Courses

Courses in Fulfillment of the Critical Race Studies Specialization

Overview: Students are required to take six courses to complete the program, including 2 core courses, 2 courses in comparative analysis, 2 applied courses (one doctrine and one practice), as specified below.  Students must also fulfill a writing requirement by completing a 35 page paper, double-spaced.  The requirement is further described below under the subheading "CRS Writing Requirement."  The cumulative GPA within these courses must be a B- or higher in order to gain the Critical Race Studies certification.  Students can use an Externship in place of the applied practice course.

Core Courses (Required; recommended to be taken in the 2nd year)

• Civil Rights 214
• Critical Race Theory 266

Applied Courses (2 required, at least one from each list)

Applied Courses Requirement: The courses below provide a basis for applying the central themes in Critical Race Theory to specific areas of the law and to practical legal settings. The courses in “Doctrine” provide students with a sound grasp of the laws and policies that govern specific areas of practice. The courses listed in “Practice” are designed to expose students to the practical application of laws and policies to concrete social issues and actual legal settings.

CRS Writing Requirement

Students may use any of the courses listed above or any of the seminars listed below to fulfill the writing requirement.  However, the course or seminar may not be used to fulfill another specialization requirement at the same time.  In other words, there can be no double-counting of a single course to fulfill two requirements within the specialization.  The CRS paper can be used to fulfill the law school's writing requirement.  The paper must be at least 35 pages long, double-spaced and related to a topic relevant to the specialization's course of study.  All students must submit the CRS Writing Requirement form indicating how they will fulfill this requirement to the program director in advance of writing the paper.

Approved Seminars for Fulfillment of the Writing Requirement

• Comparative Welfare States 508
• Community Law Practice 510
• Entertainment and Media Law 511
• Social Welfare 512 
• Feminist Legal Philosophy 524A
• Tribal Law M528
• Youth and Justice 532
• Work, Citizenship, and the Welfare State 537
• Disability Rights 538
• Problem Solving in the Public Interest 541
• Race-conscious Remedies 545B
• Islamic Law and Human Rights 549
• Citizenship 550
• Intersectionality 553
• Race, Surveillance and Punishment 553C
• Race, Law and Representation 553D
• Law and Social Change 555
• Animal Law and Theory 556 
• Feminist Legal Theory 555B
• Latinos and the Law 561
• California Legal History 565
• American Constitutional History 565 
• CRS Writing Workshop 567
• Human Rights and Sexual Politics 584
• Sexual Orientation Seminar 592
• Laws of War and War(s) on Terror (number and description forthcoming - Spring '09)

Notes:

1. Please refer to the Schedule of Classes to determine which of the courses listed above will be offered during the current school year.

2. The course requirements list is reviewed and updated on a periodic basis by the CRS Faculty.  You are required to complete the requirements as they were published when you elected into the specialization.  However, you may petition to have a course meet certain requirements, when changes have been made after you elect into the specialization.

3. It is important that you plan your schedule with some anticipation of your plans over the last two years at UCLA School of Law.  The core courses are required and cannot be replaced by any other course under any circumstances.  If you anticipate any changes that may impact your course selection, you should set an appointment time with the CRS Program Director as soon as possible.  We encourage you to use the course planning form to plan your progress in the specialization and to turn this form into the CRS program director to ensure that your certification will appear on your law school diploma.  

Updated:  July 2008