Joint Degree Programs
Baylor Law offers five dual degree programs:
- JD/Master of Business Administration
- JD/Master of Business Administration - Healthcare Administration
- JD/Master of Divinity
- JD/Master of Taxation
- JD/Master of Public Policy and Administration
Juris Doctor / Master of Business Administration
To accommodate students who contemplate a career where business and law overlap, the Law School and the Hankamer School of Business offer a dual degree program that leads to the simultaneous award of Juris Doctor (JD) and Master of Business Administration (MBA) degrees.
The JD/MBA program strives to improve the effectiveness of both business managers and legal counsel for business entities by training each to understand the role of the other and the importance of their respective contributions to the successful operation of a business. JD/MBA students are encouraged to pursue a concentrated course of study at the Law School in Business Transactions or Business Litigation.
Students receive twelve hours of credit toward their JD upon the successful completion of the required MBA courses and twelve hours of elective credit toward their elective requirement for the MBA upon successful completion of law school course work. Thus, JD/MBA students complete 114 quarter hours of law courses and twenty-four semester hours of graduate business courses. Since both degrees are awarded simultaneously, all requirements in both schools must be completed in order to receive either degree.
Students generally complete the dual JD/MBA program in three-and-a-half to four years. All MBA students begin the program by participating in a four-week set of classes called Business Frameworks. These classes serve as a primer for the MBA curriculum and consists of one credit hour of each of the following: accounting, finance, Excel, and statistics. JD/MBA students start the business portion of their coursework in July and with completion by May the following year.
Students must apply to, and be accepted by, both the Law School and the Business School. The application fee has been waived and scholarships are available for competitive applicants. An LSAT score will be considered in lieu of a GMAT/GRE score for applicants who have been accepted to Baylor Law.
To contact the Business School and for information about the application, click here.
Juris Doctor / Master of Business Administration-Healthcare Administration
To accommodate students who contemplate a career where healthcare and law overlap, the Law School and the Robbins MBA Healthcare Program offer a dual degree program that leads to the simultaneous award of a Juris Doctor (JD) and a Master of Business Administration (MBA) with a specialization in healthcare administration.
Healthcare has become an increasingly specialized area of the law and healthcare administrators are integral to the successful management of hospitals, nursing homes, hospice facilities, insurance companies, provider networks and government policy organizations. This dual degree program provides appropriate general background courses and necessary specialized healthcare law classes while also allowing students to examine the legal and business aspects of healthcare administration from multiple perspectives, drawn from a cross-section of multidisciplinary expertise.
Unlike many healthcare administration MBA programs, the Robbins MBA Healthcare Program requires a ninth-month paid Executive Residency with a leading, progressive health organization. With a residency placement rate of 100%, every student has the opportunity to receive guidance from well-qualified, practicing healthcare executives, apply and test administrative theory in practical work situations, and develop leadership skills in an actual healthcare organization.
Students receive twelve hours of elective credit toward their JDs upon the successful completion of the required MBA-Healthcare Administration courses. Both degrees are awarded simultaneously upon the completion of all requirements in both schools.
Students generally complete the dual JD/MBA program in three-and-a-half to four years. All MBA students begin the program by participating in a four-week set of classes called Business Frameworks. These classes serve as a primer for the MBA curriculum and consists of one credit hour of each of the following: accounting, finance, Excel, and statistics. JD/MBA students start the business portion of their coursework in July and with completion by May the following year.
Students must apply to, and be accepted by, both the Law School and the Business School. The application fee has been waived and scholarships are available for competitive applicants. An LSAT score will be considered in lieu of a GMAT/GRE score for applicants who have been accepted to Baylor Law.
To contact the Business School and for information about the application, click here.
Juris Doctor / Master of Divinity
This dual degree program links the faculties, resources, and educations of a nationally-recognized law school and a top-tier seminary, offering students an education that prepares them well for a multitude of leadership opportunities. Graduates will be fully qualified to serve in a traditional law practice or in a congregational setting. Beyond these contexts, the skill sets developed from this program will also allow graduates to serve in non-profit organizations, particularly those focused on human rights, or in careers that provide legal advocacy for society’s underserved populations.
The dual JD/MDiv degree program requires students to meet the standard requirements of both degree plans. A prospective student must make regular application for admission to, and be accepted by, both the Law School and the Seminary. Once admitted to both schools, the student will declare his or her intent to enroll in the dual degree program with the Associate Dean for Academic Affairs of the Seminary and the Associate Dean of the School of Law.
For more information about the JD/MDiv degree, click here.
Juris Doctor / Master of Public Policy and Administration
Students interested in governmental service at the federal, state, or local level can complete their law degree along with a Master of Public Policy and Administration (MPPA) degree offered by the Political Science department of Baylor University. This dual degree program leads to the simultaneous award of Juris Doctor (JD) and Master of Public Policy and Administration degrees. While the JD program trains students to recognize, analyze, and formulate legal solutions to legal issues, the MPPA program develops students' abilities to work within the context of governmental entities that must confront larger issues of public policy. The JD/MPPA degree strives to improve the effectiveness of governmental leaders in the administration of massive, complex regulatory or benefit programs.
Students receive twelve hours of elective credit toward their JDs upon the successful completion of the MPPA requirements and twelve hours of credit toward their elective requirement for the MPPA upon successful completion of law school course work. Thus, JD/MPPA students complete 114 quarter hours of law and twenty-four semester hours of graduate work. Since both degrees are awarded simultaneously, all requirements in both schools must be completed in order to receive either degree.
Students must make regular application for admission to, and be accepted by, both the Law School and the Graduate School. All applicants must take the GRE and the LSAT.
For more information about applying to the Graduate School, click here.
Juris Doctor / Master of Taxation
Baylor is the only law school in Texas and one of only a few law schools in the nation to offer a dual degree program that leads to the simultaneous award of the Juris Doctor (JD) and Master of Taxation (MTAX) degrees. JD/MTAX students receive a broad-based legal education in the Law School, while the Hankamer School of Business Master of Taxation Program provides the students with an in-depth study of all major aspects of taxation. Graduate tax courses include tax research and planning, tax practice and procedure, advanced individual taxation, corporations, partnerships and S-corporations, and international, state, and local taxation. JD/MTAX students take Estate Planning at the Law School. Students desiring a career in taxation (either planning or litigation), business planning and transactions, or estate planning would benefit from both degrees. JD/MTAX students are encouraged to pursue a concentrated study at the Law School in Business Transactions, Estate Planning, or Business Litigation.
Students receive twelve hours of elective credit toward their JDs upon the successful completion of the required MTAX courses and twelve hours of credit toward their elective requirement for the MTAX upon successful completion of Law School course work. Thus, JD/MTAX students complete 114 quarter hours of law and nineteen semester hours of graduate tax. Since both degrees are awarded simultaneously, all requirements in both schools must be completed in order to receive either degree.
It is possible for students with adequate accounting backgrounds to complete the dual JD/MTAX program in thirty-six months. Students with a non-accounting undergraduate degree may be required to complete some basic level accounting courses before enrolling in any graduate tax courses.
Students must make regular application for admission to, and be accepted by, both the Law School and the Business School. All applicants must take the GMAT and the LSAT.
For more information about the MTax program, click here.