JD/MBA Admissions Advising · Founder-Led · Online Nationwide
Applying to law school and business school at the same time means two committees, two calendars, two sets of essays and often two tests. ConnectPrep's JD/MBA advising, led one on one by founder Jeremy Fine with former law and business school admissions readers on the team, turns all of it into one coherent application strategy.
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From ConnectPrep's JD/MBA program list, verified against school websites, September 2026. Policies change, so confirm with each school. Sources
Quick answer
A JD/MBA is a dual degree that combines a law degree and an MBA in three or four years instead of five. More than 150 U.S. law schools offer one, and most require separate admission to the law school and the business school, each with its own deadlines, essays and test policy. Penn and Northwestern use a single joint application, and a few schools run hybrid processes.1
JD/MBA admissions advising coordinates both applications at once: building a school list by admissions model, planning the LSAT, GRE, GMAT or JD-Next around every school, writing a law personal statement and MBA essays that tell one story, and preparing for interviews at both schools. ConnectPrep's advising is one on one and led by founder Jeremy Fine.
| Programs | 163 in the U.S. and 6 in Canada on ConnectPrep's verified list1 |
|---|---|
| Length | Usually 4 years; 24 U.S. programs offer accelerated 3-year options |
| Admissions | Most schools: separate admission to law and business. Joint application: Penn, Northwestern. Hybrid: Duke, Columbia, Chicago's accelerated track |
| Law school tests | LSAT everywhere; GRE at a majority of ABA schools; JD-Next at a growing list2,3 |
| Business school tests | GMAT Focus Edition or GRE at most programs |
| First year | At nearly every program, the 1L year of law school is completed intact, with no business coursework |
| Applications | Law personal statement, MBA essays, two recommender sets and interviews at both schools where offered |
Why a JD/MBA
The dual degree opens law, business and the roles in between: corporate and transactional law, private equity, venture capital, consulting, compliance and operating leadership. You graduate into two alumni networks and keep the flexibility to move between practice and business for an entire career.
M&A, capital markets and corporate advisory work, where understanding the deal economics makes you the lawyer clients call first.
Private equity, venture capital and investment roles where legal structure and valuation sit side by side.
General counsel, chief operating and founder paths, where regulation, contracts and strategy all land on the same desk.
Admissions models
Most JD/MBA programs require separate admission to the law school and the business school, either at the same time or by adding the second degree after you enroll in the first. Penn and Northwestern use one joint application, and Northwestern requires no LSAT. Duke uses one online application reviewed independently by each school, Columbia's three-year program runs through the business school, and Chicago's accelerated track accepts the GRE, GMAT or LSAT.1
| Model | How it works | Examples | What it means for you |
|---|---|---|---|
| Separate admission | Law school and business school each admit you on their own | Harvard, Stanford, Yale, NYU, Michigan, UVA and most others | Two full applications, two test policies, and two decisions that may arrive months apart |
| Joint application | One application for the dual program | Penn (Carey Law and Wharton), Northwestern (Pritzker and Kellogg) | One integrated story matters most; Northwestern accepts the GMAT or GRE with no LSAT |
| Hybrid | A shared or routed application with school-specific review | Duke, Columbia's three-year program, Chicago's accelerated track | Read each school's mechanics closely; accepted tests and portals differ |
Source: ConnectPrep, Every JD/MBA program in the U.S., verified against school websites. Comparing JD/MPP, JD/MPH or other combinations? See joint and dual degrees.
How we work
Every ConnectPrep JD/MBA client works one on one with the same lead advisor from the first school list to the final decision, with law and business specialists brought in where they add the most.
Structures, concentrations, clinics and clubs matched to your goals, not just a rankings tier.
Cohort size, collaborative versus competitive atmosphere, and whether the city and community fit you.
Coaching on genuine outreach to admissions officers, alumni and faculty, so your interest is visible and specific.
Named programs, real conversations and concrete fit that only you could write. Committees can tell the difference.
A season on one page
Choose a phase to see what happens and the milestone that closes it.
Finalize the school list by admissions model, confirm every deadline and accepted test, begin program research, secure recommenders for both schools, and outline the dual-degree narrative.
Draft the law personal statement and the core MBA essays, then complete a first full revision pass so both files point to the same goals.
Write why-this-school supplements for each target, check in with recommenders, and run a consistency pass across the law and business files.
Audit every application, confirm recommendations are in, submit by each deadline, then shift to interview preparation, scholarship and waitlist strategy, and any later-round plans.
Test strategy
JD/MBA applicants may need a law school test and a business school test, or one score that serves both. The LSAT is accepted by every ABA law school, a majority of ABA law schools now accept the GRE, and a growing list accept JD-Next. Most business schools accept the GMAT or GRE, so a strong GRE can sometimes cover both committees.2,3
We map every school on your list to its accepted tests before you spend time on prep, pressure-test each score against the school's median, and recommend a retake only when it clears a real admissions or scholarship line without putting the applications at risk.
Results
Admissions from ConnectPrep's law school and MBA advising and test prep students, from verified reviews and admit letters on file.
YaleHarvardStanfordColumbiaChicagoNYUPenn Carey LawUVADukeNorthwestern PritzkerCornellGeorgetownUCLAMichigan
Law school admissions advising ›WhartonChicago BoothMIT Sloan (MFin)Cornell JohnsonUVA DardenIndiana KelleyOhio State FisherBU Questrom
MBA admissions consulting ›School names are trademarks of their institutions, which do not endorse or affiliate with ConnectPrep.
"Jeremy and Ryan provided valuable insights about the application process and were always available to answer questions. They helped keep me and my applications on track, and I got into all of the MBA programs I applied to."
"ConnectPrep put together a customized study plan that helped me identify the exact areas of the LSAT I needed to focus on. My goal was a score to apply to Columbia, NYU, and Cornell. I am thrilled to say that I received a 177."
"I recently achieved an impressive GMAT score of 760, thanks to Jeremy, Greg, and the ConnectPrep team. Their unique test prep curriculum is meticulously structured, emphasizing only the most relevant material."
Your JD/MBA team
Your lead advisor manages the whole process. Former admissions readers and specialists on both sides of the dual degree join where they add the most.
Jeremy has spent more than 20 years in education, from test prep and admissions advising to running academic programs as Director of Academic Programs at GradeCaddy, and he founded ConnectPrep in 2013. He leads ConnectPrep's law, MBA and dual-degree advising and built the firm's verified list of every U.S. JD/MBA program, so each client's plan starts from how their schools actually admit.
JD/MBA questions, answered
ConnectPrep's verified list counts 163 JD/MBA programs in the United States and 6 in Canada. Nearly every ABA-accredited law school whose university also has a graduate business school offers a JD/MBA, so the options go far beyond the ten or fifteen schools that appear on most lists.
At most programs, yes. Harvard, Stanford, Yale, NYU, Michigan, UVA and most others require separate admission by each school. Penn and Northwestern use a single joint application, and Duke, Columbia's three-year program and Chicago's accelerated track run hybrid processes. Your calendar depends on which models are on your list.
It depends on each school. Every ABA law school accepts the LSAT, a majority accept the GRE, and a growing list accept JD-Next. Most business schools accept the GMAT or GRE. Northwestern's joint JD-MBA accepts the GMAT or GRE with no LSAT required, and Chicago's accelerated track accepts the GRE, GMAT or LSAT. We map every school on your list before you choose.
Most programs take four years, compared with five years for the two degrees taken separately. ConnectPrep's list counts 24 U.S. programs with accelerated three-year options. At nearly every school, the first year of law school is completed intact before business coursework begins.
Start in the spring or early summer before the cycle, ideally 9 to 12 months before your earliest deadline. That leaves time to finish testing, line up two sets of recommenders, and draft both the law personal statement and the MBA essays without rushing either.
It is worth it when your goals sit where law and business meet: transactional and corporate law, private equity, venture capital, consulting, compliance or leadership roles. It saves a year compared with earning both degrees separately and builds two alumni networks. If your goals are purely in law practice or purely in business, one degree is usually enough.
At many separate-admission programs, yes. Students often apply to the second school during their first year, as long as they meet that school's deadline and test policy. The rules differ by school, so confirm the add-on window before you enroll.
Book a free strategy call. We review your preliminary school list and scores, sort the schools by admissions model and accepted tests, and lay out a timeline built around your real deadlines before you commit to anything.
Free law and business admissions guides
All 163 U.S. programs, state by state, with formats and admissions rules.
2026 guideJD/MPP, JD/MPH, MD/MBA and more, compared side by side.
ListEvery school with a JD-Next variance, updated for 2026.
HubLSAT, GRE, GMAT, JD-Next, MCAT and the NextGen bar exam.
We will review your preliminary school list, sort it by admissions model and accepted tests, and build a timeline that ties your law and business applications into one story.
Online nationwide · In person in select markets · Founded 2013 in Westport, Connecticut
