J.D. Academic Path

You have three years as a J.D. student to chart your academic path.

Your academic path encompasses opportunities you pursue inside and outside classrooms at Harvard Law School. From the courses you take, to the clinical and pro bono opportunities you pursue, to the faculty from which you learn and seek out as advisers, to the extracurriculars to which you devote time, each marks a step in your academic path. It is how you discover and develop your substantive legal interests—known at HLS as “Areas of Interest”—and relevant skills.

No “singular”, “standard”, or “right” path through HLS exists. You must chart your own path at HLS. So, what do you want to learn? To experience? To achieve?

While every student’s academic path varies, this page walks you through common steps taken to chart your academic path, highlighting important questions to ask and resources across HLS that will help you navigate your academic path.

*The Academic Path provides guidance for J.D. students. Academic guidance for LL.M.s is available here.

Academic Path Common Steps

Goals & Requirements

At the start of your academic path, take a moment for self-reflection: What substantive areas of law–referred to at HLS as “Areas of Interest”–do I hope to study? What skills do I want to build? What professional values do I want to foster in my education? And how do those goals align with J.D. degree requirements?

Step 1: Explore and Identify Academic Goals
- Crafting a meaningful academic and, by extension, career path requires careful thought about what you find meaningful. Reflect on and evaluate your:
  - Interests:
    
    Areas of Interest
    
    Office of Career Services’ Researching and Choosing Practice Areas
    
    Office of Public Interest Advising’s What is Public Interest Law?
  - Skills
  - Values
Step 2: Understand Degree Requirements and Academic Policies
- Understand J.D. degree requirements.
- Monitor progress towards degree completion through your degree audit in Helios (Academic Record > Degree Audit).
- Read HLS Handbook of Academic Policies.

Advising & Support

As you navigate your academic path, HLS faculty and staff are here to support you. In this stage of your academic path, learn: Who can I talk to?

Step 3: Affirmatively Seek Out Faculty Advisers
- Sign up for a 1L Reading Group to receive an assigned faculty academic adviser.
- During 1L and beyond, cultivate relationships with additional faculty in your area(s) of interest by:
  - Attending Bite Sized Wisdom breakfasts, lunches, and snack breaks, which bring professors and students together for conversations about the professor’s area of interest (enter Fall lottery by September 21);
  - Gathering a small group of peers and inviting a professor to an enrichment lunch—informal conversation and advising, with the cost covered by HLS;
  - Becoming Research Assistant or Teaching Fellow for faculty member; and/or
  - Reaching out to a professor directly for advice using the Faculty Directory, which allows you to search by area(s) of interest.
Step 4: Connect with Staff Experts for Academic Advising and Support
- Bring general questions about identifying academic goals, choosing courses, understanding degree requirements, and more to Academic Advising Drop Ins, Fridays, 12-5pm, in WCC 3025.
- Use J.D. Advising and Support to identify and make appointments with staff experts in clinics, degree requirements, study abroad, writing, and more.
- Tap into academic support whenever you need it:
  - Attend or watch later BSA panels on budgeting time, outlining, study strategies, and exam preparation;
  - Meet with Professor Susannah Barton Tobin to discuss exam preparation; and
  - Connect with Tara Townsend or Jeff Sierra in DOS-CEEB, who can make referrals to HLS’ Learning Specialist, peer tutors, and more that provide support on developing time management and other core skills and specific subject matters.

Courses, Clinics, & Writing

In this stage of your academic path, you are exploring course and clinic offerings. As you look at possibilities, think about: What areas of interest do I need to expose myself to in order to meet my academic goals? Which courses and clinics will equip me with the skills I want to build? What style of learning suits me? What experts do I want to study with?

Step 5: Learn Areas of Interest in Courses, Seminars, and Reading Groups
- Review general (coming soon) and clerkship course selection principles.
- Explore courses by area of interest in the Course Catalog, including by permission courses.
- Utilize additional resources to explore courses:
Step 6: Develop Practical Legal Skills in Clinics
- Understand the types of clinics, which are opportunities to gain hands-on legal experience under the supervision of attorney mentors, available to 2Ls and 3Ls:
  - In-House Clinics;
  - Externship Clinics; and
  - Independent Clinical Program.
- Explore the 30+ HLS clinics through the Clinic Finder, filtering by areas of interest, skills learned, and other key factors.
- Dig deeper into clinics of interest by:
  - Watching Clinics in a Minute videos;
  - Reviewing Clinical Curriculum Chart and Clinical Placement Evaluations;
  - Speaking with past clinical students; and
  - Attending annual Academic Path x Clinical Program Open House (March), and/or individual clinics’ open houses (March and April).
- Schedule appointment with the Office of Clinical and Pro Bono Programs (OCP) and visit the Clinical Registration Center to learn more.
Step 7: Hone Research and Writing Skills
- Understand J.D. Written Work Requirement.
- Satisfy Analytical Paper Requirement with research paper of at least 20 double-spaced pages under supervision of HLS faculty or instructor, refined through instructor and peer review—and gain in-depth writing experience—via:
  - Analytical Paper Courses
  - Writing Groups
    
    Make sure to complete Writing Group Registration Form (due in September for Fall and January for Spring)
  - Winter Writing Program
  - Independent Written Work
    
    Make sure to complete the Independent Written Work Registration Form (due second Friday in October for Fall, in November for Winter, and February for Spring)
Regardless of the method of completion, make sure to submit the Analytical Paper Documentation Form needed to validate completion of requirement to the Registrar’s Office.
- Satisfy Professional Writing Requirement with 5+ page written work produced in a clinic or experiential learning course, refined through instructor and peer review—and build a skill essential to legal practice—via:
  - Professional Writing Clinics
  - Professional Writing Courses
- Pursue additional opportunities to hone writing skills via Research Assistant positions, Student Journals, Writing Fellows, and Writing Prizes.
- Book one-on-one consultation with the Writing Center—to brainstorm and stress-test ideas, improve paper structure, and receive notes on a draft—and check out additional resources provided by the Writing Center.
- Check out HLS Writes for more information on the culture of writing at HLS.

Registration

In this stage of your academic path, the question before you is more technical: How do I enroll in courses and clinics supporting my academic goals?

Step 8: Register for Courses, Clinics, and More
- Mark important course and clinic registration dates in calendar.
- Learn more about each step in registration process:
  - Clinic Registration,
  - Enrollment Algorithm,
  - Add/Drop + Waitlists, and
  - Firesale.
- Understand general preferencing guidelines and utilize seat capacity by course to make strategic preferencing decisions.
- Monitor real-time updates to Course Catalog.
- Cross-register, if interested, at other Harvard schools, MIT, or the Fletcher School at Tufts.

Winter Term, Joint Degrees, & Semester Abroad

In this stage of your academic path, you are exploring unique opportunities for study at HLS. Ask yourself: How do I want to spend my upper-level Winter Terms? Would combining my legal studies with advanced training in another field or working, studying, or conducting research abroad further my academic goals?

Step 9: Pursue Unique Experiences in Winter Term
- Identify opportunities of interest for upper-level Winter Terms:
  - Take unique course, such as Fashion Law Lab or Negotiation Workshop;
  - Research (domestic or abroad) or write paper via Winter Term Writing Program;
  - Participate in standalone Winter Term clinic, such as Sports Law Clinic;
  - Wrap up (Fall-Winter) or kick off (Winter-Spring) multi-semester clinic, such as Child Advocacy Clinic, Criminal Justice Institute, or Federal Courts Clinic;
  - Extend prior semester clinic placement through Advanced Clinical Program; and
  - Design custom domestic or international placement via Independent Clinical Program.
- Check Course Catalog to ensure completion/planning for Winter Term co- or pre-requisites.
- Apply for, if applicable, Winter Term International Travel Grant.
- Make appointment with OCP, International Legal Studies (ILS), and the Writing Center as needed.
Step 10: Consider if Studies Outside HLS Further Academic Goals
Joint Degrees
- Learn about HLS’ joint and coordinated degree programs:
- Schedule joint degree advising appointment. (Questions about Cambridge L.L.M. program should be directed to ILS.)
Study Abroad
- Explore HLS’ nine exchange programs at Sydney Law School (Sydney, Australia), Renmin Law School (Beijing, China), Sciences Po Law School (Paris, France), and more.
- Learn about crafting independent semester abroad.
- Visit Semester Abroad webpage, attend ILS Office Hours, or make appointment with ILS to learn more.
Other Special Programs
- Apply to Berkeley Exchange Program to spend 3L year at UC Berkeley School of Law.

Extracurriculars & SPOs/Pro Bono

In this stage of your academic path, look for opportunities to further your academic goals outside the classroom. Consider: Does a student organization in my area of interest exist? Is there a Student Practice Organization (SPO) that will enable me to develop the skills I want to build? How will I satisfy the pro bono graduation requirement?

Step 11: Engage in Extracurriculars to Broaden Knowledge and Skills Base
- Get involved in student organizations.
- Improve advocacy skills via Ames Moot Court Competition, external moot courts, or mock trial.
- Hone research and writing skills through student journals and Board of Student Advisers.
- Get involved in one of HLS’ 31 Research Programs & Centers, ranging from Program on Corporate Governance to Youth Advocacy & Policy Lab (Y-Lab).
Step 12: Satisfy Pro Bono Requirement (and Perform Invaluable Work!)
- Understand 50-hour pro bono graduation requirement.
- Learn about pro bono opportunities, including:
  - HLS’ 11 Student Practice Organizations (SPOs), opportunities for students to gain practical legal experience under the supervision of a licensed attorney as early as 1L year.

Bridge to Your Career Path

Your academic path likely combines courses and opportunities aligned with your career goals and opportunities pursued out of intellectual curiosity. Work with advisers in the Office of Career Services and Office of Public Interest Advising, as well as the Assistant Dean for Academic Career Advising, to understand how your academic path can support your career goals.

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You have three years as a J.D. student to chart your academic path.

Academic Path Common Steps

Goals & Requirements

Advising & Support

Courses, Clinics, & Writing

Registration

Winter Term, Joint Degrees, & Semester Abroad

Extracurriculars & SPOs/Pro Bono

Bridge to Your Career Path