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10.1 Transferring from the UW Law School
Students do not need approval from University of Wisconsin Law School to transfer to another law school. They must meet the criteria for transfer of the other school. Official UW transcripts are available through the UW Registrar. Usually, the application process will require our student to provide a letter from the UW Law School Dean that states that the applying student is a student in good standing. Students needing such letters must provide the names, addresses and deadlines to our Registrar (in room 5107) who will initiate the process to have the letters sent.
10.2 Visiting at another Law School in the
United States
Students wanting to attend another American law school as a visitor should do their own research about the admissions criteria of the school and its deadlines. They should also ascertain whether the school is fully accredited by the American Bar Association. In planning, students should meet with the Registrar (Room 5107) to be certain that they understand which graduation and Diploma Privilege course requirements remain unfulfilled and which courses taken at another law school are likely to meet our requirements. The Law School will grant credit and make final determinations about subject requirements when the student's official transcript and course information are available, not prospectively. Students will receive credit for law courses taken elsewhere on a pass/fail basis and only if the student received the equivalent of a C or better for the work.
During the application process for visiting student status, other law schools will require our students to provide a letter from the UW Law School that states that the applying student is a student in good standing and that the UW Law School will accept credits from the other law school. Students needing such letters must provide the names, addresses and deadlines to our Registrar, who will initiate the process to have the letters sent.
When a student visits at another American law school for a fall or spring semester, the student becomes “inactive” in the UW campus registration records. Therefore, the student must file “re-entry” forms before returning. These forms are available through our Registrar. A student who has not complied with the re-entry requirement will not be able to register for a subsequent semester at UWLS until he/she has completed the re-entry process. For example, a student taking courses at a California law school during fall of the second year will need to register for spring courses at UWLS for the following semester. Registration will take place while the student is in California. If the student has not completed the re-entry process, the registration system will not accept the course choices for the spring semester. Re-entry is not necessary if a student visits at another law school for a summer session only.
Similarly, a student who registers for fall courses at UWLS and then enrolls at a law school in New York for the same semester must drop all UW courses for the fall. If the student fails to drop the courses, the campus will hold the student responsible for all of the tuition and fees.
The same procedures and grade requirements apply to students taking law courses outside of the United States. They should also read the section in this handbook on Study Abroad and check the Web site of the American Bar Association (http://www.abanet.org/) regarding the accreditation status of foreign law schools and whether the student must submit an application for approval of an independent study program.
Finally, students who visit at another US law school in their final term should be aware of the following: (1) It is your responsibility to ensure that the resulting transcript from your visit is forwarded to the Law School Registrar. The Law School will NOT certify that you have met the JD degree requirements without this transcript. (2) If the transcript is greatly delayed, your ability to take an upcoming bar exam may be impacted (most jurisdictions require that you have your JD degree before taking their bar exam). (3) The UW Law School will typically “back-date” the conferral of degree to the end of the term in question. However, if you have not yet submitted a Diploma Privilege application, the application deadline (thirty days following degree conferral) may have already passed. Early application with the Board of Bar Examiners avoids this problem.
10.3 Special Issues for Part-time Students
Part-time student status is entirely the choice of the individual student, and students may change from part-time to full-time status or vice versa when students choose, subject to the usual rules about dropping and adding classes. See Chapters 3 and 7 of the Law School Rules for more information about part-time status at matriculation or during law school.
In general, part-time students must abide by the same requirements as full-time students. They must complete the full sequence of First Year courses within two years of matriculation and must complete the 90 credits for the J.D. within six years of matriculation. Completing the required first-year courses in two years must be accomplished during the academic years. Except for the three-credit course that qualifies as the first year "elective", first-year courses are not offered during inter-session or summer sessions. In most cases, part-time students must be enrolled at least half-time for two academic years in order to satisfy the two-year rule.
Part-time students are eligible for clinical programs, internships and externships, law reviews and journals and other special activities on the same basis as full-time students. Most of these programs are open to students after they have completed a certain number of credits, rather than a certain number of semesters. Similarly, part-time students may use the pass/fail option for a course per semester after they have completed 25 credits and are limited to a total of four pass/fail courses, just as full-time students are limited.
Part-time student status is entirely the choice of the individual student, and students may change from part-time to full-time status or vice versa when students choose, subject to the usual rules about dropping and adding classes. See Chapters 3 and 7 of the Law School Rules for more information about part-time status at matriculation or during law school.
In general, part-time students must abide by the same requirements as full-time students. They must complete the full sequence of First Year courses within two years of matriculation and must complete the 90 credits for the J.D. within six years of matriculation. Completing the required first-year courses in two years must be accomplished during the academic years. Except for the three-credit course that qualifies as the first year "elective", first-year courses are not offered during inter-session or summer sessions. In most cases, part-time students must be enrolled at least half-time for two academic years in order to satisfy the two-year rule.
Part-time students are eligible for clinical programs,
internships and externships, law reviews and journals and other
special activities on the same basis as full-time students. Most of
these programs are open to students after they have completed a
certain number of credits, rather than a certain number of
semesters. Similarly, part-time students may use the pass/fail
option for a course per semester after they have completed 25
credits and are limited to a total of four pass/fail courses, just
as full-time students are limited.
10.4 Leaves of Absence
Students interested in a leave of absence for financial, health other personal reasons should contact the Assistant Dean for Student and Academic Affairs for information about requesting a leave. Like part-time students, students granted a leave of absence must complete the full sequence of First Year courses within two years of matriculation, must complete the 90 credits for the J.D. within six years of matriculation and must meet the same requirements as other students for earning Diploma Privilege. Students who take a leave of absence become “inactive” in the UW campus registration records. Therefore, the student must file “re-entry” forms before returning. These forms are available through our registrar. A student who has not complied with the re-entry requirement will not be able to register for a subsequent semester at UWLS until he/she has completed the re-entry process.
“The world is divided into people who do things and people who get the credit. Try, if you can, to belong to the first class.” Dwight Morrow
(Excerpt from a trial transcript)
Q. Doctor, did you say he was shot in the woods?
A. No, I said he was shot in the lumbar region.