Visiting Other Colleges, MSU Colleges & ABA Law Schools

1. Other Colleges or at Michigan State University

   MSU College of Law students also have status as MSU Lifelong Education students and thereby have all the rights and privileges of Michigan State University students.

   A student who has a cumulative grade point average of at least 3.00 and has successfully completed twenty-nine (29) credits at the law school may take up to six (6) hours of elective credits in professionally-related graduate level courses at other colleges at Michigan State University or at any CIC or comparable institution.

   Any student wishing to take graduate courses at other colleges at MSU must acquire the prior written approval (signature) of the Associate Dean for Academic Affairs on the "Request to Enroll for Elective Credits at Other MSU Graduate Schools" form available from the Registrar's Office (309) or online.

   Grades from these courses of "C" or above will be accepted for transfer credits. Grades below "C" will not be transferred or recorded. These courses will count toward the maximum of five (5) total hours of Credit/No Credit grading option under the rules of the Law College.

   Credits earned at other MSU graduate schools as approved by the Associate Dean for Academic Affairs on the required form will be counted toward fulfillment of the student's graduation requirements only after verification on the system can be obtained by the Law College Registrar's Office.

2. Other Law Schools

   With the permission of, and at the discretion of the Law College, a student may attend another ABA- and AALS-approved law school as a visitor during a regular semester for compelling circumstances only. Neither financial exigency nor the desire to live or practice in another jurisdiction is a compelling circumstance.

   Permission to visit during the summer at an out-of-state law school or foreign summer program of an approved U.S. law school will be liberally granted.

   Visitation at an in-state law school will be granted only for courses not offered regularly at Michigan State University College of Law.

   Only elective credits may be taken at another law school.

   Only grades of "C" or better will be given credit.

   Students should check with the Admissions Office of the school they wish to visit or study abroad program to confirm deadlines and requirements. Students should request a visiting student application and not a transfer student application.

   Application should be made to the Associate Dean for Academic Affairs and submitted in a timely manner. To apply for approval the following documents must be submitted:

   1. Copies of course and program descriptions; and
   2. For study abroad programs ONLY: Copy of written statement from website or brochure that the study abroad program is ABA- approved.
   3. Completed "Visiting Student Permission" form.

   After approval, students must request a Law College transcript and certificate of good standing from the Registrar's Office by completing the "Academic Record Request" form.

   After the study abroad or visiting semester is over, students must request a transcript from the visiting school be sent to the MSU College of Law Registrar's Office.

   Since the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act of 1974 does not permit MSU College of Law to request transcripts of students from other institutions, it is the responsibility of the student to assure that an official transcript from the visited institution is sent to the MSU College of Law Registrar's Office at the completion of the semester of visitation. Upon receipt of an official transcript, credits for any course taken at another law school will be recorded as "Pass" when transferred back to MSU College of Law, provided a grade of "C" or better has been earned.

3. Rules Governing Class Rank and Class Honors

   To receive an interim class rank (i.e., a rank after a semester other than your last one), your first year must have been completed at MSU Law. Students who do not receive class ranks can nevertheless receive MSU Law grade comparisons with their MSU Law classmates for the same time period. The Registrar will generate semester reports of the GPAs of those students included in class-rank calculations, indicating decile cutoffs. In lieu of a class rank, those students excluded from class rank calculations can see what decile their GPA from their time at MSU Law falls into.

   To receive a final class rank when you graduate, you must have earned at least 70 graded credits at MSU Law. This excludes credits awarded as pass/fail or credit/non-credit, and also excludes credits awarded at other schools.

   To be eligible for Class Honors (cum laude, magna cum laude or summa cum laude) you must have received at least fifty-three (53) graded credits at MSU Law. As with class rank, this excludes credits awarded as pass/fail or credit/no credit, and also excludes transfer credits.

4. Additional Reminders about Visiting Out

   1. Students should avoid visiting out the semester before graduation because of grade and transcript delays from the visiting school. Students must ensure they have met all of MSU Law's graduation requirements. If the student does not fulfill the credit or grade requirements listed above for courses taken elsewhere, he/she will not be eligible to graduate;
   2. Students should be mindful of the fifty-three (53) and seventy (70) MSU Law graded credit requirements imposed above;
   3. Tuition and fees will be paid not to MSU Law, but to the school you visit. Please note that MSU scholarship monies are not available to pay for study abroad or courses taken elsewhere; and
   4. Students must remember to arrange to have an official transcript sent from the visiting school to the MSU College of Law Registrar's Office. It is the student's responsibility to ensure all reporting requirements are met in a timely manner.
      

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      Updated December 5, 2018