This module is discontinued, with the last eligible students being admitted to the Faculty of Law by September 1, 2018, with the understanding that they must complete their requirements prior to September 2021. Effective October 2021, the module will be withdrawn.
The combined BA Honors Specialization MIT/JD program is administered on behalf of the Faculty of Information and Media Studies (Media, Information and Technoculture) and the Faculty of Law by the two administrators (Program Directors), one of whom is appointed by the Faculty of Information and Media Studies and the other by the Faculty of Law. The combined program allows students to complete both the JD and BA Honors Specialization – Media, Information and Technoculture degrees in six academic years instead of the seven years required if the degrees were taken separately.
Successful applicants to the combined program will enter first-year Law after completing three years of the Honors BA, Honors Specialization in MIT.
Admission to the Combined Program
Applicants to the combined program will apply in the third year of the Honors Specialization in MIT to the Associate Dean of FIMS in advance of the deadline established by the Faculty. A separate application must also be submitted to the Faculty of Law in accordance with the submission deadlines advertised in Western University Academic Calendar, indicating the student's intention to pursue the combined program. To be eligible for the combined program, students must have a cumulative, weighted average of 80% in their first three years of the Honors Specialization in MIT. In addition, candidates must meet the minimum LSAT requirement established by the Law School Admissions Committee and be admitted to the Faculty of Law.
Meeting the minimum requirements does not guarantee a position in the combined program.
Year One
Completion of all first-year requirements in the Faculty of Information and Media Studies with no failures. For admission into the Honors Specialization in MIT, students must have an average of at least 72% in 4.0 principal courses, with no mark in any principle course below 60%, and a minimum grade of 70% in each of Media, Information and Technoculture 1020E or Media, Information and Technoculture 1021F/G and Media, Information and Technoculture 1022F/G, and Media, Information and Technoculture 1025F/G.
Year Two
Students must take:
• 2.0 courses: MIT 2000F/G, MIT 2100F/G, MIT 2200F/G, MIT 2500A/B
• 0.5 course: Writing 2125F/G (or the former Writing 2121F/G).
• 1.0 MIT course at the 2000 level or above
• 1.5 options at the 2000 level or above
Note: MIT 2156A/B is strongly recommended for students interested in pursuing the combined program.
Year Three
Students must take:
• 1.0 course: MIT 3000A/B, MIT 3100F/G
• 2.0 MIT courses at the 2000 level or above
• 2.0 options at the 2000 level or above
Year Four
Students must take first-year Law. No courses outside of Law may be taken during this year.
Years Five and Six
(a) the three compulsory upper-year Law courses;
(b) additional Law courses totaling at least 33 credit hours, which shall include a course or courses that satisfy the Faculty of Law writing requirements;
(c) 3.0 MIT courses at the 2000 level or above, including at least 0.5 at the 4030-4049 level.
Once admitted to the combined program, students must meet the regular progression requirements of both Faculties. Students must maintain a B- average in their Law courses and meet the general regulations pertaining to progression and graduation requirements for the Honors BA.
A student who fails to meet the combined program progression standards in any year must withdraw from the combined program. However, if that student has met the progression standards of either the MIT or JD program, he or she will be allowed to proceed to the next year of that program. If that student has satisfied the progression standards of both individual programs, he or she may continue in either program and may petition the Faculty whose program was not selected for permission to
complete that program at a later date.
A student who is required to withdraw from the combined program and continues with either or both of the individual programs must complete all the degree requirements of the individual program or programs in order to graduate from that program or those programs.
Students are considered for the Dean's Honor List in the Faculty of Information and Media Studies in Years One, Two and Three. In the Year Four, they are considered for the Dean's Honor List in the Faculty of Law. A student who takes Law courses totaling at least 12 credit hours in each of Years Five and Six of the program is considered for the Dean's Honor List in the Faculty of Law in each of those years on the basis of those courses. In the Faculty of Information and Media Studies, students may be eligible for the Dean's Honor List in Years Five and Six.
Eligibility to graduate with distinction for each degree is determined by each Faculty.