collageMassachusetts School of Law is accredited by the New England Commission of Higher Education (formerly the Commission on Institutions of Higher Education of the New England Association of Schools and Colleges, Inc.).
Accreditation of an institution of higher education by the Commission indicates that it meets or exceeds criteria for the assessment of institutional quality periodically applied though a peer review process. An accredited college or university is one which has available the necessary resources to achieve its stated purposes through appropriate educational programs, is substantially doing so, and gives reasonable evidence that it will continue to do so in the foreseeable future. Institutional integrity is also addressed through accreditation.
Accreditation by the Commission is not partial but applies to the institution as a whole. As such, it is not a guarantee of every course or program offered, or the competence of individual graduates. Rather, it provides reasonable assurance about the quality of opportunities available to students who attend the institution.
Professional Licensure as an Attorney
Massachusetts requires graduates to pass the Uniform Bar Examination before becoming eligible to be licensed as a lawyer. The Uniform Bar Examination is a multiday test that uses multiple choice questions, essay questions, and two professional skills exercises to gauge a graduate’s performance in a number of important areas. There are over 35 states that now use the Uniform Bar Examination as the principle test with each state having additional character and fitness, educational, and financial responsibility requirements. Because each jurisdiction establishes specific educational and fitness qualifications for professional licensure, you should verify exactly what the state you are interested in being licensed in requires for eligibility. The National Conference of Bar Examiners publishes the Comprehensive Guide to Bar Admission Requirements on bar
admission requirements in all US jurisdictions
Jurisdictions where MSLAW graduates may be admitted to the bar either
immediately after passing the bar examination or after being admitted to the bar andpracticing law for the time specified:
- Alaska: 5 years
- Arizona: 3 years
- California: Immediately after passing the Massachusetts Bar Exam
- Colorado: 3 Years
- Connecticut: Immediately
- District of Columbia: 5 years
- Florida: 10 Years
- Hawaii: 5 Years
- Kentucky: 3 Years
- Maine: Immediately after passing the Massachusetts Bar Exam
- Maryland: MSLAW students have received individual permission after admission in Massachusetts
- Massachusetts: Immediately
- Minnesota: 5 Years
- Missouri: 3 Years
- Nevada: 10 years
- New Hampshire: Immediately after passing the Massachusetts Bar exam, or may be waived in via motion after practicing 5 years
- New Mexico: 4 Years
- New York: 5 Years
- Oregon: 3 Years
- Pennsylvania: 5 Years
- Rhode Island: 5 Years
- Tennessee: 3 Years
- Texas: 3 Years
- Utah: 10 Years
- Vermont: 3 years after practicing law in New Hampshire or Maine or 5 years otherwise
- Washington: 3 Years + LLM from ABA-approved school
- West Virginia: Immediately after passing the Massachusetts Bar Exam
- Wisconsin: Immediately after passing the Massachusetts Bar Exam
States permit applications for a waiver of some standards but if a waiver is not granted, MSLAW graduates are presently not permitted to be licensed in the following states: Alabama, Arkansas, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Louisiana, Michigan, Montana, Nebraska, New Jersey, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, South Carolina, South Dakota, Virginia, and Wyoming.
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