Academics | Columbia Law School

J.D. Graduation Requirement Summary

Required for the J.D. degree:

• 83 academic credits (minimum)     
• 6 terms of full-time residence at the Law School. To maintain term residence, you must have 12 to 15 points each semester.
• Satisfactory completion of all required foundation courses.
• Satisfactory completion of a course in the area of professional responsibility.
• Two (2) writing credits, at least one of which meets the criteria of the Major Writing Credit, as defined under Rule 1.4 of the Rules for the J.D. Degree.
  • The Major Writing Credit must be registered for by the end of the add/drop period of the fifth term and must be completed by April 1 prior to graduation (or by the first day of the month prior to expected graduation for students not graduating in May).
  • The Minor Writing Credit paper must be registered for by the end of the add/drop period of the sixth term and completed by April 1 prior to graduation (or by the first day of the month prior to expected graduation for students not graduating in May).

• Mandatory Pro Bono service of a minimum of 40 hours.
  To certify completion of an established pro bono project, students must complete an exit questionnaire and their supervising attorneys must submit a supervisor's report to Social Justice Initiatives. Learn more about the pro bono requirement and download necessary forms.

Key Limitations/Restrictions: 

No more than 23 credits of the required 83 points for the J.D. degree may represent clinical courses, externships, or other offerings that are not regularly scheduled class session (“Non-Regularly Scheduled Classes”).  However, only 18 points of Non-Regularly Scheduled Classes will be counted towards the 83 points for the J.D. degree.  Non-Regularly Scheduled Classes include:

• Supervised Research (as defined under Rule 1.5 of the Rules for the J.D. Degree);
  • Note: No more than 4 points per academic year, nor more than 3 points per semester may be given to any student for the completion of  supervised research projects.
• Research as an unpaid faculty assistant (as defined under Rule 1.6).
• Note: No more than two points of credits may be given per year under this Rule. 
• Note: Up to 10 credits in non-Law courses taken at other faculties of Columbia University can count toward the 83 credits required for the J.D. degree. Courses with a grade below a C do not carry J.D. credit.
• Note: For some externships, all credits are considered as non-classroom credits.
• Note: No more than 3 points of credit may be earned under Rule 1.11, with only 2 points to be awarded for placement on a law journal editorial board.
• Note: Students may not receive credit (i) for serving as a teaching fellow in more than 2 courses, (ii) for serving as a teaching fellow more than once in the same course, or (iii) in a number that exceeds the number of points of the course for which service is performed; 
• Note: No more than 4 points of credit may be earned under this Rule.
• Work under other faculties of the University under Rule 1.8;
• The non-classroom component of externship programs;
• Independent work on law school journals or upper-level moot court under Rule 1.11;
• Service as an teaching fellow under Rule 1.12;
• Supervised work on upper-level moot court under Rule 1.13