Agreement offers shorter path to law degree for Trine students

Trine University students who aspire to a law career now have a shorter, more cost-effective path to a Juris Doctor (J.D.) degree.

The university has entered into an agreement with Ohio Northern University that will allow Trine students to complete a J.D. in six years of combined undergraduate and graduate work, rather than the traditional seven.

“At Trine we are always looking for new ways to help our students achieve their life’s goals,” said Earl D. Brooks II, Ph.D., Trine University president. “This agreement allows students who want to complete a law degree to do so with one less year of classwork and tuition expense.”

Under the new 3+3 program, students in several majors will have the option to finish their coursework at Trine after three years, with their first-year courses in ONU’s Pettit College of Law completing their bachelor’s degree at Trine.

Trine University is in the process of developing similar partnerships with other law schools throughout the Midwest.

Photo: Seated, from left, Earl D. Brooks II, Ph.D., Trine University president, and David C. Crago, J.D., interim dean and professor of law, Pettit College of Law, Ohio Northern University, sign an agreement that will allow Trine students to complete a Juris Doctor degree at ONU in six years of combined undergraduate and graduate work. Standing, from left, are A. Allen Hersel, Ph.D., vice president for academic affairs at Trine, and John Milliken, J.D., professor in the Department of Criminal Justice, Psychology & Social Sciences at Trine.