Graduate

JD Program -- Dual Programs in Political Science and Law

The Department of Political Science at the University at Buffalo is one of only a handful of departments in the nation which offers a dual interdisciplinary program leading to the J.D. degree and the M.A. and Ph.D. in political science. Cooperation between the Faculty of Law and Jurisprudence and the College of Arts and Sciences has resulted in the establishment of the Baldy Center for Law and Social Policy. The Center sponsors interdisciplinary graduate seminars jointly taught by members of both faculties, brings distinguished scholars from other institutions to these seminars, funds some dual degree students, and acts as the coordinating body for the program.

The dual degree program is a rigorous course of study intended for outstanding candidates interested in interdisciplinary perspectives on legal problems and institutions. As the listing below makes evident, our Department contains a strong component of faculty with interests in a wide range of legal issues.

Dual degree students are eligible for a total of three years of financial assistance from the Political Science Department: their first year in Political Science during which time they will study full-time in the Department, and two other years, during which time joint degree students are studying law on a full-time basis. The Political Science Department will not fund the first year in Law School, during which time dual degree students are studying law on a full-time basis. However, during that year some money may be available from the Law School, on a highly selective basis; interested students should apply directly the Law School. In the fortunate event that students receive offers of financial assistance from both the Law School and the Political Science Department, students are required to accept the Law School grant (thus saving their eligibility for Political Science assistance for another year in the program.)

To apply for the dual degree program, you must file separate applications and credentials with both the Department of Political Science and the School of Law.

Political Science Faculty With Law-Related Interests

  • Stephen Halpern (Ph.D., Johns Hopkins; J.D. SUNY/B): Judicial Process; Civil Liberties; Law and Political Change
  • Charles M. Lamb (Ph.D., Alabama): Judicial Behavior and Process; Civil Rights and Civil Liberties; Constitutional Law
  • Lynn Mather (Research Professor) (Ph.D., University of California, Irvine): Courts and Public Policy; Legal Profession; Criminal Justice
  • Claude Welch (Ph.D., Oxford): International Human Rights