The New Penn State Law

A world-class faculty. State-of-the-art facilities. Superb clinical learning opportunities. A rich curriculum that is as broad as it is deep. These qualities form the foundation of the new Penn State Law.

Since the ABA granted separate accreditation to Penn State’s two law schools—Penn State Law in University Park, Pa., and Dickinson Law in Carlisle, Pa.—the new Penn State Law has embarked on a transformation including new courses, new clinical experiences, and stronger connections to the greater University, fostering new interdisciplinary research and teaching collaborations between law and business, energy, technology, and more.

The separately accredited Penn State Law is beginning a new era of legal education at Penn State.

Curricular Innovations

New courses in lawyering, emerging legal issues, and other aspects of the legal profession enrich the Penn State Law curriculum and provide students with a broader understanding of law practice.

The Modern In-House Counsel
Students explore the key roles that today’s in-house counsel play within a corporation, including advising the board and senior management, selecting and managing outside counsel, conducting internal investigations, and meeting compliance and regulatory obligations. 

The Law Firm as a Business
This course explores the key business areas of law firm management, covering finance, human resources, information technology, and marketing. Students also examine macro trends in the legal industry that are impacting law firm business. 

Information Privacy and Security Law
This course explores information privacy and security issues arising from new technology and provides an overview of the current legal regime in the United States designed to address these emerging and evolving issues.

Clinical Experiences

With eight clinics and a practicum in criminal justice, Penn State Law students can gain experience in legal practice in fields ranging from family law to immigration law to civil rights appeals. Two new legal clinics expand the vast opportunities available to students to hone their skills and put into practice the knowledge they pick up in the classroom.

Veterans and Servicemembers Legal Clinic
Launched in spring 2015, this clinic fills a gap between the need for specialized legal services for veterans and current members of the armed forces and the availability of such services. The clinic specializes in veterans benefits appeals, and also does work in policy and veterans rights.

Entrepreneur Assistance Clinic
Starting in spring 2016, students in this clinic will help Penn State researchers and entrepreneurs move their innovations from the lab to the marketplace by providing the specialized legal services necessary in startup and early stage ventures.

Interdisciplinary Opportunities

Penn State Law connects and thrives with the entire University Park campus. From countless opportunities for interdisciplinary research and coursework to joint degrees in agricultural sciences, 

business, education, employment relations, health administration, and international affairs, the University Park campus allows Penn State Law students to augment their legal education with studies across the University—all within steps of the law school. These connections continue to grow.

New Credit Options
With internationally ranked graduate programs across the University, Penn State Law students have the freedom to earn up to 12 credits from graduate coursework offered on the University Park campus.

New Joint Degree Program
The new joint J.D./M.H.A. program prepares students for legal, compliance, and regulatory positions in the expanding field of healthcare by allowing them to earn a master’s in Health Administration alongside their J.D.

The University Park Advantage

Penn State's sprawling 13-square-mile University Park campus contains the University's leading schools of business, education, engineering, liberal arts, and science, among others. It's the intellectual nerve center of world-renowned scholars and educators, groundbreaking researchers in dozens of disciplines, and more than 45,000 undergraduate and graduate students. And, as the home of Penn State Law, its offers the law school, its faculty, and its students unprecedented resources, extraordinary educational opportunities, and an all-encompassing law school experience. ​