Trends in the selection, training and graduate profile in law: A comparative analysis from the best institutions of higher education

Abstract

The article aims to identify trends in the training of lawyers, based on the comparative analysis of the law schools that are located at the top of international rankings. It corresponds to a documentary study framed in the interpretative-hermeneutic paradigm, the qualitative approach of descriptive level and the analysis of the discourse. Three specific categories are analyzed: selection and admission to the law program, professional graduate profiles, and organizational, curricular, and pedagogical aspects. The results show that prestigious law programs are characterized by: 1) carrying out rigorous processes in the selection and admission of applicants with the support of institutional or national exams or tests, application of interviews, essay writing, letters of recommendation, portfolios presentation, among others; 2) promote comprehensive training focused on cognitive, metacognitive, and investigative abilities related to the epistemological dimension of law, mediated by individuals’ ethical, moral, humanistic, and political behavior; and 3) incorporate the pedagogical dimension as an elementary matter that strengthens the organizational and curricular processes.