law and American civilization

 

 

MAJOR IN LAW AND AMERICAN CIVILIZATION

 

Majors must complete 54 units. The program is divided into four parts, and writing skills are emphasized throughout. First, students must complete two introductory courses, one each in political science and philosophy, which acquaint students with the nature of law and its role in American society. Second, students will take four core courses, one at the lower-division, two at the upper-division level, and an advanced writing course. These courses further situate students in American culture, politics, judicial policymaking and logical thinking. Third, students will have several options in choosing electives, which will be offered by several departments: Accounting, Mass Communication and Communication Studies, English, History, Philosophy and Religion. Fourth and finally, students will undertake a 6-unit capstone experience of their choice and, if possible, design. Advanced students may wish to undertake a project in the workplace and then write an analytical essay on that experience as it fits into the overall program. Other students will participate in a senior seminar, in which they will write a research paper on some aspect of the law, to be developed into a thesis supervised by the program director. Finally, qualified students may choose to write an honors thesis.

 

I. Introductory Courses (6 units)

ECON 201 Microeconomic Principles (3)

POSC 209 Introduction to Law (3)

II. Core Courses (12 units)

ENGL 310 Writing Argument (3)

COMM 331 Advocacy and Argument (3)

PHIL 111 Logic (3)

POSC 384 The Judicial System (3)

III. Electives (30 units)

Two courses in each of the following lettered topics. (Students may take no more than five law-related courses, so designated by an asterisk.)

Students will need to fulfill each department’s individual prerequisites in advance of taking these courses.

A. Accounting

ACCT 201 Principles of Accounting I (3)

LEGL 225* Legal Environment of Business (3)

LEGL 226* Business Law (3)

or

Communication Studies

COMM 304 Persuasion (3)

COMM 420* Communication in the Legal Process (3)

or

Mass Communication

MCOM 350* Media Law (3)

 

B. English

Strongly recommended are ENGL 221 and ENGL 222 as prerequisites.

  • ENGL 300 Literary Research and Applied Criticism (3)

  • ENGL 331 American Drama (3)

  • ENGL 372 Women Writers (3)

  • ENGL 425 Chaucer (3)

  • ENGL 426 Topics in Shakespeare Studies (3)

  • ENGL 427 Shakespearean Comedy (3)

  • ENGL 428 Shakespearean Tragedy (3)

  • ENGL 429 Milton and the Humanist Tradition (3)

  • ENGL 431 Literature of the American Romantic Period (3)

  • ENGL 432 Literature of the American Realist Period (3)

  • ENGL 433 The American Short Story (3)

  • ENGL 435 The Development of the American Novel: 19th Century (3)

  • ENGL 436 The Development of the American Novel: 20th Century (3)

  • ENGL 441 Modern Fiction to World War II (3)

  • ENGL 442 Modern Fiction since World War II (3)

  • ENGL 461 History of Literary Criticism (3)

  • ENGL 465 British and American Prose (3)

  • ENGL 469 Studies in One or Two Authors (3)

  • ENGL 476 Topics in Multi-ethnic American Literature (3)

    • ENGL 477 Topics in Black American Literature (3)

C. History

  • HIST 345 The American Colonies (3)

  • HIST 346 The American Revolutionary Period (3) 1492-1763

  • HIST 347 The Early National Period (3)

  • HIST 349 The Civil War (3)

  • HIST 351 The U.S. 1865-1901: Age of Enterprise (3)

  • HIST 352 The U.S. 1892-1920: Age of Reform (3)

  • HIST 359 The F.D.R. Era (3)

  • HIST 360 Recent American History: 1945-1975 (3)

  • HIST 361 Gays and Lesbians in U.S. History (3)

  • HIST 363 Social History of the U.S. to 1865 (3)

  • HIST 364 Social History of the U.S. Since 1865 (3)

  • HIST 366 A History of American Business (3)

  • HIST 367* The Development of the U.S. Constitution: 1787-1941 (3)

  • HIST 368* The Bill of Rights and the Constitution, 1941 to the Present (3)

  • HIST 370 Diplomatic History of the United States (3)

  • HIST 374 The American West (3)

  • HIST 375 The City in American History (3)

  • HIST 378 Immigrants and Immigration in the United States (3)

  • HIST 379 History of Native Americans: The East (3)

  • HIST 380 History of Native Americans: The West (3)

  • HIST 381 African American History to the Mid-19th Century (3)

  • HIST 382 African American History from the Mid-19th Century (3)

  • HIST 385 Workers and Work in the United States (3)

 

D. Philosophy

  • PHIL 204 Race, Class and Gender (3)

  • PHIL 311 Symbolic Logic (3)

  • PHIL 319 Science, Technology and Values (3)

  • PHIL 321* Philosophy of Law (3)

  • PHIL 324 Modern Philosophy (3)

  • PHIL 325 Schools of Contemporary Philosophy (3)

  • PHIL 326 American Philosophy (3)

  • PHIL 331 Concepts of Woman: An Historical Approach (3)

  • PHIL 332 Feminist Philosophy (3)

  • PHIL 341 Ethics (3)

  • PHIL 353 Philosophy of Religion (3)

  • PHIL 361 Biomedical Ethics (3)

  • PHIL 371 Business Ethics (3)

 

E. Political Science

  • POSC 305 Urban Government and Politics (3)

  • POSC 375 Public Administration (3)

  • POSC 381 The Presidency (3)

  • POSC 383 Congress (3)

  • POSC 417 Political Parties (3)

  • POSC 418* Constitutional Law and Politics (3)

  • POSC 419* Civil Rights and Civil Liberties: The First and Fourteenth Amendments (3)

  • POSC 420* Constitutional Protections: Personal Liberty and Rights of the Accused (3)

  • POSC 421 Politics and Environmental Policy (3)

  • POSC 422* The Supreme Court (3)

  • POSC 425* Legal Theory (3)

  • POSC 427 Political Theory I (3)

  • POSC 428 Political Theory II (3)

  • POSC 450 Interest Groups and Public Policy (3)

  • POSC 467 Politics and the Budgetary Process (3)

  • POSC 472 American Political Thought (3)

  • POSC 473 International Law (3)

  • POSC 479* Women and the Law (3)

IV. Seminar and/or Capstone Experience (6 units)

Students have four options to fulfill this stage of the Law and American Civilization Program.

 

Option I

POSC 486 Seminar: Law and Justice (3)

LWAC 491 Thesis Seminar in Law and American Civilization (3)

 

Option II

LWAC 497 Practicum in Law and American Civilization (3)

LWAC 491 Thesis Seminar in Law and American Civilization (3)

 

Option III

LWAC 497 Practicum in Law and American Civilization (3)

POSC 486 Seminar: Law and Justice (3)

 

Option IV

LWAC 498 Directed Readings in Law and American Civilization (3)

LWAC 499 Honors Thesis in Law and American Civilization (3)

 

Internship Opportunities

Students will have the opportunity to engage in internships, which are available through local law firms and the Maryland District and Circuit Courts. These may include the following:

Maryland District Court for Baltimore City and Baltimore County

Maryland Circuit Court for Baltimore City and Baltimore County

Victim/Witness Program, Baltimore County Circuit Court

Consumer Affairs Division, Maryland State Attorney General’s Office

ACLU, Public Justice Center and other agencies

Major Baltimore area law firms

 

PRELAW ADVISING

Students contemplating law school after graduation should make an appointment with the university’s Prelaw adviser, Dr. Jack Fruchtman. He can provide prospective students with a copy of the Towson Prelaw Handbook, introduce them to the Prelaw Society, and offer advice concerning courses of study, preparation for the Law School Admission Test (LSAT) and other matters pertaining to what students need for their application to law school. In general, students should concentrate on improving their reading, writing, speaking and thinking skills.

 

Dual Law Program

Towson University offers qualified students the opportunity to apply to the early admission program at the University of Baltimore School of Law. Admission is not automatic but is contingent upon acceptance by the University of Baltimore Law School, including review of LSAT scores. Transfer to the UB law program can only take place at the end of a spring term. To qualify for entrance to the dual-degree program, students must fulfill the first three of the standards listed below; to qualify for graduation from Towson University, they must also fulfill the fourth standard listed:

 

1. Completion of at least 91 units at TU with at least a 3.00 GPA

2. Completion of all TU General Education requirements

3. Completion of a major at TU with at least a 3.25 GPA in the major. 

    No specific areas of study or disciplines are required for this program; accordingly,

    students may choose majors in which they are most interested.

4. Successful completion of 29 units at the University of Baltimore School of Law, and of all

    other TU graduation requirements as listed in the catalog under the heading Degree

    Requirements

    Subsequent completion of all requirements at the University of Baltimore

    Law School is necessary in order to earn the J.D. degree from the University of Baltimore.

    Students interested in this program should contact the TU Prelaw adviser, Dr. Jack

    Fruchtman, in the Department of Political Science.

　

For further information please contact:

Director: Dr. Jack Fruchtman

Linthicum Hall 118B, 410-704-3350

　


 

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