The best majors for law school

Inconveniently (and expensively), you can’t study law as an undergraduate. Unlike most other countries, in the U.S. you can only go to law school after getting a bachelor’s degree in something else.

So what are the best pre-law majors for budding lawyers?

In this article, we’ll give you a quick overview of the best majors for law school, so you can start your journey to high-stakes courtroom showdowns (or meditative hours spent pouring over contracts) on the best foot possible – while mitigating the financial risks associated with studying law.

Do law schools care about your major?

No, the American Bar Association (ABA) – the professional organization in charge of accrediting law schools – “does not recommend any undergraduate majors to prepare for a legal education. Students are admitted to law school from almost every academic discipline.”

Successful law school applicants have studied drama, English, computer science, engineering, nursing, and everything in between.

But surely some majors are better than others…

According to the ABA, the most popular pre-law majors include history, philosophy, political science, English, economics, and business.

In practice, some fields of study may give you an advantage as you prepare for law school and the LSAT. If you’re mulling over majors as a future lawyer, the degree that will help you the most is one that:

1. You’re good at – Law schools care a lot about your GPA, so pick a major that sparks passion and allows you to achieve top grades.
2. Involves a lot of reading and critical thinking – Challenging courses that force you to pick apart texts to get to the root of an argument will help you do well on the LSAT.
3. Provides you with a solid back-up plan – You may fail to get into law school. You may also discover you hate law. It helps to have an undergraduate major that provides you with backup options if you decide to pivot to another career.

Ranked: the best undergraduate majors for law school

No single major is the ultimate pre-law degree. But remember, a bachelor’s is also a back-up plan.

And in this regard, some majors are A LOT better than others.

Below, we rank popular pre-law majors by earnings potential.

For those who don’t make it to law school, the pre-law majors at the top of our list are the “best deal” economically, leading to high, non-lawyerly earnings 4 years after graduation.

Note that only 3 degrees on this list – STEM, finance, and economics – lead to higher-than-average earnings for someone with a bachelor’s degree 4 years after graduation.

1. STEM degrees

A STEM major may not be a traditional pre-law major, but it will provide you with a rock-solid backup plan.

We suggest a few STEM majors that could be a good choice for budding lawyers.

Industrial engineering. Industrial engineering is a good major for “jack-of-all-trades” scientists, and it places a special emphasis on how humans interact with complex systems – just like law. An industrial engineering degree could also help you out significantly if you pursue patent law.

• Average earnings: $86,725
• Top back-up career: Industrial engineer

Computer science or IT. Computer scientists, IT specialists, and lawyers are all about attention to detail. In addition, a computer science degree could set you up for success in a career in IT law, a growing industry.

• Average earnings: $82,807
• Top back-up career: Software developer

2. Finance

Finance is a lucrative college degree even if you don’t end up going to law school. Majoring in finance could give you an advantage if you choose to specialize in corporate law, securities law, or tax law.

• Average earnings: $73,554
• Top back-up career: Financial and investment analyst

3. Economics

Economics is a versatile degree that can open the door to many professions, equipping students with analytical and quantitative skills essential for legal reasoning. An economics degree could be helpful for lawyers who wish to specialize in antitrust, trade, or tax law.

• Average earnings: $72,830
• Top back-up career: Manager

4. Business

Many law school graduates end up as in-house legal counsel for big corporations. Increasingly, corporate employers want their legal teams to have a solid understanding of business issues. This can make a bachelor’s in business administration a great choice.

• Average earnings: $57,109
• Top back-up career: Management analyst

5. International relations

International relations is a research-heavy major that will thoroughly prepare you for the academic rigor of law school. This degree could also give you an advantage if you pursue international law or human rights law.

• Average earnings: $55,681
• Top back-up career: Foreign service officer

6. Political science

Like international relations, political science involves a lot of reading, research, and writing. It will also give law students a good understanding of the political factors involved in legislation and law enforcement.

• Average earnings: $54,122
• Top back-up career: Policy consultant

7. Communications

Lawyers need to be strong writers and public speakers, and a communications degree could help you develop these skills. Learning PR tricks to put a good “spin” on unfortunate events and how to command an audiences’ attention will come in handy in the courtroom.

• Average earnings: $48,279
• Top back-up career: PR specialist

8. Journalism

Like lawyers, journalists must sift through reams of primary data in order to uncover the truth – and then craft a compelling narrative to present to the public or a judge. A journalism major will also help budding lawyers with their writing skills.

• Average earnings: $47,606
• Top back-up career: Journalist

9. Criminal justice

While some people think criminal justice students study law, this major is more about the psychological and sociological factors behind crime: criminal justice majors study why criminals commit crime, and what society can do to mitigate it. This is very helpful context for lawyers to understand.

• Average earnings: $46,717
• Top back-up career: Criminal investigator

10. Sociology

Sociology students gain a deep understanding of how various social institutions interact with each other. Their focus on addressing inequality and analyzing the root causes behind it could be a boon to lawyers working public policy, social justice, and civil rights.

• Average earnings: $44,518
• Top back-up career: Sociologist

11. History

History is one of the best majors there is for developing skills as a thorough researcher. Being able to analyze prime sources and evaluate their credibility, while picking fact from fiction, is a vital skill for lawyers.

• Average earnings: $43,622
• Top back-up career: History professor

12. Psychology

A degree in psychology will give you insight into how the human mind works. Deep knowledge of unconscious biases, decision-making processes, and various psychological disorders associated with criminal behavior could give you an upper hand in the courtroom.

• Average earnings: $43,218
• Top back-up career: Clinical psychologist

13. English

An English degree, with its focus on written composition and close readings of texts, is an ideal preparation for law school – not to mention the LSAT. Reading diverse literature can also increase your cross-cultural competence, develop empathy, and awaken you to the power of narrative.

• Average earnings: $41,137
• Top back-up career: Editor

14. Philosophy

Of all the majors on this list, the skills you pick up studying philosophy may be the most complementary to law. Philosophy students learn to pick apart arguments, analyze complex problems, and reason logically.

• Average earnings: $40,239
• Top back-up career: Philosophy professor

15. Linguistics

Linguistics students don’t simply learn lots of languages – they study how language works in general. Their meticulous attention to syntax and their scientific understanding of semantics translates well into lawyerly skills.

• Average earnings: $39,899
• Top back-up career: Linguistics professor

Where we get our data

Our data on average earnings, 4 years after graduation, comes from the IPEDS database, an initiative of the National Center for Education Statics.

Why you might want to avoid the humanities

As you probably noticed, many majors at the top of our list aren’t in the humanities. Traditional, highly popular pre-law majors like philosophy and English languish at the bottom due to graduates’ low average earnings 4 years on.

Why’s that?

The humanities undoubtedly do a great job at preparing students to thrive in law school – in this regard they may even be better than majors like economics or business.

However, given the cost of college in America, majoring in the humanities as an undergrad is a big financial risk. Many people fail to get into law school, while others drop out, flunk the bar exam, or decide they hate law.

This trajectory could burden you with toxic student debt you struggle to pay off with a humanities degree.

Is pre-law a good major?

No.

Some colleges offer a so-called “pre-law major” designed for students who plan on going to law school. While this may seem like a good idea on paper, there are a few reasons to avoid a pre-law degree.

1. It won’t help you get into law school. Remember that people can enter law school with any undergraduate major. There’s no evidence that majoring in pre-law helps you in the admission process.
2. It’s useless. If you don’t end up going to law school, what will you do with a B.A. in Legal Studies? Starbucks is waiting.

What law schools actually care about

There are a lot of things law schools care about more than what you majored in.

Think twice before applying to law school

Law school isn’t worth it for everyone.

While lawyers generally earn handsome salaries ($145,760 per year on average according to the BLS), many lawyers earn far less: according to the same source, the bottom 10% of lawyers earn just $69,760.

Given the eyewatering average law school debt of $118,649, this salary might leave you struggling to pay off your student loans.

Unfortunately, many of the cheapest and least selective law schools do not lead to high salaries post-graduation.

If you’re a freshman or sophomore in college and you’re thinking about declaring a major – with law school in mind – have a long, honest think. Do you have the grades to get into a good law school? Do you do well on standardized tests?

If the answers are no, you may want to consider a less risky career path.

Closing arguments

The journey to becoming a lawyer is grueling and expensive. Many people who dream of going to law school their whole life fail to make it to the end.

This is why your undergraduate pre-law major is so important.

Choosing a marketable undergraduate major will allow you to pivot nimbly if you don’t get into a top law school.