The CSUN Library. Image taken pre-COVID-19 pandemic. Photo by Lee Choo.

Six years after California State University, Northridge and Southwestern Law School teamed up to establish 3+3 B.A./J.D. Success in Six — a joint, accelerated multiple-degree program, through which students can earn a bachelor’s and law degree in six years, rather than the usual seven — the program is showing signs of success with their first cohort. 

The first cohort of students to enroll in the program graduated from law school in 2020, and Bruce Zucker, a professor in the CSUN Department of Criminology and Justice Studies and faculty lead for the program, said they are landing top jobs.

“I am proud of our students who succeed through both the CSUN and Southwestern Law School portions of the program,”  Zucker said. “By design, they are essentially the only students who start an American Bar Association-accredited law school without already having a four-year college degree, and they are required to quickly acclimate to graduate school while other students are still finishing their bachelor’s degrees.”

Among those successes, Zucker pointed to graduate Kimberly Casper, one of the initial students in the 3+3 program, who passed the bar exam in 2020 and is now working with acclaimed Los Angeles defense attorney Mark Geragos.

Operated within the College of Social and Behavioral Sciences, the 3+3 program is open to applications from high school seniors planning on attending CSUN and first-time freshmen who already have completed one semester at CSUN, with majors compatible with the program, such as Political Science or Criminology and Justice Studies majors. Students participating in the 3+3 program have their first year in law school count as their fourth year of undergraduate education.

Southwestern Law School

Students in the program must be prepared to complete 90 units of study in three years,  which means that all of the requirements for the major and for general education are met in that time. In order to complete the transfer to Southwestern, students must take the Law School Admissions Test (LSAT) and score at least 150, which is approximately the 50th percentile.

Southwestern Law School, founded in 1911, emphasizes diversity, public service and innovative programs. It offers four Juris Doctor courses of study that differ in scheduling and instructional approach, including traditional full- and part-time programs, as well as a unique two-year accelerated curriculum.

For more information on the program, visit https://www.csun.edu/social-behavioral-sciences/33-bajd-success-six

3+3 Program, College of Social and Behavioral Sciences, Department of Criminology and Justice Studies, J.D. Success in Six, Southwestern Law School