STARKVILLE, Miss. (WJTV) – Mississippi State University (MSU) and the University of Mississippi’s (UM) School of Law signed an agreement that allows qualified MSU students to enter UM’s Juris Doctor program before fully completing an MSU bachelor’s degree.

MSU has a similar agreement with the School of Law at Mississippi College.

MSU President Mark E. Keenum and UM Chancellor Glenn Boyce signed the Memorandum of Understanding along with MSU Executive Vice President David Shaw, UM Provost Noel Wilkin, UM School of Law Dean Frederick G. Slabach, and UM School of Law Asst. Dean Joseph Tucker.

According to officials, MSU students must meet all academic and application requirements for the School of Law and complete three-fourths of their undergraduate coursework before admission to the law program to be eligible.

As part of the agreement, UM will waive application fees and other costs for MSU students applying to law school. The program will also kick-start a joint lecture series hosted by Mississippi State that features faculty and alumni from the law school.

The accelerated MSU-UM program meets requirements of the American Bar Association and will launch in 2025.

“Through this partnership, students have the unique opportunity of receiving a joint education from two of Mississippi’s universities,” said Tucker, assistant dean in the UM School of Law. “Each year, the law school receives a number of students from Mississippi State University, so we are excited to formalize a partnership.”