CWRU MA/JD Dual Degree – Military Ethics
Program Structure For most students, both degrees can be completed within three years or over four years. Dual degree students will generally begin study in the law school and defer enrollment in the MA program until their second year. Students interested in completing the dual degree should< consult both programs early in the process to avoid difficulties. After the first year of law school, students may enroll in law courses or military ethics courses.
The alumna who completed an individual JD/MA plan started the MA program after year one of the three-year law degree and completed the MA program during years two and three of the law curriculum. For course details, please see an example course list and plan of study for a three-year and four-year program of study.
Year 1: First year law school curriculum. (29-30 hours) Year 2, 3 (and sometimes 4): Mixture of courses between the two units, including completing the upper-class writing requirement and Professional Responsibility in the School of Law and 21 hours in the Military Ethics program.
Credit Hour Requirements Total Hours in the School of Law: 76-79 Total Hours in the Military Ethics Program: 21 Total Hours in the Dual Degree Program: 103
Juris Doctor Requirements: Case Western Reserve University grants a Juris Doctor degree to students who have completed at least 88 credit hours in at least 6 semesters as a full-time student and graduate with at least a 2.325. During that time, the student must have completed a substantial research paper to satisfy the writing requirement.
During the first 2 semesters (1L year), the student is given their schedule and completes a minimum 29 credit hours in the following classes: LLEAP 1 and 2, Contracts, Torts, Criminal Law, Property, Legislation and Regulation, Civil Procedure, and spring-semester 1-credit elective. When the student begins their next two semesters (2L year), they must take Constitutional Law 1, Professional Responsibility, and LLEAP 3. During the Fall term, Constitutional Law 1 is required. Professional Responsibility and LLEAP 3 are offered both semesters and must be completed by the end of 2L year.
At the same time, the student is expected to complete general education requirements by picking 4 courses from the following list: Business Associations, Conflict of Laws, Constitutional Law II, Criminal Procedure I, Evidence, Family Law, Sales, Secured Transactions, and Wills/Trusts/Future Interests. During a student’s last 2 semesters (3L year), they need to have completed 12 credits of experiential education including a minimum 6-credit Capstone Experience during 3L year. The capstone can be completed off-site or at an in-house legal clinic.
Master of Arts in Military Ethics Requirements: Case Western Reserve University grants a Master of Arts on students who have completed at least 30 credit hours between 10-24 months of study. The months of study culminate in an original capstone project (six hours of credit, registered as PHIL 501). Twelve (12) of the credits are in the four (4) core classes:
PHIL 405: Ethics (usually a Fall offering) PHIL 417: War and Morality (usually a Fall offering) PHIL 419: Philosophy of State Violence (usually a Spring offering) PHIL 436: Military Ethics, the Military Profession, and International Law (usually a Spring offering)
The student will then take a minimum of four (4) graduate/professional elective classes in a range of diverse, but related, departments on a variety of subjects that interest them, subject to the approval of their program advisor.
Dual Degree: The Military Ethics program and School of Law agree to count up to 9 LAWS credit hours toward the MA degree and 12 MA credits toward the JD degree. This reduces the J.D. requirement of 88 credits to 76 separate credits. Additionally, the MA in Military Ethics credit requirements may be reduced by 9 credits.