Hi! I am going through a rough time with picking subjects posts. I really like Peace, Justice and Conflict, Criminology. Ethics, Society and Law and Political Science. I want to study all of them, but I know that is not realistic. Is there a way I could combine these majors. Which one is higher in ranking or better for maybe pursuing law school/graduate school. Thanks a lot and Happy Canada Day!!
———————————————
hey there,
i’ma get the easy question out of the way first: there is NO PROGRAM out there that is going to “prepare” you for law school.
pretty much every law school across the continent prides itself on accepting students from all academic backgrounds. yes, the “rigour” of a certain program can sometimes give your application an edge, but the best thing you can do is go for a program (or programs) which give you the best chance of doing well.
bthe difference between criminology or political science is not going to make or break a law school application.
as for graduate school: it depends on the graduate program. if you’re thinking about political science, then a poli sci undergrad would be the best idea. if you want a master’s in crim., then you should probably go for – you guessed it – criminology major.
think seriously about what kinds of graduate programs you might like to pursue, and then you can figure out which programs would best prepare you.
k, now about your POSts:
you’re right, there’s probably not a way to study all those POSts, because you can only have a maximum of three POSts active at any time. HOWEVER, you can do three out of four. ethics, society & law, peace, conflict and justice and criminology are all only offered as majors or specialists. so, if you wanted to, you could do a double major in two of those and a minor in political science.
as for which POSt you should drop – i would go through the program requirements for each program and highlight which courses you feel most excited about.
make a hypothetical plan for your whole degree and figure out which combination of POSts will allow you to take the maximum number of those courses. (not that you will or have to stick to this plan for your whole four years, but it’s a good way to make decisions based on concrete FACTS).
at the end of the day, they’re all pretty similar programs, so there will be overlap between required courses. singling out the unique courses – like ethics or criminology courses – that you might be especially excited about is a great way to figure out which POSts to prioritize.
good luck with it,
aska