The first law school in the Northwest, Willamette University College of Law was established in 1883. Housed in the Truman Wesley Collins Legal Center, the College of Law has been accredited by the American Bar Association since 1938 and has been a member of the Association of American Law Schools since 1946. Graduates receive a Doctor of Jurisprudence degree (J.D.) and are eligible to take the bar examination in any of the 50 states and in the District of Columbia. The College of Law also offers an advanced LL.M. (Master of Law) degree in transnational law.
Many Willamette undergraduates are interested in the possibility of law as a career and plan to attend a law school after completion of their baccalaureate program. For these students there is no preferred undergraduate degree program, but the development of certain skills is strongly advised. Specifically, students interested in the study and practice of law will benefit from extensive training and knowledge of English composition, politics, and history. Also recommended are courses in all subject disciplines that require analytical thinking and the application of theory to new situations. The Department of Politics, Policy, Law, and Ethics offers several courses directly concerned with the law, such as Law and Public Policy (PPLE 334) and Constitutional Law (PPLE 337). The Department of History also offers American Legal History (HIST 308). A limited number of undergraduate students have obtained internships in the College of Law's Clinical Law Program.
In the College of Arts & Sciences, there is a pre-law society through which students examine different facets of law, meet with current law students, and invite guest speakers to the campus to discuss legal developments. The pre-law advising program offers a range of supports for students considering Willamette Law or other Law schools, including application advice and practice sessions for the Law School Admission Test (LSAT).
Prospective students are encouraged to visit law classes, speak with law faculty, tour the award-winning Truman Wesley Collins Legal Center and meet with Admission representatives at the College of Law. For information about the application process, programs, or scheduling a visit, please feel free to write to the Office of Admission, College of Law, Willamette University, 245 Winter Street SE, Salem, Oregon 97301, send an email to law-admission@willamette.edu, call 503-370-6282 or visit the College of Law Web site.