About Law and Society
The Women’s College offers a Bachelor’s degree in Law and Society as well as a Law and Society minor that may be combined with other Women’s College degree programs.

The Bachelor of Arts in Law and Society (LAS)
The LAS major is an interdisciplinary liberal arts program that focuses on how law transforms society and how society transforms the law, on how law matters in people’s lives and people’s lives matter in law.  Drawing on the expertise of professors in law, sociology, political science and mass communications, the program brings the rigor of social sciences methodology to the study of legal and social concepts and systems.  The unique curriculum promotes the examination of critical questions about persons and the way they live together; develops critical thinking, reflective judgment, and interpretive abilities, and provides practical knowledge relevant to a wide variety of pursuits. 

Women who chose this major are:

• Concerned about social justice
• Eager to influence positive societal change
• Interested in the complex relationships between individuals and social policy
• Determined to advocate for change in their communities and the world

LAS Minor
The LAS minor is an excellent complement to the Communication or Information Technology Studies majors at The Women’s College.  The knowledge bases, skill sets and interdisciplinary natures of those majors will be enhanced by the unique focus of the LAS curriculum.  For example, Communication majors with a LAS minor might use their knowledge of law and social structures in planning communication campaigns.  ITS majors with a LAS minor will better understand the interface between communication technologies and intellectual property, privacy and other legal concerns.

What will I learn and what can I do with it?
The interdisciplinary liberal arts LAS curriculum enables students to become informed, well-rounded critical thinkers who can respond analytically to complex phenomena and be advocates for social and legal change.  As such, the study of law and society is not a preparation for any one specific career.  Rather, the major provides a strong foundation for a wide array of professional and nonprofessional career options, such as:

In addition, the major provides solid preparation for students considering graduate work in fields such as business, social work, conflict resolution, criminal justice, government and public policy.  The major is not a pre-law program, but law and society graduates frequently do go on to law school.

The Course of Study
The Bachelor of Arts in Law and Society

The LAS major requires 48 credit hours of coursework (12 courses) in law and society including an introduction to the field, and the study of sociolegal concepts, practices and processes.  The curriculum concludes with a capstone seminar in which students apply their classroom learning in an internship, service learning setting or other experience tailored to their needs and career plans.

In addition to the major requirements, students earning a Bachelor of Arts degree at DU must complete University requirements that include Foundation courses, Liberal Arts courses, required courses for a minor, and general electives.

To learn more about specific course requirements, click here.

The Law and Society Minor

Students minoring in LAS complete 24 hours of law and society courses.  To learn more about specific course requirements, click here.

For more information contact us at womenscollege@du.edu.

Links to pages with information about Law and Society
The Women’s College Law and Society Community
National Law and Society Association
Directory of Undergraduate Legal Studies Programs in the U.S.