University of Â鶹´«Ã½ at Mānoa announced the launch of a new part-time, online JD (juris doctor) program for students seeking a legal education. The Â鶹´«Ã½ Online JD Flex program perpetuates UH law school¡¯s dedication to diversity by providing access to a top-tier law school for students from different locations and backgrounds through an innovative 100% online format. The program begins fall 2023, and applications are being accepted until June 1.
Ideal for working professionals unable to relocate or leave their current jobs, the Â鶹´«Ã½ Online JD Flex program¡¯s part-time, online format allows students to earn their degrees in as few as four years by following a synchronous and asynchronous educational environment. Students in this online JD program will earn the same law degree as traditional students, and they will be qualified to take the bar exam in every state except New York, which has yet to adopt ABA standards for distance education.
“The Â鶹´«Ã½ Online JD Flex Program is the evolution of our Evening Part-Time Program,” said Camille Nelson, dean of the UH law school. “This ABA-accredited program recognizes our global connectedness and more flexibly supports prospective law students in obtaining a Richardson law degree without having to relocate, leave their families or cease their employment elsewhere. This next-generation part-time program broadens access to legal education, promotes greater diversity in the bar and bench, and expands educational opportunities in the state and region while remaining committed to the culture and community that make the University of Â鶹´«Ã½ at Mānoa William S. Richardson School of Law a special place unlike any other. In this way, the Â鶹´«Ã½ Online JD Flex Program will ‘meet our students where they are.’ We also expect that the Â鶹´«Ã½ Online JD Flex Program will enhance the provision of legal services in many communities outside of Oʻahu, including rural and remote locations in Â鶹´«Ã½, the Pacific Islands and beyond.”
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The Â鶹´«Ã½ Online JD Flex is one of the few ABA-accredited, part-time, 100% online JD programs at a nationally ranked law school in the United States. In this flexible learning format, students will attend virtual classes via live and pre-recorded video lectures, participate in vigorous discussion in traditional Socratic classroom settings, as well as attend seminars and informal small group discussions, complete reading and writing assignments and have access to 24-7 technical support.
Graduates of the Â鶹´«Ã½ Online JD Flex program will become Richardson lawyers¡ªdriven legal professionals, who operate with dignity, respect and gracious civility. They will obtain the tools to evaluate legal issues through a social justice lens and the skills for effective, ethical and responsible participation as members of the legal profession. Students will graduate prepared to become leaders in business, government and the community, committed to making a better society for Â鶹´«Ã½ and beyond.
Content for the Â鶹´«Ã½ Online JD Flex program is delivered by Richardson’s law school faculty through a technology learning platform provided in partnership by .
Applications for the Â鶹´«Ã½ Online JD Flex program are now being accepted through the June 1, 2023 final application deadline. Prospective students may visit or email onlinejd@hawaii.edu for more information.