Program Co-Directors Nancy King and Mark Hall

Overview

Under the joint auspices of the Wake Forest University School of Law and the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences, the JD/MA in Bioethics facilitates an interdisciplinary and comparative study of law and bioethics and encourages students whose academic or career interests require gaining competence in both disciplines. By allowing some law courses to count as electives toward the MA degree, as well as by allowing some graduate bioethics courses to count among the elective credits permitted within the JD curriculum, students are able to earn the dual degree in less time than it would take to earn the two degrees separately. The student in the JD/MA divides their time between the School of Law and the Bioethics Graduate Program and benefits not only from an array of course offerings from both curricula, but also from the social and general intellectual life of both academic programs.

Students may receive the dual degree in as little as seven semesters, usually registering with the School of Law for six semesters and with the Graduate School for at least one semester. The dual degree grants 12 hours of law credit for Bioethics coursework and 6 hours of bioethics credit for law coursework. Typically, students spend their first year full-time in the law school, complete 12 Bioethics hours during their 2nd and 3rd years of law school, and enroll for one semester full-time in the Bioethics program to complete Bioethics coursework plus 4 hours capstone project (BIE 795) OR 6 hours of thesis research (BIE 791/792).

All students must take BIE 703(3 hours) and BIE 706/BIE 707 (3 hours).  Additionally, all students must take two of the three following courses: BIE 702 (3 hours), BIE 704 (3hours), BIE 705(3 hours). The remaining 6-8 hours may be in either 600 or 700 level Bioethics courses.

For additional degree requirements, see Requirements for Degrees.

Admission to the dual JD/MA program is a two-tiered process. Students interested in the program must apply separately to the School of Law and the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences and be accepted for admission by both schools. These applications do not need to be simultaneous, but they should indicate their intent to be considered for the dual degree program on their respective applications to the School of Law and the Graduate School. Alternatively, students may submit a separate application to enroll in the dual degree program if already admitted to either School. In order to be considered eligible for admission, the JD/MA candidate must complete Law School admission requirements for standardized test (currently, the Law School Admission Test (LSAT) or Graduate Record Examination (GRE)). Final decision about admission to the program is made by a joint committee of the JD/MA program. Students should consult the prospectuses of both schools for information about tuition and financial assistance.

To continue in the program, students must remain in good academic standing in both the School of Law and the Graduate School of Arts & Sciences.