1. Law School, Philosophy, and Clarke College Spring 2010 Philosophy Department Luncheon

2. Why Clarke College? Law schools emphasize the importance of a strong liberal arts education. The breadth and depth of the general education program and the wide range of liberal arts majors makes Clarke a solid choice for law school preparation. Clarke’s advising system helps students choose the courses best suited to help them prepare for law school.

3. Why Philosophy? Philosophy helps students develop a wide range of skills essential for a successful legal career or graduate education.  Critical and logical reasoning  Problem solving  Oral and written communication  An ability to assess pro and con  Organization of ideas  Boiling down complex ideas.

4. GRE Scores (2005-2006) GRE SectionsScoreRank Verbal Reasoning5891 Quantitative Reasoning63615 Analytical Reasoning5.11 This study evaluated the top 50 intended graduate majors of those who took the Graduate Record Exam.

5. Why philosophy at Clarke? PHIL 290: Symbolic Logic PHIL 280: LSAT Preparation PHIL 395: Internship/Cooperative Ed

6. PHIL 290: Symbolic Logic This course helps to prepare students for the difficult logic games on the LSAT. It is not offered at any other area colleges.

7. Example Problem

8. PHIL 280: LSAT Preparation The Philosophy Department at Clarke began offering this course in the summer of 2008. All students have reported an increase in their test scores due to taking this course.

9. Average LSAT Scores RankMajorAverage Score Number of Students 1Physics/Math157.6689 2Philosophy/Religion156.01,884 3Economics155.32,916 4International Relations155.11,546 5Chemistry154.58,93 Approximately half of the Clarke philosophy majors who have taken the LSAT have scored at or above the national average score for philosophy majors.

10. PHIL 395: Internship Clarke philosophy majors have been able to secure paid law internships for academic credit. They participate in witness reports, mock trials, transcription, focus groups, and discovery work.

11. Reynolds & Kenline

12. … so, how successful have Clarke philosophy majors been at getting into law school?

13. Answer All Philosophy majors who have applied to law school have been accepted into law school.

14. Acceptance at Law Schools Creighton Drake University Loyola University Marquette University St. Louis University University of Iowa University of Oklahoma University of St. Thomas Valparaiso University William Mitchell

15. Current Clarke Graduates