Pre-Law Certificate

What makes a good lawyer? Perhaps these traits come to mind: Someone who understands the practical contexts of legal issues, thinks analytically, loves research and complex argumentation, and communicates well with clients and courts.

While all that may be true, we see the profession in another light at George Fox: the lawyer as servant leader. For that reason, we emphasize more than what you need to “know” for law school. You will take courses that deepen your understanding of society and culture and engage in discussions focused on what a career in law can do to benefit others. And you will do so in classrooms with professors who know you by name and will do all they can to challenge you and set you up for success beyond graduation.

It’s a formula with a proven track record: Our students have attended some of the most prestigious law schools in the country, including Georgetown, Cornell University School of Law, Harvard University Law School, the University of Michigan School of Law, and the University of Notre Dame Law School.

students at the networking event

What Will I Study?

  • The Interdisciplinary Pre-Law Certificate will guide students into courses that help prepare them for law school and law practice.
  • The certificate will also provide students a means of documenting their pre-law preparation to use as an asset towards entry into law school or into any profession in which basic familiarity with the legal system is an advantage.
  • Law schools prefer that students major in a field other than law. George Fox offers numerous majors and minors in various disciplines, allowing you to create a curriculum based on your areas of interest. You can pair the Interdisciplinary Pre-Law Certificate with almost any major. Our history major is a popular choice.
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Meet Our Pre-law Advisor

Ron Mock teaching

Ron Mock

Ron Mock is Professor Emeritus of Politics and Peace Studies, and directs the George Fox University Civility Project as well as serving as the pre-law advisor. Ron has a law degree from the University of Michigan and a Masters in Public Administration from Drake University. He practiced law as a pre-hearing attorney for the Michigan Court of Appeals, and in private practice for two years in Michigan. During that time he also helped start a Christian Conciliation Service mediation program in southeastern Michigan. Ron has been teaching at George Fox for 38 years, serving as pre-law advisor for most of that time. He teaches our Introduction to Law course, and has taught Business Law and Constitutional Law, plus a legal writing course at the University of Detroit Law School.

Pre-law students are strongly encouraged to take the following classes:

  • PSCI 260 Introduction to Law
  • PSCI 353 Constitutional Law: Civil Rights and Liberties
  • BUSN 360 Business Law

Ron Davis

Harvard Law School graduate (JD), George Fox philosophy and history major

My George Fox education expanded my worldview, stimulated my curiosity and taught me the art of disciplined, thoughtful inquiry. More uniquely, my professors helped me deconstruct and reconstruct my worldview in an open, supportive, caring Christian environment that welcomed intellectual pursuits as God-honoring, rather than as a threat to established orthodoxies.