Joint Degrees: Tepper School of Business at Carnegie Mellon University

JD/MBA

Juris Doctor / Master of Business Administration

A cooperative educational program addressing the interaction of law and business administration is available through the University of Pittsburgh School of Law and Carnegie Mellon's MBA Program. One need only look at the history of our society, as well as at both business and law school offerings to see that numerous concerns are common to both, especially in such areas as labor, antitrust, and corporate finance. Certainly, legal considerations affect many management decisions, and the quality of the practice of law is enhanced by a better understanding of the business policy considerations involved.

This dual-degree program benefits students by enabling them to receive integrated training in law and business, while saving time by reducing the period of time necessary to earn the two degrees from five yeas to four years. The dual degree program also enables graduates to act in an interdisciplinary fashion, helping them to more effectively merge the policy considerations underlying law and business in our society.

Sample Course Sequence

Curriculum & Residency

Each candidate must satisfy both schools' degree requirements. At the Law School, 88 credits must be completed for the Juris Doctor (JD) degree, while the MBA program requires 192 units for the Master of Business Administration (MBA) degree. Completing the JD degree while enrolled in the dual-degree program entitles the student to 24 units (8 credit-hours) of advanced standing in the MBA program and completing the MBA degree entitles the student to 15 credit hours of advanced standing at the Law School. Students do not have to choose an area of concentration in the MBA program nor complete the Depth Requirement.

The program can be completed in eight semesters or four academic years. The candidate must enroll either in the Law School or the MBA program during the first year and in the other school during the second year (i.e., the first year is solely dedicated to one of the programs and the second year is solely dedicated to the other program). The candidate is not permitted to take courses at the other school during this period. During the third and fourth years, a student may take courses at both schools. A student is required to complete 41 hours of instruction at the Law School and 72 units in the MBA program, during this time.

Admission

Admission to the dual-degree program can be made either prior to attending the MBA program and the School of Law, or during the first year of study at either school. Separate applications must be submitted to each school. In addition, a dual-degree application must be completed with a copy sent to each school. A joint admissions committee will decide upon admission to the dual-degree program once a student has been accepted to each school individually. The dual-degree application must be submitted no later than March 15.

Tuition

Students are charged tuition at the following rates: during the first year in the MBA program, the tuition for full-time MBA students (whether it is the first year of study or not); during the first year at the law school, the law school tuition (whether it is the first year of study or not). During each of the third and fourth years of the program, tuition equal to the sum of 85% of the law school tuition and 42.5% of the annual tuition for full-time MBA students will be assessed. Students who receive permission to graduate early are still required to pay this amount. Tuition payments should be made in accordance with the current policies of Carnegie Mellon and the University of Pittsburgh.

Financial Aid

Students in each of the first two years of the program may apply for financial aid to the respective schools in which they are enrolled. In the third and fourth years of the program students may apply to both schools for financial aid on a single application and may receive financial aid from both schools, reduced by approximately the same percentage that tuition to that school is reduced.

Contact Information