specified by law schools as being useful (or even required) for admissions to law school would be worthwhile even to students who do not plan to attend law school, just as a set of courses specified for medical school admissions would be worthwhile even to students who do not plan to attend medical school. Should prospective medical students take so-called "pre-law" courses along with required "pre-med" courses? Why not? I keep meeting doctors who were humanities majors in college, so it's clearly possible. What's the advantage of labeling people? Stephen,
The reason that I wouldn’t call it “pre-law” is that I resist the notion that undergraduates should be “tracked” into professional programs. It’s likely that a set of courses specified by law schools as being useful (or even required) for admissions to law school would be worthwhile even to students who do not plan to attend law school, just as a set of courses specified for medical school admissions would be worthwhile even to students who do not plan to attend medical school. Should prospective medical students take so-called “pre-law” courses along with required “pre-med” courses? Why not? I keep meeting doctors who were humanities majors in college, so it’s clearly possible. What’s the advantage of labeling people?

]]> By: Stephen M (Ethesis) http://madisonian.net/2008/04/11/crunch-time/comment-page-1/#comment-247877 Stephen M (Ethesis) Tue, 15 Apr 2008 12:06:35 +0000 http://madisonian.net/?p=1380#comment-247877 <i>the idea of formalizing the expectation that there should be a curriculum for undergraduates that anticipates legal education — though I wouldn’t call it “pre-law.” </i> Why not? I really think that the law lost something with the attack on pre-law programs named as such. That was a battle won that seems to have diminished us all. the idea of formalizing the expectation that there should be a curriculum for undergraduates that anticipates legal education — though I wouldn’t call it “pre-law.”

Why not? I really think that the law lost something with the attack on pre-law programs named as such.

That was a battle won that seems to have diminished us all.

]]> By: Jim Chen http://madisonian.net/2008/04/11/crunch-time/comment-page-1/#comment-247153 Jim Chen Fri, 11 Apr 2008 16:11:15 +0000 http://madisonian.net/?p=1380#comment-247153 Hi Mike, Thanks for engaging "Fidelity in Translation." One point of clarification: I never suggested that legal education lacks "a valuable scholarly dimension." Nor would I suggest that we abandon scholarship. Our counterparts in medicine and engineering, to name merely two other university departments dedicated to applied disciplines, have long integrated scholarship with their teaching mission. So should we, and many of us are already doing so. I do think that law schools can and should be smarter about making sure that their scholarly efforts advance their core training mission. That, as you rightly suggest, is an apt subject for further discussion as we simultaneously broaden and narrow the focus of this very valuable mobblog. Jim Hi Mike,

Thanks for engaging “Fidelity in Translation.” One point of clarification: I never suggested that legal education lacks “a valuable scholarly dimension.” Nor would I suggest that we abandon scholarship. Our counterparts in medicine and engineering, to name merely two other university departments dedicated to applied disciplines, have long integrated scholarship with their teaching mission. So should we, and many of us are already doing so. I do think that law schools can and should be smarter about making sure that their scholarly efforts advance their core training mission. That, as you rightly suggest, is an apt subject for further discussion as we simultaneously broaden and narrow the focus of this very valuable mobblog.

Jim

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