Table of Contents
Overview
Time Considerations
Financial Considerations
Distribution Requirements
Course Load for Students
Planning Your Actual Schedule
Overview
Agreement: Currently Albert Einstein College of Medicine and Benjamin Cardozo School of Law have agreed on a joint-degree pathway for law students to obtain the JD and MBE. Law students who follow this path will be able to complete requirements for both degrees in 3 to 4 years, at significantly reduced tuition. This makes for a significant courseload, so our most successful students are both careful and proactive in scheduling work for both curricula. Each student should not only plan in advance, but also work closely with faculty advisors at both the School of Law and Center for Bioethics, as well as with the Registrars for both programs.
Time Considerations
Standard Timeline: Completing requirements for both the JD and MBE will take a minimum of three (3) years and possibly an extra summer, semester or year. Time to completion depends on the student's success at coordinating coursework that counts separately and jointly toward the JD and MBE.
Financial Considerations
Reduced Tuition Agreement (2014-2015): Students interested in the JD+MBE should contact Cardozo's and Einstein's Student Finance Offices very early, as certain decisions can impact their financial aid packages both negatively and positively.
The full-time tuition Cardozo students pay may cover registration for courses at Einstein, though only during the six full-time semesters of the JD, and only up to the per-semester credit cap set by the ABA, which Cardozo's Registrar will monitor. Students may verify the current limit with Cardozo's Registrar andadvising Dean.
In addition, Cardozo's JD/MBE students will be asked to pay a fixed tuition fee of $6,000 upon official admission into the MBE program. The above fee covers tuition for BIOE courses taken at Einstein during the student's three full-time years at the Cardozo program andduring one additional term (summer, fall or spring). Additional courses beyond that framework will be charged at the per credit rate.
Distribution Requirements
What You Must Take, What You Can Choose: 32 credits are needed to earn the MBE, with half of these (16) completed via BIOE courses offered through Einstein.
There are two required BIOE courses: Bioethics and Medical Humanities I and II (6 credits), to be taken consecutively, in the fall and spring semesters of a specific academic year. Also required is work for the Capstone/Thesis project (4 credits).
The remaining 22 credits may be completed via a tailored combination of elective courses on offer at Einstein and Cardozo. A list of applicable courses can be found in the Range of Courses section of this website.
Note: students should have clear discussions and approvals via the appropriate Dean at Cardozo regarding the range of BIOE courses at Einstein that may count toward the JD. Increasing this number allows for a doable course load during the second and third years (see below).
Course Load During Second and Third JD/MBE Years
Standard Load: The first year of the JD at Cardozo is set and typically does not offer opportunities for coursework toward the MBE. After the first year, students should consult with the appropriate Dean at Cardozo to design their more flexible second and third years so that coursework may progress toward the MBE as well as the JD.
Do remember that half of the MBE's 32 credits must be met via BIOE courses offered through Einstein. JD/MBE students therefore typically make one of two choices: (a) to spend their second year focusing on Cardozo courses that meet MBE requirements and wait till their third year to take BIOE courses; OR (b) to begin incorporating BIOE courses during their second year.
For example, one key decision for a JD/MBE student will be to take the two-semester course requirement, Bioethics and Medical Humanities I and II, during their second OR third year.
Note:As stated earlier,there is an ABA-mandated cap onthe number of credits a JD student may take during each semester. The Cardozo Registrar will ensure that the cap is not exceeded. Please verify the current limit with the Cardozo Registrar andadvising dean. Because of the per-semester credit cap, students have in the past been very proactive in getting Cardozo approval to have more BIOE courses count toward the JD. Still, they have often needed an extra term for the Capstone/Thesis project.
If advanced planning reveals the need for an extra term, it is highly recommended that the student schedule that term as the summer between 2nd and 3rd year. Students deciding to complete their capstone/thesis during that summer do need to carefully balance work with their project advisor alongside work for their law internships.
Planning Your Actual Schedule
Guiding Examples: Below are examples of what students' course loads could look like during the 3-4 years. Both examples incorporate Cardozo Dean approval to apply BIOE courses toward the JD, resulting in course loads that do not exceed per-semester credit caps. JD/MBE students will have to discuss, revise and submit their own equivalent plans soon after acceptance into the MBE program, upon meeting with their faculty advisors.
Note: Numbers in parentheses (#) represent possible credits completed toward just the MBE.
