Stetson University College of Law

Introduction

Since being founded in 1900 as Florida’s first law school, Stetson University College of Law has emphasized practical skills training as an integral component of legal education. Our students rehearse closing statements in seven campus courtrooms, compete nationally and internationally on championship-winning interscholastic teams, and gain experience advocating for justice alongside working professionals in more than 400 clinic and externship programs offered annually.

Listen to our law graduates, and you’ll hear how Stetson’s academic curriculum and skills-based legal education prepared them for success. Our trial advocacy and legal writing programs are nationally recognized. We also proudly offer concentration programs in advocacy, elder law, environmental law, international law, and social justice advocacy.

Located in Tampa Bay, Florida, our main campus is minutes away from some of the best beaches in the world. We are also within the 18th-largest US metropolitan area, home to a diverse legal community with a strong Stetson alumni network and legal job opportunities.

Stetson is fully accredited by the American Bar Association and has been an Association of American Law Schools member since 1931. The college is an equal opportunity educational institution.

Library and Physical Facilities

Stetson’s beautiful campus in Gulfport/St. Petersburg combines advanced technology with Spanish-Mediterranean architecture. Stetson’s Tampa Law Center serves as a satellite campus for evening classes and as home of the Tampa branch of Florida’s Second District Court of Appeal. The law school boasts seven courtrooms—including the nation’s first elder-friendly courtroom—and modern classrooms designed to enhance the learning experience. The Student Center features organizational offices, interviewing rooms, a fitness center, a lounge, and a kitchen for on-campus residents. Next to the Student Center is a pool, tennis and basketball courts, and an athletic field for intramural sports.

The Dolly and Homer Hand Law Library in Gulfport and the satellite library in Tampa form one of the Southeast’s most advanced research and communications technology centers. The library system provides an extensive collection of online databases and digital resources, Wi-Fi access throughout the system, a comprehensive law-related DVD collection, and over 397,000 volumes. Seven professional law librarians, including five with both law and library degrees, offer individual support and reference assistance for all law students. The library system also includes 44 group-study rooms, and 24/7 swipe card access. There is a student laptop requirement.

Admission

Stetson’s Office of Admissions counsels prospective students through the admission process—from determining the likelihood of admission to deciding whether Stetson Law is the best fit for a candidate. Stetson Law admits new full- and part-time students each fall and also accepts transfer applications year-round on a case-by-case basis. The deadlines for completed applications are May 15 for new students, January 3 for spring transfer students, and August 1 for fall transfer students. Please contact the Office of Admissions for more information and to set up a campus visit. You may also view our 360-degree virtual tour.

Faculty

The intellectual exchange among students and faculty continues both inside and outside the classroom. The 44 full-time professors and three visiting full-time faculty are engaged in projects that bring Stetson regional, national, and international prominence, but they still make teaching and working with students their top priority. Each semester, the full-time faculty is supplemented by approximately 50 practicing attorneys and judges who serve as adjunct professors in specialized areas.

Curriculum

A balanced curriculum blends fundamental courses, practical training, and a diverse range of electives. Stetson is a pioneer and a national leader in trial advocacy, legal writing, elder law, veterans law, environmental law, and experiential learning.

Stetson’s academic success programs include advising, an academic orientation, bar-preparation services staffed by three full-time attorneys, a for-credit Multistate Strategies course, courses that fuse academic and critical thinking skills with substantive content, and skills workshops designed to help students realize their academic potential. All JD students must complete a pro bono graduation requirement.

Externships and Clinics

Stetson Law offers students more than 400 clinic and field placement/externship opportunities annually. Offering approximately 30 clinic and externship courses at about 60 hosting organizations each year, Stetson University College of Law joins a handful of other law schools across the country who guarantee that every student can participate in a clinic or externship course during law school. Clinics and externships are available in the areas of

• bankruptcy
• child advocacy
• civil poverty
• consumer protection
• corporate law
• criminal prosecution and federal and state defense
• elder law
• environmental law
• family law
• federal and state litigation
• government and administrative law
• immigration
• intellectual property
• labor and employment law
• military justice and veterans law

There are also a variety of judicial externships at the federal and state levels, including opportunities with the state supreme court.

Certificates of Concentration

Students may apply to a certificate program in advocacy, elder law, environmental law, international law, or social justice advocacy. Students focus their elective credits, receive mentoring, and volunteer pro bono service in their chosen concentration.

Advocacy

Stetson is recognized as one of the best law schools for trial advocacy. Stetson’s teams routinely win international, national, regional, and state mock trial, moot court, and alternative dispute resolution competitions. Stetson also offers the JD/LLM in Advocacy.

Academic Journals

Stetson’s four academic journals include the Stetson Law Review, Journal of International Aging Law and Policy, Journal of International Wildlife Law and Policy, and the online Stetson Journal for Advocacy and the Law.

Honors Program

Full-time students who rank in the top 15 percent of their entering class after their first or second semester and part-time students who rank in the top 15 percent of their entering class after their first or second year are invited to interview for a spot in the Honors Program, which features a special colloquium and seminar. Honors Program students may also be invited to attend faculty colloquia and other special events.

Expenses and Financial Aid

Full-time tuition and fees for 2017–2018 (fall/spring) are $42,646, and part-time tuition and fees for 2017–2018 (fall/spring) are $29,544. PT students will attend summer sessions. For summer 2018, PT tuition and fees will be $7,661. Stetson Law awards multi-year scholarships to selected entering students; approximately 75.6 percent of the 2017 entering class had a scholarship ranging from partial through full tuition. All admitted students are considered for scholarships; no special application is required. There is no financial aid deadline. Stetson offers a number of scholarships to students after they enroll, including a public service scholarship for final-year students. Stetson participates in the Department of Veterans Affairs Yellow Ribbon Program.

Special Programs

In addition to the traditional full-time program, Stetson offers a part-time evening JD program that allows students to earn a law degree in four years (including summers); part-time students must take classes at both the Gulfport and Tampa campuses. Qualified foreign-educated attorneys have the opportunity to apply as transfer applicants and complete the JD in an accelerated manner, typically two years if attending on a full-time basis. Stetson offers three Master of Jurisprudence Programs: Aging, Law and Policy; Healthcare Compliance; and International and Comparative Business Law. These programs are designed for non-lawyers looking to gain a professional edge.

Stetson offers dual-degree programs for the JD/MBA, the JD/LLM in Advocacy, JD/MINTEC (French master’s degree with the Université Toulouse 1 Capitole, Toulouse, France), and JD/MIEBL (Spanish master’s degree with the Universidad Pontificia Comillas, Madrid, Spain). Stetson offers one- and two-semester exchange programs in Australia, England, Ireland, France, and Spain. Students may also study abroad in England, The Netherlands, South Africa, Spain, and the Cayman Islands. Stetson also offers a spring-break program in Cuba. Stetson has Centers for Excellence in Advocacy, Elder Law, Higher Education Law and Policy, and International Law, as well as law and policy institutes for Biodiversity Law, Caribbean Law, Veterans Law, and the Advancement of Legal Communication. Students may participate in a civil rights travel experience in the summer.

Residential Life

Stetson offers a variety of housing opportunities to fit today’s lifestyle, including 49 dorm rooms on campus, 39 single-family homes, and a 32-unit apartment complex located within a few blocks of the campus. Four of the dorm rooms are specially designed to accommodate special-needs students. The Residential Life staff creates social programming that promotes a positive living environment where academic success and lifelong friends are commonplace. The office manages a waiting list for all housing openings and also a “roommates wanted” list for interested students. Finally, the Residential Life staff maintains a list of off-campus rental opportunities.

Career and Professional Development

Stetson’s Office of Career and Professional Development is built around relationships. As Florida’s first and oldest law school, we have strong and longstanding relationships with a robust, active, and engaged network of employers and alumni. At Stetson we know that no two careers are alike, so we aim to build meaningful relationships with our students to help them achieve intentional, impactful, and fulfilling outcomes. Our insight-based and competency-focused signature career and professional development curriculum, the Career Toolkit, presents a wide range of resources to help students grow and succeed. We offer year-round On Campus Recruiting and Interviewing activities, support an experienced and connected staff, and supply a broad and deep array of professional development activities. With our home in the active Tampa Bay legal job market, and relationships throughout Florida and across the country, our students have ample opportunity to develop their professional identity and a sense of belonging to a strong, empowered community.

Office of Student Affairs

The Office of Student Affairs seeks to create a campus environment that complements the academic mission, fosters intellectual and professional development, enhances leadership skills, and builds strong relationships between Stetson students and the community. The Office of Student Affairs also strives to promote wellness, encourage balance, and create a high-quality, supportive, and vibrant campus environment for members of its educational community.

A full-time licensed mental health professional provides counseling services as well as special educational initiatives to promote mental wellness. Stetson has approximately 45 diverse student organizations. The Stetson Chapter of the American Bar Association Law Student Division has been recognized regionally and nationally as one of the largest and best, and the Student Leadership Development Program has received the ABA’s prestigious E. Smythe Gambrell Professionalism Award for excellence in professionalism programming. Intramural programs and fitness classes ensure students keep wellness a priority. A strong Office of Student Affairs presence on campus allows students many opportunities to hone their leadership and communication skills, network socially with peers and legal professionals, and grow interpersonally as strong future members of the legal profession.